Palestinian Prisoners' Document

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The "Prisoners' document" is a document drawn up by Palestinian prisoners who are currently being held in Israeli jails. There were five prisoners who took part in writing this document and are affiliated with Fatah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP).

The document consists of 18 points, and calls for an Israeli withdrawal to the pre-1967 borders and the creation of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza strip. The initial version of the document has generally been interpreted as implicitly recognizing Israel's right to exist, as opposed to the official Hamas platform, which calls for Israel's destruction. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas had called for a national referendum on the document on July 26, if Fatah and Hamas could not reach a negotiated settlement.^[1] Initially, Hamas leaders dismissed Abbas' calls for a referendum on the document as "illegal" and vowed to boycott it.^[2] However, Hamas later agreed to negotiate with Fatah on the contents of the document, and an agreement was reached on June 27, 2006.^[3]^[4] A poll in June 2006, showed that support for the prisoners' document among the Palestinians was at 77%.^[5] However, another poll in late June 2006, showed support for the referendum itself at only 47%.^[6] Prior to this agreement being reached, Hamas and Islamic Jihad prisoner's who took part in drafting the document retracted their names and support from it in protest at Mahmoud Abbas' decision to hold a referendum based on the plan; they stated that Mahmoud Abbas was exploiting the document for political purposes.^[7]

President Mahmoud Abbas seeks use the Prisoner's document as the basis for final status negotiations with Israel. Israel's Prime Minster Ehud Olmert has dismissed the Prisoner's document, however,^[8] claiming that it is out of touch with the internationally recognized conditions, as the document also calls for the right of return for Palestinian refugees, as well as full Israeli withdrawal from all parts of the West Bank.

1 Controversy and Ambiguity
2 See also
3 References
4 External links

[edit] Controversy and Ambiguity

Some critics accuse the Western media as interpreting the document as implicitly recognising Israel's right to exist even though it makes no mention of a two-state solution. The document also reiterates the widely-supported assertion - amongst Palestinians and others - of the illegitimacy of the occupation.^[9] ^[10] When asked about whether the document implies the recognition of Israel, Hamas legislator Salah al-Bardawil, told Reuters: "We said we accept a state (in territory occupied) in 1967 -- but we did not say we accept two states." ^[11] Palestinian PM Ismail Haniyeh also rejected the idea that the document calls for the recognition of israel: "They demand we condemn the resistance and recognize the legitimacy of the occupation. We are duty-bound to the Prisoners’ Document, which doesn’t recognize the legitimacy of the occupation". The term occupation is widely used by palestinians as a synonym for the state of israel. ^[12]