A Final Chapter in The Pollard Case?

Jonathan and the Judge

A Final Chapter in The Pollard Case?

Text of Esther Pollard's Speech at (Y.I.) Beit Knesset
Hanassi

September 6, 2006 B"H / 13 Ellul 5766

Prefacing Remarks:

Jonathan and I would like to extend our profound gratitude
to the National Council of Young Israel, the only Jewish
Organization in America devoted to the Mitzvah of Pidyan
Shvuyim, and the only Jewish Organization in America which
has stood by Jonathan and me, throughout this terrible
ordeal. Our thanks as well to the Past President, the
President and the Board of Hanassi (Young Israel) Beit
Knesset for inviting me to speak here tonight.

On a sunny winter day, early in the New Year 2006, one of
the most historic meetings we have ever had on this case
took place in Jerusalem.

Jonathan and I have never before breathed a word about our
meeting with Israel's State Comptroller, Judge Micha
Lindenstrauss. Tonight we would like to share that
experience with you.

For years Jonathan has appealed to one State Comptroller
after another to investigate the Government's mishandling of
his case. All his appeals were rejected with flimsy excuses.
Consequently, we had pretty much despaired of ever getting a
hearing. That is why it was so exciting when Israel's newest
State Comptroller, Judge Micha Lindenstrauss, responded
positively to our request for a meeting.

Israel's State Comptroller, also known as the Mivaker
HaMidina, has broad powers of oversight and the right to
investigate every government office, decision and process.
No individual or office in this country is exempt from the
Mivaker HaMidina's probe and all are compelled by law to
respond to his questions and provide whatever information is
requested.

The ultimate goal of an investigation by the State
Comptroller is the publication of a public report. The
report is intended to bring to light those areas or issues
that must be rectified, with a view to improving Government
efficiency; safe-guarding the interests of the public;
protecting the rights of the individual; and eliminating
government waste, graft, corruption, and cronyism.

Our long-awaited meeting with Judge Lindenstrauss took place
on February 23, 2006 at the offices of the Mivaker HaMidina.
I was accompanied by Larry Dub, Jonathan's Jerusalem
attorney.

As if to underscore the seriousness of the meeting, Judge
Lindenstrauss had invited all of his extended executive
staff to attend, the heads of every State office under his
auspices - from the State Ombudsman to the head of the
State Legal Department, about half a dozen people in all.

At the outset of the meeting, I presented Judge
Lindenstrauss with a personal message from Jonathan and then
with a file of documented information regarding the issues
that Jonathan wanted to bring to the judge's attention.

Delivering Jonathan's message took about 15 minutes. It
removed any doubt about Jonathan's awareness of the meeting
and underscored his deep appreciation for the Mivaker's
willingness to receive us. It was my job for the next 2
hours to expand on the issues that Jonathan had touched on.

I would like briefly to review for you some of the facts
that were presented to Judge Lindenstrauss.

* My husband, Jonathan Pollard, is an Israeli agent in
captivity, currently completing his 21st year of a life
sentence for his service to the security of The State of
Israel.

* The information that Jonathan provided to Israel included
Iranian, Iraqi, Libyan and Syrian nuclear, chemical, and
biological warfare capabilities - all being developed for
use against Israel. He also provided information on
ballistic missile development by these countries and
information on up-coming terrorist attacks planned against
Israeli civilian targets.

* Israel was legally entitled to this vital security
information according to a 1983 Memorandum of Understanding
signed by both countries. But the information was
deliberately being withheld from Israel as the result of an
illegal intelligence embargo implemented by former Secretary
of Defense Caspar Weinberger and former Deputy Director of
the CIA Admiral Bobby Ray Inman, whose pro-Arab tilt did not
jibe with declared US foreign policy.

* In the beginning Jonathan volunteered his services and
only later did he became a bona fide agent on behalf of the
State of Israel. His zeal to save Israeli lives was his sole
motivation. Even the sentencing judge - who was no friend of
the case - recognized that Jonathan was an ideologue, not a
mercenary, and therefore declined to impose a monetary fine.

* From the time that Jonathan was first arrested in 1985,
Israel denied all ties to him, and cooperated fully with the
American prosecution to secure a life sentence for him.

