A growing number of Palestinians are openly saying they'd like to leave the West Bank and Gaza if given the chance, raising concern about the possibility of a Palestinian brain drain. The sentiment, which flouts the long-held Palestinian belief that Israeli occupation can only be resisted by staying put, is yet another indication of the deepening despair since Hamas was elected to run the government.It seems that a mere generation of Palestinian Arab history is not enough to instill a deep love of the land. (The majority of today's self-proclaimed "Palestinians'" families emigrated to the area from other countries in the early 20th century in reaction to the phenomenal economic growth as a result of the Zionists.)
Birzeit University pollster Nader Said, who has monitored emigration attitudes for 12 years, says the percentage of Palestinians willing to relocate once hovered just below 20 percent. When that figure jumped to 32 percent in a September survey, Mr. Said says he was shocked.
Even more telling, adds Said, is that the percentage surges to 44 percent among Palestinians in their 20s and 30s. Among young men, it surges beyond 50 percent.
Malik Shawwa, a consultant specializing in obtaining Canadian visas, says his workload has jumped by two-thirds over the past seven months as more Palestinians ask about leaving. "This is the most important subject in the Palestinian territories," he says. "It's not just a matter of a lack of jobs. It's the situation. They're not secure. They don't trust the government."
As I have mentioned before, most PalArabs just want to live in peace and dignity anywhere, and their "leaders" have a vested interest in keeping them miserable and close to Israel because their goal has nothing to do with what is best for the Palestinian Arabs themselves and everything to do with keeping themselves in power and trying to destroy Israel.
As it stands, if Palestinian Arabs would be welcomed with open arms and equal rights in other Arab countries or elsewhere, a large number would emigrate tomorrow. The idea that they can only be in Palestine is a fiction designed to pressure Israel. And the entire Palestinian Arab media machine is dedicated to this fiction.
It is ironic that supporters of the terrorists will write long articles about the "right" of PalArabs to "return" to Israel but will actively work against their right to move anywhere else in the world.