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August 30th, 2008
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Palestine projects

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July 2nd, 2008 issue

It might have been chaotic, but the June 25–27 visit of Salam Fayad, prime minister of the Palestinian Authority, and his entourage of public policymakers and business folks gave Czech officials a unique look at the disputed region.

Three days of dinners and networking events in Prague meant wheeling and dealing with business cards and speeches in ornate governmental rooms.
The atmosphere was stuffy and formal as Palestinians and Czechs worked hard to break the ice. Palestinian business leaders want to start a new Czech-Palestinian economic council and hold trade fairs for products from both countries that will encourage investment.
Such economic growth will go hand in hand with building political stability, said Kamal Hassouna, the Palestinian Authority’s economic minister.
“We ask you to invest because our government has ensured law and order,” Hassouna said, inviting Czech officials to play tourist to his region in coming months. “In Bethlehem, the hotels are fully booked for this summer, we had 25,000 tourists last Christmas, and these are things we don’t hear in the news.”
Founders of a medical equipment import firm, a soft drinks firm, a shoe manufacturer and a bank manager were among the visitors. Maha Abu Shusheh also came, one of the top 50 Arab businesswomen as named by Forbes magazine.
Those business folks hope to coordinate with Czech partners on projects in agriculture, tourism, real estate, technology and telecommunications. Those who sit on the boards of universities are hoping to create cultural and academic exchange programs.
Many Palestinians cracked jokes and told stories in an attempt to get closer to their new Czech friends. Fayad invited Czechs to visit him at home as well.
Deputy Industry and Trade Minister Milan Hovorka promised the group Czech support on infrastructure issues like energy, water management and traffic. He also pointed to an electricity project Czech experts handled recently in the West Bank.
For anyone watching, the biggest eye-opener had to be the heated debate at a dinner of Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank. They don’t often get to talk to each other face to face because of difficulties crossing military checkpoints and Israeli settlements in the few kilometers between their regions.
At the dinner, Palestinian community members in Prague challenged the visiting officials about the political stand-off between Fatah and Hamas, the two main political parties of the region, and funding.
But, despite all the obstacles, those in the delegation run businesses — providing a necessary boost to an economy that has been virtually frozen by political stalemate in the region.
Gaza-based businessman Mamoun Abushahla told a story that summed up the situation in his world. It would sound like a joke if it wasn’t such a bitter reality, he said.
Abushahla said he wanted to make repairs to a building he owns, and managed to find an old bag of cement. Because cement and other basic commodities are in such rare supply these days in Gaza, the construction workers he hired posed for a picture with the bag before opening it and beginning their work.
Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek made the invitation after his schedule did not include a visit to the territory in March when he visited Israel.
Topolánek decided to visit the region to discuss trade ties in advance of the Czech Republic taking over the European Union presidency in January 2009.
It’s the first time the Palestinian Authority has been invited to the Czech Republic.
— The author, who heads the Centre for Middle Eastern Studies at the Metropolitan University Prague, is a human rights activist and a member of Amnesty International Czech Republic. She can be reached at features@praguepost.com


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