Framework of Nationalism without States in Reference to the Palestine Country - Coursework Example

PALESTINE’S NATIONALISM Name: Course: Instructor’s name: Institution: Date: PALESTINE’S NATIONALISM Nationalism is the belief or spirit within a country’s citizen which makes them proud and loyal to their country giving them the perception that it the best county compared to the rest. A state as described by Webber refers to a human community that takes up the monopoly of the use of physical force in a particular area. A nation, in this case, is referred to a group which forms a community which shares specific culture attached to this territory. Nationalism, therefore, is the sentiment of belonging to a particular culture and group and members who are identified by a particular way of life and beliefs. However, not all states have achieved both nationalism and had a state; for instance the Palestinians. This paper, therefore, seeks to provide the framework of “Nationalism without states” in reference to the Palestine country. Body Nationalism is an issue that is related to the course of creating national states and modernised societies. In fact nationalism has hugely impacted the growth of countries as evidently seen in Palestine’s course to the attainment of Nationalism. Therefore to highlight on the impact of nationalism we will look at the five stages of Palestine course towards nationalism and major themes of this course. Mandate period This is the period recorded in history as the beginning of the nationalism struggle. This is the period where the Palestine resistance began and it was in constant war with the Jews. This period is also claimed to the huge stride taken by Palestine towards Nationalism. The first phase of the Palestinian nationalism is the Mandate period this was between 1918 when the Palestinian Arab national movements were beginning to gain strength and command over Jerusalem. During this period, the Arab club was formed by; Jaffa, Acre, Nablus, and Haifa. They were later joined by, Aref al-Aref and his brother Hajj Amīn. It is at this period that the British Started arriving in this region Muslim and Christian association groups. These associations were formed in the major town, and the Palestine Arab Congress also put up their association in these towns. At this period, the Syrian-Arab-Nationalist movement was interested in Palestine taking up their nationalism however through the Faisal-Weizmann Agreement this proposal was rejected. In the year 1919, the secret society Al-Kaff al-Sawada’ was founded however it later changed to al-Fida’iyya also known as the Self-Sacrifices. This group played a significant role in the discrete anti-Zionist and anti- British activities. The group was run by the al-Shanti and Al-Dajani while Ibrahim Hamman was the man in charge of ‘Isa al-Sifri training and development of the group’s secret code (The Palestinian national movement: politics of contention, 1967-2005 2006). The group was mainly based in Jaffa; however, it later shifted its headquarters to Nablus with Mahmud Aziz al-Khalidi managing its branch in Jerusalem. In April the same year, there were riots which bore rivalry between the Nashashibi and Husayn. This rivalry causes some long-term consequences to the Palestine nationalism. There was even greater pressure to the military administrator at that time from the Zionist leaders with calls for the then Jerusalem Mayor, MoussaKaiZZm to be dismissed. Due to the extent of the pressure, the Colonel stores demoted MoussaKaissm from his position and replaced him with Raghib. This move has a minimal impact on the co-religionist with civil administration remaining the puppet for the Zionist Organization (Zomlot, H. 2010). In the year 1921 The High Herbert Samuel the Commissioner of Palestine established a Supreme Muslim Sharia Council and pardoned Aref al-Aref and Hajj Amīn. The SMC, therefore, had authority over all the Muslims sharia court and Waqfs. An electoral college was given the mandate to elect the Council members with Hajj Amīn Councils president. Due to its powers, the Council was termed as a powerful political machine. Hajj Amin solely carried out most of the executive council duties and rarely delegated work to his juniors. However, nepotism and favoritism were evident on the council during Hajj Amīn tenure. The politicization of the Wailing Wall took place during the British Mandate period. During these riots 133 Jews, 116 Palestinian Arabs, dead while another 339 were wounded. This led to the immerging of the Black Hand gang which was formed by Iz ad-Din al-Qassam he, however, died in a shootout. Later on, during this period, the Arab High Committee and the Nashashibis broke up. This led to the emergence of the Great Revolt which took place between the year 1936 to the year 1939 with the Palestine Arabs protesting against mass immigration of the Jews. The Palestine Arab part was also active I this revolt with its paper Al-Liwa’ edited by Abd al-Qadir al-Husayni.He was later forced to go to exile in Iraq where he participated in the Rashid Ali a-Galvan coup. In this period in the year 1940 al-Hawari a devoted follower of Hajj Amin broke ties with the Husayni family which was quite influential at that time.Al-Najjada Paramilitary scout movement then led a revolt with Muhammad Nimr al-Hawaii being the chief organizer. This revolt led to the great surge in the power sharing between the Palestine community and the Jews with the Palestine’s gaining more power and command over the Jews. Al-Qadir returned to Palestine in the year 1946 and led them to Army of Holy War moved to (AHW) in 1948. However, he was later killed in the war in a hand-to-hand fighting against Hagganah. This greatly dented his forces morale with Ghuri being appointed as the commander despite his lack of experience. Lost years This period fall in the early struggle for nationalism for Palestinians. It is during this period that the Arab