Forum:Political committee
Issue: Addressing the petition of Palestine for independence
Student Officer:Caroline Maschka
Position:Mentor Chair
Disclaimer:This is a fictional situation, in real life the Palestinian Authority has not petitioned forindependence to the UN. You are here to discuss the how, consequences and differentoptions regarding ahypothetical simulated circumstance: Palestine’s petition for statehood recognition and acceptance as full-fledged member of the United Nations
Introduction:
The United Nations adopted the resolution 181, Partition Resolution, on November 29, 1947, which divided the Palestinian territory into a Jewish and Arab state. Since then conflict and tension has been raging between the two groups. The PLO (Palestinian Liberation Organisation) was established in 1964; it combines all Arab organizations together to advocate for Palestinian liberation. In 1974, Many Arab head of states recognized the PLO as the governing body of Palestine and they were an official part of the Arab League by 1976. Although, no real borders were ever established many Palestinians consider the Armistice Line of 1949, otherwise known as the Green Line as a “guideline” border. It will be further explained later, as the territorial issues are complex. Nonetheless, it is important to know that Palestinian territory is considered the Golan Heights, West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza strip. However, there are about 500,000 Jews living in settlements in the Palestine territory. Palestinians call these areas the occupied territories, however Israel disputes that they are ‘occupying’ The UN does not formerly recognize Palestine as a member nation, which is important to keep in mind during the debate. Thus the debate will be a fictional situation in which the PLO has pledge to be an independent nation to the UN. Your debate will be surrounding the issue on the process of making (or not) the pledge occur by figuring out the territorial issues, how to discuss with Israel, what countries or parties should be involved, and etc.
Definition of Key Terms
Green Line
It is also known as the armistice line of 1949 which is a demarcation line after the Arab-Israeli war in 1948. Israel fought Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt and other Arab nations and these were the de facto border they agreed upon. It is important to note that this is not a real border and was never set out to be in the peace agreement. This is not to say that the demarcation line isn’t of any importance, since it is the last recognised division of territory between the two parties. After the 6 Day War, Israel took over parts of the land which was originally determined Palestinian with the Green Line.
Border vs. Demarcation line
A demarcation line is a “border” which is agreed upon in a peace settlement, however it isn’t always internationally recognized, and merely serves as a guideline. In comparison to a border, which separates two countries and is internationally recognised. As many Arab countries do not recognize Israel as a country, and Israel doesn’t consider Palestine a country either, it is complicated to make an official border.
Background Information
Palestine’s participation in the UN:
In November of 2012, the UN’s GA passed a motion which changed Palestine's status from not being part of the UN, to a "non-member observer state". Additionally, the UN has recognised the PLO as the representative body of the Palestinian people. In April of 1989, Palestine pledged membership to the WHO, which failed because the US threatened to withdraw its funding if Palestine was admitted. Similar applications by Palestine were made to other organisations that same year, all of which failed due to the US threatening to suspend the funding of the organization if admitted Palestine. Palestine also withdrew its bid to join UNESCO in 2015
Israeli and Palestinian conflicts
1948: Arab-Israeli War
After the declaration of independence of the state of Israel, Palestine and its Arab allies attacked causing the Arab-Israeli war. Israel won the war, and in the process expanded further than its UN designated border, which has led to about 7 mill. Palestinian refugees to this day. The territory left for Palestinians was the Gaza, controlled by Egypt, and the West Bank, controlled by Jordan. The peace agreement to settle this war lead to the creation of the Green Line.
1967: 6 Day War
The 6 Day War was fought between Israel and the Arab states such as Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan. Israel gained control of all the Palestinian territory, as well as new land: The Sinai Peninsula (Egypt) and Northern Golan Heights (Syria). The Sinai Peninsula was eventually given back to Egypt in a peace treaty, starting the end of the wider Arab conflicts against Israel, and leaving Palestine to fight on its own. Israel was still controlling all the Palestinian territories, and thus was control of people they had been at war against for decades.
PLO fights Israel
The PLO fought Israel, demanding the termination of the state and the return of all the British mandate of Palestine to be for Palestinians only. Conflict against the two went on, and Israel even invaded Lebanon to end the PLO in its quarter in Beirut. Later in the 1980’s in Gaza another group of Palestinians was created called Hamas, which is very dangerous.
1st and 2nd Intifada (Uprising) 1987 & 2000
The 1st intifada consisted of street and gang violence against Israelis, which the government responded with force. The 2nd Intifada from 2000-2005 was caused because of the Palestinian loss of hope for peace and for the Two-State solution. This caused around 32,000 Palestinian and 1000 Israeli deaths.
The Territorial issues
The Settlers
After the 6 Day War, Israel gained control over all the Palestinian territories, including the Golan Heights, West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem. This led Israelis to start to move into these areas, due to religious and political beliefs that it was their territory. The land there is also a lot cheaper due to government subsidies (the government makes it cheaper to live there). The increasing of Israeli settlements forced Palestinian natives off their land, which makes them feel like their rights are being violated. A big issue is that it makes the creation of an independent state more difficult, due to there being no clear cut line between Israeli and Palestinian territories.
