Leader Salam Fayyad seeks to make Palestinian statehood inevitable

Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad acknowledged that significant obstacles lay ahead on the road to statehood, but insisted his government will be ready by this summer. Fayyad spoke to the Los Angeles Times about what work still needs to be done, whether he’d like to be Palestinian Authority president one day and why he continues to “confound” Israelis.

With U.S. peace talks collapsed, is it time for Palestinians to shift strategies? Should your state-building program, targeted for completion in August, become the primary focus?

Getting ready for statehood, by itself, is not going to end the occupation. It’s necessary, but not sufficient. You need a political process to deliver on that. We thought by saying we expect to be ready for statehood in August, it would direct the political process in a better way. It has not, so far. But that doesn’t mean that there is no diplomacy. Negotiations are just an element. They don’t define all the political activity. We are still engaging the international community. There’s still a sense of urgency. Every day I wake up thinking we are not really that far from the point of inflection in a positive way.

You think we’re on the verge of a breakthrough?

I don’t use the word breakthrough. I’m looking for a point of inflection.

Palestinians seem to be turning more to the international community for either a draft peace plan or statehood recognition. Is that the new strategy?

A key objective of this is to get to the point this year — by virtue of creating a critical mass of positive change on the ground and consistent with the urgent need for Palestinian statehood — where the world cannot escape the conclusion that Palestinians are ready for statehood. For a long time, people said, “Yes, it’s an occupation that must end, but Palestinians still have to do A, B and C.” Once you get the whole world thinking that we are ready for a state — that it looks like a state, that there are government processes, infrastructure — then the only thing left to deal with is ending the occupation.

It’s only eight months away. Will you really be ready?

I believe so. Our institutions will be state-ready by August.

You’re are praised for making great strides with managing finances; the police force is more professional; and ministries are open. Yet many see the accomplishments as transitory and superficial, questioning whether they would survive without you as prime minister. Courts are still very weak. The parliament barely functions. That’s a lot of work ahead.

A lot has been done that was once viewed as virtually impossible. Just as we were able to turn around things that were perceived as impossible, we’re going to be able to do the rest of it. In mid-2007, the whole country was on the brink of complete disintegration. But now look at the police. Look at surveys of public opinion, where people contrast the services today. In other areas, we are already there. In financial management, we have a system that measures up to the highest international standards, as evidenced by the fact that our key donors transfer assistance directly to our treasury. For a long time, the Palestinian Authority was associated with nothing but corruption. That’s a major change.

The Palestinian Authority has also put off elections because of the split between the Fatah-led government in the West Bank and Hamas-led government in the Gaza Strip. Can you have a state if you can’t have elections?

We’re not looking at a state that is going to be an autocracy. We are looking for a state that is run based on democratic principles. Elections are an important part. We have not been able to have elections for obvious reasons. We face major problems with the [split] since 2007, and it’s become deeper.

Can you have a state before reuniting?

That’s a major problem. Unless we are able to reunite the country, we’re not going to be able to have a state. The state we are looking for is a state based on the 1967 borders, including Gaza Strip.

Is it time to start thinking about two Palestinian states and give up on hopes of reuniting Fatah and Hamas?

I’m never going to give up on that. It will never be. I believe there will never be a state of Palestine unless it consists of both Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. There will never be a Palestinian state without Gaza.

That’s not likely to happen before August. If this deadline comes and there’s no state, don’t you think Palestinians are going to be disappointed? Will it look as if you failed?

I don’t worry too much about the perception of me having failed, though fear of failure is a huge source of motivation. That aside, I don’t think this way. I’m really a man of one plan, one scenario. I don’t think of Plan B. I think it will work.

You don’t think you should perhaps lower expectations or start backing away from a deadline that will almost certainly be missed?

I will never back away from this. Part of getting where we must go comes from transforming this from abstract concept to the realm of the possible. A key point of strength is to impart a sense of inevitability. That’s highly transformative, both on Israelis and Palestinians. I’m betting on that. The minute you begin to equivocate, you become an analyst. I’m not an analyst. I’m immersed in this. My soul is in it. I can’t project anything but full confidence. I could care less how I’m viewed. It’s not about legacy. It’s about a state that will be born this year. Come to me on Aug. 25 (Aug. 26 is the deadline) and I’ll be saying, “We still have one day left.” That’s me. Unless we have the spirit to defy it, it’s not going to happen. Unless we believe it, how is it going to become a reality? Let the skeptics have second thoughts. I have no Plan B. No parachute.

