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| Middle East |
| Paleos say we can stuff the prime minister idea... |
| 2002-08-25 |
| Palestinians have rejected a U.S. proposal to have their parliament choose a prime minister who could balance the power of Yasser Arafat — and an official said Friday that sharp disagreements with Washington could jeopardize Palestinian elections scheduled for January. There's always a reason, isn't there? Washington has been seeking to sideline Arafat while calling for elections as part of attempts to persuade the Palestinian Authority to undertake sweeping reforms. As an alternative to the 73-year-old leader, Secretary of State Colin Powell and National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, in a meeting in Washington with Palestinian officials two weeks ago, proposed that the Palestinian parliament choose a prime minister. In a report Friday to an international task force in Paris on Palestinian reform, the Palestinian Authority said it would not agree to changes in the electoral system used by Palestinians in 1996 to confirm Arafat as leader. "We told them (the United States) that this is not your business," Saeb Erekat said. "We were shocked during the discussions that the American side is speaking about changing the law of elections." He's right. It's not our business. Our business is not to do business with Arafat and his clique. We should simply state our position, never deviate in the least, and let them figure out how to please us for a change... |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |