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Understanding Israel's Disengagement Plan
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Pour lire en français, cliquez ici
This summer, Israel is set to evacuate all 21 settlements in the Gaza Strip and four in the northern West Bank (Samaria) under Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's disengagement plan. Although the subject of heated public debate, the disengagement plan is consistently supported by at least 60% of the Israeli public. While recognizing both the trauma associated with the disengagement plan and the right of Israelis to express opposition to it, as a Diaspora community, it is the position of the Canada-Israel Committee that once the democratically elected government of Israel has adopted a policy, as a matter of principle, it must benefit from our support.
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The following questions and answers are designed to provide a basic understanding of the plan and the role that Canadian supporters of Israel can play. You can also download Understanding Israel's Disengagement Plan in PDF format.
Q.What is the genesis of the disengagement plan?
Q. Why is Israel proceeding with the disengagement?
Q. Why must all Israelis leave Gaza regardless of who ultimately exercises sovereignty over the area?
Q. Was Israel's decision to disengage taken through legitimate democratic means?
Q. Why is the disengagement plan being implemented unilaterally?
Q. What is the Philadelphi Road and why does Israel need to retain it?
Q. Where does the Israeli public stand on the disengagement?
Q. How are the Jewish residents of Gaza reacting?
Q. Can Israeli democracy withstand popular opposition against the disengagement?
Q. What is the appropriate role of Diaspora Jewry in the disengagement debate?
Q. What is the genesis of the disengagement plan?
A. After four years of Palestinian terrorism, a new national consensus had entered the Israeli consciousness. This consensus was based on two understandings: that under its previous leadership, the Palestinian Authority (PA) had ceased to be a credible negotiating partner; and that (because of this) Israelis had to physically separate themselves from the Palestinians in order to reduce the points of confrontational contact. In the West Bank, separation had been accomplished through the construction of Israel's security fence. Regarding Gaza, Prime Minister Sharon concluded that a permanent disengagement was required.
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Q. Why is Israel proceeding with the disengagement?
A. The tiny Jewish community of 8,000 in Gaza simply cannot be sustained amidst the Palestinian population of 1.3 million. Entire IDF units must be deployed to protect the small Jewish communities
which are close to Palestinian populations centres and otherwise virtually isolated and indefensible.
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Q. Why must all Israelis leave Gaza regardless of who ultimately exercises sovereignty over the area?
A. While the Palestinians under new PA leader Mahmoud Abbas have begun the process of democratic reform, they have yet to demonstrate a commitment to pluralism and a readiness to accept Jews as fellow citizens, in the way that 1.2 million Israeli Arabs enjoy full democratic rights as Israeli citizens. For this reason, remaining in Gaza is not a viable option for any Jewish Israeli.
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Q. Was Israel's decision to disengage taken through legitimate democratic means?
A. The disengagement plan was adopted according to Israeli law, including ratification by a clear majority of the duly elected Cabinet and Knesset. Even after the disengagement plan was approved, opponents had access to and pursued all legal remedies through petitions heard by Israel's Supreme Court.
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Q. Why is the disengagement plan being implemented unilaterally?
A. Israel's preference is always to undertake major diplomatic initiatives through negotiated agreements. But after four years of terror, the PA ceased to be a credible peace partner. With Yasser Arafat's death and the election of the seemingly pragmatic Mahmoud Abbas, disengagement is being implemented through a process of "coordinated unilateralism." Under this paradigm, the Palestinians assume security responsibility in areas evacuated by Israel and have a free hand in
developing self-governing institutions. Every step of this process is being coordinated with the US
government. The Egyptians are also working with Israel toward finding a viable security arrangement
for the "Philadelphi Road."
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Q. What is the Philadelphi Road and why does Israel need to retain it?
A. It is the stretch of land along the border between the Gaza Strip and the Sinai desert. It is also the frequent route through which weapons are smuggled to terrorists via tunnels from Egypt.
