A message to Ehud Olmert

Mr Ehud Olmert, leader of Kadima and prime minister designate of Israel,

Fate had it that you should be prime minister, while Sharon is lying in intensive care at Hadassah Hospital, incapacitated beyond hope of recovery. Many, including myself, believe that the world will be a better place without him.

For starters, I believe that you are in a difficult position. You need to take decisions that are crucial for the future of Israel and the region. You need to do that in fast-changing times. You need to stay ahead of the game. And you cannot simply follow in Sharon's bloody footsteps. Great leaders are not those who depend on their muscles, but those who know how to adapt to change, those who know that politics is an act of give and take, and those who know that concessions must be made.

I know that you inherited from Sharon certain fears in the present, and a concern for the future. Sharon had been trying to cover his fears with crimes. You and other Israeli leaders have a tendency to do so. Fear is something that cannot be banished by guns alone. You can kill thousands of people and still live in fear. You are a new prime minister now with a new party to lead. And you need new thinking and a new style.

Across the divide, the scene has changed. Hamas presents a new composition and new ideas. Don't turn your back on Hamas just because it fought you. Remember that peace is invariably reached between former combatants. Menachem Begin was a leader of Irgun, a bloody gang if there was ever one. And yet when he became prime minister, Begin proceeded to sign the Camp David Accords with President Anwar El-Sadat. The two men later won a combined Nobel Peace Prize.

Fighting doesn't last forever. At some point, the combatants need sit, talk and shape the future. Were you to remain obsessed with the past -- and yours is not spotless -- the future would be grim. So perhaps you should start talking about geography and demography, for only then you may find a solution.

You're asking Hamas to recognise you before you start talking. Wrong again. By agreeing to talk, Hamas is implicitly recognising you. Besides, which is the Israel you're asking Hamas to recognise? You're a country with deformed demography and no borders. Refusal to talk will get you nowhere. Fearful people cannot move forward. Time has changed you, and power may change Hamas. Disengagement is not the way to go.

You're asking Hamas to lay down its arms before talks begin. This is odd, if you ask me. You have military power on your side and they have nothing but their resolve, and their rights. Have you heard the story of the wolves and the sheep who sat at the negotiating table? The wolves asked the sheep to disarm. The sheep obliged, sending away the guard dogs. At which point, the wolves set upon them and devoured them all. The Palestinians are no sheep. They are capable of deterrence and retaliation. You know that, which is good. One should know one's adversaries, for this is what makes it possible to discuss mutual security arrangements.

Instead of wasting time, you should act pragmatically. The time of grand dreams is over. The Jews of the Diaspora initially assumed they were going to a land without people. But the land had people, and those people have fought back. The founding fathers wanted to create a Greater Israel, and were victorious in war, but one cannot rely solely on might. Greater Israel was just a dream. And permanent war is not an option.

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http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2006/792/op8.htm