Internet Peace Plan

To:  Ariel Sharon, Prime Minister of Israel; Yasser Arafat, Chairman, Palestinian National Authority, and the good people of Israel and Palestine

[ A global-participation, Internet peace strategy to usher the Israeli - Palestinian parties in conflict to adopt more civil relations, and move quickly to find lasting agreements for dwelling in peace. ]

August 4, 2001



INTRODUCTION

We, the world of civilized human beings -- a brotherhood of individuals, a network of businesses, a neighborhood of nations -- stand up to our collective responsibility as world citizens, and come together to assist the peace process, on the occasion of the continuing difficulty of our Israeli and Palestinian neighbors to maintain civil relations with one another, and recognizing these truths:

Life is sacred, and it is fragile;

We are all connected;

Man's inhumanity to man is no more tolerable in the 21st century than it was in the 20th;

We do not take the privilege of civilization for granted;

All children born unto this earth deserve to grow up in an environment free of hostilities, where their welfare is placed ahead of any quarrel between adults; and

That both Israelis and Palestinians deserve to live in peace, free from threats or use of force.

WE FURTHER BELIEVE:

That the good people of Israel and Palestine have deeply suffered, and want peace, and that our helping hand may persuade their leaders to find their peaceful destinies.

That the level of barbarism the world has recently witnessed, and whose emotional wounds are still unhealed, is incongruous with other evolution taking place in our societies today, facilitating communication between people anytime or place, and we have searched in our hearts, and find we cannot hold both concepts in our minds, with any degree of rationality. For to what end do we invent these tools, if they are not stepping stones to our collective advancement?

That to make daily life a battlefield -- on your own territory, or ours -- undermines the hard-won progress the world has made toward spreading civilization around the globe. And that this unfolding of civilization, which has so benefited by cooperation between all mankind, learned from each other's past, and established a worldwide marketplace, ought not accept this blemish of destructiveness upon its soul.

That we come together to work for peace, so that our forebears, celebrated and unsung, shall not have handed down lifetimes of wisdom...
That our architects shall not have conjured meeting places of stone and steel...
That our inventors shall not have notified us of a new page in our own great story...
That our poets shall not have sung their crystal visions to our souls...
That our teachers shall not have planted in us histories, techniques, and awareness...
That our mothers and fathers shall not have contributed the miracle of each child born, and each child raised...
All in vain
All in vain
All in vain
All in vain.

That we support the further advancement of our own societies, and the harmonious relations between them. That we shall not carry any form of barbarism into the third millennium, and therefore, vow to leave it behind.

That pursuit of one's ideals, at the expense of acting toward others with basic humanity, is nowhere respected.

That the material, industrial, intellectual, and spiritual fruits of peace-loving civilizations have been hard-won and are joyfully claimed. And that we shall not allow these gains to be taken for granted by our unwitting involvement in Israeli - Palestinian tensions, nor undermined by these neighbors' constant violent interaction not truly aiming for a clear tone of peace.

That there must be a minimal price in order to share these fruits. For what do we gain from increased trade, if we must pay for it with diminished peace of mind?

That allowing the economic status quo to dominate, that simply satisfying each other's demands for trade, is not enough to meet the minimum needs of our advancing civilizations. That merely consuming resources is not the
only measure by which we define our collective humanity.

That our greatest humanity emerges when we act with intelligence and compassion in all situations. By acknowledging these values ourselves do we wish to encourage Israel and Palestine to embrace them too.

That as a civilized worldwide community of individuals, organizations, corporations, and nations, we are faced with acting in a manner which makes the most sense to all parties -- Israel, Palestine, and the world -- not only economically, but also on a humanitarian level.

That since efforts begun by the Oslo Peace Process (1993), Madrid Conference (1991), and Camp David Accords (1978) have not led to a resolution of conflict, and when we can look back on our hopes for these past efforts, and see that there has, in fact, been a worsening of the suffering, then it is time to think new thoughts.


CIVILITY, COMMUNITY, HUMANITY

That we, the world, believe that supporting the highest human rights ideals will significantly contribute to dissolving the Israeli - Palestinian tensions. That by extending ourselves and caring for each other more than as coarse trading partners, do we define ourselves as not just creatures, or consumers, struggling to survive, but as a humanity, a single human race, strengthened by compassion, ever expanding our panoply of material and spiritual technologies, with the aim that all may thrive.

That with this broader support are we able to transcend our personal limitations, and can greater solutions to our problems be found.

That we share the same sun, the same moon, the same stars, the same rain. That we recognize our commonalities to be vastly more numerous than our differences.

That we vow, to the international community of human beings, that we shall contribute our best efforts to create and maintain a stable platform of peace beneath our daily lives and daily commerce.


WHO WE ARE

We stand together, because, irrespective of our nationalities, or ethnic heritage, we see that only focus on peace, not partisanship, can create peace.

We are a brotherhood of nations, businesses large and small, organizations, individuals, places of worship, schools and universities, artists and professionals, parents and children. We are a family of civilized human beings.

To make peace, we need peacemakers, not destructive or oppressive actions. Therefore, to support the good people of Palestine and Israel, we are the peacemaker.
We are the volunteer army of good samaritans.
We are the gardener, replacing a worn-out soil with a fertile soil more supportive of growing a firmly rooted peace.

We come together to strongly endorse this Plan, with respect for the collective benefits a peacefully resolved outcome would confer.

We make these compromises for peace, in order to invite your own.

