Tourism is the single most important source of income to the region besides oil. Tourism is the major source of income for Israel and apparently the Palestinians believe that tourism is going to be their primary source of income as well. Tourism dollars will certainly help cement the peace process as the money filters throughout the region, improving the economies of the region and people have more disposable income to spend. It would enhance the lives of many people in the region especially the Palestinians, who are trying to create an economy separate from Israel's.
There is a downside to the promotion of tourism and the reliance upon tourists for economic well being, especially in the Middle East. Tourist dollars means there will be an interaction between Westerners and members of the Middle East. There are those who believe that Western ideology is a major source of evil and should be kept from traditional society. This belief exists both within the Jewish and Moslem communities. Among the more extreme adherents to this belief, there are those who are willing to stop the peace process in order to maintain the traditional way of life even though it means hardships that would otherwise be avoided by modern life.
It is this threat that hasn't been fully examined by the parties to the peace process and although it may come to pass that this threat never rears its ugly head, the possibility exists that a traditionalist will seek to derail the peace process in order to maintain their lifestyle. Traditionalism is a concept that permeates the debate in Israel now as the religious parties seek to establish religious law as the primary law of Israel including closing all businesses on the Sabbath. The secular government has maintained a liberal policy, allowing businesses and government services to continue on the Sabbath but this has come under increasingly harsh pressure from the religious parties to change the law. Similarly, the Palestinians are going to face an identity crisis whereby religious factions seek to control key government functions while secular Palestinians will try
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