PA's draft constitution enshrines pay-for-slay, defines Palestine as part of 'Arab homeland'

A draft of a constitution for a future Palestinian state made public this week cemented in law the pay-for slay program, omitted any mention of the Jews' historic ties to Jerusalem and appeared to endorse the idea that descendants of Palestinians displaced during the 1948 war have a so-called "right of return" to Israel. 

The first article of the document apparently seen by PA leadership as the equivalent of a foundational document of their future state affirms that Palestine is "part of the Arab homeland" and the "Palestinian people are part of the Arab nation."

The fourth article designates Islam as the official religion and Islamic Sharia as the principal source of legislation. While Christianity is accorded a protected status, Judaism is not mentioned in the article nor anywhere else in the text. Neither are Jews. 

Article XXIV assigned to the future state the duty to "work to provide protection and care for the families of martyrs, wounded, and prisoners, and those released from the occupation prisons and the victims of genocide."

Last year Abbas announced the cancellation of the PA's terror rewards program known as "Pay-for-Slay," saying that the payments to terrorist prisoners and so-called Martyrs’ families would be reconfigured into a more general social welfare program. Yet article XXIV suggests that financial support for perpetrators of terror remains a priority. 

The text was made public at the order of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. 

It makes references to the Palestinians' "right of return" without clarifying that the return would be to the future Palestinian state. 

The preamble states that "this constitution comes as a tribute to the continuous Palestinian struggle that has never ceased and to the diplomatic and political efforts exerted over decades to recover international recognition... while the dream of return remains alive in the hearts of Palestinians everywhere, generation after generation." 

Further down, it defines the "right of return" as inalienable in the same article where the PLO is defined as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people.  

"Until the achievement of full national independence and the realization of inalienable rights, primarily the right of return according to international law and international legitimacy resolutions, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) remains the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people in all their places of residence. The Organization continues to perform its national responsibilities according to the National Covenant."