It's 2008. Do You Know Where Your Money Went?

Natan Sharansky and Bassem Eid (founder of the Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group in East Jerusalem), writing in today’s Wall Street Journal on a “tragic peace process [that] turned to farce”:

Israel, America and the free world share much of the blame for this fiasco.  As Arafat and his Fatah party were busy hollowing out Palestinian civil society and turning control of the Palestinian economy over to corrupt cronies, the world showered them with money and diplomatic support. Hundreds of millions of dollars were transferred to Arafat's private slush fund so that he could "strengthen" his standing among the Palestinians. . . .

Last November's Annapolis "peace" conference continued this misguided approach.  Once again the focus is primarily on who is ruling and not on how they rule. Mr. Abbas has replaced Arafat as the recipient of international largess, but the emphasis remains on empowering a particular leader, rather than empowering Palestinian civil society and creating democratic institutions.

. . . Since the beginning of the second intifada in September 2000, internecine violence has reached unprecedented heights.  According to the Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group, the death toll includes: 122 killed in the streets (suspected collaborators), 41 by capital punishment, 34 honor killings, 48 stabbed to death, seven beaten to death, 258 killed under mysterious circumstances and 818 cases of gunfire.  So far no one has been charged let alone tried for any of these unlawful killings.

Where is the money that was supposedly spent on reforming the judicial system?

Since the money involved is American money, one would think a Democratic Congress, which has done little since 2006 but investigate, might want to investigate.

ADDENDUM: Here's a headstart for any Congressional committee that cares, from a blogger who has spent more time on this to date than Congress: "Where Has All the Money Gone?"

Comments

[spoffmoffat]

"Israel, America and the free world share much of the blame for this fiasco" - but it is not just through misplaced generosity:

"After failing to anticipate Hamas’s victory over Fatah in the 2006 Palestinian election, the White House cooked up yet another scandalously covert and self-defeating Middle East debacle: part Iran-contra, part Bay of Pigs. With confidential documents, corroborated by outraged former and current U.S. officials, David Rose reveals how President Bush, Condoleezza Rice, and Deputy National-Security Adviser Elliott Abrams backed an armed force under Fatah strongman Muhammad Dahlan, touching off a bloody civil war in Gaza and leaving Hamas stronger than ever."
http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/
features/2008/04/gaza200804

One could argue furthermore that aid to Israel plays a part in the perpetuation of this conflict:

"Israel is not economically self-sufficient, and relies on foreign assistance and borrowing to maintain its economy."
http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/
IB85066.pdf

Let's face it, if it were not for Aid, neither side would be able to maintain this conflict.