nations was formed this entailed Syria, Palestine, Lebanon, and Jordan. The formation of these alliance fostered Palestine’s struggle towards nationalism. On the other hand this alliance also boosted Arab nationalism. In this period in September 1948, Egypt took control of Palestine with the Gaza strip being under the Egypt’s Military control. This move by Egypt was also supported by the Arab League members with Jordan being exceptional. Egypt was therefore given the jurisdiction to cover the entire former mandatory Palestine except the Gaza Strip. Ahmed Hilmi Pasha was named the prime minister of Gaza with Hajj Amin al- Husein being named as the president. The current All-Palestine Government didn’t have any significant authority despite its headquarters being base in Cairo (Pearlman, W 2011). In the year 1959, it was renamed as the United Arab Republic. The state of Israel was then established with most Palestinians migrating the Palestinians identity was quickly fading. The Arabs became minors with Palestinian nationality identity declining. Later there was an Arab- Israel war which led to the defeat of the Husein clan resulting to them migrating to Jordan and the Gulf States to seek refuge. Jordanian government at this time was controlling the Old City. After a while, the Fatah movement which was formed and led by Daoud al-Husayni rose this group revamped the almost lost Palestine identity with the members of the Palestine Diaspora forming most of its membership (Zomlot, H. 2010). The PLO years This period is famous for the immergence of secularism versus Islam in Palestine’s course for nationalism. During this period the Palestine Organization was formed and got into war with the Non – Muslims from Israel. This period is claimed to shape the course for nationalism in Palestine. In this period, the Palestine Liberation Organization was formed after a meeting In Jerusalem that was in attendance of 422 Palestine national figures. This meeting was held after the Arab League gave a go-ahead. The meeting agreed to the Liberation of Palestine through armed struggle. The PLO charter went on to state that the boundaries around Palestine and the country itself were in existence during the British Mandate period. This charter is currently called the self-determination of Palestine’s. Israel took over the control of Gaza strip after its win in the six –day war that took place in the year 1967 against the Arab states. Yasser Arafat went on to claim that the victory in the Battle of Karameh was a historical moment for Palestine. This is because it revealed a great deal of confidence since show by in him since he was ready to face the Israelites. Ahmad Shukeiri was later under pressure which forced him to resign from leading the PLO in the year 1969.Fatah took up this leadership role and stamped his authority by using fierce fighting strategies like the bombardment of Jordan and Palestine guerrilla fighting. This led to the withdrawal of IDF from Palestine territory and gave a huge boost to the country’s role in the rest of the Arab nations. The battle of Karameh marked the end of the subsequent rise in the PLO strength (Jamal, A 2005). In 1974, the PLO suggested for the formation of an independent state in the Mandate Palestine territory. Some years later it endorsed the two-state solutions with Israel and Palestine being side by side neighbors. Since this was quite sensitive with the possibility of a war occurring any time it came up with specific terms for instance; state Jerusalem being the Palestine’s state capital (Pearlman, W 2011). First Intifada period This period covers the rough patch related with Palestine struggle for nationalism. In is during this period that Palestine faced attacks from rival which led to the dispossession and dislocation of families. Despite Palestine going through a lot of suffering it is their resistance during this stage that led to nationalism in the country. The First Intifada period took place between the years 1987 to 1993. In is during this period that the Palestinians from Gaza ad West Bank took the forefront position in the struggle. This caused the formation of the United Nation Leadership of the Uprising, which was then led by Al-Qiyada al Muwhhada. It is claimed that this armed struggle by this group surprised the PLO. However, the (UNLU) had limited influence on the PLO, the groups on the other hand that was loyal to PLO turned against it these include; the Popular Front, the Palestine Communist Party and the Democratic Front (Pearlman, W 2011). UNLU took up the political role left by Jordan’s King Hussein after the legal and administrative separation of Jordan and West Bank. PLO was later replaced by the Hamas, who took over the representative role of the Palestine’s (Jamal, A 2005). Some Israelites called for peaceful measures in this period with claims emerging that they had grown tired of the constant war. In this period the Gulf war emerged during the year 1990 to 1991this was later followed by the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Bill Clinton and Yithak Rabin, Yasser Arafat signed the Oslo Accords in this period in the year 1993. Focus was now shifted to the Israeli-Palestinian quest for peace this also marked the end of the cold war with the internal affairs role being taken up by the U.S. The move towards ‘The New World Order ‘was made where all nations would benefit from global peace and harmony. The Oslo Agreement led to the creation of the two state- solution which differed by the proposition of the PLO which advocated a one-state solution. In the one state solution, the Palestine’s called for the destruction of the Israel state which would be replaced by a secular Palestine state. This idea from the Palestine’s was first considered during the 1970s years but during Arafat tenure, it was not strongly considered. In the year 1988 Arafat was forced to officially recognized Israel due to pressure from the