Destiny has a way of placing the right man, in the right place, at just the right time. Such is the case with Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) and the Palestinian people.

Born in Safad in 1935, Abu Mazen was one of countless refugees driven from his homeland in 1948, ending up in Syria but never forgetting he was a Palestinian. He earned a BA in law and a Ph.D. in history. He was a founding member of Fatah and served in the Palestinian National Council beginning in 1968.

Abu Mazen is considered one of the leading Palestinian figures devoted to a peaceful solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. For over 30 years, he has worked on the “principles of peace” with both Palestinian and Jewish movements. In 1993, Abbas visited Saudi Arabia, after the Gulf War and “apologized” to the Gulf countries for the PLO’s stand during that crisis. Although, he enjoyed a long and lasting friendship with Arafat, they often did not agree on the best route to peace and nationality. He resigned as prime minister in September 2003, after serving just four months in that office because they could not come to terms on a number of issues including control of the Palestinian security forces. With the death of Arafat, Abbas has been chosen as head of Fatah and is running for president in the upcoming January elections.

In a poll by the official Palestinian State Information Service, he is emerging as the front-runner with 41 percent of the vote, more than twice the level of his closest competitor.

Because he is considered a moderate by both Israel and the United States, there have been a number of significant changes in the attitude and behavior of Ariel Sharon in this post-Arafat era.

In a Newsweek interview, Sharon stated that Arafat’s death has made it possible to coordinate the pullout from Gaza with the Palestinians because of this new leadership. He said, “that Abbas is against terror”.

“I think there is an understanding,” he stated, “that this is an opportunity that both sides cannot miss”.

The respect that Abu Mazen has earned during his long campaign for a Middle East settlement is now paying off. He has met with the key leaders of all the militant groups and is working to win their trust and cooperation. Sheik Hassan Yousef, a Hamas leader, has said that there has been a sharp drop in violence since Arafat’s death in November. He noted that the Palestinian militants were cutting down on their attacks and that the Israeli Army was scaling back on its raids; all in anticipation of the Jan. 9 election.

Abu Mazen is trying to obtain an actual cease-fire prior to the election and the Al-Aqsa Martyr’s Brigades, said last week that they were considering such a truce. For Abu Mazen, this is the time he has waited for and the numerous challenges he faces he is prepared to meet. The stalemate that stopped the road map dead in its tracks that required the dismantling of militant organizations prior to Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and the West Bank has been broken. Interestingly enough, the impasse was broken by Sharon’s push to remove the settlers from Gaza and the untimely death of Arafat.

The most difficult issue for Abu Mazen now is how to handle security. He would be wise to re-enlist the support of Mohammed Dahlan, who was for a brief time the security chief in Gaza. Dahlan, has a short but successful record of recruiting men from the ranks of the Fatah Party and incorporating them into the security network.

For Abu Mazen to succeed in achieving a state for Palestinians, he will have to control the militant groups and at the same time incorporate them into the democratic process.

He has also to disprove the idea, that many Palestinians have, that he is too conciliatory toward Israel. He has to win the election by a large margin, to prove that he is the popular choice of the people.

While, Arafat was widely supported by the Palestinians and projected a charismatic image, Abu Mazen has to work hard to gain Palestinian support and he is a quiet intellectual. Arafat by sheer determination and personality kept the plight of the Palestinian people before the world. Abu Mazen with his contacts, experience and reputation can now lead the Palestinians to a democratic nation.

— Adrienne McPhail is a freelance journalist located in Yokosuka, Japan. www.homepages.cybernet.it/worthington-agency/