We act not out of hostility, but of compassion. And the certitude that a fruitful peace IS achievable, if only we shall summon it properly.


WHY

Because neither the greatest might, nor the most terrifying threats, will create a lasting peace.

Because we recognize that until a permanent solution is implemented, your peoples remain prisoners of war in their own homelands. That acts of war, mistaken as efforts for peace, have turned this ancient desert soil, beloved worldwide, into a quicksand.

Yet, even where deliberate acts of cruelty have taken place, and the heart of humanity has wept to hear the stories and witness the graphic violence, the heart of humanity still radiates abundant forgiveness.

Because we believe in a civilized world where there are agreements, marketplaces, and tables between us -- not unresolved aggressions, anxiety, and a calendar of tears.

That men may disagree, but should they involve children in their violent quarrel, we shall stand and say:

"We are pained that we may have contributed
to this heartbreak, in any way,
and shall bear responsibility for this
sadness no further."

That we take neither life nor civilization for granted, and so shall not wait for another boiling point, but will act now, at the speed of light, out of obligation to our collective humanity.

Because we accept responsibility for creating the world we wish to live in.

That by setting these limits to help you find your agreement, is it our concerted wish that you, Israel and Palestine, arrive at your peaceful destiny as soon as is humanly possible. That we may then celebrate your joy, the collective benefits of peace, and our great pride in your accomplishment.


PEACE

That a people not at peace with themselves may not expect to find it with their neighbor, despite any degree of military preparedness, or religious righteousness.

That peace is a state of being within one's soul, not necessarily linked to any dimension of time or place. For in the effort to appease the soul of a perpetually disquieted people, the world could offer the disputing nation its own planet, and that still would not be enough -- would not be enough to create peace in that nation's soul. Peace is either desired and sought, without blame, cultivated and maintained as tenderly as an orchid, or it is not. Continued aggression only begets continued defensiveness, which sponsors an environment where unresolved hatred and animosity thrive. Beginning with the strong desire for peacemaking will allow the miracles of understanding to unfold.

That if one's God is not providing a comfortable enough solution such that peace may reign, perhaps it is because one is not asking the right question. Instead of asking:

"How can this disputed land be ours? And when will the pain of this struggle end?"

...one should try asking:

"How can our neighbors and ourselves dwell without struggle in a land in which both have ancestral roots?"

Let all the people of both societies ask this question, with peace in your hearts. Ask it in the marketplace...ask it in your homes...ask it in your media. Be receptive to the answers proposed not by those among you who hate his neighbor the most, but by those among you whose love for their own people is so abiding, that to see even one more casualty of hatred would be unacceptable. These are the representatives you must heed, from among you, to bring peace.


OUR TERMS

We believe that the continued dominance of the inflexible points of view, which sustains your struggle, only guarantees continued bloodshed, unrest, and insecurity. And that we need a guarantee of lasting peace in order to feel that, by continuing trade, we would not be assisting the destructiveness which these points of view incite.

We believe that simply continuing to satisfy each other's demands for trade is not sufficient to meet the minimum needs of our increasingly interlinked, interdependent, international community. And that therefore, as people who stand for peace, in will and in action, we, the undersigned, with or without the corroboration of our respective governments, agree to recognize reasonable limits for your reaching mutually acceptable terms for peace.

That if another 20 lives are sacrificed to this conflict (as either lives lost, injured, or displaced), in the Israeli and Palestinian communities TAKEN AS A WHOLE, including incidents around the world which are traced to pro-Israeli or pro-Palestinian factions, before OR after a lasting peace agreement is effected, we agree to withhold trade, public or private investment, media distribution, educational exchange, travel, and all other economic or cultural intercourse with both Israel and Palestine, to the best of our abilities. We shall, at such time, also remain respectfully opposed to our nations' unconditional support of Israel or Palestine, such as the significant U.S. budgetary allowance, using taxpayers' dollars from a democratic nation, for unrestricted military or economic support of Israel, which is then freely applied to one segment of society's benefit, and other segments' detriment.

Furthermore, we feel any peace gained will have the truest chance to be lasting, if both Israel and Palestine were to implement rational judicial processes, to help bring greater order to your daily life. In other words, make peace the law. That only by energetically discouraging one's own people from carrying out or inciting violence or unrest may peace be expected to be distributed to every household and every heart, and become agreed upon -- both within and between your societies -- as the right way to live.

But let it be understood:

This action which we are prepared to take is not intended to excommunicate Israel or Palestine from the world community. Rather, it is an attempt to recognize, in the name of the brotherhood of humanity, the minimum we have determined that we need underlying our exchange, as compassionate human beings.

And that by defining our limits do we nurture your ability to find your common ground. Let this be our gift to you, the good people of Israel and Palestine, in your long struggle to see violence brought to an end.


IN CONCLUSION

By taking these actions, do we acknowledge our own willingness to sacrifice, where we are able, in order to serve the greater interest of peace.

By these efforts do we encourage acceptance and peace to grow between you.

Respectfully and

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

The Internet Peace Plan Petition to Ariel Sharon, Prime Minister of Israel; Yasser Arafat, Chairman, Palestinian National Authority, and the good people of Israel and Palestine was created by the world of civilized human beings and written by B. Kaufman.  This petition is hosted here at www.PetitionOnline.com as a public service. There is no express or implied endorsement of this petition by Artifice, Inc. or our sponsors. The petition scripts are created by Mike Wheeler at Artifice, Inc.  For Technical Support please use our simple Petition Help form.

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