Between Jonathan Pollard and Gilad Shalit

A Renunciation by Peres of the Presidential Medal of Freedom Would Be Much Cheaper than Hundreds of Terrorists

What is the difference between Jonathan Pollard and Gilad Shalit? Pollard is, of course, a U.S. citizen, while Shalit is Israeli. But does this difference justify our different relation to the two?

What haven’t we done to release Shalit from his captors in Gaza? We haven’t been intimidated even from releasing hundreds of prisoners, some of whom are dangerous.

And what have we done to release Pollard from his captors (yes – captors!)? Once in awhile, we remember the man rotting in jail in the U.S., and then the heads of the state say something, send a request to the president, receive a refusal and let the issue return into the darkness of forgetfulness. And this is the way it has been going on for 27 years. The twenty-seven began with imprisonment and continued with captivity.

Insisting or Abusing?

Why do the Americans insist so much about this issue? Were the secrets that Pollard gave to Israel so terribly severe? This explanation would not do, since some of the heads of the American security and policy, people who are very knowledgeable in the details of the affair, have already explicitly said that there was no hindrance with releasing Pollard. Then why continue with this insistence, which seems more like abuse as the days go by? Maybe one day it would become clear.

A Soldier Like Shalit

We should see Pollard as a person whose release is worth our fighting for no less than that of Shalit. We explained our readiness to release terrorists for Shalit with the fact that he had served the state as a soldier. Pollard did the same, as a soldier in the army of the Jewish people. Our military enlisted him to spy for us. And he enlisted, although the conscription regulated by the Defense Service Law did not apply to him. And based on what has so far been published, we know that the information given to us by Pollard was exceptionally important and served us efficiently in the ongoing war. And it still does.

Freedom Instead of a Medal

What can we do, you must be asking. After all, we have no American citizens whom we could release in exchange for releasing Pollard. We can only ask for it, more loudly or less.

But any activity for Pollard will be much more meaningful if it is accompanied by symbolic acts. Such an act could be a renunciation by President Shimon Peres of the Presidential Medal of Freedom that Obama is supposed to award him until Pollard is released. Such an act of presidential renunciation is worth more than any request. It is also much cheaper than releasing terrorists.

Doesn’t the Left Care for Pollard?

It’s not that there are absolutely no voices for Pollard from the Left. But they are so few and so weak that they are hardly heard at all. The voice to this matter is clearly given by rightists, which is fine. But Pollard’s deeds have been valuable for all of the citizens of Israel, not distinguishing right or left. In this fashion, the struggle for his release should also be seen with both the right and the left side by side.