Opening address by the
Chairman of the French National Assembly, Mr. Raymond Forni,
Colloquium "For a European initiative in the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict –
the urgency of political dialogue"
in the presence of the Speaker of the Knesset, Mr. Avraham
Burg,
and the Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council, Mr. Ahmed
Qurei,
at the National Assembly, Salle Lamartine, Wednesday, January 23rd,
2002 at 2:30 PM
Messrs. Speakers,
Ladies and Gentlemen, members of Parliament,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Friends,
It is a great honor for me, in the name of all
the members of Parliament, to bid a very warm welcome to the
Speaker of the Knesset, Mr. Avraham Burg, and the Speaker of the
Palestinian Legislative Council, Mr. Ahmed Qurei, and to open this
colloquium devoted to the extremely disturbing situation in the
Middle East.
I am particularly happy that so many of you –
legislators, journalists, and ordinary citizens – have responded
to our invitation. Your presence shows the importance you place
– which we all place – on dialogue between Israelis and
Palestinians, so essential for the future of the Middle East and
of the world. It also shows the brotherhood between the Israeli,
Palestinian, and French peoples and the strong ties uniting France
and that region of the world.
I would also like to thank Mr. Miguel Angel
Moratinos, the special envoy of the European Union for the Middle
East, whose presence bears witness to the profound interest of the
European Union in the Middle East and the future of the Israeli
and Palestinian peoples.
Messrs. Speakers, Ladies and Gentlemen,
It has been sixteen months since violent
confrontations again broke out. A terrible toll has been taken :
more than 1,200 dead, nearly 10,000 injured. Whatever the
circumstances, no one can accept the sight of more Israelis and
Palestinians killed and injured every day.
The terrible images of the confrontations,
broadcast almost live by television all over the world, leave
their mark on our minds and recall – as if it needed to be
recalled – that violence in all its forms is unacceptable. In
the first days of the crisis, French legislators from the majority
and from the opposition alike expressed their deep concern and
disapproval of the continuation of the violence.
Our Assembly condemns the repeated violence
without reservation and reaffirms its rejection of the extremist
behavior that has provided an opportunity for those who threaten
the peace and the future of the region to do their sinister work
of destruction by encouraging fear and hatred.
These confrontations are all the more
distressing because peace between Israelis and Palestinians seemed
closer than ever at the start of the year 2000.
At the urging of the United States, supported
by France and the European Union, each of the parties, at the Camp
David summit in July, 2000, made courageous gestures toward the
other. Those discussions inspired hope of an event that the world
has been awaiting for more than fifty years: peace between Israel
and the State of Palestine.
The current situation is therefore an enormous
step backwards. The absence of any political prospects encourages
the continuation of the confrontation and plays into the hands of
the extremists. Mistrust, fear, and resentment, unfortunately, too
often lead to radicalization and violence.
But it is not enough to condemn the violence.
We must resist it by means of an active response, based on a
positive approach to the Israeli and Palestinian societies –
both of whom, as we know, want peace. Because it has never ceased
believing in the chance for peace and in the role legislators can
play in bringing peoples together, the National Assembly, more
than ever, desires to meet with and to listen to the Israeli and
Palestinian political representatives and the societies as a whole.
The French deputies have long-standing ties
with their Israeli and Palestinian counterparts, who to my mind
are precious contributors to the service of peace.
It is our conviction that, despite deep mutual
incomprehension, the chances for peace between Israelis and
Palestinians have not been totally lost. We call on them to
immediately re-open the process of negotiation, without
prerequisites or conditions, on the basis of the recommendations
of the Mitchell Report.
We ask that they do all in their power to
preserve the progress made at the Madrid Conference in 1991 and in
the Oslo Accords of 1993. The principle of land for peace, of the
formation of a viable Palestinian State, and an end to the
occupation of the Territories must be reaffirmed.
The Israeli people must be guaranteed the right
to live in peace and in complete security within internationally
recognized borders. The Palestinian Authority must do everything
in its power, in particular by apprehending and rendering harmless
all those responsible for violent acts and operations against
Israel and its population. If it can aid in pacifying the
situation, we would also be favorable to the creation of an
international peacekeeping force.
We are all aware that only a negotiated
solution can satisfy the hope and the desire of the Israeli and
Palestinian peoples for peace and security.
There is no other way, no other choice, than to
resume the process of negotiating the peace for which Israelis and
Palestinians, in recent years, have overcome so many obstacles
that were considered for so long to be insurmountable.
