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Loading... Palestine: Peace Not Apartheidby Jimmy Carter
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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. 2   cbradley | Jul 15, 2009 |  American Christians need to read this book. There is way to much one-sided ignorance when it comes to the tensions and controversies surrounding the Middle East and the Israel/Palestine conflict. (  ) Kerygma | Jun 17, 2009 | Setting out to read about the creation of Israel and Arab-Israeli relations since, which I knew something about, but not a lot of details, I picked up a book by Chomsky at the library. That book turned out to be a little of a rant against Israel, though that didn't necessarily mean it was untrue, because, in fact it was in line with much that I did know already. Still, I decided to back off and read some other works first. This one by Jimmy Carter was one of them. Reading the first chapter, when he described early visits to Israel, which occurred before his presidency, I began to feel that Carter was naively pro Israel, presenting it as a democracy in the midst of more restrictive societies. I was a little afraid I was wasting my time with an Israeli whitewash rather than a balanced picture. This rapidly changes, however, as he covers historical events that occurred after the six days war, beginning with Egyptian president, Sadat's, overtures towards peace with Israel that culminated in the Camp David agreement that supposedly accomplished three things, 1. Egypt's recognition of Israel's right to exist; 2. Israel returning the Sinai Peninsula, taken during the six days war, back to Egypt; 3. a plan to establish a Palestinian homeland based on a division of about 77% of the total area of Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza strip, for Israel, and the rest for a Palestinian state. (this is already less than the 45% for the Palestinian state that was set by the UN around 1947). Also, east Jerusalem was to be open to all faiths. What follows is an account of what has happened since, which, to me, reminds me of the United States in the 1800 - 1900's and the concept of manifest destiny. Basically, the U.S. felt it was its destiny to fill the entire area, from coast to coast, and it was not really considered that the Native American had any rights. Of course, that a generalization of a range of events, treaties, attitudes, but it covers pretty well what actually happened. And, in Israel, despite a series of agreements in regard to a Palestinian state, what has actually happened, is that since the Camp David accords, there has been little break in the influx of Israeli settlers into the West Bank, the area, along with the Gaza Strip near Egypt, which was to be the Palestinian state. Some Israelis say outright that they feel they have a right to the entire area as their historical homeland, but based upon actions that seems the clear intent. The Carter book is not a rant, and presents sources for the statements that he makes, but the statements of what is occurring is pretty near what the Chomsky book was asserting. There were some 250,000 Israelis settled in the West Bank when Carter wrote the book. They used a a disproportionate share of the resources of water and land available to the people of the area. Israel engaged in tactics like razing houses if there was suspicion of involvement in anti-Israeli actions and frequently if not. Notice was given about 3% of the time, according to an investigation cited by Carter. The settlements are joined to Israel and to each other by highways that take even more land from the Palestinians but the Palestinians are forbidden from using them, and instead encounter ever more checkpoints traveling not only outside of the West Bank, but within it as well. Palestinians as a group are held accountable for individual acts of violence and the occurrence of even individual acts is used as an excuse not to continue with plans for greater autonomy. While the Palestinian authorities are supposed to protect Israeli settlers, they have no authority over them, and the army, which does, does not do a good job of protecting Palestinians from the settlers. Then there are the barriers. Gaza is isolated from the sea, from Egypt and from Israel by barrier. In the West Bank, areas of it are being isolated from other areas, including, for instance, a church from its congregation. Carter mentioned briefly that the US gives Israel about $4 billion in aid each year, and supplies weapons although they are only to be used for defense. He didn't spend much time discussing what he thought the US should be doing aside from becoming involved again with the peace process. (  )1 solla | Apr 22, 2009 | A clear timeline of the problems in the Middle East. Ironically, I read this immediately before starting to read the novel, DeNiro's Game by Rawi Hage. I would never be getting as much out of Hage's novel without the background provided in Carter's book. The appendices are very helpful. (  )1 Katethegreyt | Feb 15, 2009 | Unless you are a Middle East news and opinion junkie, I would skip the book. It isn’t bad. Quite good in fact. Just repetitive of the current news. You won’t find the controversy in the book that the controversy in the news implied. You’ll be just as informed about that if you don’t read it. There’s some value in the detail Carter provides on the various negotiations, but I’m not sure it will even cause anyone to question their assumptions or conclusions. (Full review at my blog) (  ) KingRat | Jun 17, 2008 |  no reviews | add a review
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Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/The 1948 Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine |
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It's a rare honor to ask questions of a former president, and we are grateful that President Carter was able to take the time in between his work with his wife, Rosalynn, for the Carter Center and Habitat for Humanity and his many writing projects to speak with us about his hopes for the region and his thoughts on the book.
