The Gaza Chamber of Commerce aspires to have a role in advising the future democratic government of Gaza and to be involved in the enclave’s reconstruction efforts, the organization’s chairman, Iyad Abu Ramadan, told N12 News on Tuesday.
“We are a group of intellectuals, engineers, and field personnel who work in the humanitarian field,” Ramadan told the Israeli outlet. “We have no ambition to be in power, and we do not seek to be a substitute for any government.”
“We want a democratic leadership to be established in Gaza, which will allow for a peaceful change of government within the Palestinian national framework and under the Palestinian national umbrella,” Ramadan asserted.
“We are not positioning ourselves as a substitute for anyone…Our goal is to assist those who will govern Gaza in making the right decisions.”
Ramadan stated that the chamber was aware of the desires of the Palestinian people and wanted a role in communicating those wishes to Gaza’s new leadership.
“Our vision for Gaza after the war is that there will be freedom of movement at the crossings, both for goods and people,” he added.
“The universities in Gaza will be rebuilt and linked to universities around the world for research and learning. The young people will work and take an active part in building Gaza.
“In addition, the government in Gaza will be democratic, subject to public accountability and a peaceful change of government.”
An essential component of Gaza’s future prosperity and the reconstruction efforts, he claimed, is that there is “no future Israeli threat to Gaza.”
“The real threat, from our perspective, is from Israel to Gaza – not the other way around,” Ramadan claimed. “Gaza does not pose a threat to Israel: we have no armies, and we do not have nuclear weapons, while Israel has both.”
Vision for Gaza’s future
Speaking on Hamas, Ramadan claimed it was not possible for the terror organization to re-establish itself under the current siege.
“However, it is possible that it will regain its influence if they don’t move to the second phase of the agreement: opening the crossings, returning life to normal, integrating young people into work, and providing hope for the future.
“Strengthening Hamas or strengthening armed activity, regardless of who is carrying it out, is done through imposing the siege and destroying hope among the youth of Gaza: conveying the message that you will not live like the rest of the world, and then the youth will turn to violence and the cycle of violence will continue,” he said.
“This cycle of violence must be broken by granting Gaza freedom: freedom of movement, entry of goods, finding work. In other words, decent employment opportunities for the young and all residents so that they can engage in building their future and the future of their children,” he concluded.
Established in 1925, the chamber claims to represent the voice of the private sector and act as the primary driver of the Gazan economy.
Ramadan was one of 17 prominent Gazan figures who wrote to US President Donald Trump in September, asking that he pressure the Jewish state to halt the fighting.
In the letter, he described the war as a one-sided attack against Palestinian civilians.