It is in this spirit that we, members of both
the majority and the opposition, are very pleased to receive you
today, Messrs. Speakers – united in the pursuit of a single
goal: understanding between the peoples of the Middle East.
Needless to say, the quest for peace is first
of all the responsibility of the parties themselves, through
dialogue and negotiation. We know that, in the current climate,
this has become difficult. In order to help them, our National
Representation must make itself available and open to both
parties, to support and to accompany any initiative in the
direction of peace.
Israelis and Palestinians need a dialogue that
has been revivified, renovated, reinvented, in contact with the
world. They need a true dialogue between civilizations, one which
reinforces classical diplomacy by acting as a crucible for ideas
and consensus. Legislators can and must contribute to it.
Is it possible to believe that the one true God
whom both Israelis and Palestinians recognize, not only in their
private beliefs, but as a guide to the affairs of their States,
could have willed these massacres between the sons of Abraham? Is
it not true that God, in this land revered as holy by both your
communities, has great need of man if peace is finally to prevail
there?
That, Messrs. Speakers, is the message I wish
to deliver to you, in the name of this National Assembly: that of
our commitment to marshal all our energy, all the strength of our
belief, and all our faith in your two peoples.
Your task will not be an easy one. The
challenge is great. But there is no alternative. The expectations
of the Israeli and Palestinian people and of the international
community are immense. Today’s meeting is only one stage in the
process. You have come here to work together, to compare your
points of view and to seek common ground, in order to prepare for
the dialogue we so wholeheartedly wish for between your two
peoples and give it every chance of success. I invite you to make
full use of this opportunity.
______________________________
Lunch speach address by the
Chairman of the French National Assembly, Mr. Raymond Forni,
to both the Speaker of the Knesset, Mr. Avraham Burg,
and the Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council, Mr. Ahmed
Qurei,
at the National Assembly, Salle Lamartine, Wednesday, January 23rd,
2002 at 2:30 PM
Messrs Speakers,
Ladies and Gentlemen, members of Parliament
Excellencies,
Dear Friends,
First of all, I would like to express the
pleasure and emotion we feel today, as members of Parliaments and
as citizens, in welcoming the Speakers of the Israeli and
Palestinian Parliaments.
The very fact that you are here today, sitting
at the same table, proves how helpful Parliaments can be in
reuniting peoples.
We, as members of Parliament, know what we have
in common. We share the same ideals and values our institutions
are based upon, which are those of freedom, human rights,
solidarity, tolerance and peace.
As Chairman of this Assembly, I have welcomed
many foreign delegations. But never as much as today have I
experienced such a useful, essential, if not vital meeting.
Thanks to you, Messrs Speakers, our three
assemblies have established and developped closer links, creating
friendship, mutual respect and mutual understanding. Let me pay
tribute to your constant endeavour to bring our Parliaments
together. By placing relations with our country at the heart of
the international actions of your assemblies, you have made them a
model of inter-parliamentary relations.
The members of the Friendship groups as well as
the civil servants exchange views frequently to enlarge bilateral
cooperation. And I wish to express my gratitude to Colette Avital,
Marouan Bargouti, Martine David and Didier Mathus for their
unwearying effort in favour of a close friendship between our
peoples.
Messrs Speakers,
We even more appreciate the significance of
your joint visit since it occurs in an extremely serious context.
For sixteen months now, violence has been
tearing apart the relationship between Israel and Palestine. And
violence leads to violence even as the international community
continues to call for peace. Absence of a political prospective is
encouraging the continuation of confrontation and is playing into
the hands of extremists.
Opponents from both sides to the peace process
rely on our discouragement. But we will not resign ourselves to
witnessing the confrontation between Israel and Palestine. That is
the reason why I wished we could meet to consider how the talks
can be resumed and how the peace process which had improved so
much, can be restored.
In spite of a painful and worrying situation,
you have both agreed to debate in the French National Assembly. I
feel that your participation is highly significant.
Be sure that all the deputies, from the
Government and the opposition, appreciate your joint action in
favour of peace and against hatred. We must seize this opportunity
to prove that everything is possible, and that dialogue can
replace violence.
Messrs Speakers, we are glad to welcome you
both today for the sake of peace sake in the hope of bringing the
Israeli and Palestinian peoples together. We must continue working
for peace and carry on our efforts to support those who are
fighting for it.
I trust in our common will to succeed. Please,
Ladies and Gentlemen, let us be upstanding to welcome M. Avraham
Burg, Speaker of the Knesset, and M. Ahmed Qurei, Speaker of the
Legislative Council of Palestine and let us celebrate the
friendship between the peoples of Israel, Palestine and France.