At this year’s (July 5–6–7) Anti-Racist Festival in Athens, there was a heated exchange over the question of Palestine, which we presented in detail in the article titled “Athens Anti-Racist Festival: An important but also controversial discussion on Palestine”.
In the beginning of September Xekinima, the Greek section of ISp, received a letter by one of three young men who described themselves as “Palestinians from Gaza”, and who in the course of the exchange in the Antiracist Festival demanded that the speakers who came from Israel (see below) should not be allowed to speak. Xekinima published the letter (which can be read on by automatic translation), here.
Eleni Mitsou, from Xekinima, interviewed comrade Mihiar Ektami, president of the “Union of Palestinian Workers in Greece” and a member of the Central Committee of the “Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine” (DFLP) about the issues that came up in the event at the Antiracist Festival and in the written exchanges that followed.
- Comrade Mihiar, during the Athens Anti-Racist Festival in July, there was a very interesting discussion on the Palestinian issue, featuring among the speakers an Israeli member of Knesset (Israeli parliament) from the left wing alliance “Hadash”, Offer Cassif, and Solafa Mahoul, a Palestinian resident of Israel and also a member of Hadash. You were part of the team that organised the discussion and the person who contacted Hadash.
Some people wondered why we invited representatives from Hadash (that is, the Democratic Front for Peace and Equality). The Palestinian issue has many facets. One aspect of them, dating back to 1948, concerns the territory of present-day Israel, in the following sense: Following the Nakba of 1948, 130,000 Palestinians remained in the Palestinian territories now known as “Israel.” Today, their number has reached approximately 2 million, constituting 21% of the population. A fundamental policy of Zionism has always been to separate Jews from Palestinians. It began when settlements were established in Palestinian territories [note: before 1948] through the purchase of land and the prohibition of Palestinians from working on Zionist farms.
The most serious wing of the Palestinian movement understood that it had to challenge this policy, and so the part of the movement that remained in Israel began to develop relations with Jews. They had to find a common ground on which to participate together in struggles for democracy, social progress, and so on – and, of course, for the national rights of the Palestinians.
That was only natural. Palestinians within “Israel” have suffered two forms of oppression: class oppression and national oppression, because even today they are not recognized as a national minority. They are treated as second, or third-class citizens.
A few days ago, for example, the “Central Elections Committee” decided to ban the “Arab Lists” from participating in the upcoming parliamentary elections [note: in the weeks that followed this was overturned by court decision]. These are the parties that represent and defend the rights of Palestinians. This attempted ban should outrage every person with democratic ideas. It clearly shows how false the claim is that Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East…
- They first targeted Offer Cassif, a Jewish member of Knesset from Hadash, a party that consists of both Palestinians and Jewish Israelis, right?
Exactly! And that brings us to why we insist on maintaining good relations with pro-democracy and progressive activists within Israel. Because you have to start making friends and allies on the “other side”.
Hadash says that the path to peace is the recognition of the Palestinian state. They focus all their political efforts on the recognition of the Palestinian state – that is, on the immediate establishment of a Palestinian entity within the historic territory of Palestine, which will “preserve” the existence of the Palestinians and defend their national rights. Hadash campaigns for the repatriation of refugees; Palestinian self-determination; and the creation of an independent Palestinian state.
The Hadash representatives who attended the anti-racist festival in Athens earlier this year, defended these positions. They firmly believe that the solution lies in the recognition of the Palestinian state. Let us make it clear here that neither we (DFLP) nor Hadash support solutions such as those proposed by the U.S. We have a completely different position.
Is the creation of an independent Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza a fair solution? No, it is not entirely fair. But it is a start, and it paves the way for dialogue between the two entities living in Palestine. Mutual understanding begins when both sides recognize the other’s right to exist. Of course, what is being challenged right now is not the existence of the state of Israel and its right to exist. The state of Israel was founded by British colonialism. It clearly began on entirely flawed foundations. But since then, 78 years have passed. There started to be a population that knows no other homeland.
We Palestinians have been left without a state, and that is what we are fighting to achieve. We are fighting for our own state because we are currently under attack through displacement, ethnic cleansing, and genocide – not only in Gaza but also in the West Bank. They want to wipe out the Palestinians from the historic land of Palestine.
We will not accept being wiped out of our homeland. And we cannot accept a peace that is imposed upon us. That is not a solution; it is a continuation of the same problem. The solution lies, first and foremost, in ending the occupation, implementing UN resolutions, allowing the refugees to return, ensuring the self-determination of the Palestinian people, and establishing an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital.
Hadash also supports these causes and it is the only mass party that includes both Arabs and Jews among its ranks. It is also not a new party, but was founded in 1977 by Palestinians, Jews, the Israeli Black Panthers [note: poor Jews from North Africa and the Middle East], and others. Joint fronts between Palestinians and Israelis had, of course, existed before. The first joint electoral front was in 1974, when Tawfiq Ziad ran for mayor of Nazareth.
Today, Offer Cassif, who is of Jewish descent, is becoming a leading figure within Hadash, and this is something useful and important. We need other Jewish voices to be heard, beyond those of the Zionists, Jewish voices that defend the national rights of the Palestinians. The efforts of people with democratic ideas within Israel must be supported. They are our allies, not our adversaries.