* For its own shameful reasons the American Jewish
leadership endorsed and perpetuated Israel's lies. On March
10, 1987 - six days after my husband was sentenced to Life
in complete violation of a plea agreement which Jonathan
honored and the US abrogated - the Conference of President
of Major Jewish Organizations sent a letter to the US State
Department promising never to interfere on his behalf. The
Conference has kept that promise with religious zeal. (A
copy of their letter appears on our web site. )

* Despite the passage of 21 years and innumerable
opportunities, Israel's lies continue to govern this case,
and effectively to keep Jonathan in prison.

* Israel cravenly handed over to the US all of the evidence
that was used against Jonathan. Without this evidence, the
US had no case, and would have been forced to set him free.

* In betraying Jonathan and by handing over the evidence,
Israel earned for itself the dishonorable distinction of
becoming the first and only country in the history of modern
espionage ever to assist in the indictment and prosecution
of its own agent!

* Israel paid the lawyer who secured a life sentence for
Jonathan, without benefit of trial. The median sentence for
the offense Jonathan had committed was 2 to 4 year sentence
- not Life!

* This was the same lawyer, paid by the Government of
Israel, who failed to file a simple Notice of Intent to
Appeal, forever depriving Jonathan of his right to appeal
his Life sentence.

* By contrast, to this day Israel has steadfastly refused to
pay a cent to the lawyers who, unlike the above-mentioned
lawyer, are trying to help Jonathan to secure his release
from prison.

* Even though Jonathan fought and succeeded in forcing the
State of Israel to officially acknowledge him as her agent,
the State's attitude towards him and its resolute
abandonment of him has not changed at all in 21 years.

* The State of Israel has never taken the most minimal steps
- legal, moral, or diplomatic to secure Jonathan's release.

* To this day, Israel has never officially informed the
White House, the Justice, Intelligence or State Departments
that Jonathan is an Israeli agent and that Israel intends to
seek his release. Consequently the American Justice
Department continues to regard him only as a common
criminal, not as an Israeli agent, and to treat him
accordingly.

* To this day the State of Israel has never sought the
assistance of American congressmen or senators on Jonathan's
case, and for 2 decades it has calculatedly avoided engaging
AIPAC or any other effective lobby organization on his
behalf.

* In 21 years Israel has never done any hasbara for the
public in Israel or in the US to explain its position on
Jonathan's case or to promote his release - as it routinely
does to explain every other matter of importance to the
State.

* For 21 years, the State of Israel has deliberately
attempted to prevent the Israeli public from knowing about
Jonathan. A good indicator of the Government's attitude
towards Jonathan is reflected in the Ministry of Education's
refusal to include his plight in the regular school
curriculum. The Ministry of Education Library and Archives
(which teachers use for research) contains absolutely no
information whatsoever about Jonathan! Not a single
reference!

* When Jonathan's former handler, Rafi Eitan, ran for
Knesset earlier this year, it put the lie to the
Government's long-standing claim that pressing for
Jonathan's release might somehow damage Israel's
relationship with the US. Indeed the Government of Israel
demonstrated no compunction whatsoever about possible damage
to US-Israel relations or to Jonathan's situation when
immediately upon his election, it appointed Rafi Eitan as a
minister

* The Government's appointment of Eitan as minister was done
with the full knowledge that the Americans regard Eitan as
an unindicted co-conspirator in the affair and that he had
played a key role in the betrayal of Jonathan Pollard, even
providing false testimony to the Americans which had doomed
Jonathan.

* From the time Jonathan was first arrested, the only
consistent "plan" Israel has ever had for his release is to
bring him home in a coffin. This fact has been confirmed for
us over and over again for the last 21 years by various
officials and events.

* Jonathan miraculously survived the first 7 years of his
incarceration in solitary confinement, in barbaric
conditions in a dungeon cell 3 stories underground at USP
Marion and then waged his own battle - without any help from
the State of Israel - to be moved to open population at FCI
Butner.

