repercussions of one's vote ....

US Attitude to Hamas: Disturbing Parallel With Nicaragua
Ramzy Baroud, Aljazeera,5, April, 2006

{'Israel is clearly reaching the final stretch in its fight to deny Palestinians every single legitimate demand for freedom, sovereignty and true peace and justice. Failing to see that is tantamount to partaking in the Israeli plot to deny Palestinians any say in the shaping of their future, which is sadly growing dimmer by the day.'}

What is unfolding in the occupied territories is a worst-case scenario, ironically one made possible with the direct help of many Palestinians themselves.

The democratically elected Palestinian government is now officially isolated, as many Palestinians cannot see beyond their own narrow ideological differences and factions. Others cannot resist their total reliance on foreign, mostly European funds to run their NGOs, whose contribution to Palestinian life is still disputed.

It looks as though Palestine is being turned into another Nicaragua. That was the intent from the moment Hamas was declared victorious in the Parliamentary elections last January. US mainstream media conveyed the feeling that an utter miscalculation in US foreign policy took place. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice charged back, leading a campaign of defamation and coercion aimed at isolating the democratically elected Palestinian legislators, further solidifying with the former corrupt political elite.

Nicaragua of the 1960s and 1970s seemed of little concern as long as our formidable man, Somoza, ruled with an iron fist. His people robbed the country senseless until the Sandinistas emerged on the scene, toppling him and eventually his US-armed National Guard. Predictably, the US took on the new Sandinista government, which was described then by the international development organization Oxfam as “exceptional..(in its) commitment to improve the conditions of the people and encourage their active participation in the development process.” On the other hand, it was obvious that Somoza had fled with his country’s entire movable assets.

For reasons that have more to do with US strategic interests than the welfare of the people of Nicaragua, the Sandinistas were labeled a “cancer” that had to be extracted. To do so, Nicaragua was completely cut off, denied any form of aid and was forced to squander its resources to fight off Somoza’s former National Guard, renamed the Contras. The rest, of course, is history. Bullied, isolated and terrified, the people of Nicaragua couldn’t withstand the US-led pressures, and were forced into submission, ditching the Sandinista government in a rare democratic election, orchestrated by the Sandinistas themselves. The human cost for such American adventurism was of course unbearable to ordinary Nicaraguans, though it constituted a mere continuation of US foreign policy in Central America and all over the world.

The Palestinian case is, more or less, being handled the same way: The internal and external pressures, the unreasonable demands, the boycott and the collective punishment. All elements are indeed falling into place to remanufacture that same nightmarish scenario which, it is hoped, would lead to diplomatic deadlock, regional and international isolation and further deterioration in the already unstable (read non-existing) Palestinian economy.

On the external front, the new Palestinian government was met almost immediately with unfair demands: They unilaterally renounce violence and unconditionally recognize Israel. Israel was not urged to do anything in return. The intent was of course discrediting the new Palestinian government, knowing fully that it was unlikely to succumb to such pressure.

Similarly, a regional isolation campaign was under way, one that resulted in denying the Palestinian government an invitation to the Sudan Arab League Summit — a sign that Arabs are fulfilling the assigned task.

The real mockery is that various Palestinian factions have too opted to steer away from what they sense might be a challenging and perhaps costly period in their history.

Unfortunately, Hamas was forced to form a government and to seek its legislative approval alone. The ground is now prepared for the US to unabashedly cement its international boycott of the “terrorist” Palestinian government, and for Israel to finish off demarcating its border as it pleases, turning the scattered leftovers of the occupied territories into South African-style Bantustans.

The US-Israeli war is already under way as US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters on March 27 that his government rejects Hamas’ call for dialogue, once again outlining Washington’s conditions for any talks. Israel, according to the Sunday Times, is preparing a massive military campaign in the West Bank that would continue “until the last of the terrorists are dead or under arrest.” Considering that Hamas has unilaterally refrained from counter violence for over a year, Israeli campaign will be an act of collective punishment against the Palestinian people for electing a Parliament that refuses to subscribe to Israeli definition of peace.

Even if Palestinians resist the pressure, Israel will be allowed by the West to dictate its own “solution” to the conflict unhindered, for reprimanding Israel is now equal to siding with a terrorist group.

Israel is clearly reaching the final stretch in its fight to deny Palestinians every single legitimate demand for freedom, sovereignty and true peace and justice. Failing to see that is tantamount to partaking in the Israeli plot to deny Palestinians any say in the shaping of their future, which is sadly growing dimmer by the day.