FINLAND & PALESTINE Proceedings of a Joint Workshop

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LIIi1Y Shabaneh
vanguard of the revolt against the Israeli occupation and a
loyal advocate of political reform within the Palestinian leadership,
and another that maintained the steady course of moderate
dialogue with Israel and its American allies. This fact
added another dimension of split of the movement tendencies.
2. Fateh Deadlock
The core question is to identify the elements of the crisis in
Fateh and to seek opportunities or possibilities for a way to
democratize the rules in the movement as a path to overcome
it to explore the future of Fateh and its direction.
2.1 Crisis ofRenovation
The petition to hold a new strategizing conference and elections
is the rallying cry of Fateh's rank-and-file. It has been
about two decades since the faction held its last elections.
Membership in Fateh's most prestigious leadership bodies, the
CC and RC, is contingent on nearly two decades of service and
there are now dozens of party faithfuls that qualify. The current
pressure is some type of stampede of generations. More
common, however, is the linking of a generational handover to
the broader goal of democratization and reform in Palestinian
society itself.
2.2 Crisis ofIdentity
The sum of these calls to revamp Fateh are a challenge to the
legitimacy of Fateh's CC. Fateh's political positions embrace
the crafters of the Geneva Accords 3 , as well as the command­
3 It is an extra-governmental and therefore unofficial peace proposal meant
to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It would give Palestinians almost all of
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