OIC Summit expected to solve Palestine issue

The upcoming extraordinary summit meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Jakarta on March 6-7, 2016, is expected to produce concrete decisions on the realization of Palestinian independence.

The Palestinian government and OIC have urged Indonesia to host the extraordinary summit to discuss Palestines independence and the current status of developments in Jerusalem.

Middle East observer Yon Machmudi of the University of Indonesia remarked here on Wednesday that the OIC summit is expected to produce the Jakarta Declaration that should be implemented and fully supported by all OIC member countries.

Machmudi noted that the issue of Palestine is a serious problem that must be resolved fairly, and therefore, all OIC member countries have a moral responsibility to assist in the establishment of an independent and sovereign state of Palestine.

According to Machmudi, the existence of the OIC will be gauged by its success in realizing the independence of Palestine, as the OIC itself was formed initially as a response to the destruction of a Palestinian mosque by Israeli occupier force. 

In the meantime, Almuzzammil Yusuf, a member of the House of Representatives (DPR) from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) faction, expressed hope that the Indonesian delegation would put forth a proposal on a comprehensive solution to the issue of Palestine during the OIC summit. 

"As the largest Muslim nation in the world, Indonesia should play a key role and have a major share in the OIC extraordinary meeting in terms of resolving the Palestine issue," Yusuf remarked here on Thursday.

He stated that especially for the Palestine issue, Indonesia should remain in a position to voice the mandate of the Constitution that rejects all forms of colonialism and supports the independence of a Palestinian state.

Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi emphasized here on Wednesday that the key objective of the OIC summit meeting in Jakarta was to bring the issue of Palestine Al-Quds Al-Sharif again on the "radar of the world."

"Through this summit, we want to put the Palestine issue back in the spotlight, bringing it in focus of the international community," Retno added.

She stated that global conditions are very fluid, and there are conflicts everywhere, but the Palestinian issue has not been resolved until now.

"The issues of Palestine, which has not been resolved till date, should again be the focus of the worlds attention. Therefore, this summit is very important," she noted.

Retno hoped the Extraordinary Summit can reunite the Palestinian factions and the OIC members, and thus make a strong bid to bring peace to the country.

A Middle East observer, Trias Kuncahyono, said the Palestinian independence is a historical debt that the OIC owes to the cause.

"The OIC was established after the attack on Al Aqsa Mosque in 1967 that brought together Islamic countries. But this conflict (the occupation of Palestine by Israel) has not been resolved, and remains a historical debt," Trias said.

According to him, there are six issues in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, which could not be resolved until now and have assumed even more alarming proportions.

The first issue is that of the border, with the Palestinian territory become smaller as Israel expands its occupation.

Second is the issue of the Palestinian refugees, who are prevented from returning to their homeland by Israel.

Third is the issue of the status of the City of Jerusalem, considered as the Holy City by people of three religions--- Islam, Christianity, and Jew.

"Israel claims Jerusalem city as its capital, while the Palestinians call it the capital of their country," he said.

According to Trias, many peace agreements have been drafted and various settlement proposals have been formulated, but the occupation has not been ended till date.

Fourth is the issue of Israeli illegal settlements which continue to seize the Palestinian territories.

Fifth is the security issue, and sixth is the issue of conflicts over clean water distribution.

Trias hoped that Indonesia would be able to assume the role to reconcile the two countries, including resolving the intra-Palestinian disputes about governance, which involve Hamas and Fatah, and will help them unite.

Palestinian Ambassador to Indonesia Fariz Mehdawi said recently that his government hopes the meeting will produce concrete steps to resolve the problems in Jerusalem and Palestine.

"The Indonesian government has shown its support in calling for international efforts to seek solution to Palestinian and Jerusalem conflicts, and we are looking forward to the meeting of the leaders of Muslim countries," Mehdawi remarked.

He said he positively welcomes the extraordinary summit meeting of the OIC in Jakarta to discuss the issue of Palestine and the holy city of Jerusalem.

Mehdawi said the summit meeting is very important to remind Russia, the United States, the United Nations and the European Union of the situation in Jerusalem.

According to him, the four world powers taking part in the Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations need to be reminded that the Israeli violation in Jerusalem is serious.

Therefore, the Palestinian ambassador to Indonesia expressed the hope that the OIC leaders in the Jakarta meeting will be able to take concrete steps to bring peace in Palestine and protect Jerusalem.

Mehdawi noted that the OIC should be able to determine the steps to put pressure on Israel to fulfill its obligation of seriously committing itself to a peaceful resolution of the occupation, based on the UN Resolution and International Law.

He said the UN resolution favors a two states solution, and includes the establishment of a free and sovereign Palestine.

According to him, the OIC leaders are also expected to take concrete steps to determine the border between Palestine and Israel.

Palestine demands its sovereignty over the West Bank, Gaza strip and East Jerusalem as its capital.

Further, Mehdawi said one concrete step which is needed is to ensure the return of the Palestinian refugees after ending the illegal occupation of their land by Israel

Source: ANTARA