Thanks for stopping by, and contributing this information about the electoral initiative.

It’s interesting to be able to apply a different frame of reference to a situation, especially a volatile one like the Palestinian/Israeli conflict. However, for such an initiative to be effective, it can’t simply appeal to those who value democracy, but are applying a totally different frame of reference to the people actually involved in and affected by this voting process.

We have to take into consideration how the Palestinians and Israelis would view this initiative, and what would prevent them from embracing it.

The priority for many Palestinians might be to regain their rights, and they do not believe this can be done *through* the Knesset.

Israelis, on the other hand, might not wish to increase the number of Palestinian voters in their country. In fact, the fewer Palestinians voting, the better it is for a country that’s been established to become a Jewish haven.

I don’t believe that the resolution to this problem would be to promote democracy, but to readjust the frames of reference the two sides are already using, in order for them to better understand one another.

To give you a simple example: Israelis consider Palestinians to be a security threat, but overlook the fact that the Palestinians have the same impression of the Israelis. In the same way that Israel can justify its actions as self-defense, the Israelis can appreciate that the Palestinians are also acting in self-defense.

In other words, both sides can come to a better understanding of the other if they can see the other not as acting out of aggression, but acting to defend itself. The Palestinians do not simply want to destroy Israel, but protect themselves from it.

This can offer a slight shift in each side’s frame of reference, so that they can share some overlap in their frames and, therefore, a better understanding of one another.

The Out of Country Voting process might be a feasible tool for democracy, but it won’t bring about democracy or help resolve the existing misunderstanding and tension in the area.

What about having One State Elections?

When the next elections are held for the Knesset, the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza also vote for representatives – and also the Palestinian refugees/diaspora vote for their representatives, linking voter registration to their ancestral towns. When the refugees vote, the ballot boxes could be marked with ancestral electoral districts.

Same day elections!

A different frame of reference for the Holy Land and peace.

A process called Out of CountryVoting (OCV) has been tried and tested.

See: http://www.phl-ocv.net