zionism and hamas-ism: two peas in a proverbial pod Submitted by Leila Mouammar on Tue, 2006-01-24 20:34. Categories: Foreign Policy | Middle East | World
In response to my latest entry, Znet user 'Zubub' recently accused me of holding the same views as Hamas, writing, "Hamas says on its website that it calls for the destruction of the Zionist entity and for the liberation of all Palestine from the river (Jordan) to the sea. (As does our official blogger Leila)."?
This kind of accusation, besides being offensive, inaccurate, libelous, and defamatory, is extremely dangerous. It conflates all criticism of Israel and advocacy for Palestinian rights with the extreme radicalism of one particularly notorious political party, famous for the violent actions of its military wing.
It is also a sign of ignorance and racism about Arabs and Palestinians, in general. As the daughter of Palestinian Christians from the town of Nazareth, deeply influenced by the idealism fostered by my parents' left-leaning, secular humanitarian outlook, I have been many times accused by Zionists of being an "Islamo-fascist" or other such drivel simply for rejecting the separatist and exclusivist nature of Zionism as an ideology. To advocate for the end of Zionism as an ideology and for the dissolution of boundaries in the Middle East as I do, does not mean that I support either the ends or the means advocated for by Hamas. As Hamas' ultimate objective is to found an Islamic republic in all of Palestine, it would be suicidal folly for me to support any part of their ideological platform. That does not mean that I do not see the value in some of the activities that Hamas' political wing undertakes, such as the provision of social services or the effectiveness of grassroots organizing techniques that they employ. I also have little to say against any military operations Hamas conducts against military targets, since I recognize the right of an occupied people to resist their occupier. In the final analysis, however, Hamas' viewpoint is not mine. Rather, Hamas' ideology is the mirror image of that of radicals within the Zionist establishment and government who seek to maintain a Jewish state with a Jewish majority in all of Israel. Both Zionism and Hamas-ism seek to construct or maintain states whose citizenry is bonded along religious lines. My own preference for Palestine is that articulated by Edward Said, a position which envisions the multiplicity of religious, ethnic, national, and other identifying characteristics as the historical norm, and the basis around which all future solutions should be constructed. As such, I do not seek the destruction of Israel, but rather its fundamental transformation, which could include a change of name that better represents its historical and present-day multiplicity alluded to above. Transcending the narrow confines of Zionism's vision for Israel or Hamas-ism's vision for Palestine, is a prerequisite to justly accommodating the wishes and dreams of most of the people who claim Palestine-Israel as their home.