A few years after Lebanon gained its independence in 1943, the Palestinians were hit by what is known as the naqba - or 'catastrophe.' The Israelis seized more than half of their country and several Arab armies were unable to recapture the land. Thus, hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees poured into neighboring Arab countries - including a certain small country barely managing its politics through a delicate sectarian system. Even before it armed itself, the Palestinian presence became a source of polarization in Lebanon's political, strategic, economic and social affairs - the strength of this polarization varying with prevailing inter-sectarian tensions which themselves were a function of either internal competition or external provocation.
The Palestinians - for reasons of ideology, regional loyalties and petty calculations - became participants in Lebanon's minor and major civil wars. They became so involved in the affairs of militias, alleyways and local conflicts that their cause began to disappear. They scored victories for one side or the other and embraced the Lebanese conflict to an extent that made them many enemies. Their involvement became a source of conflict between the Palestinians themselves just as it had been for the Lebanese and, even more dangerously, would form the basis of Israel's first invasion of an Arab capital with the explicit aim of driving out the Palestinian Liberation Organization.
It is no exaggeration to say that the Palestinian presence in Lebanon over the past thirty years, in both its military and civilian form, has been subject to the same norms as others involved in the civil war and the ensuing peace, whether defending it or attacking it.
However, Monday's speech by PLO representative in Beirut Abbas Zaki, in which he boldly acknowledged the 'burden' the Palestinian presence had been to Lebanese and offered an unconditional apology to the Lebanese for past misdeeds, showed not only that the PA formed during the first intifada had taken charge of Palestinian affairs but also that it had given the Palestinians the political maturity to face criticism head-on and the confidence to manage their relations with host countries without anxieties and fears of miscommunication.
In his announcement, Zaki affirmed the PLO's unconditional commitment to Lebanon's sovereignty and laws - including over the issue of Palestinian weapons. Despite the deep divisions with the Palestinian camp today and the existence of rogue factions, Zaki's initiative deserves a courageous Lebanese response in order to pave the way for peaceful relations and a fair solution to the refugee plight as well as to end the fears of Palestinian naturalization that have served as an excuse to avoid humanitarian and political responsibilities.
The rapprochement at which the Palestinian announcement aims ought to be an example for inter-Arab relations. There are other regional players that have done greater harm to Lebanon than the Palestinians who, in most cases, have themselves been victims - but there has been little indication of these players feeling remorse.
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