[Ha'aretz] Ruth Gavison - For most Palestinians, agreeing to a two-state solution does not usually include agreeing to the principle of two states for two peoples. The difference between the two is critical. Israel is the nation-state of the Jewish people. This is so not only because that is indeed the situation in Israel, but because such a situation is legitimate and justified. The Jewish people, too, has a right to self-determination in part of its historic homeland. Not only the Palestinians. A two-state solution that does not recognize the right of both peoples to self-determination in a part of their homeland would be a dangerous and unstable solution for both peoples. Israel has an obligation - to its citizens, to the Jewish people and to all the inhabitants of the region - to act in a considered and cautious way, so as not to weaken the Jewish people's right to self-determination in part of its homeland. The writer is the founding president of Metzilah: Center for Humanistic, Liberal, Jewish and Zionist Thought.
2007-10-03 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive