Aryeh Stav, Editor of Netiv and head of the Ariel Center for Policy and Research, informed Arutz-7 today of new findings showing that the Israeli public is against a Palestinian state - but he said that they're really not so new.
Stav agreed that many polls up to now have shown strong Israeli support for a PLO state, "but the questions in those surveys are generally 'leading' questions, mentioning the word 'peace.' The questions are usually something like, 'Would you be willing to support a Palestinian state in exchange for true peace?' Our question was phrased differently: 'In light of the situation that has developed since the Oslo accords, do you support a Palestinian state?' The phrasing is critical; we give the respondent a chance to think about the Oslo process and then formulate his answer. If he thinks that Israel is at fault for the over 1,000 Jews killed in the past decade, then he may support a PLO state, but if not, then he may come to a different conclusion..."
The findings of the Ariel poll were that 61.1% of the Jewish population is against a PLO state, while 31% support it. Arutz-7's Segal said that given the fact that Sharon is not likely to propose a Palestinian state unless he feels that it will lead to peace, "it's likely that in the end, most of the public *will* support a PA state." Stav responded, "One thing is clear: most of the public has not the foggiest notion of what will happen if a Palestinian state arises. Let us just recall what Yitzchak Rabin once said: A Palestinian state will arise on the ruins of the State of Israel. This was the governing policy of the State of Israel until 10-15 years ago. If most of the public would know what the true ramifications were - and we plan to wage a major campaign on this matter in the media - I strongly believe that support for a Palestinian state will drop to very small percentages."
Stav agreed that many polls up to now have shown strong Israeli support for a PLO state, "but the questions in those surveys are generally 'leading' questions, mentioning the word 'peace.' The questions are usually something like, 'Would you be willing to support a Palestinian state in exchange for true peace?' Our question was phrased differently: 'In light of the situation that has developed since the Oslo accords, do you support a Palestinian state?' The phrasing is critical; we give the respondent a chance to think about the Oslo process and then formulate his answer. If he thinks that Israel is at fault for the over 1,000 Jews killed in the past decade, then he may support a PLO state, but if not, then he may come to a different conclusion..."
The findings of the Ariel poll were that 61.1% of the Jewish population is against a PLO state, while 31% support it. Arutz-7's Segal said that given the fact that Sharon is not likely to propose a Palestinian state unless he feels that it will lead to peace, "it's likely that in the end, most of the public *will* support a PA state." Stav responded, "One thing is clear: most of the public has not the foggiest notion of what will happen if a Palestinian state arises. Let us just recall what Yitzchak Rabin once said: A Palestinian state will arise on the ruins of the State of Israel. This was the governing policy of the State of Israel until 10-15 years ago. If most of the public would know what the true ramifications were - and we plan to wage a major campaign on this matter in the media - I strongly believe that support for a Palestinian state will drop to very small percentages."