* Just shortly after his move to FCI Butner in the spring of
1993, Israel sent a Mossad agent to Jonathan on official
business. Instead of presenting Jonathan with a plan for
securing his release, the Mossad agent came armed with an
official request that Jonathan kill himself. "Committing
suicide," Jonathan was informed, would "solve the Pollard
problem" for the State of Israel

* The Israeli policy which wants to bring Jonathan Pollard
home in a coffin, G-d forbid, continues to this day, and
illuminates the Israeli Government's calculated consistency
in missing every opportunity to secure Jonathan's release.

* Instead, successive Governments of Israel have routinely
exploited Jonathan's name and his plight, using it as a
sweetener to sell unpopular unilateral concessions to the
Israeli public. But when crunch time comes, Jonathan is
always dropped from every deal and painful unilateral
concessions to the enemy are made regardless. (Some examples
include the Hebron Accords, the Wye Accords, and most
recently the Disengagement from Gaza and northern Samaria)

* In Washington it is an open secret that Jonathan's
sentence is grossly disproportionate and purely political.
This was confirmed in a 2002 interview with former Secretary
of Defense, the late Caspar Weinberger. Weinberger openly
admitted that Jonathan's case was a "minor matter" that had
been exaggerated out of all proportion to serve another
political agenda. The opening that this admission created to
secure Jonathan's release was totally ignored.

* Similarly Dennis Ross, the former US Special Envoy to the
Middle East, stated in his book "The Missing Peace"
(published in 2004) that Jonathan deserves to be freed
unconditionally. Nevertheless, writes Ross, Pollard is far
too valuable as a bargaining chip against Israel, so he
advised the president at Wye not to release him. Still no
response from Israel.

* In point of fact, Israel has already "paid" for Jonathan's
release several times over (including freeing 750 murderers
and terrorists with blood on their hands as part of the Wye
Accords), but has never bothered to collect its due.

* In the 21 years that Jonathan has been in prison, he has
repeatedly been subjected to cruel and unusual punishment
and severe affliction. The Government of Israel has been
informed of each and every episode of mistreatment of its
agent but has never once intervened on his behalf, nor has
the Government ever protested.

* Jonathan's first court appearance in the US in 2 decades
took place in the year 2003. Israel did not even bother to
send a representative. Instead, on the eve of Jonathan's
court hearing, Israel's consular representative in New York
who was given the task of officially responding to the
media, slandered Jonathan on American national television
thus sending a clear message to the judge that Jonathan is
"hefker" and that no one in Israel cares what is done with
him.

* Israel's intent never to bring Jonathan home alive, is
reflected in the immoral and mean-spirited way that the
State relates to me, his wife.

* As the wife of an Israeli agent, the fact that I remain
homeless and penniless speaks volumes about the State's
attitude towards Jonathan.

* Compare this with the case of an Israeli drug dealer, a
family friend of a Prime Minister, who was taken captive
while pursuing his own illicit interests, and not in the
service of the State. Both his wife and his mistress and
their two respective families received full support for the
duration of his captivity. I on the other hand, receive no
help whatsoever and am dependent for my survival on the
kindness of a few friends.

* Moreover, I am cancer survivor. I have no medical
insurance and I receive no medical assistance whatsoever
from the State of Israel. In fact, when I recently tried to
buy basic medical coverage on my own, I was rejected by
Kupat Cholim. The manner in which I was rejected strongly
suggested that they were fearful that accepting Pollard's
wife might somehow jeopardize the Kupah's government
funding.

* Compare this also with the Government's recent gesture to
the citizens of Lebanon offering them free medical treatment
in Israel in spite of their possible participation in the
recent war against Israel. An enemy alien can receive
medical assistance in Israel, but the wife of an Israeli
agent in captivity cannot!

* Worse still, the Government brazenly lies to the Supreme
Court and to the Israeli public when it repeatedly claims to
be supporting Jonathan and me financially. We presented
documented proof to Judge Lindenstrauss that in 21 years,
neither Jonathan nor I have ever received a cent from the
Government of Israel.

* The bottom line is that for 21 years, the State of Israel
has stubbornly denied granting Jonathan any status that
would bring him or his wife any assistance, or relief, or
the possibility of securing his release.

* Even though Jonathan fought for and obtained official
recognition as an agent, his name does not appear on the
Ministry of Defense's list of captives, thus depriving him
of all of his rights as an agent in captivity.