Although Egypt pledged to deter terrorism along the Gaza border as part of its 1979 treaty with Israel, it has not yet lived up to its commitment. To ensure the safety of its families and children, Israel must maintain a temporary security presence in Gaza even after disengagement is completed. Hopefully, Egypt's renewed commitment to peace, combined with US-assisted improvements in the PA security forces, will permit the IDF to leave the Philadelphi Road in the near future.
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Q. Where does the Israeli public stand on the disengagement?
A. The Tami Steinmetz Centre's March 2005 "Peace Index" found consistent popular support among Israelis for disengagement, with 60% supporting the plan and 36% opposed. Approximately two-thirds of Israelis see the Gaza disengagement as a first step toward a broader dismantlement of West Bank settlements as part of a final peace agreement with the Palestinians rather than as an end in itself. A solid majority (70%) opposes unlawful forms of protest against the disengagement.
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Q. How are the Jewish residents of Gaza reacting?
A. The Jewish residents of Gaza are a microcosm of Israeli society in all of its pluralistic diversity. The majority respects the right of Israel's democratically elected government to make and implement decisions. They will accept government compensation and relocate to areas inside Israel. A small number have threatened to disrupt the planned evacuation. However, no democratic government can tolerate fundamental challenges to its legitimate authority. Although an opponent of the disengagement plan, Rabbi Shlomo Riskin, Chief Rabbi of Efrat, writes: "I am nonetheless committed to carrying out the decisions of the democratic government of Israel. I am unalterably opposed to those rabbinic voices that call on IDF soldiers to refuse military orders of evacuation...Israel can withstand the evacuation of settlers from Gaza; it cannot withstand a civil war." (Jerusalem Post, March 3, 2005)
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Q. Can Israeli democracy withstand popular opposition against the disengagement?
A. Israelis are blessed with a democratic political culture that is tolerant of competing political perspectives. However, Israelis also respect the legitimate authority of their democratically elected government and their core national institutions, especially the IDF. Actions that challenge this authority will not be tolerated by the overwhelming majority of Israelis, notwithstanding personal attitudes about the disengagement plan.
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Q. What is the appropriate role of Diaspora Jewry in the disengagement debate?
A. As acknowledged stakeholders in the future of the Jewish state, the Diaspora community should feel empowered to contribute to the disengagement debate. However, once the tests of due process have been satisfied and the democratically elected government of Israel has adopted a policy, challenges to that policy run the risk of becoming challenges to the "legitimacy" and authority of the state. Opposition is an indispensable element of democracy and minority positions must be acknowledged. Ultimately, however, the acid test is the form this opposition takes. There are parameters of acceptable behaviour, defined in this instance largely by violent versus nonviolent protest against the disengagement. Now, more than ever, it is crucial that Diaspora Jewry do all that it can to reinforce democracy and the rule of law in Israel.
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| About the Plan |
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Israel plans to evacuate all Gaza settlements, plus four in the northern West Bank, under the disengagement plan.
What Disengagement Is:
» A response by Israelis to the need to separate from, and reduce points of confrontational contact with, the Palestinians.
» A realistic assessment by Israelis of the demographic realities confronting the tiny Jewish community in Gaza alongside the enormous (and growing) Palestinian population.
» An opportunity for the Palestinians in Gaza to build self-governing institutions and demonstrate the capacity for self-government, as per the two-state formula outlined in the internationally.
What Disengagement Is Not:
» A replacement for the performance-based road map.
» An alternative to the Palestinian Authority fulfilling its primary obligations (under Phase One of the road map) to unconditionally combat terrorism by confiscating illegal weapons, arresting terrorists, disbanding terror groups and ending anti-Israel incitement.
» A precedent for additional major Israeli territorial concessions. Such concessions are dependent on Palestinian performance of their road map obligations.
» A shortcut to the permanent status phase of negotiations. Such negotiations can only begin once Israeli popular confidence in the PA as a negotiating partner has been restored, via unambiguous adherence to the incremental, step-by-step process of mutual cooperation and
reciprocal gestures outlined in the road map.
To the extent that the disengage-ment contributes to this process towards peace, it should benefit from our support. But disengage-ment does not replace the need for the Palestinian leadership to fulfill their road map obligations and bring their people to the path of peace.
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