|
By Frimet Roth December 12, 2005
First published in
Israel Insider
 While
they would probably agree with Shakespeare's "That which we call a
rose by any other name would still smell as sweet", some Israelis
believe that calling a murderer by another name clears him of guilt.
And they are determined to convince the rest of us too.
Voices within
the Israeli government and media are doggedly whittling away at a
long-standing cornerstone of Israeli policy: No pardons for
Palestinian murderers.
Their gospel
of forgiving and forgetting is meeting only faint opposition from
those who cherish justice and worry about future terror attacks.
At times the
campaign to wipe the slate clean for the murderers is subtle.
Israel's Minister of Treasury, Ehud Olmert, did his small bit for
the cause when he smilingly shook the hand of Mahmoud Abbas only
hours after the Palestinian Prime Minister had delivered a speech
celebrating the re-opening of the Rafah crossing. In it, Abbas
attributed that achievement "first and foremost to the martyrs,
wounded, prisoners and all the Palestinians who have sacrificed
plenty in this struggle."
Olmert, along
with most Israeli news services, chose to ignore the comment.
On the same
day as that warm encounter another terrorist, Marwan Barghouti, was
also in the headlines. His overwhelming victory in the Palestinian
parliamentary primaries drew disconcerting reactions.
Politicians
and journalists alike glossed over his conviction in 2004 for
masterminding the murders of five innocent Israelis in terrorist
attacks. He was a new man now "a political figure", a "popular
politician", a "political prisoner", someone with "leadership
potential" -- these were some of the titles the media bestowed on
him.
Other Israeli
politicians were more outspoken in their efforts to re-educate the
public. In an article in the New York weekly, "The Forward",
opposition MK, Yossi Beilin, predicted that Israel has no choice. It
must and will release Barghouti and the sooner it does so, he added,
the better.
Later that
week, Channel Ten's morning news program hosted Zakariya al Zubaidi,
leader of the Al Aqsa Martyr's Brigade, the terrorist group
affiliated with the "moderate" Mahmoud Abbas' PA and responsible for
dozens of Israeli murders. He was invited to spew several minutes of
uninterrupted anti-Israel venom in reaction to the Jewish Al-Aqsa
sympathizer, Tali Fahima's conviction and sentence. To his credit,
the show's host, Avri Gilad, commented afterwards that he'd been
opposed to hosting Zubaidi and felt uncomfortable conducting the
telephone interview.
It is
difficult to imagine an Israeli news program granting such a
platform to a known terrorist one year ago. But, once again, a
campaign is underway. The ground is being prepared for further
releases of prisoners, including those with blood on their hands.
Come January,
dozens of jailed candidates will have been elected to the
Palestinian parliament. The United States in turn will begin
applying intense heat to pardon those "democratically elected
politicians".
The name
Marwan Barghouti is sure to appear at the top of that list of
prisoners. In a new public opinion poll conducted by the Palestinian
Center for Policy and Survey Research, subjects were offered a
choice of 8 candidates for the office of vice president. Barghouti
came first with 30% of the vote, up from 24% in a September poll.
Advocates of
Bargouti's release, sporting rose-colored glasses, see a reformed
Palestinian public flocking to a reformed leader. Reality squarely
contradicts them. Nobody, not even his staunchest defenders, can
produce evidence that Barghouti has quenched his blood-thirst.
Throughout
his incarceration he has refrained from any expression of remorse
and has declared his continued commitment to "the liberation of all
of Palestine".
Even Yossi
Beilin touted him as nothing but the "most popular leader" who
excels at "law and order and standing up to Hamas". Is that supposed
to reassure the Israeli public? It would be suicidal to release a
convicted and avowed terrorist who is a strong and capable leader to
boot.
Nevertheless
this is clearly what Prime Minister Sharon intends to do. His
lackey, MK Meir Shetreet, was quoted shortly after Barghouti's
victory as saying : "In politics you should never say never. If a
permanent peace deal is reached with the Palestinians? a pardon
could be envisaged."
But Shetreet
and all of Barghouti's Israeli advocates are confused. The fate of a
convicted murderer does not reside in the realm of "politics". It is
an issue of practicality: Is it in our interests to free a dangerous
prisoner? Is the risk of recidivism a real one?
The same week
that Barghouti won his sweeping primaries victory was the week of my
daughter, Malki's, birthday. She would have turned twenty, no longer
a teen but a woman. Her two years of post high-school national
service would have ended. I imagine she'd either have begun some
academic course or postponed that to devote a year to higher Jewish
learning. She might even have had a boyfriend and been contemplating
marrying and starting her own family as some of her friends already
have done.
But these are
just fantasies. Malki was murdered four years ago in the bombing of
Jerusalem's Sbarro restaurant. A total of fifteen innocent Israelis,
among them 8 children, perished in that bloody attack. Their deaths
mean nothing to those who clamor for Barghouti's release.
It is my hope
that those of us who do still remember and grieve for our losses,
will not sit silent. Those who have not yet joined Sharon on his
suicidal slide down the slippery dip of unrequited concessions must
block this impending move. We who know what the toll of Barghouti's
recidivism would be, must make our protests heard.
If we do not,
then this slick campaign will achieve its goal -- and releasing
convicted murderers will be child's play. |
to
receive Frimet and Arnold Roth's occasional published articles,
sign up for the Friends of the Malki Foundation Email List. [