This image shows the Israeli settlements (yellow and grey triangles) in the Palestine territory (green).
The Oslo accords:
The Oslo accords was the first attempted step towards Peace between the two parties. It divided the Palestinian territory into 3 sections:
●Area A (yellow-beige): Palestinian Civil and Security self-rule, only ministered by Palestine
●Area B (pink) : Palestinian Civil and Israeli security, shared control
●Area C (everything white within the green line): Israel controls all security and almost all governance, area of settlers, all control for Israel .This was the first move to potentially remove Israeli authority of the Palestinian territories. However, it still keeps most of the control both security and governing to Israel.
This image shows only the West Bank and the different Zones, and the Barrier.
The Barrier (otherwise known as the Wall):
This barrier was started to be constructed in 2002, when Israel claims to face suicide bombings from Palestinians. It was thus supposed to stop these attackers from entering, which is why now Israelis require special permission to enter into their side of the barrier. This impedes the flow of Palestinians, who need to cross the barrier daily in order to go to school, the market or work.. The issue is that 85% of the barrier is constructed on Palestinian land in the West Bank, and thus blocks many kids from going to school and has taken away land from farmers, as it now lies on the other side of the barrier which reaches a max. height of 8m. The ICJ (International Court of Justice) ruled the wall as illegal, however, the wall hasn’t been destructed, but instead the government has developed further plans expand the wall. While the number of attacks in Israel has decreased since its construction, it violates human rights of the Palestinians.
Jerusalem:
The issue of jerusalem is also very important, as both sides of the conflict see this as their city. This is because there are very important symbols and buildings for both Islam and Judaism in and around city. The UN has named it an international city, meaning that neither of the sides own it. However, when dealing with territorial issues, this is a very important one to tackle.
The Israeli willingness to cooperate:
Since the 2nd Intifada, the Israeli government has been moving to the direction of anti two-state solution. Moreover, the most violence against Israelis come from Hamas and other terror groups in the Gaza, which aren’t part of the PLO (this is very important to keep in mind! although some have said that there are links between the two, the PLO has denied that). Palestine has recognised that there had been several tries to make peace since then, however none have been of success. Furthermore, Israel itself is such a small country that it is such small pieces of land which are fought over.
Major Countries and Organizations Involved
PLO (Palestinian Liberation Organization)
The PLO is the recognized representative of Palestinians by Israel, therefore are a major role in the process of the creation of a two-state solution. Although the PLO was suspected of Israel to terrorism and violent attacks against israelis, they have changed their form of advocacy to being more diplomatic, and have denied any ties with the Palestinian group Hamas, which has been causing violence in the Gaza.
Israel
As Israel is currently the governing body over Palestinians, they do not recognise Palestinians as an independent group of people. It is therefore highly important that these issues will be addressed in the discussions following the PLO’s pledge. Furthermore, because of the barrier more Palestinians have become more economically dependent on Israel, further proving the its role in the consequences to PLO’s request.
Arab league
The Arab League, consisting of Lebanon, Egypt, Jordan and Syria, is a long-term ally with Palestine, and have participated in several wars in order to protect their fellow Arabs. After the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty, most of the other countries followed suit, leading the tension between Arab countries and Israel to cool down over the last couple of years. Nevertheless, it is important to keep in mind their role, the have played and would continue to play, in protecting and negotiating things about Palestine.
United States
The US is considered one of Israel's closest allies, which is why they play a significant role in the agreement on the settlement. They not only have a strong political alliance but are also vital trade partners as well, especially in the weapon business. The US has, nonetheless, also helped Palestinians by aiding its poor population, and recognizing the PLO as the representative body of Palestinians. The US had also played the role of a peace maker between the two, and has brought them together several times to come to a solution. In December of this year the Israeli-American relationship took a turn when the US abstained on a resolution going against the settlements going away. Furthermore with the new Trump cabinet, who are strong pro-Israel and against a two-state-solution, their relationship is facing change. With the adding of Palestine to the UN, the US might fulfill its earlier threats to withdraw fundings from the organisation.
