Public Protest In Ramallah And Fears Of 'Palestinian Spring'

Introduction

In recent weeks, there has been concern in the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Gaza over the possible advent of a "Palestinian Spring," after PA security forces used excessive force in dispersing demonstrations. The violent suppression of the protests, against a planned visit to Ramallah by the head of Israel's Kadima party, Shaul Mofaz, sparked intense public outcry against the PA.

Criticism Over Suppression Of Protests

June 30, 2012 Demonstration in Ramallah[1]

Shaul Mofaz was to meet with PA President Mahmoud 'Abbas in the Muqata'a (the PA's administrative center in Ramallah) on July 1, 2012. On June 30 and again July 1, young Palestinian activists held Facebook-organized protests against the visit, which were violently suppressed by security officers armed with clubs and even pistols, some of them in plainclothes. A number of protestors were arrested and even beaten, and some of the protesters required medical attention. The security forces also detained reporters and seized their cameras. The events were recorded by reporters and human rights activists. The Independent Commission for Human Rights (ICHR) issued a report on the incident, which was submitted by the organization's director, Ahmad Harb, to PA Interior Minister Sa'id Abu 'Ali.[2]

The violence employed by the security officers, some of whom were also injured, sparked an outcry in various Palestinian circles. Ironically, some of the harshest condemnations came from Hamas officials and websites, who tend to ignore similar tactics when employed by Hamas against protesters in Gaza. For example, Hamas Political Bureau Deputy Head Moussa Abu Marzouq criticized the security forces' excessive use of force. However, condemnations were also heard from PA officials, who called to punish those responsible for the violence.

On a PLO-affiliated website, journalist Dalia Al-'Afifi wrote that the conduct of the security forces was causing the public to lose faith in Fatah, and was thus paving the way for a Hamas takeover of the West Bank. She added: "The funny thing is that we used to hear almost daily condemnations by Fatah officials of Hamas' crimes and oppression of the Gazans."[3]

In response to the public outcry, PA President Mahmoud 'Abbas established an independent committee, headed by Mounib Al-Masri, a businessman long affiliated with Fatah, to investigate the events. The committee also included ICHR director Ahmad Harb and PLO Executive Committee member Wasel Abu Yousef.[4] 'Abbas also issued a presidential statement that attempted to maintain neutrality between the protesters and the security forces: he expressed commitment to free speech and clarified that Palestinian law protects this right, but also stressed the need to maintain law and order and to respect the security services and refrain from harming them.[5]

PA Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said his government would see to it that such incidents did not recur.[6] PLO Executive Committee member Hanan 'Ashrawi condemned the suppression of the protests, emphasizing the right to hold non-violent protests and to voice an opinion. She called to punish those responsible and grant protection to reporters.[7]

Following the criticism, the security services refrained from interfering when, on July 3, hundreds of activists demonstrated, chanting slogans against the Oslo Accords and the security coordination with Israel that are usually heard only at Hamas and Popular Front demonstrations.[8] At a demonstration of journalists in Ramallah, the secretary of the Journalists' Union, 'Abd Al-Nasser Al-Najjar, said: "Freedom of speech and of opinion is a sacred right that is anchored in law. Any aggression against these freedoms jeopardizes and harms [our] national cause."[9]

Hamas took the opportunity to stage a demonstration in solidarity with its political prisoners incarcerated in PA jails.[10]

A Palestinian Spring?

The protests in Ramallah reflect the frustration felt in Palestinian society, especially among the younger generation, which stems from a number of factors, including: the deadlock and resulting freeze in the peace process; the non-implementation of the Fatah-Hamas reconciliation agreement, for which each side blames the other, and Hamas's apparent withdrawal from this agreement, as manifest in its recent announcement that it has suspended the work of the Central Elections Commission; the economic crisis and the recent announcement by the Palestinian finance minister that the PA would not be able to pay salaries for the month of June; and a sense of deteriorating public security following assassination attempts against two PA officials: former Jenin governor Qadoura Moussa[11] and Legislative Council member from Fatah Shami Al-Shami. In these circumstances, the PA's violence against the demonstrators sparked intense fury both inside and outside the West Bank.

