Yasser Arafat, the president of the Palestinian Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority, is fighting for his life in a hospital outside of Paris. Depending on who you listen to, he is either a terrorist or a Nobel Peace Prize winner. With his recent health problems, the overly anxious media have claimed he is dead or in a coma. One thing we know for sure is he is not doing well, and it won’t be long before he either passes away or is forced to give up power to a successor.

Arafat, also known as Abu Ammar, is a public face of the Palestinian struggle for independence. Arafat is more than just the name that everyone associates with Palestine; he is also the man that many blame for widespread corruption and botched peace attempts.

In the 1993 Oslo Accords, many criticized him because he said “no” to a deal that would have returned land to the Palestinians. He didn’t sign a peace deal that would only return portions of the land Israel invaded and he was criticized for not compromising when Israeli forces occupied Palestine. This land is still being occupied by Israel to this day.

Arafat also made mistakes during the Oslo Peace Accords. He came to the negotiation table with inaccurate information and allowed the formation of the Palestinian Authority. As jubilant as this time was, the Palestinians only had a pseudo-state that would keep them happy. But once the Israeli military partially pulled out of Occupied Palestine, they now had a scapegoat.

The Palestinian Authority has been blamed for not stopping radicals, fostering an environment of corruption and not doing enough to stop attacks on Israel. How can this pseudo-government stop attacks when the police stations it runs are bombed by the Israelis? How can this puppet government hold back attacks and attempt to provide social services to the people when it is constantly fighting for survival from the Israelis?

The PA has also suffered from corruption and mishandling outside economic assistance. But, in reality, the PA was completely dependent and subject to everything Israel demanded. Its main function, despite its corruption, has been to serve as the scapegoat Israel can blame for its illegal occupation. Allow a government to be formed, expect it to provide the services the occupier is required to provided under the Geneva Conventions and then blame it for everything wrong in the Occupied Territories.

Of course, it wasn’t the perfect organization, but much of its ineffectiveness can be traced back to the Israeli government’s policies against the PA. And, thus, with the imminent death of Yasser Arafat, a man whose leadership has been disappointing on numerous levels but still has been the consistent and fearless leader of the Palestinian struggle for freedom, I propose the final act that Arafat and the Palestinian people should do.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has consistently said that he will not allow Arafat to be buried in Jerusalem. Justice Minister Yosef Lapid said that “Jerusalem is a city where Jews bury their kings. It’s not a city where we want to bury an Arab terrorist.” Israel, which has occupied East Jerusalem since 1967, will never allow Arafat to be buried there.

As a final act of nonviolent resistance, his people should carry him to Jerusalem. Can the Israeli Defense Force stop 100,000 Palestinians marching unarmed? Probably not. This creative, nonviolent action could usher in a new era based on nonviolence in the conflict between Palestine and Israel.

Arafat, for all his weaknesses and failures, is a symbol for Palestinian people’s national aspirations. He should be buried where he wants to be buried, near the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem. Israelis and Palestinians all deserve a peaceful and just solution to their conflict.

Now is the time, with the demise of Abu Ammar, to move away from continual violence to leadership that builds respect between the two peoples. The burial of the Palestinian leader in Jerusalem would be a gesture of respect from the Israeli side.

Take Arafat home on a new road to respect. That road will begin in Jerusalem.