Division between Fatah’s old and young generation has marked the third day of the first Fatah conference in thirty years. Ziyad Abu Ayn, an associated of jailed Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouthi, told delegates, “This is a conference for change; 80 per cent of the leadership must be changed because they failed at everything. It is time for a change of generations.”
But the younger generation remains skeptical of this prospect. Old leaders, many tainted by their corrupt associations with Yasser Arafat, the first President of the Palestine National Authority, have resisted new elections and party congresses in fear of losing their seats to younger members.
Speaking in Bethlehem, Omar Abu Shikh, who at 35 is among the youngest delegates in attendance, told reporters, “I think that the results of this conference is that the young people will be sidelined.”
Some members reportedly accused old guard leaders of obstructing efforts to select new leaders in Fatah’s highly influential Central Committee. Fatah member Mansour al-Sadi said, “The Central Committee is trying to hijack the congress by imposing what they want.”
On Wednesday, the “old guard” reportedly added nearly 700 new names to their list of 1,500 delegates. “They illegally keep adding new members. No one knows the actual numbers,” al-Sadi said.
Hatem Abdel Kader, a representative of Fatah’s “young guard,” said they could not compete against veteran officials who have access to more funds and resources. Younger members, he said, were instead running for positions in the 120-seat Revolutionary Council, the next important institution in Fatah.
