Palestinians Delay Re-Election to Defuse Tensions

By Yasser El-Banna, IOL Correspondent

GAZA CITY, May 31, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) - A partial Palestinian municipal re-election was put off Tuesday, May 31, after the Islamic resistance movement Hamas decided to boycott the run-off race for fear of foul play.

“We have decided to delay the elections until further notice in keeping with a request to avoid all problems on the Palestinian street,” Jamal Shobaki, chairman of the Local Electoral Commission, told reporters.

The umbrella committee of the Palestinian factions earlier called for delaying the re-election to defuse tensions between Hamas and the mainstream Fatah movement of President Mahmoud Abbas.

Committee chairman Ibrahim Abul Naja urged in an impromptu press conference to listen to reason and put the dialogue back on track to settle pending differences, suggesting delaying a vote originally scheduled for Wednesday, June 1.

“The committee does respect the original date of the re-election, but the homeland’s interests should be given a priority,” he said.

Member of Fatah’s Central Committee Samir Meshharawi said his movement agreed to delay the run-off election “to preserve the Palestinian unity and in compliance with the call of the umbrella committee.”

“Fatah is keen, just like Hamas, on having guarantees to make the re-election a success,” he told a press conference. “We want a competitive electoral process engaging all Palestinian factions.”

Hamas won by a small majority in the southern Gaza town of Rafah, Beit Lahia to the north and the central Al-Bureij refugee camp on May 5.

But two court rulings cancelled the vote results in these areas, which prompted Hamas to charge that the verdict was “politically-motivated under a judicial cloak.”

Hamas cited counts by international monitors, who did not report irregularities on election day.

Fatah has captured about 50 of 84 councils in Gaza and the West Bank .

Fair Play

Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri, in statements to IslamOnline.net, welcomed Abul Naja’s delay call, saying there is more than a chance to have a fair and timely re-election.

Earlier in the day, Hamas announced its boycott decision, urging the Palestinians in the disputed areas to spurn the re-election.

“Hamas decided not to take part in what is another vote in Rafah, Beit Lahia and Al-Bureij,” Abu Zuhri told reporters. “We call on our people to boycott these elections and not recognize their results.”

Abu Zuhri said that Hamas reacted positively to efforts aimed at cushioning the repercussions of the court rulings to preserve the unity of the Palestinians and the democratic process in the territories.

He criticized Fatah for insisting on the re-vote was held on Wednesday and reiterated that Hamas first wanted guarantees that they would be fair.

Abu Zuhri further revealed that Hamas and Fatah, through marathon talks, agreed to delay the re-election for one month in the presence of members of the umbrella committee.

“We agreed on certain guarantees with the Egyptian delegation and Fatah regarding the re-election, but Fatah retreated from the agreement last night [May 30]. So there are no guarantees to secure honest re-election,” Abu Zuhri said.

The showdown came after Egyptian mediators, led by deputy intelligence chief Gen. Mostafa El-Bihiri, spent a week in the occupied territories on a mission to defuse rumbling disagreements between both movements.

Another Month

At his press conference, Abul Naja said the election law will be amended in accordance to the Cairo Declaration in February.

“The legislative council has also decided to cancel the civil registration system as the basis for elections,” he said.

Abul Naja added that the Electoral Commission has extended for another month a registration deadline to encourage eligible voters to step forward.

On whether Hamas would run in the upcoming legislative election, Abu Zuhri would not elaborate, saying that “every session has a different discussion.”

Members of Fatah have already called for the July 17 legislative election to be delayed, amid increasing fears that Hamas could make sweeping gains, cutting into Fatah's power base.

Hassan Abu Hashish, a Palestinian political analyst, said Hamas’s boycott decision would have a domino effect on the entire electoral process.

“The boycott of any election by Hamas, to be honest, undermines its importance and makes it non-representative,” he told IOL.

“The boycott will definitely throw a spanner in the electoral wheel and render it insignificant as it will only tighten the grip of the ruling party.”

Hamas’s move coincided another showdown with Abbas after the latter’s call on the resistance movement to “renounce violence.”

Abbas's call was aired in an interview on US television shortly before an Israeli drone fired a rocket at two Islamic Jihad activists, injuring two Palestinian girls.

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