- There are people and political organizations that reject the two-state solution, even as a transitional situation.
When we began to put forward the demands for repatriation, self-determination, and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza, we did so because we knew the circumstances in which we were operating and the balance of power. These demands were not coming out of thin air but were a concrete way to counter the Zionist plans.
There are tactical issues, and there is a strategic goal. To achieve the strategic goal –that is, for Arabs and Jews to create a truly democratic society in such a small space– different conditions are needed. First and foremost, we must eliminate the power and hegemony of imperialism. Israel is a creation of imperialism – a creation of the British Empire that the U.S. “inherited.” Τhey created it so as to control the trade routes, the region’s energy reserves, and so on.
But to defeat imperialist domination in our region, the struggle of the Palestinian people alone is not enough.
To achieve our strategic goal, we need the correct tactics. This includes finding allies on the “other side,” within “Israeli” society. And together with them, we must push for a solution that leaves open the possibility of a truly just solution in the future. Are we going to discourage these forces within Israel instead of encouraging them? In other words, are we going to equate these people with the Zionists simply because they are Jewish? That is foolish. We must join forces and move forward together.
- Are there other forces within Israel besides Hadash that are fighting for Palestinian rights?
Yes, there are, and new forces are emerging – alliances against war and genocide; conscientious objectors; reservist organizations; community organizations; and volunteers who defend Palestinian homes and villages from settler attacks, among others.
These processes are moving forward at a slow but steady pace. A segment of Israeli society is coming to realize the reality of the situation. They understand the need to find a genuine solution that grants Palestinians their national rights and the establishment of an independent state. Should we discourage these movements and these people instead of encouraging them?
That is why inviting these forces to the anti-racist festival in Athens was important, so they could come and speak. They are part of the struggle for the liberation of the Palestinian people. They are neither outside our struggle nor opposed to it. We are fighting together against the occupation, against fascism, and for a peaceful solution. I feel that Offer honored us by accepting the invitation to come – and on a personal level, he honored me as well.
- There is a view that, in order to remain consistent with their defence of Palestinian rights, these forces must leave Israel.
This is wrong. They must stay there and fight. This isn’t 1948, today in Israel we have an already established society. By leaving, they would be abandoning the fight, they would be running away…
- That’s what Offer Cassif said at the discussion during the anti-racist festival. That if they leave, there will be no one left to defend the rights of the Palestinians.
Precisely. And not just the rights of the Palestinians, but also those of the Jewish people. Israeli society isn’t classless. Is what the Zionists claim actually true? Those who say there are no classes in Israel are either naive or are saying it on purpose to reinforce their own narrative. It’s completely false.
Israel is a class-based society. Even Israel’s approach to settlements is based on class stratification. The Israeli state typically brings in desperate people from all over the world who –as a rule– are seeking relief. It distorts their conscience and turns them into criminals and murderers. This is a class-based practice.
Anyone who believes that Israeli society is not a class-based society is just not acquainted with the ideas of the Left, they are simply 100% nationalist.
We hear news about Palestine every day. But if someone wants a serious approach and analysis, they must turn to the ideas of the Left. Of course, there is also a segment of the Left that has nationalist roots and cannot accept the changes that have taken place in the region. That is – to some degree understandable because the Palestinians were forcibly removed from their homeland.
But, in truth, nationalism creates more confusion and leads to demands for a radical “final” solution to the Palestinian question…
The first step toward resolving the Palestinian question is the creation of a Palestinian state. There should be two states in the historical region of Palestine. The second step, of creating one unified state, depends on what the Palestinians and the Israelis want. It does not depend on anyone who draws up some hypothetical plans on paper and has abstract ideas about what is the best solution… These are plans that do not take into account the actual stakeholders…
Today, the Palestinian people are fighting for their survival. This is what matters most, right now. We must resist genocide and ethnic cleansing. The Zionists want to wipe out the Palestinian people. We need Offer Cassif – and every person who thinks and acts like Offer – as an ally. We cannot afford to drive away allies. Let’s be serious…
You cannot lead the movement with slogans instead of a plan and a program. The Leninist method calls for “a concrete analysis of the concrete situation”. Tactics are judged based on concrete conditions, not on abstract dogmatism. We therefore need a concrete solution to the concrete situation.
And that is why I hope that all comrades, when dealing with the Palestinian issue, will read a little more on history and theory. We need to turn to a Marxist analysis, to understand how the Palestinian struggle began, what its trajectory has been, what holds true today, and what does not. We should not let emotions take control. There is no one-size-fits-all solution for all times and all circumstances. Today we may advocate for two states. Tomorrow, a single state. When circumstances change.
We are fighting for the Palestinian people, to achieve their national rights. And that is where we begin to build for the future. But the first steps are repatriation, self-determination, and an independent Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza, with Jerusalem as its capital.
This is the program embraced by the majority of Palestinians. We must rally around these goals – Palestinians, supporters, and Jews living both within and outside Israel.
This is the best solution that can bring peace and lay the groundwork for the two peoples to discuss how they will live together in harmony. That is why I applaud the Anti-Racist Festival’s organisers’ decision to bring together people who are fighting against the Zionist movement and against the occupation. I applaud it, encourage it, and fully support it.
