"To resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, policymakers will have to develop a new regime for Jerusalem's Old City." - excerpt from "The Missing Peaces", Foreign Affairs, March/April 2009, Volume 88, 2
Authors:
Michael D. Bell is Paul Martin, Sr., Senior Scholar on International Diplomacy at the University of Windsor. He has served as Canadian Ambassador to Jordan, Egypt, and Israel.
Daniel C. Kurtzer is S. Daniel Abraham Visiting Professor in Middle East Policy Studies at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.
Documented here first at 51 Reasons To Say No To Global Governance The Old City Of Jerusalem City State Initiatives are clearly being defined at the Council Of Foreign Relations flagship publication "Foreign Affairs".
Originally titled in JOCI (Jerusalem Old City Initiative) Fall 2008 Winter 2009 newsletter, "Old City, New Regime: Beyond Sovereignty" this report non-nonchalantly cites the Old City of Jerusalem as the missing piece in the Mid-East peace process. Hence CFR's alluring "Foreign Affairs" title "The Missing PEACES".
Although the article envisions the Old City Of Jerusalem proposals as a "special regime...special autonomous governance regime...Old City Special Regime (OCSR)..." the tight wording cannot elude its message of its unique sovereign status propelling the Old City Of Jerusalem beyond comprehension into a global-state like status more than a Vatican City State.
And continuing on JOCI's commissioned studies the suspense thickens as an unknown third party will co-lead this new "regime/government/state/" alongside of Israel and Palestine.
"The involvement of an impartial third-party administrator -- chosen by the Israelis and the Palestinians together -- is essential, as it would build confidence between the two sides and reinforce it over time............a special autonomous governance regime with a strong third-party presence would be the optimal system for the interim management of the Old City."
This third party will undoubtedly solidify to the world, the political cornerstone of the new government in the Old City.
"Support from the international community, including a strong UN Security Council resolution, would strengthen that (its) legitimacy."
This New Old City of Jerusalem governance, as the centerpiece of the Middle East Peace process, will solidify into the minds of the world that peace is here.
"The benefits of peace for Jerusalem would be enormous. A peace agreement would bring recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of both Israel and the new Palestinian state: embassies would relocate there, new institutions would appear, and tourism would surge."
Let us have no qualms about it, the Old City Of Jerusalem City State Initiatives are moving Beyond Sovereignty.
For further reading:
Jerusalem Old City Initiative
Governance Discussion Document (Fall 2008)
Jaffa Gate Crossing Spatial Study
POD Cast of JOCI at The Middle East Institute October 2008