U.S.A. The Hamas, on the other hand, were firm in their destruction claims of the Israelites state. However, the PLO lowered its stance on this issue. Palestine Authority This is the stage that Palestine finally achieved their goal for nationalism. This stage is famously remembered with the Britain playing a significant role in the nation’s final course for nationalism. This was the final stage in Palestinians Nationalism. This period was famous for secret meetings and hostility between Israel and the PLO. On the other hand, it is during this period that these two states signed the OSLO Accords which declared that there would be a mutual recognition of the two separate states with the Israel taking hold of the Gaza and West Bank. The famously known ’Oslo Process’ led to the negotiation of the permanent peace treaty between the Israel and the Palestinians. However, later on; some Islamic groups led by Hamas denounced this peace agreement (Jamal, A 2005). In the year 1994 Yassir Arafat wan the presidential seat in Palestine with the Hamas party gaining the majority seats in the Parliament. Later on in the year 2003 in this period, Mahamoud Abbas became the first Prime Minister of the country with Arafat holding on the presidential seat until his death in the year 2004.Abbas they took succeeded him as the country’s president and was also named the chairman of the PLO. The then president and his prime minister Ariel Sharon then agreed on suspending the Aqṣā intifada which was a hostile group that was quickly emerging in Palestine (Jamal, A 2005). In the year 2005, Israel marked the completion of withdrawal of its troops from the Gaza strip with PA taking full control over this territory. Themes of Palestine nationalism Nationalism in Palestine took shape in different themes which in the long end brought a sense of ownership and identity to the Palestine citizenship. Nationalism in Palestine was first manifested through Islamic religion (Zomlot, H. 2010). Muslim was used as a religion to unify the people and the creation of a nation identity. The view of nationalism being perceived as a group feeling was reawakened by modernity in Palestine. The Muslim religion was introduced in Palestine after its partition from India. In this case, Palestine wanted to be independent and unique. Therefore, it embraced the Muslim religion in order to distinguish itself from India. The second theme was the rise of Islam ethnic community in Palestine. This ethnic community is made up of the Indian Muslims, who form the majority of Palestine population. Muslim religion, in this case, established what is good and bad for Palestine nationalism. This explains why Palestine is referred to as the land of diversity, due to the ethical and linguistic diversity present in the country (Cohen, E., and Oren, M 2002). On the other hand in this stage, Islam region played a significant role in the country’s politics. This led to the formation of the Muslim law which shaped up the countries nationalism this led to the scrapping off of the conservative law which was in use previously (Ghanem, As’ad 2001). On the other hand, there were efforts for the formation of a sovereign, secular state which was not successful due to the influence of the Muslim religion in the country by his time. The sovereignty of God as spelled out in the Muslim religion influenced these leaders to abandon this idea since it was seen as more supreme than that of national sovereignty. SayyidAbulAlaMaududi, who founded the Jamaat-e-Islami, got into Palestineis politics, and he is attributed to introducing the Muslims Sharia Laws in the country’s constitution. He also pushed for the creation of a district state for the Muslims from that on Non-Muslims (Cohen, E., and Oren, M 2002). The Muslim society was therefore actively participating in the economic, social and other professional works in Palestine. However, the aboriginal government was reluctant to take up the Maududi suggestion due to the fact that they seemed too extreme for the independence of Palestine. Conclusion Evidently the Palestine struggle towards nationalism was quite difficult and it led to multiple changes to the country and its people. Nationalism in this case led to international integration between Palestine and other multiple countries which fostered their nationalism. Nationalism gives a country’s citizen a sense of hope and believe which I turn eliminates vices that affect most countries for instance corruption. With the increased infiltration of middle eastern countries by terrorist organizations only nationalism can help a country stay together and fight these vices with one voice. References Cohen, E. and Oren, M. (2002). Six Days of War: June 1967 and the Making of the Modern Middle East. Foreign Affairs, 81(5), p.202. Ghanem, As’ad. 2001. The Palestinian-Arab Minority in Israel, 1948-2000: A Political Study. Albany, New York: State University of New York Press. Jamal, A. (2005).The Palestinian national movement. Bloomington: Indiana University Press Khalidi, Rashid. 2010/1997. Palestinian Identity: The Construction of a Modern National Consciousness. New York: Columbia University Press.. Palestinians in the Arab world: institution building and the search for state. (1989). Choice Reviews Online, 26(09), pp.26-5269-26-5269. Pearlman, W. (2011).Violence, nonviolence, and the Palestinian national movement. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Meyer, Tamar. 1994. “Heightened Palestinian Nationalism: Military Occupation, Repression, Difference and Gender.” In Women and the Israeli Occupation: The Politics of Change, edited by Tamar Meyer, 55-77. London and New York: Routledge. The Palestinian national movement: politics of contention, 1967-2005. (2006). Choice Reviews Online, 43(09), pp.43-5533-43-5533. Zomlot, H. (2010). Building a state under occupation: the Palestinians and the living legacy of Oslo.Contemporary Arab Affairs, 3(2), pp.180-192. Read More