* The State also refuses to grant him status as a Prisoner
of Zion, again depriving him of any rights that might accrue
and, more importantly, depriving him of the protections this
status would afford him.

* By denying Jonathan status within the official framework
governed by the Ministry of Defense (as a Shavui); or by the
Internal Affairs Ministry (as a PoZ); the State of Israel
has relegated Jonathan to the status of a person who does
not officially exist and who therefore, can effectively be
ignored to death.


These facts and documented information were presented to the
Mivaker HaMidina, Judge Micha Lindenstrauss, on that fateful
day in February when after years and years of waiting, a new
State Comptroller received us and seemed to embrace the
case.

The meeting was a great success! It had originally been
scheduled to last 1 hour, but went on for some 2 Ѕ hours
before it was reluctantly concluded -- and even then, only
because we all had other commitments. I went straight from
the meeting with the Mivaker HaMidina, to report personally
to Jonathan's rav, HaRav Mordecai Eliyahu, shlita. He was as
delighted as we were with the reception and the commitment
we had received from the Mivaker. He and all of our closest
associates were especially buoyed to hear about the warm
wishes and blessings we received from Judge Lindenstrauss
and his executive staff.

I remember one of the last things that I said to Judge
Lindenstrauss before saying good-bye. I told him, "We do not
expect you to secure Jonathan's release, but your
investigation may be an important part of the process of
bringing it about. Your public report has the potential to
shine a light on this case that has never been shone, and in
that way to be a catalyst for Jonathan's freedom. But, even
if your report results in no direct advantage for Jonathan,
it must be written in order to ensure that what happened to
Jonathan never ever again happens to anyone else who serves
the State of Israel."

Judge Lindenstrauss seemed to understand; he responded
warmly and reassuringly, and promised to investigate. He
promised that he and his staff would stay in touch and would
contact us if they needed any further information. We were
deeply touched by his words of support and encouragement;
and by his and his executive staff's warmth and enthusiasm.

That was six months ago.

On August 17th, Jonathan used up a week's worth of his
precious telephone minutes to dictate a personal letter to
Judge Lindenstrauss. In it Jonathan reiterated the facts
that I have shared with you tonight, and he added:

"[Judge Lindenstrauss] with the exception of a brief message
we received in March of this year (5 Ѕ months ago) from
one of your staff, saying that you are investigating, there
has not been a word from you or your office since then. My
situation in the meantime only continues to deteriorate.
Every day that I survive is a complete miracle….May we know
the status of your investigation, and when you anticipate
publishing your findings. Yours truly, Jonathan Pollard."

A few days later, on August 23rd Jonathan and I received a
reply. The very brief response was signed by the "Senior
Assistant to the State Comptroller and International
Liaison" and echoed virtually the same unmistakable message
we have gotten from Israeli Government officials for the
last 21 years: The matter is being handled. Don't call us;
we'll call you.

I am sharing this with you tonight, because it is
anecdotally representative of the last 21 years that
Jonathan has been slowly bleeding to death in prison, in
full view of the State of Israel and its elected and
appointed officials, and in full view of the Jewish People.

Why does it matter that my husband continues to languish in
prison after 21 years in some of the harshest of conditions?


Why should the fate of one individual be of concern to
anyone - especially when so much time has passed, and there
are now seemingly "more pressing problems" such as the
impending threat of another outbreak of war, and the fate of
Israel's 3 latest captive soldiers?

It matters because the fate of my husband, Jonathan Pollard,
is the miner's canary of the moral health and welfare of the
People of Israel. A State that first betrays and then
abandons its own agent for more than 2 decades and then
relegates him to the dustbin of history while it moves on to
other exploits is a State that is morally bankrupt. And a
State that is morally bankrupt will not be able to fulfill
its People's highest national aspirations, nor will it ever
be capable of commanding the kind of moral resolve needed to
bring its captives home.

As Jonathan himself recently wrote in a letter to the
families of the 3 newly captive soldiers:

"…fighting for the return of a captive requires a moral
basis. It requires a commitment to G-d, country and fellow
man. It requires the kind of morality that the State of
Israel no longer seems to have… When there is no moral basis
for the return of a captive, there is of course no moral
resolve, no determination to succeed, and as result no
effective action is taken. This creates a vacuum which the
politicians love to fill with empty words and empty
promises..."

