Madam, - Raymond Deane (September 25th) defines the EU's record of support for the Palestinian cause as "non-existent". The historical record, as usual, says otherwise.
As early as May 1971, European foreign ministers drafted the Schumann memorandum which supported the "right of Palestinian Arab refugees to return to their former homes. . . or to be compensated" in accordance with UNGA Resolution 194. The EEC also pledged to grant substantial aid to the refugees via the United Nations Relief and Works Agency.
In November 1973, the EEC declared that there would be no lasting settlement unless the "legitimate rights of the Palestinians" were taken into account.
Increasing legitimacy was afforded to the PLO by the EEC's establishment of the Euro-Arab dialogue in 1975, which effectively normalised relations between Europe and the Palestinians, reaping huge economic and diplomatic dividends for the latter. The zenith of EU support for Palestinian rights was undoubtedly the Venice Declaration of June 1980 which explicitly called for the Palestinians to be allowed to "exercise fully their right to self-determination".
The Palestinians themselves have certainly acknowledged the extent of EU efforts. In 1980, the PLO praised the "effective role" played by its members in relations with Europe and prioritised the courting of European states in order to "reduce and eventually eliminate support for the Zionist entity. . . isolating it by obtaining recognition of the PLO by these countries".
The EU's attitude remained stridently pro-Palestinian throughout the Oslo process, in spite of Yasser Arafat's blatant failure to implement its provisions, and his subsequent unleashing of terror in September 2000. Indeed, Europe continued to insist as late as 2004 that Arafat remained Israel's "only valid interlocutor" in negotiations.
One may reasonably be concerned that the Palestinian leadership has been able to expand and promote its relationship with the EU without being forced to alter its basic objective - the elimination of Israel through terrorism. Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that the EU has been at the forefront of placing Palestinian self-determination and rights on the international agenda, acknowledging this as fully reconcilable with the two-state solution.
That Mr Deane chooses to brazenly ignore this role is indicative of the rejectionist ideology he espouses; it is certainly ironic that he bemoans the alleged "bankruptcy" of democratic values in Israel, yet unwittingly sponsors the erosion of those values by lending unquestionable support to the austere Islamic doctrines of Hamas. - Yours, etc,
STEVEN CORCORAN,
Rostrevor, Co Down.