Lessons Drawn from Bayan Al-Ishrein (The Leaflet of the Twenty)
By Dr. Adel Samara

When Ramallah was put under PA control, many Palestinians visited the
jail where Israelis had tortured them. I did not. I was not sure that
I would not be arrested again – in the same place where I had sat as
a prisoner five times between 1963-1978. Now it has happened. Once more,
in late November this year, I found myself in Ramallah jail – and not as
a guest of honor.

In its response to the Manifesto of the Twenty, the PA appeared
panic-stricken. It is strange enough to arrest people for voicing
their political and social ideas. The PA, however, made an even
more dangerous mistake when it pushed its supporters to demonstrate
on its behalf in the center of Ramallah. In that "loyalist"
demonstration, dozens of masked youth shot in the air. The next day
Dr. Mu'awiyya Al-Masri, a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council
(PLC), was shot in the leg. A few days later, the Palestinian Secret
Security gave a beating to PLC member Abdel Jawad Saleh (see article???).
Let us suppose – against the evidence – that the PA itself did not order
the attacks. Even so, by allowing reckless shooting at its demonstration,
the PA encourages its supporters to take the law in their own hands.

The PA’s extreme reaction was counterproductive, giving our Manifesto
much more publicity than it would otherwise have had. What could have
been an isolated action by twenty personalities became the center of
public discussion.

PA officials claimed we were the pawns of Syrian propaganda, although
none of us respect any current Arab regime. Activists on the Palestinian
Left refrained from taking an unambiguous stand on the matter. Instead,
they aired the notion that some of us were merely seeking attention or
trying to pressure the PA to silence us by giving us posts. I strongly
believe that if a revolutionary intellectual wants to stay independent,
he or she must never be bound materially to the regime. In my case, such
a danger does not exist: even the Palestinian academic world has
blacklisted me as a Marxist/nationalist.

Certain lessons should be drawn from the events surrounding the
appearance of the Manifesto:

First: In the course of taking power in the Territories, the Palestinian
leadership had to make the transition from military body to political
organization. The PA, nonetheless, clings to the old military mentality.
It must come to understand, however, that unlike military cadres, our
society in the West Bank and Gaza does not depend upon it for a livelihood.
We are not an item on a payroll. Accordingly, it is the PA, as a regime,
that needs to prove its competence to the people – not vice-versa.

As a corollary: our Palestinian people must realize that the national
struggle cannot be limited to the military level. The Manifesto is a
small step toward diverting the struggle for liberty to its full social,
political and economic aspects.

Second: Much criticism has been directed toward the twenty signers from
those who support the Manifesto. Some note that more people should have
had the chance to sign. This is correct. It is a bitter fact, however,
that the Manifesto was launched by a mere twenty individuals because the
Palestinian opposition is so weak. A handful of people did the job of the
political parties.

Third: We must confront our socioeconomic realities. Economically
dependent regimes, like the PA, do not find it necessary to breed
democracy and basic liberties, whereas a modern developed economy
can scarcely keep growing without them. In weak, under-industrialized
nations, the regime tends to use tyranny in order to mask its economic
incompetence. Given a lack of civil and democratic rights, other subjective
factors can help fill the need, such as an active intelligentsia, an
opposition press, and education.

The Manifesto was an attempt to introduce such a factor. Our efforts
will remain straws in the wind, however, until there are strong
opposition parties to back them up and fight for democracy.

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