PA TV: Israel’s claim that it has a historical and cultural right to the land is “based on illusions and fables”
PA TV News special broadcast marking acceptance of Palestinians into UNESCO.
PA TV host: "The heritage and culture and the entire history is being snatched at this time by the occupation, which has tried by all methods for Palestine not to reach this stage and this very important point."
Dr. Al-Mutawakkil Taha, Palestinian Minister of Information: "[The occupation] claims that it has legitimacy in three areas. It argues that it has the historical right to the land, and argues that it has the right to the [unintelligible]… and the holy places. It argues that it has the cultural right to all its cultural components – I refer to the clothing, the food and drink, the poetry and the language, and the heritage and the folklore and so on. Now, we must consistently work on a world-view which will stand up to this forcible theft, with the occupation aspiring to seize the three areas of [our] rights [historical and cultural rights, and rights to the holy places]. We must have means on the level of the narrative, the anchoring of history – on the level of united action and cultural unity. We have a vision, we have an established and professional strategy, to respond on all fronts to the false claims of the Zionists that they have the right… As to the occupation – we know [their claims], we are in an eternal, endless struggle with the occupation over legitimacy…
We have the three rights [historical, cultural, and holy places] and they [Israel] have false claims, and a narrative which is based on illusions and fables, on Torah beliefs, and these two theories which are used about this land – we ourselves must be able to fill the theory which we adopt, so it will be stronger and more provable, and more acceptable – not only on the Palestinian and the Arab front, but also on the international front."
PA TV host: "The heritage and culture and the entire history is being snatched at this time by the occupation, which has tried by all methods for Palestine not to reach this stage and this very important point."
Dr. Al-Mutawakkil Taha, Palestinian Minister of Information: "[The occupation] claims that it has legitimacy in three areas. It argues that it has the historical right to the land, and argues that it has the right to the [unintelligible]… and the holy places. It argues that it has the cultural right to all its cultural components – I refer to the clothing, the food and drink, the poetry and the language, and the heritage and the folklore and so on. Now, we must consistently work on a world-view which will stand up to this forcible theft, with the occupation aspiring to seize the three areas of [our] rights [historical and cultural rights, and rights to the holy places]. We must have means on the level of the narrative, the anchoring of history – on the level of united action and cultural unity. We have a vision, we have an established and professional strategy, to respond on all fronts to the false claims of the Zionists that they have the right… As to the occupation – we know [their claims], we are in an eternal, endless struggle with the occupation over legitimacy…
We have the three rights [historical, cultural, and holy places] and they [Israel] have false claims, and a narrative which is based on illusions and fables, on Torah beliefs, and these two theories which are used about this land – we ourselves must be able to fill the theory which we adopt, so it will be stronger and more provable, and more acceptable – not only on the Palestinian and the Arab front, but also on the international front."