"Continuing Arafat's legacy" Aref Assaf, Bergen Record, 11/13/04
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's legacy will always be his embodiment of the
Palestinian perseverance and aspirations for national sovereignty and freedom
from Israeli's military occupation. Regardless of how history will judge him,
Arafat was the only national leader most of Palestine knew.
Notwithstanding, I believe that the Palestinian struggle is a long one,
unfettered by the physical fate of any one man.
As the president's absence is more widely felt, only the political faction able
to implement that message will succeed in not only curbing public discontent and
unease but also, and more importantly, in the needed mandate to lead the
Palestinian people.
It is important to note that Arafat's death will not affect the core
underpinnings of the Palestinian-Israel conflict. We will still have more than
3.5 million Palestinians languishing under a merciless Israeli occupation.
Israeli will continue to expand its confiscation of Arab lands to build
Jewish-only settlements. Millions of Palestinians remain outside of their
ancestral homeland unable to return to their homes since 1948.
The road to peace was never blocked by Arafat's rule over his people. Peace and
security will only be realized when Israel ends its occupation of the
Palestinian lands irrespective of who speaks for the Palestinians.
Aref Assaf
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