Contact Pauline Austin (541) 346-3129 by Diane Baxter and David Frank When Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin shook hands on the White House lawn in 1993, many people in this country and around the world were elated. They expressed their joy and hope at the sight of two sworn enemies promising to turn swords into plowshares through the emerging peace process. The history of Jewish-Arab and Israeli-Palestinian relationships has been marked not only by hostility, violence and sorrow but also by friendship, neighborliness and cooperation, although these positive aspects are rarely reported. Recently, however, the attacks of suicide bombers and the hard-line of Israel's right-wing government have deepened a mood of growing frustration and despair. What are we to make of this mix of moods and images? Imil Habibi, the Israeli-Palestinian writer, has created a character he calls the Pessoptimist. Pessoptimism, a combination of pessimism and optimism, may be the best mood that we can achieve in the short-term, as we wait and hope for improvement in the Israeli-Palestinian relationship. There are important lessons for us to learn from the peace process to date, in terms of both its successes and failures. Such lessons can enhance our understanding of the conflict and perhaps have a positive impact on events in the Middle East. One of these lessons is that we must maintain an appreciation for the diverse and complex nature of the communities in conflict, and not give in to the temptation to stereotype. Both sides have been influenced by extremist elements operating under the banner of religion. Such was the case with the Jewish assassin of Prime Minister Rabin, and such is also the case with the repeated suicide attacks by Palestinian Islamic extremists. Yet in the religious traditions of Islam and Judaism are themes of tolerance and pluralism. In each tradition is the belief in the dignity of all human beings that serves as a touchstone for reasoned dialogue. With the peace process--which includes not only public leaders and government officials, but also a broad section of the Israeli and Palestinian public--we have witnessed a growth in the number of groups and organizations that have reached across the divide, attempting to construct bridges. We should not give in to the extremists, nor allow them to capture the agenda from the peacemakers. Another critical lesson of the peace process, and one in which the United States has a leading role, is the necessity of economic development of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. In the wake of the flawed Oslo Accords and the shift of some territory from Israeli to Palestinian control, Western countries pledged to supply aid in the form of cash and technical expertise to assist the Palestinians in the creation of a viable infrastructure and the amelioration of the poverty that plagues them. Unfortunately, much of the promised aid has yet to be delivered, and a significant percentage of the aid received so far has been drained off by corruption in the Palestinian Authority. As a result of this and the economic pressure applied by Israel in response to terrorist attacks, the Palestinians are in worse shape today than they were before the peace process began. This is a prescription for disaster. As Palestinians are disillusioned with the promises made, they will turn, in their economic desperation, to radical organizations which offer them financial aid in return for broader political support. To break this cycle, we must renew our commitment to the delivery of effective foreign aid, while, at the same time, holding the Palestinians to a high degree of accountability for the expenditure of the money that they receive. Such a policy requires taxpayer support in Washington, and pressure from our government on all of its allies to act in the same spirit. As we watch the region slip from optimism to pessimism, we ask if there are other steps that can be taken to help revive the peace process. One force that has facilitated reconciliation is the support network that Middle Eastern peoples and peacemakers have around the world. A key to peacemaking is the dismantling of barriers and the building of ties and public bonds of various sorts between Israelis and Palestinians. Before the peace process began, efforts in the United States and other countries to support dialogue helped create channels that laid the groundwork for the official peacemakers. We believe that such efforts are still important, and that they can be useful in terms of the specific conflicts in the Middle East, and, more generally, in resolving problems elsewhere that may seem intractable and hopeless. Americans can demonstrate their support of the peace makers through grassroots efforts to encourage and strengthen those in the Middle East who promote dialogue and struggle for a peace with justice. Through such activities, we can be a small part of the critical effort to rekindle the peace process, and shift the focus back to the optimistic spirit which graced the Middle East so recently, inspiring us all. Our commitment draws strength from the knowledge that peace with justice comes at a price. We are eager to bear a share of that burden, and believe that it is well worth our energy and interest as we try to nudge the pessoptimist in the direction of peace. Diane Baxter is a UO Carlton Savage Fellow in International Relations and Peace Studies and a professor of anthropology. David Frank is a professor of rhetoric in the UO Robert D. Clark Honors College and is co-chair of the Carlton Savage Committee on International Relations and Peace Studies. #E-6017/Special to The Register-Guard