DATE=4/28/2000
TYPE=BACKGROUND REPORT
TITLE=LEBANON / PALESTINIANS
NUMBER=5-46221
BYLINE=SCOTT BOBB
DATELINE=BEIRUT
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
/// EDS: THIS IS THE THIRD IN A SERIES OF
FIVE BACKGROUND REPORTS ABOUT LEBANON ///
INTRO: The Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon has
brought a period of uncertainty to the region. There
is uncertainty about whether Israeli forces will
withdraw completely from Lebanon. There is
uncertainty about how the move will affect the 35-
thousand Syrian soldiers in Lebanon. And there is
uncertainty about how it will affect the 300-thousand
Palestinians who for decades have been living in
refugee camps in the country. V-O-A Middle East
Correspondent Scott Bobb visited one of the oldest
camps, Ein el-Helweh, and filed this report.
TEXT: The Ein el-Helweh camp lies off southern
Lebanon's coastal highway -- not far from the city of
Sidon. To reach it, one passes military checkpoints
adorned with posters of Syrian President Hafez al-
Assad and leaders of the Hezbollah resistance, and
then turns down a dusty road.
The camp is a small, cramped city of 60-thousand
people. Children play in narrow streets lined by two-
and three-story row houses. Grimy young men work on
old cars at street-side garages. Older men sit
outside the shops drinking tea and watching for
strangers.
The announced Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon
does not appear to have made a ripple in the life of
this community, which was established 52 years ago
after Palestinians were driven from their homes in
what they call "The Catastrophe."
Palestinian forces still train here, in a compound
whose entrance is tucked deep inside a warren of
narrow alleyways.
The commander of the Palestinian forces in Lebanon,
Mounir Maqdakh, is a tall man with a full beard. His
nickname, The Drill, belies his polite, quiet-spoken
manner. His family was from the Aka region in what is
now northern Israel. He was born in the camp 40 years
ago and says he took the oath of resistance when he
was 10 years old.
/// MAQDAKH - IN ARABIC - FADE UNDER ///
Colonel Maqdakh says the Israeli withdrawal is a
maneuver and the Palestinian forces must remain ready.
He says Israel does not really want peace. It wants
to retain control of the land. This arrogance, he
says, means the resistance will continue.
/// BEGIN OPT ///
Not far away, a member of the Popular Committee, Abu
Hani Assadi, helps oversee life in the camp. Mr.
Assadi's family is from Der el-Assad in what is now
Israel, but he also was born in the camp. He says
there are many problems here. The most acute, he
says, is the lack of adequate medical treatment.
Because of budget constraints, the U-N (Relief and
Works Authority) agency responsible for the refugees,
called UNRWA, now pays only a portion of the refugees'
medical costs and the camp clinic is overcrowded.
/// ASSADI ACT ///
One doctor of the UNRWA has to examine 100 to
120 patients in a six-hour working day. It is
incredible. He can't diagnose properly.
/// END ACT ///
Mr. Assadi says another problem is housing. The camp
is one square kilometer in size, yet houses 10-
thousand families. High unemployment adds to the
suffering.
Mr. Assadi acknowledges the U-N agency is under budget
pressure, but he feels this is due primarily to
political reasons.
/// ASSADI ACT ///
The suffering is getting worse after the Oslo
agreement. We feel there is enormous economical
pressure on the Palestinian refugees to accept
any solution, regardless if it meets with their
expectations or not.
/// END ACT //
/// END OPT ///
The Oslo accords led to the establishment of the
Palestinian Authority, which currently is in final
status peace negotiations with the Israeli government.
According to a leader of the Popular Front for the
Liberation of Palestine, Abu Khaled Hosni, most
refugees here oppose the Oslo agreement.
/// HOSNI ACT - IN ARABIC - WITH ENGLISH
TRANSLATION ///
All the agreements from Madrid to Oslo have not
allowed Palestinian refugees to return to their
homes. If the discussions in Washington
eventually lead to our returning to our homes,
we of course will be very, very happy about it.
If they do not, then we believe that this is
not a just resolution of the Palestinian
problem and there will be more problems.
/// END ACT ///
Observers in Lebanon say many refugees believe
Palestinian negotiators have given away too much in
the peace talks with Israel. As a result, there are
fears that Palestinians might resume their attacks.
Publicly, Palestinian leaders here do not speak of
compromise with Israel, but, like Colonel Maqdakh,
recite a list of demands.
/// MAQDAKH ACT - IN ARABIC - WITH ENGLISH
TRANSLATION ///
We want a Palestinian state and its capital is
Jerusalem. Palestinians must be allowed to
return to the land that they were chased off of.
And that right must be applied to all
Palestinians whatever their political
persuasion.
/// END ACT ///
Privately, however, many refugees express despair,
fearing that international support for their cause is
dwindling and that their plight will be forgotten in
what is likely to be the euphoria over any peace
accord. They say neither Israel, nor Lebanon, nor
even the Palestinian Authority wants them. As a
result, many foresee the break-up of their communities
and the start of a new Diaspora. Whether this despair
leads to new resistance remains to be seen. (Signed)
NEB/SB/JWH/JP
28-Apr-2000 11:01 AM EDT (28-Apr-2000 1501 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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