The so-called Road Map for Middle East Peace is moving forward, so far. And it is understood that Israel must do what is necessary for its security. But it is no service to the world, struggling to prevent further terrorist war crimes, nor to Israel's security itself, to move forward if there is a likely understanding that concessions will be the successful result of terrorism.
Even the pleasant-sounding "land for peace" has a dark meaning. It is the demand of the winner in a war or the demand of the criminal hostage taker. It carries the same threat as "No peace without justice," a slogan that should be reversed: No justice without peace.
It is essential that criminal acts, war crimes, particularly terrorism - i.e. the organized and targeted murder of unarmed civilians - must be costly to the perpetrating organizations. Violent response by Israel does not seem sufficient, perhaps even counter-productive.
Rather a public Balance Sheet of Consequences for such acts, in terms of losses of land for any final boundaries, should be maintained and published.
Bombings in public places, mortar fire on residential areas, and other terrorist acts can each be recorded in terms proportionate, but significant, land areas which will be lost as consequences in any final boundary negotiation. Palestinian and Israeli actions could be handled on an equal basis. The balance, of course, will not be equal.
The writer Salman Rushdie has said that terrorism stops when the community from which it arises decides to end it. The proposed Balance Sheet of Consequences might be the only, or at least most effective method, to convince the Palestinian community that terrorism is unprofitable in terms of their announced objective of an adequate, functional nation state.
Bob Katzenellen Bogen is Board of Directors Co-Chair,
Communications Coordination Committee
for the United Nations, New York, USA
Member Editorial Board, VoxPax.org
