News Analysis: PLO elections may deepen Palestinian internal split

Analysts believe that holding an unusual emergency session in a month's time for the Palestinian National Council (PNC) would exasperate the feud amongst Palestinians.

They expressed deep concern regarding the resignation of Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) executive committee members last weekend, including President Mahmoud Abbas, PLO chairman.

They said the move which was taken without Palestinian consensus would deepen internal Palestinian division, started in 2007 with the Hamas movement.

Abbas chaired a meeting of the PLO executive committee in Ramallah Saturday where over half the members announced their resignations. According to the law, in the event over a third of the committee resigns, the PNC must convene in less than a month.

Those who resigned had previously announced that the PNC's exceptional and unusual convention will be dedicated towards electing new executive committee members and debating current challenging Palestinian issues.

Ahmed Rafiq Awad, a political science professor at al-Quds University in the West Bank, told Xinhua that PNC preparations to elect a new PLO executive committee chairman and members, conveys internal and external messages during sensitive times.

"This step considers the PLO's lack of legitimacy and attempts to resolve internal Palestinian crises and feuds between organization members," said Awad, adding "Abbas wants to prepare a transitional stage in the event of a potential withdrawal from the current Palestinian scene."

Awad also said that "the decision is a serious message to Israel that Palestinians can organize themselves during a stalemate in the peace process."

The PNC is the highest authority in the PLO. It is called the government of the state of Palestine and serves as the parliament for all Palestinians, both domestically and in exile.

The last PNC meeting was an emergency one held in 2009 to replace six vacancies, while the last Executive Committee elections were held in 1996 during a PNC session in Gaza.

Wassel Abu Yousef, PLO executive committee member, told Xinhua that the reason the PNC was unable to hold regular sessions "was due to the current Palestinian situation and the tense ties with Israel, in addition to Israeli restrictions on its members' free mobility in order to attend meetings."

"Holding exceptional unusual PNC meetings to elect new PLO leadership may pave the road for regular future PNC conventions where it might be possible to invite all factions and popular organizations to join," said Abu Yousef.

Although it is important to hold exceptional PNC meetings, some Palestinians view it as a detour from the renewal demands made in the past several years stipulating that PNC members must be changed, along with a new internal system and political program which must be approved.

Khalil Shahin, Ramallah-based political analyst, told Xinhua that the PNC should represent all Palestinians and their resolve, meaning representatives must be elected.

"Holding new elections for PNC members represents a new framework of official Palestinian representation, and prepares the political future for Palestinians," said Shahin.

He expressed concern about the move, saying it "would lead to the loss of the PLO's credibility as sole and legitimate representatives of Palestinians, hence deepening the internal split."

According to previous reconciliation agreements signed by the PLO and Hamas, a transitional PLO body must be established which must convene to decide on permitting Hamas and Islamic Jihad to join the PLO, followed by holding new PNC elections, the parliament in exile.

Hamas, ruling the Gaza Strip, slammed the PLO members' resignations. Sami Abu Zhuri, Hamas spokesman, said in an emailed press statement that the resignation "is escapism and a challenge to reconciliation."

Hani el-Masri, a West Bank political analyst, told Xinhua that holding PNC sessions without consensus "violates reconciliation agreements and extends internal splits between Palestinian rivals." Endit