International official and former UN envoy to the Middle East peace process, Nikolai Miladinov called on Israel to allow the holding of Palestinian legislative elections in Jerusalem and prevent obstruction, "and not allow itself to be used as an excuse for those who seek to obstruct the elections."
"There are ways to ensure the participation of all voters in Jerusalem, according to the law and without prejudice to peace and quiet," Miladinov said in a series of tweets to him on his Twitter account in English.
He stressed the need for civil society to clearly affirm that all elected officials and any future government must abide by previous agreements, including "recognizing Israel and renouncing violence."
"Both Israel and the future Palestinian government should initiate efforts to improve the economy for the Palestinians, revive the possibility of meaningful negotiations to resolve the conflict and refrain from any unilateral moves," he added.
"All of these commitments can be clarified and agreed upon by the participating stakeholders, through a charter in order to protect the democratic process and ensure that the Palestinian people can freely elect their leadership," he added.
And he continued, "If holding elections proves to be an impossible step, it will be extremely important for Palestinian leaders, with the support of Egypt and Jordan, to move quickly and form a real national unity government that puts Gaza and the West Bank under one national authority."
The former UN envoy stressed the need to revive sustainable and just peace through legitimate democratic institutional representation, calling on everyone to play their role even if elections were held in order to contribute to peace, prosperity and security "for the Palestinians and Israel."
"Without an agreed frame of reference, past achievements could collapse and the situation on the ground could rapidly deteriorate," Miladinov said.
"All candidates in the upcoming elections must commit to a negotiated solution to the conflict, stand against violence and support the rule of law, and all weapons and security forces must be under the control of an internationally recognized and accountable government," he added.
"The Palestinian leadership must ensure equal opportunities for all candidates in the elections, and the authorities must not use the resources they control against their opponents, and the judiciary and security services must remain above politics," he said.