Timeline of Events
Date / Description of eventNovember 29, 1947 / Adoption of Resolution 181 by the UN - creation of Israel and Palestine
1948 / Arab-Israeli war
1964 / The Arab League creates the PLO
1967 / Six Day War
1968-1970 / PLO uses Lebanon and Jordan to launch attacks against Israel
1972 / Palestinian gunmen take the Israeli Olympic team hostage
1973 / Yom Kippur War: Israel invades Lebanon to destroy the PLO
June 1974 / More extreme violent groups split from the PLO, as they trying to pursue more peaceful negotiating
October 1974 / Arab league recognises PLO as the only legitimate representation of Palestinians, and it joins the league
1977 / A more far-right party wins the election, encouraging settlement in Palestinian Territories
September 1978 / Israel promises the increase of Palestinian authority in the West Bank and Gaza, with its peace deal with Egypt
June 1982 / Israel invades Lebanon to expel the PLO
1982-1985 / Further violence from both sides
December 1987 / First Palestinian Intifada uprising and Hamas is created in the Gaza
October 1991 / US-Soviet organised conference in Madrid brings the PLO and Israeli leader together for the first time since 1949
May-July 1992 / Israel retracts settlement in Gaza and a city in Westbank
December 1992 / Yasser Arafat (leader of PLO), Yitzhak Rabin (Israeli prime minister) and Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres receive the Nobel Peace Prize
September 1993 / Both sign the Oslo Declaration to plan Palestinian self-governance and end the First Intifada.
1995 / The internationally founded the “Road Map for Peace”, which planned for further power and territory given to the Palestinians
2000-2001 / Disagreement over the new date limit for the retraction of settlements leade the the second Intifada
March 2002 / The Barrier is started to be constructed
July 2004 / ICJ rules the barrier as illegal, as it violates the human rights of the Palestinian people, thus it must be removed
September 2005 / Israel withdraws all settlements, military etc from Gaza, due to the ongoing conflict
2006-2007 / Escalating violence between Hamas and Israel, leading Israel and Egypt to blockade the area
November 2007 / US hosted Annapolis conference comes up with the “two-state” solution
2011 / The Palestinian National Authority pleas to be considered a state by the UN, and thus be an official member, in means of highlighting the interruption of talks with Israel. The UN turns it down.
November 2012 / UN admits Palestine as a "non-member observer state"
2013 / New peace talks organised by the US. Palestine however says that the American support of the occupied territories (where the Israeli settlements are) undermine the process
2014 / Violence escalates again
2016 / US abstains on a resolution against Israeli settlements in Palestine territory, which is a big change in their relationship. The UN calls the settlements illegal.
Relevant UN Treaties and Events
When listing past UN Resolutions, it is suggested that you make use of bullet points and the specified format below:
●Resolution 194, 11 November 1948, 194
●Resolution 273, 11 May 1949, (A/RES/273)
●Resolution 356, 10 December 1949, (A/RES/356)
●Report of the United Nations Conciliation Commission for Palestine, 26 January 1952
●Resolution 1002, 7 November 1956, (A/RES/1002)
oThere are a lot of resolutions regarding the issue of the Sinai Peninsula and the recommended Israeli withdrawal. This is just one of them.
●Resolution 1315, 12 December 1958, (A/RES/1315)
oThis is again one of many resolutions about the issue of Palestinian refugees
●Resolution 3210, 14 October 1974, (A/RES/3210)
oFirst GA in which the PLO is able to participate
●Resolution 3414, 5 December 1975, (A/RES/3414)
●Resolution 2334, 23 December 2016, (A/RES/2334)
Previous Attempts to solve the Issue
As stated earlier, there have been several tries to admit the PLO to the UN and its bodies, which have all failed because of different reasons.
Oslo Accords 1 & 2:
These accords have been heavily criticised for their failure and lack of determination to solve the issue. The first accords required mutual recognition, a palestinian government to govern their territory, and slow withdrawal of Israeli control. Moreover, the PLO had to recognise Israel as a state without Israel recognizing Palestinian statehood. After the Oslo 2 Accords, Palestinians gained territory and ownership of some cities in the Westbank.
The Green line:
This is the last “border” which both sides of the parties agreed upon. It has since then been expanded over, but that doesn’t make it loose it significance, as it is the last accepted “line” demarcating the borders. It tried to mark out the territory, and end territorial issues.
Roadmap agreement
This agreement was divided into 3 phases all with due dates:
●Phase I (finished as early as May 2003): Called for mutual recognition, an immediate ceasefire to end the 2nd Intifada, election in Palestine, withdrawal from land gained after 28th September 2000 (no further withdrawal is mentioned), halt the settlement expansion and take down the settlements built from 2001 onwards.
●Phase II (June–December 2003): The creation of an independent Palestinian state with a provisional borders, division and further discussions on resources, refugees, etc, and reset of relations between Israel and other Arab states
●Phase III (2004–2005): It requires a second international conference with a permanent status agreement and end of conflict. Additionally, an agreement on final borders, including the clarification of the highly controversial question of the fate of Jerusalem, refugees and settlements.
This agreement is clearly not the most successful as the time limits have yet to be reached, even though they have long been surpassed. However, the phases with gradual change was a good attempt to solve such a big problem as this.
Possible Solutions
Settlements
Something needs to be done with the settlements, and depending on your country thwy can either be in support or against the stop of the settlements. The truth is that the settlements are hurting the peace process, as it makes it harder and harder to draw a border-line, the more settlements come up. Whether the solution is gradual or immediate (or none at all) removal of the settlements, they need to be dealt with