FiMED – Follow-up

Palestinian grassroots organisations in the United States and Canada have stressed that Palestinian elections should come as part of a wider process of rebuilding the national project and representative institutions, arguing that starting with elections before reaching shared political and organisational foundations would not, in their view, rebuild the Palestinian national movement.

In a joint statement, the organisations said the Palestinian cause is going through what they described as one of the most dangerous stages in its history, with the war in the Gaza Strip continuing, settlement and related violence escalating in the occupied West Bank, and what they regard as plans for displacement, imposed control and annexation.

The statement called for a unified Palestinian political programme to be developed through a comprehensive national dialogue involving the various political actors, grassroots organisations, unions, civil society organisations and Palestinian communities at home and in the diaspora.

Elections as part of the rebuilding process

The organisations stressed that elections should not be the starting point for rebuilding national institutions but part of a broader democratic process, insisting they must be preceded by a political dialogue that defines the national programme and the goals and principles on which the representative institutions will rest.

According to the statement, the Palestinian National Council should be rebuilt through democratic elections once the shared political foundation has been laid, with the elected council forming the basis for rebuilding the institutions of the Palestine Liberation Organization and reshaping its leadership structures.

The organisations warned against appointments or closed-door arrangements becoming a means of preserving the dominance of particular political currents, calling for Palestinians wherever they live to be able to take part in choosing their representatives and setting future political directions.

A call to involve the diaspora and young people

The statement stressed the importance of involving grassroots organisations, unions, movements, civil society organisations and Palestinian communities in the rebuilding process, and of giving young Palestinians a role in shaping the next phase.

The organisations said the goal, as they see it, is not limited to institutional reform or holding elections but concerns rebuilding the Palestinian national movement on participatory and democratic foundations, so that the institutions and leadership reflect the will of Palestinians at home and in the diaspora.

They added that free and transparent elections and democratic practices should serve this path and not become a means of entrenching political division or retreating from national rights, according to the statement.

The signatories

The statement was signed by: the Palestinian Youth Movement, the US Palestinian Community Network, Florida Palestine Network, the Palestine Democratic Committee, the Palestinian American Women's Association, the Union of Palestinian American Women, the People's Center for Palestine, the General Union of Palestine Students, the Palestinian Right of Return Coalition, and Palestine House – Toronto.

The statement comes amid ongoing Palestinian debate over reshaping the representative institutions, the mechanisms for electing or forming the Palestinian National Council, and the role of Palestinians in the diaspora in this process.