(WAFA) – The Palestinian Authority’s position paper to the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC) meeting published Monday focuses on the needed efforts to enable development in Area C of the Palestinian Territory, which is under full Israeli military and civil control and which makes up around 60% of the West Bank area.
The 12-page position paper will be presented to the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee, the donors coordination group for the Palestinian people, when it meets on Wednesday in Brussels to assess the outlook for 2012 based on reports from the Palestinians, Israel, the United Nations, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the Quartet Representative with a focus on the Palestinian macroeconomic situation and the budget of the Palestinian Authority (PA).
The Palestinian position paper, “Equitable Development: Moving Forward Despite the Occupation,” urges the international community to step up its development efforts in Area C and East Jerusalem, which Israel has annexed following its occupation in 1967.
It also stresses the PA's determination to achieve the rapid economic and social development of an independent Palestinian state despite the Israeli army’s program of demolition of homes, schools and other structures.
“We strongly encourage our international partners to join in this endeavor, despite the risks, and employ all tools at their disposal at the diplomatic level to enable development beyond Area A and Area B, including the sustainable reconstruction of Gaza and rebuilding of Palestinian institutions and infrastructure in East Jerusalem,” says the paper.
Area A, according to the 1993 Oslo accords, includes the cities and is under full Palestinian rule, while Area B, that includes the villages scattered all over the West Bank, is administered by the Palestinians but the security is in Israeli hands.
The paper also outlines the steps the PA will take to foster the economic viability and fiscal self-reliance of an independent Palestine, with a particular focus on access and freedom of movement throughout the occupied Palestinian territory.
Prime Minister Salam Fayyad says in the paper that Palestinians are ready for sovereignty over the State of Palestine on the June 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The government will press for the implementation of the National Early Recovery Plan for Gaza and the Strategic Multi Sector Development Plan for East Jerusalem, as well as press for a territorial link that enables free movement between Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
“This will not be by any means a straightforward task in the face of an occupation regime which actively promotes expansion and economic growth of settlements, whilst demolishing Palestinian homes and public infrastructure,” says the PA's position paper.
The paper stresses that substantial investment, particularly in key sectors such as agriculture and tourism that offer the promise of early-stage economic growth, and job creation such as in East Jerusalem and Area C, is an essential element of preparation for statehood.
The PA commits itself in the paper to continue to work for good governance, public service delivery, financial management, improvements in justice and human rights, anti-corruption measures and economic self-reliance.
