UNITED NATIONS ASIAN AND PACIFIC MEETING IN SUPPORT OF ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN PEACE

“International efforts at addressing the obstacles to the two-State solution – the role of Asian and Pacific governmental and non-governmental actors”

Bangkok, 10 and 11 July 2012

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CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY

PLENARY III

Support by Asia and the Pacific for a comprehensive, just and lasting settlement of the question of Palestine

Paper presented by

Mr. Walden Bello Member of the House of Representatives

of the Republic of the Philippines Manila

CPR/APM/2012/9

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A Palestinian State: what Asia Pacific governments can do

to help bring this about

For over six decades, the legitimate aspiration of the Palestinian people for a state of their

own has been thwarted by Israeli military force, backed by US military aid and pro-Israeli

diplomacy. This intransigence on the part of Israel and its main backer has been the central

cause of instability and conflict in the Middle East.

Even as it has obstructed the formation of a Palestinian state, Israel has carried out a

policy of supporting the expansion of Israeli settlements on the West Bank. The Palestinian are

increasingly being herded into “Bantustans,” a process similar to that which transpired in White

South Africa. Palestinian territory is steadily shrinking. While the US loudly calls on Israel to

halt the establishment of new settlements, the fact is, it does nothing to stop it. Not only is action

in the form of cutting off military aid to Israel not forthcoming. The Obama administration has,

in fact, increased military aid to Israel by $680 million in 2012. With a blank check for military

aid from Washington, no wonder the Netanyahu government pays no attention to the Obama

administration’s faint calls on it to stop expanding its illegal settlements.

With the Netanyahu government blocking the peace process, the Palestinian people have

felt compelled to take their case for the setting up of a state of their own to the United Nations.

The United States knew that the peace process was frozen owing to Israeli intransigence, but it

opposed the Palestinian UN initiative. Owing to US arm-twisting, France and Britain said they

would abstain, thus depriving the Palestinians from getting the nine of the 15 votes they needed

at the Security Council for the motion to prosper. But even if they got that number, President

Obama threatened to use the US veto to kill it.

I think we can safely say that both in an out of the United Nations, the Israeli tail is

wagging the American dog. President Obama’s promise at the beginning of his term to get the

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peace process moving has been simply that: a promise that has not been kept, largely due to his

fear of losing the Jewish vote.

The most solid allies of the Palestinian people have always been the developing

countries. The reason is that most of us have struggled for our independence, because we knew

that unless we had a state of our own, our people would remain powerless. They would never be

truly free. This is why we have a special responsibility, a special mission to assist the Palestinian

people achieve a just and lasting peace and true independence.

A just and lasting peace would have as a conditio sine qua non the recognition of the

right of return of Palestinians to the lands that were taken away from them by Israelis. True

independence would also have as an essential condition the establishment of a Palestinian state.

We in government can do a lot to promote a just peace and a Palestinian state.

It is good news that 134 states now recognize Palestine as a state.

For those governments in the Asia Pacific that now extend recognition, the next step

obviously is the establishment of full diplomatic relations with the Palestinian sovereign entity

representing both the West Bank and Gaza.

For those of us who belong to governments that do not yet recognize Palestine like the

Philippines, we can push our parliaments to support a resolution in support of recognizing

Palestine and mandate our executive to find ways to help make this a reality.

We can also push for the creation within our foreign ministries of an Office for

Palestinian Affairs that will establish and coordinate relations with the Palestinian administrative

entities in the West Bank and Gaza. We can also facilitate the establishment of Palestinian

diplomatic offices though these may have less than Embassy rank pending full recognition.

We can work to get ASEAN to adopt a common position supporting the immediate

establishment of a Palestinian state.

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Finally, let me support what Mr. Malki, the Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister, said

yesterday: we can get our governments to support a boycott of imports from and exports to the

illegal settlements Israel is establishing in Palestinian territory.

All of these moves will be important steps on the way to mustering a critical mass of

global support for a lasting peace settlement and the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Let me end by saying that justice and plain human decency demand a just settlement and

the creation of a Palestinian state. We in the Asia-Pacific should do our share in bringing this

about.

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