You’ve denied having interest in being the next president. Why not?

Why would anyone who is so preoccupied with this kind of mission have other aspirations? It’s a full-time job. That’s my highest ambition. It’s definitely not on my mind.

Some say it looks as if you’re running for something with all the public activities, olive-tree plantings, anti-wall protests and settlement-product boycotts. They say it looks like you’re campaigning.

I am. But it’s a campaign for the statehood vision, not a political campaign for office. In this business, you have to go out and be with the people, communicate, listen and deliver.

It’s surprising that you’ve survived politically so long. Many in Fatah distrust you since you’re not a member. Hamas supporters see you as a Western puppet. You don’t perform that strongly in public opinion polls and you have no major political party backing you. What’s your secret?

I’m at peace with myself. I didn’t look for this job. To be honest, I could leave anytime. I’m not someone who is really holding on to my office. I’m doing something I believe in. If you stand up for something you believe in, 50% of the people are with you. I govern from [the heart.] That gives you some room with people. Secondly, I regard [the criticism] as background noise. I don’t spend my days responding to what other people say. You get bogged down. I’m not going to let it distract me.

Have you considered joining Fatah?

At this stage in my life, I’m a little too old to join parties. I have been independent all my life and I will continue to be that way.

You’re highly respected by the international community. Some donors don’t want to deal with anyone but you. Has that kept you in power?

As a matter of fact, from the beginning when I joined the PA [Palestinian Authority] in 2002 as finance minister, the fact that I was perceived as someone with international backing was viewed as negative. It was not a point of strength.

One of your political weaknesses has been the lack of street credibility, since you were a relative newcomer and never fought during the intifada. Do you feel you’re making strides in that area?

I feel I have, based on the way people relate to me. Not because of polls or numbers. I see a lot of people. And judging from the way people relate and how I feel, I’m more comfortable around people, without security. And also what they tell me. All of these are signs to me that the people like what I do. And I enjoy it myself. It’s an effective way to govern because the next day you might be there asking them for something.

Are you sure that what you’ve built will outlast you?

More and more I feel this is irreversible.

That’s what they said about the Oslo process in the 1990s.

This is about concepts and ideas. I’m a firm believer in the immense power of nonviolence. It ties up very neatly with the agenda of building toward statehood. The change in mind-set started to happen about 21/2 years ago. People are using language and words like “statehood” and “steadfastness.” That’s the best guard against reversal: People embrace the ideas. Anything is possible. We could be gone tomorrow. I could slip on a banana peel. But I feel more encouraged than I used to about the prospect of sustainability.

As someone devoted to statehood, isn’t the lack of a vice president and realistic succession plan a major flaw? If [Palestinian Authority President

Mahmoud] Abbas were suddenly out of the picture, it would be chaos, wouldn’t it?

We need to complete the task of having adequate institutions of state. But when Arafat died, people wondered what would happen and it was the most orderly succession of power that anyone could imagine. People find a way.

Isn’t that a leap of faith? Shouldn’t you sort that out before August?

It’s part of getting ready. We need to have all those gaps filled.

Israeli politicians seem to have difficulty in figuring out how to deal with you since your style and background is so different. Has this enabled you to outmaneuver Israelis?

It’s not about outmaneuvering anyone, but I know what you’re talking about and I feel it. Maybe “confound” is a word that comes to mind. I advise people to take at face value what I say. Israelis say they want peace and a two-state solution. We’re doing it. There is no hidden plan. It’s a transparent plan. No conspiracy. It’s just a decision to take charge of our destiny and build a state so we can live as a free people. I’m sure Israelis can relate to this and to their own experience. It worked for them. Why not for us?

Sometime it seems you confound Palestinians too. In many ways, you’re the polar opposite of Arafat, and he was beloved. Are Palestinians ready for someone with your style of leadership?

I’m encouraged. My sense is that people are taking to this. But it’s not about me. It’s about this idea that gets us to the state we’ve longed for. Let’s just go out and build one. It’s as simple as that.

edmund.sanders@latimes.com