US open to new Gaza resolution if it helps truce

Ambassador Samantha Power said that a resolution must "do no harm" to the ceasefire that has been holding in recent days and Israeli-Palestinian talks that are scheduled to resume in Cairo, and should "play a positive role in supporting a durable solution."

"Nothing underscores the urgency of securing ... a negotiated two-state solution like the crisis in Gaza and the heartbreak that so many people on both sides suffered throughout that crisis," she said.

Hanan Ashrawi, a senior figure in the Palestine Liberation Organization, told a news conference here Tuesday that the Palestinians are demanding a commitment to the 1967 borders and a deadline for the end of Israel's occupation, adding when pressed that "within three years, the occupation should end."

She also criticised the failed US peace initiative by US secretary of state John Kerry, saying it allowed Israel "to persist in policies" that she characterized as unilateral and abusive. Power defended Kerry's mission and stressed that negotiations are the only way to achieve a two-state solution where Israel and Palestine live side by side in peace.

"We don't think there are shortcuts or unilateral measures that can be taken at the United Nations or any place else that will bring about the outcome that the Palestinian people most seek," she said.

"If you mean to secure a permanent peace, Israel has to be a part of that negotiation, just as a practical matter," Power said. "So to think that you can come to New York and secure what needs to be worked out on the ground is not realistic, and in fact, is likely to have very counterproductive effects."

A draft resolution circulated by the United States, Israel's closest ally, and obtained yesterday by The Associated Press calls for the re-establishment of full Palestinian Authority control over Gaza, which was ruled by Hamas militants who refuse to recognize the state of Israel.

It includes a key Israeli demand, affirming that a lasting solution must ensure that Gaza is "free of any armed personnel, assets and weapons other than those under the full and legitimate control of the Palestinian Authority."

The Security Council is also considering "elements" for a resolution proposed by European nations, and a Jordanian draft resolution backed by the Palestinians and their supporters which was written before the latest cease-fire.

The European proposal goes further than the Americans, calling for the establishment of an international Monitoring and Verification Mission in Gaza to ensure that the cease-fire agreement is implemented and to investigate reported violations.

The US draft asks secretary-general Ban Ki-moon to consult with both sides "on options for the establishment of a mechanism" to assist in the transfer of construction materials to rebuild Gaza and "to monitor and verify the end-use of dual-use material." (AP)

The DISE —now 'unified-DISE' after being combined with SEMIS that covered secondary education— is, as Rai points out, the "only mechanism for tracking enrollment." And it depends entirely on what the schools report. R Govinda, vice-chancellor, National University of Educational Planning and Administration which manages DISE, explains there are "distortions" in every type of data brought about by a range of local circumstances -- there are always older or younger kids in class, the family may report long absence as "out-of-school," schools almost never strike names off their registers even if the kid's been absent. And child-tracking is a far harder task than it seems.

"Child-tracking is meaningful in a place where birth registration is universal," says Govinda, "Then there has to be some unique identification and processes have to be computerized. How else will you track?" Some state governments - Govinda mentions Odisha - have attempted it but without much success. The problem of tracking is compounded by migration and enrolment in private schools.

Rai believes that the number of out-of-school children hasn't dropped a jot from the 8 million at the time of introduction of RTE. "The government's position is that the problems of enrolment and infrastructure are all but solved and it's only quality that remains for which government needs help from the private sector" he says, "You can't rely on sarkari data. The actual facts are being hidden."