It is no surprise that Hamas has such a large amount of support
from the Palestinian people.
While this organization is routinely dismissed as simply a
terrorist cell, the scope of its operations goes beyond the violent
counter-struggle to Israeli aggression.
Hamas provides services to the poor and hopeless Palestinian
population such as medical care, schooling and even food. When
somebody is feeding you, it’s hard to ignore their
organization.
While I do not support many of the methods Hamas employs against
the Israel Defense Forces and Israeli people, I do not dismiss them
as merely a terrorist organization.
The world, especially the United States, should recognize Hamas
as a legitimate political entity. Not recognizing the group’s
authority would only be a display of utmost hypocrisy as well as a
setback to the peace process.
Hamas won 76 of the 132 seats in Palestinian parliament;
obviously the people have made their democratic decision. We have
now seen what the majority of the population demands, and those
wants should be recognized and addressed.
Would it be fair if the rest of the world began sanctioning or
refusing peace talks with the United States simply because they
were unsure about the outcome of the 2000 Presidential
election?
The Western world should not forget that Israeli Prime Minister
Menachem Begin was once a member of the Irgun, an organization that
bombed the British administrative and military headquarters at the
King David Hotel. The United States did not remove him from power,
and he even received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1978, along with
Mohamed Anwar al-Sadat.
I do understand the concern regarding a group such as Hamas in
power. However, this may prove to be the ultimate test.
Now that Hamas has been elected, it will have to prove to the
Palestinian people that it can wield its power in a manner that
seeks to benefit them as a whole.
If it does not do this, the world, and more importantly, the
group’s supporters, will see that the Hamas platform has been
based solely on emotional rhetoric.
Hamas has the chance to become a more legitimate political body,
as the Hizbollah in Lebanon has become.
With this power, the group will either blossom as a more
accepted organization in the eyes of the world and its own people,
or it will crumble away as its base support begins to see the
destructive nature of the group’s tactics.
Singh is a third-year political science student.