A big thank you to President Carter for granting our request for an interview. An Interview with President Jimmy Carter 
Q: What has been the importance of your own faith in your continued interest in peace in the Middle East?
A: As a Christian, I worship the Prince of Peace. One of my preeminent commitments has been to bring peace to the people who live in the Holy Land. I made my best efforts as president and still have this as a high priority.
Q: A common theme in your years of Middle East diplomacy has been that leaders on both sides have often been more open to discussion and change in private than in public. Do you think that's still the case?
A: Yes. This is why private and intense negotiations can be successful. More accurately, however, my premise has been that the general public (Jewish, Christian, and Muslim) are more eager for peace than their political leaders. For instance, a recent poll done by the Hebrew University in Jerusalem showed that 58% of Israelis and 81% of the Palestinians favor a comprehensive settlement similar to the Roadmap for Peace or the Saudi proposal adopted by all 23 Arab nations and recently promoted by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Tragically, there have been no substantive peace talks during the past six years.
Q: How have the war in Iraq and the increased strength of Iran (and the declarations of their leaders against Israel) changed the conditions of the Israel-Palestine question?
A: Other existing or threatened conflicts in the region greatly increase the importance of Israel's having peace agreements with its neighbors, to minimize overall Arab animosity toward both Israel and the United States and reduce the threat of a broader conflict.
Q: Your use of the term "apartheid" has been a lightning rod in the response to your book. Could you explain your choice? Were you surprised by the reaction?
A: The book is about Palestine, the occupied territories, and not about Israel. Forced segregation in the West Bank and terrible oppression of the Palestinians create a situation accurately described by the word. I made it plain in the text that this abuse is not based on racism, but on the desire of a minority of Israelis to confiscate and colonize Palestinian land. This violates the basic humanitarian premises on which the nation of Israel was founded. My surprise is that most critics of the book have ignored the facts about Palestinian persecution and its proposals for future peace and resorted to personal attacks on the author. No one could visit the occupied territories and deny that the book is accurate.
Q: You write in the book that "the peace process does not have a life of its own; it is not self-sustaining." What would you recommend that the next American president do to revive it?
A: I would not want to wait two more years. It is encouraging that President George W. Bush has announced that peace in the Holy Land will be a high priority for his administration during the next two years. On her January trip to the region, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has called for early U.S.-Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. She has recommended the 2002 offer of the Arab nations as a foundation for peace: full recognition of Israel based on a return to its internationally recognized borders. This offer is compatible with official U.S. Government policy, previous agreements approved by Israeli governments in 1978 and 1993, and with the International Quartet's "roadmap for peace." My book proposes that, through negotiated land swaps, this "green line" border be modified to permit a substantial number of Israelis settlers to remain in Palestine. With strong U.S. pressure, backed by the U.N., Russia, and the European Community, Israelis and Palestinians would have to come to the negotiating table.
1/18/2007
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After reading Palestine: Peace not Apartheid I felt a great sympathy for the Palestinian people who suffer every day because of a political situation that the vast majority of Palestinians have no control over. Carter manages to keep hope on the table despite the history of violence in the region. He outlines what needs to be done and advocates for the implementation of a much talked about two-state solution. When he was president, Carter tried to achieve peace with the Camp David Accords. Even now he seems to be the leading voice for a peaceful solution to the Palestinian situation. (