Sunday March 8, 2009

I've Been Thinking:

Think Palestinian Authority, think upheaval.
Think Palestinian Authority, think disarray.

Palestinian Prime Minister Sallam Fayyed submitted a letter of resignation to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday.
Abbas promptly rejected the letter.

Fayyed was never elected to office, he was selected.
Abbas appointed him prime minister in 2007, right after Hamas ousted Fatah from Gaza. Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh is the person who had been elected to be prime minister, but after the coup Haniyeh was relegated to leading only Hamas and only from Gaza.

Ever since then Hamas has been demanding Fayyed's resignation claiming that he was not legally entitled to the position.
This is an internal debate.
The law provides an interesting view. The law does not specifically state that the president cannot dismiss the prime minister, so President Abbas dismissed Prime Minister Haniyeh.
The law does permit the president to appoint a prime minister, so President Abbas appointed Prime Minister Fayyed.

Fayyed resigned as a gesture to Hamas, hoping to entice them into a unity government.
For the United States it was a risky gesture.
The United States sent a quick message to Abbas informing him that they want Fayyed to be the person to manage the $900 million they are donating to the Palestinians. Fayyed is a former World Bank executive and knows the importance of paper trails and accountable spending.
The United States trusts Sallam Fayyed.

Think Palestinian Authority, think, what a mess.

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