The Palestinians are busy forming a government. It is too early to say how the events in Jericho will affect its composition, but what in the past was an internal game of musical chairs among Fatah and its satellites - a competition over personal prestige and a power play by Yasser Arafat - now appears to be a discussion between different political movements and principles.
Hamas has already submitted its proposed guidelines for a coalition government. The guidelines are a mixture of the declarations and slogans of a national liberation movement and the vague promises of a future government. This mix does not bode well for the Palestinian people. Even the vagueness in the guidelines, as Mahmoud Abbas has reportedly complained, is that of an "ordinary" government - things along the lines of "we will work to eradicate poverty," a standard pledge among Israeli governments.
The guidelines give considerable space to the right of return, as well as to the standard declaration that resistance in all its forms is a right - even though, at the same time, they stress that resistance is a means, not an end. The guidelines also include a promise that Palestinian Authority institutions will be established based on the principles of democracy, justice, individual rights and freedoms, and so forth.
Hamas is even willing to discuss changes to its proposal in order to accommodate two tiny factions that are considering joining the government (the Popular Front and Independent Palestine). Fatah, in contrast, has made it clear that it views negotiations with Israel as a fundamental strategic choice, and it is not willing to concede on this issue. If so, it is unlikely that Fatah will join the government.
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