While we cannot say with certainty when the State of Israel
became detached from its moral roots and the People from our
commitment to each other, we do know that the moral decay
was there 21 years ago when Jonathan was thrown out of the
Israeli Embassy in Washington and into the waiting arms of
the FBI

That moral failure, that on-going sin against a loyal son of
Israel who served the State and its People, has gone
unchallenged and unrepaired for 21 years. It hangs like a
curse over the Nation. It spawned the abandonment of Ron
Arad, Zachary Baummel, Tzvi Feldman, Yehuda Katz, and Guy
Hever. It bred the callous abandonment of Mudhat Yosuf who
was wounded on the field of battle and left to bleed to
death at Kever Yosef in Shchem.

It is the same moral failure that conceived and implemented
the inhumane expulsion and destruction of Gush Katif and
northern Samaria; and more recently facilitated the
abandonment of all of the citizens of northern Israel. It is
the same moral failure which has given birth to a culture of
empty words and broken promises which subsequent Governments
of Israel have perfected to a high art.

It is the same moral failure that now also threatens the
lives of Gilead Shalit, Eldad Regev, and Ehud Goldwasser.

As long as we allow Jonathan to continue to rot in prison,
and we act as if his fate is of no consequence to us, the
poison will continue to seep into our national consciousness
and continue to destroy the fabric of our society as a moral
and just People, as a Light unto the Nations.

As long as we do not rectify the problem at its root by
bringing Jonathan home, this culture of abandonment will
continue its relentless march onward, as the government
openly plans for the next round of uprooting, betrayal and
abandonment of its loyal citizens and communities.

You may have come here tonight to be entertained, or because
the subject was of interest, or you may have come because
you always come when there is a program at Beit Knesset
Hanassi. But, if my message has reached your heart, you must
leave here tonight knowing that each of us owes a debt of
gratitude to Jonathan Pollard and that each of us bears a
personal responsibility for his fate.

Redemption of Israel's longest-held captive, Jonathan
Pollard, cannot help but lead to redemption for all of
Israel and for all of her captives, for it lies at the heart
of the matter. No one person alone can save Jonathan, but
each of us has something to contribute. Not a single person
is exempt from doing whatever he or she can - be it prayer
both public and private, or hanging Pollard balcony banners,
or participating in activities to raise the public profile
of the case, or contributing to activities of The Committee
to Bring Jonathan Pollard Home (they are the only group in
Israel totally coordinated with Jonathan) or supporting the
National Council of Young Israel's deeply appreciated
efforts to assist Jonathan with his needs in prison. Even at
this late date, I urge you all to become involved, as much
for your own sakes as for that of Jonathan and the Nation.

As Jonathan writes in his letter to the families of the
captive soldiers,

"We cannot, we must not allow this culture of abandonment to
go on! The People of Israel must find the emotional strength
to return to the path of arevut hadaddeet (mutual
responsibility). We must rekindle and recapture our strength
as nation that stands united… [and as a nation that has] at
its root, the moral resolve necessary to be utterly
committed to not surrendering to evil, and to absolutely
never abandoning a brother in time of trouble… If we can do
this, and I believe we can, then we may once again be worthy
of the blessing of Heaven - as we were at Entebbe- and be
worthy of the swift return home of all of Zion's prisoners.
"

May G-d bless us all, and may we soon see the speedy release
of Jonathan Gilad, Eldad and Ehud, along with all of
Israel's captives and MIA's! Amain!
________________________________

For additional information see also:

The Facts Page

The Information Page

The Wye Double-Cross Page

FOIA Document: Conference of President's Letter to US State Dept

What No One Wants to Talk About (Re: Israel's failure to lobby at all for Pollard)

Caspar's Ghost - (Interview with Weinberger admission that
Pollard case was exaggerated out of all proportion)- by
Edwin Black

Excerpts From "The Missing Piece" by Dennis Ross

Terror in the US and The Jonathan Pollard Case

The Clemency Page

The Bagatz Page

Jonathan Pollard's Letter to the Families of the Captive Soldiers