The real test of the reconciliation agreement struck between Fatah and Hamas is just around the corner as nitty-gritty issues get worked out, writes Saleh Al-Naami The technical teams from Hamas and Fatah continued working late into the night in Gaza and the West Bank to formulate a vision about disputes that are expected to erupt between the two sides when implementing the recently struck reconciliation agreement. These teams need to come up with responses to many questions regarding who will head the interim government, what will its agenda be, and would it need the approval of the Quartet and Israel or will it have a limited mandate without political power? There are also questions about the period after the formation of the government, such as: Will this government need a vote of confidence in parliament? Would parliament or the president oversee the government? Will Egypt play the role of caretaker of the reconciliation agreement? If parliament reconvenes, will it exercise its mandate retroactively and demand to review previous decisions to make them legitimate? Or will it begin exercising power from the day that the reconciliation deal was signed, or the day it convenes after the new government is formed? And what if parliament demands to exercise its powers, claiming that its mandate had not ended? Does that mean that the president's term has not ended and hence he too will exercise his full mandate in the West Bank, Gaza and the Diaspora as the president of the Palestinian people and the Palestinian Authority (PA) until a new president is elected? Will Israel permit ministers to travel between the West Bank and Gaza, or will the government's activities be limited to Gaza, which will reinforce division? And will there be a unified budget, or one each for the West Bank and Gaza? As for security issues, what is the mandate of the technocratic government and its relationship to the security agencies? Will these agencies follow the orders of the new minister of interior or the two (former) governments? What about Palestinian movements, and will the same problem as Lebanon arise in terms of the relationship between the government and the resistance? Will the safe corridor between the West Bank and Gaza be used to enable ministers, MPs, citizens and commerce to move freely between the two locations, or will Israel control all movement and accordingly direct matters in a way that enforces division? Many other questions but these are being raised. On Tuesday in Cairo the two Palestinian movements agreed on the mechanisms to implement a reconciliation agreement in talks which the two parties described as "positive." "We have put the train on the tracks and are moving forward in a comfortable way," Azzam Al-Ahmad, who heads the Fatah delegation said after the meetings. Both parties agreed not to disclose the details of the meeting, saying only that the announcemement of the government would be "soon." Before the most recent talks begin with Hamas regarding the interim government, Fatah had been throwing its weight behind Salam Fayyad as prime minister of the transitional government. Fatah tried hard to convince all Palestinian factions in the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) to nominate Salam Fayyad For its part, Hamas viewed Fayyad with great hostility and holds him responsible for the harassment of its leaders and members in the West Bank, and for advocating security cooperation with the Israeli occupation. According to the the reconciliation deal the appointment of the prime minister and cabinet members should be by consensus, and with Hamas holding out, sources told Al-Ahram Weekly on Wednesday that the dispute ended with Fayyad withdrawing from the race, and the Palestinians as a unified front agreeing on two names for the post. Their names have not been revealed, but they were described as technocrats who enjoys positive international relations and have been living outside Palestine for most of their lives. Aziz Al-Duweik, speaker of the Palestinian parliament, strongly criticised those who support Fayyad's nomination as prime minister of the transitional government. "Speaking in my capacity as the speaker of parliament, it is unreasonable that some claim that Palestinian affairs will only recover if a specific person is appointed," Al-Duweik told the Weekly. "And he is the same person who is favoured by outside forces. Are there no other qualified patriotic candidates among the Palestinian people who can run the affairs of the country in a better way?" Al-Duweik added that Fayyad attempted to sabotage the reconciliation agreement by "claiming" that his government is unable to pay the salaries of civil servants, after Israel decided to freeze the transfer of tax monies to the PA. "How is a government under siege like the one in Gaza capable of paying salaries, while the government supported by the world community is unable to pay its dues?" he wondered. Al-Duweik also pondered why Fayyad's government did not prepare for such an eventuality, adding that the general sense on the Palestinian street is that the PA's financial crisis is fabricated and not as dire as an inability to pay salaries. Also, that this is an attempt to convince the people that Fayyad is the only one who is capable of managing Palestinian affairs. Al-Duweik warned against "politicising funds and using them to sabotage reconciliation". "Despite the immense obstacles on the path to implementing the reconciliation deal, divisions are behind us," Al-Duweik asserted. "[These hurdles] will not cause division again, because we have bid them farewell for good." Al-Duweik warned that problems obstructing the implementation of the deal include foreign intervention, political detentions, and disputes that may erupt among Palestinians about the identity of the leader of the interim government, its ministers, and the mandate of the temporary leadership of the PLO. He stressed that despite all these obstacles, "we will not allow them to undermine the agreement and divert us from the path of reconciliation," adding that these problems are "hurdles within a resolution framework". Al-Duweik has high hopes for the role of Egypt after the revolution "since it is sponsoring reconciliation on the one hand and overseeing its implementation on the other, and it will be able to hold the parties accountable if they renege on the agreement." Mahmoud Al-Alul, member of Fatah's Central Committee, disagrees with Al-Duweik and believes that differences on the political front will not disrupt the reconciliation agreement between the two groups. Al-Alul told the Weekly that disputes largely diminished once the PLO decided to freeze negotiations with Israel and place strict preconditions on re-launching talks -- most prominently laying down a frame of reference for negotiations and halting settlement activities in the West Bank. Al-Alul stressed that the leadership entity that President Mahmoud Abbas will command, to include the general secretariats of the factions as well as independent figures, is where any disputes regarding the political agenda or differences over restructuring the PLO will be resolved. He explained that the identity of the next prime minister and cabinet members would be based on two criteria: non- association with any political organisation; and qualifications and expertise. Al-Alul refused to comment on whether these two criteria apply to incumbent Prime Minister Fayyad, noting that this issue will be finalised during discussions among all parties and not before. He warned that any article in the reconciliation deal could become a time bomb if parties do not demonstrate goodwill towards reconciliation. He stressed that successful application of the reconciliation deal depends on the motives of the parties, and their determination to prevent outside parties from influencing implementation. Al-Alul described the agreement as a great gain for the Palestinian people and their cause, especially as they seek UN recognition of an independent state. This is a goal that everyone should work towards, he said. As for the upcoming presidential elections, he said that President Abbas has told Fatah more than once that he does not intend to run for another term, and has asked the group to find another candidate to contest the next presidential elections. Among Palestinians it is understood that signing the reconciliation agreement was an indirect admission on the dangers of relying on outside parties for ideological and political reasons. It was also an admission of error that each party tried to unilaterally follow its own strategy while ignoring the other. This gives cause for optimism that despite differences the parties will be able to implement the reconciliation agreement. But having been disappointed so many times before, Palestinians are cautious still in their optimism.
