David Weldon: “I rise today in this House to address the tragic situation in the Middle East and the failed peace process. It is…”

“I rise today in this House to address the tragic situation in the Middle East and the failed peace process. It is obvious to all that the continued dispatching of these so-called suicide or homicide bombers into civilian Israeli targets like buses and restaurants is intended to prevent any peaceful resolution of the Palestinian problem. For any peace process to work, both parties involved must want peace. The Palestinian Authority and Mr. Arafat have demonstrated that they do not want to end and they are unwilling and incapable of preventing this ongoing violence against Israeli civilians. The repeated call by Mr. Arafat for martyrs by the millions, reiterated by him again last week, should be a stark reminder to us all that we cannot work with him or the beliefs he represents. There can be no real peace when these are the sentiments of this man's heart. Let us not delude ourselves. Ariel Sharon's primary responsibility, and the primary responsibility of the Israeli government, above and beyond everything else is to maintain the safety and security of its people. While the opinions of European ministers, the U.S. Government and our State Department are important, they are not more important than the lives of women and children. Now is the time to acknowledge that Oslo has been a terrible failure and the road map is not working. Hundreds of Israelis are dead and buried as a testimony to this fact. Many more are left to face a lifetime of painful disability.”