Against the backdrop of growing tensions in Jerusalem, the objective of this paper is to present an outline for how to de-escalate the violence and implement a policy for managing the city that is informed by hope rather than anxiety. The paper presents guidelines for action in the current situation, based on the following premises: Jerusalem is the present home and future capital of two peoples; a diplomatic agreement on the city is currently remote; unilateral steps play into the hands of those who oppose an agreed upon solution; in the current reality, policies must be adopted to improve the quality of life and personal security of all residents of the city. A response is also offered to recent proposals for unilateral separation of Palestinian neighborhoods from Jerusalem.
The following steps are proposed:
- The existence of East Jerusalem as an organic territorial, demographic, and communal entity connected to the Historic Basin must be ensured.
- The civil status of the residents of East Jerusalem must be determined through negotiations. Until then, it must be established that the permanent residency status of Palestinians living in Jerusalem cannot be revoked.
- An emergency plan comparable to a local Marshall Plan should be introduced for comprehensive systemic and remedial improvements in every aspect of life in East Jerusalem.
- The quality of life in West Jerusalem must also be strength...read more
Against the backdrop of growing tensions in Jerusalem, the objective of this paper is to present an outline for how to de-escalate the violence and implement a policy for managing the city that is informed by hope rather than anxiety. The paper presents guidelines for action in the current situation, based on the following premises: Jerusalem is the present home and future capital of two peoples; a diplomatic agreement on the city is currently remote; unilateral steps play into the hands of those who oppose an agreed upon solution; in the current reality, policies must be adopted to improve the quality of life and personal security of all residents of the city. A response is also offered to recent proposals for unilateral separation of Palestinian neighborhoods from Jerusalem.
The following steps are proposed:
- The existence of East Jerusalem as an organic territorial, demographic, and communal entity connected to the Historic Basin must be ensured.
- The civil status of the residents of East Jerusalem must be determined through negotiations. Until then, it must be established that the permanent residency status of Palestinians living in Jerusalem cannot be revoked.
- An emergency plan comparable to a local Marshall Plan should be introduced for comprehensive systemic and remedial improvements in every aspect of life in East Jerusalem.
- The quality of life in West Jerusalem must also be strengthened by means of municipal and governmental investments and the advancement of commercial and social entrepreneurship.
- It is recommended that commercial and employment initiatives, including knowledge-intensive enterprises as well as religious and cultural projects, be established along the seam lines in Jerusalem, in cooperation with Palestinian and international bodies.
- The status quo on the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif and in the holy places must be observed in both letter and spirit.
- In the current reality, Israel must take the necessary steps to protect the security of all residents of the city.
- The involvement and participation of the Palestinian Authority and the international community is vital to the development of East Jerusalem.
- The growth and active involvement of both Israeli and Palestinian civil society should be encouraged, and each provided optimal conditions to act in the interests of their
respective communities.
Response to proposals for a unilateral separation of Palestinian neighborhoods from Jerusalem:
- Unilateral separation plans cannot offer a vision for a functioning city, and are even less viable for a sustainable agreement.
- Interim steps can only be constructive if limited in scope and time, and only as an integral part of a comprehensive and agreed upon framework.
- The heart of East Jerusalem is the Historic Basin, the center of Palestinian religious, cultural, and commercial life in the city. An Israeli “disengagement”, while marketed as a “concession” – a tool for separation between Israelis and Palestinians as an interim step ahead of a two-state solution – in fact constitutes a unilateral Israeli move to disconnect a sizeable part of the Palestinian population from the city while tightening Israel’s power over those who remain, as well as its control of the historical, religious, and national assets of the entire Palestinian population. Such a move will inflame the conflict, provoke opposition throughout the Islamic world, and deepen Israel’s isolation in the international community.
- The disconnection of additional Palestinian neighborhoods from the municipal domain will transform them into enclaves of poverty and profound neglect, as the neighborhoods
of East Jerusalem disconnected from the city by the Separation Barrier already demonstrate.
- Local administrations cannot act in a vacuum, without an organic connection to a space demarcated by a firm political, historical, and local identity and linked to a central government and municipal systems; and will require significant investments in professional resources and expertise, and physical and social infrastructures. The viability of such initiatives will be highly dependent on the cooperation and recognition of the Palestinian Authority, the Arab world, and the international community.
- The Palestinian Authority cannot be expected to assume responsibility for decision making from which it has been deliberately excluded, and which will cause lasting damage to the Palestinian domain in Jerusalem, creating enormous infrastructural, social, economic, and political problems.
- Fear of the ramifications of unilateral steps will cause Palestinian residents to move to the neighborhoods in the Historic Basin in massive numbers, as well as to Israeli neighborhoods/settlements nearby.
- Fences and closures are no guarantee of security and can in fact contribute to the erosion of security.
Looking to the Future
Jerusalem is the present home and future capital of two peoples. Israel must take all possible actions, availing itself of all sources of support, to promote an agreed upon political solution, both despite and because of the current challenges to peace. It must refrain completely from taking any steps liable to impair the future feasibility of such a solution.
In the absence of a foreseeable solution, Jerusalem will remain the city of two peoples who share a complex urban reality held together by a delicate system of mutual relations and, in some aspects, interdependency. These balances enable routine life in the city and relative stability, help calm the city during periods of tension, and provide the basis for building trust and consensus ahead of a sustainable solution in the future. In the absence of an agreement, systems for managing Jerusalem must be premised on recognition of the reality in the city – its complex balance of relations – and implemented in cooperation with the civil societies and elected national leaderships of both peoples, as well as the international community.
Israel must take all possible steps to address the root causes of tension in the city. The most critical steps, in this context, will be improving living conditions and existential security for the Palestinian collective in East Jerusalem; protecting its physical and communal integrity; allowing its development in the urban space; and nurturing positive economic, social, and intercommunal prospects for both sides of the city, in the spirit of the steps proposed herein.
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