Peres: On the West Bank

Israel's hawkish Defense Minister, Shimon Peres, 53, is responsible both for his country's security and for administering the occupied territories--with their population of more than 1 million Arabs--captured from Egypt, Jordan and Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War. The most troublesome of these areas has been the West Bank of the Jordan River, the home of 650,000 Palestinians and the scene of numerous riots during the past four months. The West Bank was calm last week, and Peres told TIME'S Jerusalem bureau chief Donald Neff and Correspondent David Halevy that he expects the quiet to last. Excerpts from their interview:

ON WEST BANK TRANQUILLITY. The choice we are facing on the West Bank is not a simple one. Our dilemma is, realistically, to make up our minds which is closer: the prospect for peace or for terror and war. Since the Palestine Liberation Organization, whose program is to get rid of Israel, was appointed by the Arabs as their representative for the management of the West Bank, I do not believe the prospects for peace are enhanced. While we are not going to give up an inch of our democratic convictions, we also are not going to give up an inch of our security.

ON MAINTAINING ORDER. The mayors of the West Bank will either run their own cities properly or otherwise we shall take the necessary measures to calm down the situation. The Arab dilemma is obvious: if they continue these riots, they will make their lives impossible. The mayors must worry about development loans [provided by Israel], playgrounds, traffic, collecting the taxes from gas stations. Parents also are very concerned that their children take their examinations on time and don't lose a year of school. We do not want the mayors of the West Bank to be policemen. But a mayor is in a way the father of his city, and whatever happens to his city should interest him because it might cause his voters problems. These are deep motives for maintaining a pragmatic state of coexistence until a permanent solution is found.

ON USING FORCE TO QUELL RIOTS. Despite the impression left by many news reports, we have handled the disturbances with a great deal of restraint and patience. In spite of the disturbances, we are maintaining open bridges for travel between Jordan and the West Bank; free traffic is moving throughout Israel and the West Bank. No capital punishment has been imposed. By and large, there has been free access for newsmen to report the disturbances, which is quite extraordinary if you consider that Israeli democracy is operating in a state of war.

ON ISRAELI DIPLOMATIC GOALS. Our next step will be toward an agreement with Syria. The chances for such a development are slim. But we must have some optimism, because nobody has a realistic solution for peace but everybody has enough realistic reasons not to start another war.

ON POLITICAL SOLUTIONS FOR THE WEST BANK. I could see a kind of confederation of Israel, the West Bank and Jordan. There would be two levels of government: regional, like states in America, and the other a national government. Practically, most of the matters would be decided at the level of the regional government. But matters of defense and foreign affairs would be in the hands of the national government.

There could be a European type of Common Market, free borders and free movement for all, much as we already have between Israel and the West Bank. We would need three different military forces: an Israeli one, a Jordanian force and a joint army. All three would guard different borders and installations. Every resident of the confederation would have the right to vote for the regional government, and every resident would have the right to choose whether he wants an Israeli or a Jordanian passport. The idea of such a confederation might sound unrealistic, but then so have all the attempts of the past to find a solution. It is a clash between two societies, one emerging from a feudalistic framework and the other deeply rooted in democratic principles. When Jewish and Arab leaders meet, it is like a meeting between sea fish and gefilte fish. For us, democracy is a daily exercise; for the Arabs, democracy threatens to cause a social transformation. Indeed, a social revolution is taking place in the West Bank, where the Israeli-sponsored elections recently established a young and new leadership.

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