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A Third Way for Palestinians

A group of respected Palestinian leaders and intellectuals has formed an independent list to run in January`s elections for the Palestinian Legislative Council. The new "party" presents a potential challenge to the two major forces of political life here: Fatah, the ruling Palestinian faction, and Hamas, the Islamic Resistance Movement.

The names topping the new list are well-known: Salam Fayyad, the respected finance minister and former World Bank official - a man seen by the international donor community as one of the most reliable and capable people in the Palestinian Authority (PA) - and Hanan Ashrawi, a former minister and Palestinian spokeswoman who has lobbied for an improved human rights record and respect for the rule of law in areas under the PA`s control.

The founders of the independent list see themselves as offering a political "third way" to Palestinians disillusioned with the current options. Secular-nationalist Fatah is perceived by many Palestinians as rife with corruption and infighting. Until now, the next most viable political option has been Hamas, which has been promoting itself as a clean-hands, no-nonsense party.

But many of those frustrated with Fatah don`t necessarily support Hamas`s continued use of suicide bombings and rocket attacks on Israelis - nor its plans to Islamicize Palestinian society. That`s the voter the new party hopes to attract.