| http://www.tompaine.com/opinion/2001/07/19/1.html
PREVENTING THE NEXT HOLOCAUST The Political Prisoner of America's Ally Jennifer Bauduy is the associate editor at TomPaine.com. Mordechai Vanunu wanted to prevent a world disaster. That's why in 1986 the former Israeli nuclear technician told the world that Israel was building a secret nuclear arsenal. Fifteen years later, Vanunu, 46, lingers in prison, serving an 18-year sentence for treason. And this May, the Israeli government announced that when he is released in three years, he will be kept under house arrest. Vanunu's attempt to stop the arms race in the Middle East has so far been fruitless. The United States, while condemning the nuclear aspirations of Iraq and North Korea, has maintained a stoic silence on Israel's nuclear bomb program. Now President George W. Bush is pushing a missile defense system that is certain to fuel arms build-up. "The existence of nuclear weapons in Israel is a well-known secret to the world. It is also well known to the Israeli people, but it is still a taboo subject," said Michael Christ, executive director of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW). In Washington, D.C., a strong Israeli lobby pumps millions of dollars into the coffers of political candidates to promote on-ongoing American support of Israeli policies, including its conflicts with Palestinians and neighboring Arab countries. Pro-Israel lobby groups donated nearly $5 million to political campaigns for the 2000 election cycle. Former vice presidential candidate Senator Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.) was the number one recipient of pro-Israeli contributions, receiving $224,000. Bush received $135,000, more than double Al Gore's $56,000. Lieberman, who serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee, is also a big recipient of defense contractor donations, receiving $112,000 for the last election. In control of the White House once more, Republicans have pushed nuclear issues back to the forefront -- from energy, to weapons and missile defense. But this has also fueled the revival of anti-nuclear activism and international citizens groups demanding the elimination of nuclear weapons. Campaign to Free the Whistleblower In 1994, Mary and Nick Eoloff, of St. Paul, Minnesota, read a magazine article about the International Campaign to Free Mordechai Vanunu. The article prompted readers to write to the nuclear whistleblower and the Eoloffs did so. Their correspondence turned into friendship, which in 1997 inspired the Eoloffs -- long-time anti-nuke advocates -- to legally adopt Vanunu. At age nine, Vanunu emigrated with his family from Morocco to Israel. As a young man he served in the army, as all Israeli youth are required to do. He later went on to work in the Dimona nuclear research center, which harbored a secret underground plutonium separation plant. All nuclear weapons workers had to take an oath of secrecy. But Vanunu increasingly questioned the morality of his work, believing that by building nuclear weapons Israel was fueling an arms race. In 1985, before Vanunu quit his job at Dimona, he took extensive photographs inside the reactor. Vanunu then traveled to Australia. There, disillusioned with Israel, he converted to Christianity, a decision that so outraged his Orthodox Jewish parents that they disowned him. Vanunu then contacted the press. The Sunday Times of London flew him to England to verify the story before breaking the news in October 1986 that Israel had become a nuclear power. At the same time, the Israelis had tracked Vanunu down, and a female agent lured him to Italy where other agents kidnapped and drugged him, dragging him back to Israel on a cargo ship. He was charged with espionage and treason and convicted in a secret trial.
Viewed as a traitor by many in Israel, Vanunu spent 11 years in solitary confinement, struggling to maintain his sanity inside a six-foot by nine-foot cell with constant camera surveillance and 24-hour fluorescent lighting. "We are very concerned about his personal situation. We would support those calls for his humane treatment and for his release," said Michael Christ of IPPNW. Mary Eoloff, 69, recalled that the first letters from Vanunu were filled with holes. "They were fully censored," she said. Vanunu is not allowed to write for publications or even discuss nuclear issues, but he managed at one point to send a poem out from prison called "I am Your Spy." The poem talks about his awakening to the possibility of a nuclear disaster. In February of 1998, the Eoloffs traveled to Israel and met Vanunu for the first time. The same year he was finally removed from solitary confinement. The Eoloffs have since made three trips to Israel, most recently this past January. "His spirits were very good. He said he could make it another three years. He brought us some cake he had bought at the canteen," said Eoloff, a former English teacher. Vanunu has been nominated repeatedly for the Nobel Peace prize. This May, the Eoloffs flew to Norway to attend a ceremony where Vanunu was given an honorary doctoral degree from the Norwegian Tromsoe University. His brother Meir Vanunu, one of only three siblings out of 10 who have maintained contact with him, accepted the degree in his absence. Israel's Defense Minister announced that In spite of the international admiration, the Israeli government remains unbending. And the recent announcement by Israel's Defense Minister that Vanunu would be placed under house arrest and prevented from leaving Israel once he is released in 2004 has the Eoloffs greatly distressed. "They really have no right to do that. It's not part of his sentence," Eoloff said. The Israeli embassy was unable to confirm or deny reports that Vanunu would be blocked from leaving the country. Authorities have said he cannot leave because he might give away more information on Israel's nuclear program. Vanunu said he has already revealed all he knows. Others say Israel may be worried because abducting Vanunu from Italy was a violation of Italian and international law. "When they say he knows secrets, it's absurd. He's not a scientist. He's just a technician," Eoloff said. |