Even though the PA is not a full-blown state, and therefore has a different status than the Arab regimes, many compared the protests in Ramallah to the Arab Spring protests against these regimes. Al-Ayyam columnist Hani Al-Masri wrote that the rage expressed by the people and the politicians had caused Mofaz's visit to be canceled. This, he said, was proof that, if the Palestinians stood firm while avoiding violence and mutual accusations of treason and heresy, they would achieve full victory. He added: "After the revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt, the spirit of Tahrir [Square] is hanging in the Arab skies, and nobody can turn back the wheel of history."[12] In another article, Al-Masri wrote: "The signs of emerging oppression and dictatorship, which the [Fatah-Hamas] schism made clearer, are sometimes more blatant and sometimes less. But if they are not eliminated, they will threaten the entire Palestinian arena in this era of revolutions and the toppling of corrupt and tyrannical regimes."[13]

Former minister for prisoner affairs Ashraf Al-'Ajrami wrote: "What happened recently shows that the lesson of the Arab revolutions has not been learned... When rage builds up, the state apparatuses must allow people to vent it and must display flexibility and patience, because oppression only leads to explosion and yields results opposite from those intended. When the [Palestinian] Authority oppresses the public it ends up harming itself."[14]

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West Bank columnist Lama Khater wrote on a Hamas-affiliated website: "The West Bank is currently experiencing a real autumn [rather than a spring, as manifest in] its state of paralysis and inability to maneuver, while other [countries] continue to experience a spring that heralds changes to come..." Addressing the PA leadership, she warned: "The fuse of our mounting rage is in your hands, and you must either put it out or let it burn. If you [choose the latter option], you will be the first to burn."[15]

Ibrahim Hamami, also affiliated with Hamas, recalled that 'Abbas had once said that if even two Palestinians ever protested against him, he would be the third man to join the protest and call out "the people want to oust 'Abbas." Hamami remarked that he had never expected 'Abbas to keep this promise, and added: "If [the PA leaders] do not step down willingly, the Palestinian people will soon remove them, and then they will not be able to avoid being prosecuted.[16]

Protest in Ramallah[17]

The secretary-general of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), Naif Hawatma, explicitly called on the Palestinian youth and women to take to the streets with the slogan "The People Demand to End the [Fatah-Hamas] Schism." He added that, if the leaders fail to heed this demand, this slogan must be replaced with another: "The People Want to Oust The [Leaders] Of Schism."[18]

Some took the usual step of directing their rage against the occupation. Al-Hayat Al-Jadida columnist Mahmoud Abu Al-Hija wrote: "Our compass in this struggle should point towards Israel. The Palestinians do not have much choice but to hold dialogue [among themselves]. The people's rage will be legitimate only if it is directed at the occupation."[19] A Hamas-affiliated website posted an article by Dr. Youssef Rizqa, media advisor to Hamas Prime Minister Isma'il Haniya, titled "Has the Jerusalem Spring Arrived?" In it, he said that the Arab Spring had started in Jerusalem (with the Second Intifada), and that, unless it returned there, the Arab Spring and the revolutions would be meaningless. He added that the revolutions would not stop until the Arab spring arrived in Palestine despite Israel's superiority in arms.[20]

A columnist in the PA daily Al-Ayyam, Rami Mehadawi, wrote that first there must be a "spring" (i.e., reforms) within the Palestinian political parties and factions, and only then should the Palestinians think of broader changes.[21] Columnist Rajab Abu Suraya wrote that the economic crisis was weakening the PA, and that its lack of economic independence may be a disadvantage should it have to deal with a revolution.[22] Columnist Nivin Muhaisen wrote on a Fatah-affiliated website that what is happening in Palestine, Syria and elsewhere has caused the Palestinians, especially their leaders, to lose sight of the distinction between Arabs and Jews, because killings and abductions of Arabs have become commonplace: "Blood is being spilled and people are being murdered, while others stand idly by..." She added: "Don't we, the people, have the right to lead the revolution?"[23]

* C. Jacob is a research fellow at MEMRI.