The Case Of Mordechai Vannunu
Preeminent Hero
Of The Nuclear Age
By Mark Gaffney
CounterPunch.org
2-1-3
- Each day we move closer to a Mideast war that could
involve the use of horrible weapons, even nukes. In this darkest hour
since the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, the shining example of one man's
courage has never been more relevant to the cause of peace. That man is
Mordechai Vanunu, former Israeli nuclear technician, and may well be the
longest serving prisoner of conscience anywhere in the world. Daniel
Ellsberg recently referred to him as "the preeminent hero of the nuclear
age."
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- In September 1986, Mordechai Vanunu was illegally
abducted by agents of the Mossad for revealing to the world press
information that confirmed the existence of Israel's often-denied
plutonium separation plant. The plant is buried eighty feet below ground
in the Negev desert, and had long escaped detection. Since the 1960s it
has been used to recover plutonium from spent fuel rods from the Dimona
nuclear reactor, located nearby. The plant continues to be an integral
part of Israel's ongoing nuclear weapons program. Israel is believed to
possess at least 200 nukes.
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- Then Prime Minister Shimon Peres ordered Vanunu' s
abduction to silence the whistleblower, and to bring him to trial for
allegedly jeopardizing the securi ty of the state of Israel. But
Vanunu's real "crime" was speaking the truth. And for that he was made
to suffer a fate worse than death: eleven years and five months in
solitary confinement. Isolation in a tiny cell is a well known form of
torture, and one that can cause deep emotional scars and mental
impairment. During this period Vanunu was subjected to constant
harassments and humiliations: an obvious attempt by the Mossad to
"break" his will, or drive him over the edge. Amnesty International
described the conditions of his ordeal as "cruel, inhuman, and
degrading."
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- Yet, the prisoner held firm as a rock. Nor has Vanunu
since wavered from the position of principle he articulated in the very
beginning: that the only sane path is full disclosure and abolition of
nuclear weapons. From his prison cell Mordechai wrote: "It is a
dangerous illusion to believe they [nuclear weapons] can be
defensive....Only peace between states can promise security."
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- The world gained another glimpse of Vanunu's character
in 1998, shortly after his removal from solitary and his placement in
the general prison population. At that time he was queried by Israeli
officials about whether he would agree to remain silent on the nuclear
issue, implying an offer of conditional release. But Vanunu refused. He
insisted on his right to speak freely. And he made it plain that being
muzzled on the nuclear issue was non-negotiable: not an option for his
release. Vanunu is currently starting the seventeenth year of his
eighteen year sentence. One of the causes for which Vanunu risked his
life, full disclosure of Israel's nuclear policies, was briefly realized
in February 1999, when a debate of the nuclear issue occurred on the
floor of the Israeli Knesset. The event was short-lived. After shouting
and recriminations, several Arab members of the Knesset who had sparked
the debate were expelled from the chamber. The stormy circumstances
showed the extent of denial that remains to be overcome. But it was a
victory, nonetheless, for those who favor nuclear abolition.
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- Over the years the case of Mordechai Vanunu has come
to symbolize the intractable problem of state secrecy that continues to
stymie all efforts toward world nuclear disarmament. This is why Vanunu
has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize every year since1987.
Though his name is a household word in Europe, Australia, and throughout
much of the rest of the world, here in America Vanunu remains almost
unknown. The US press ignores his case because it is an embarrassment to
Israel and to the US government.
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- Yet, spotlighting Vanunu for his courage and his
witness would have salutary effects. It would increase public awareness
of the folly of President Bush's current Mideast policies. The problem
is Bush's double standard: one standard for the US and Israel, another
for everyone else. This explains why almost nobody (outside the US)
trusts the president when he says he wants to roll back weapons of mass
destruction from the Mideast. They correctly understand that Bush is not
serious. If he were he would also be pressuring Israel to open its
nuclear sites to IAEA inspectors. Israel remains the only state in the
region with nuclear weapons.
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- Mark Gaffney is an anti-nuclear activist and the
author of a pioneering 1989 book about Israel's nuclear weapons program:
DIMONA, THE THIRD TEMPLE. THE STORY BEHIND THE VANUNU REVELATION. Mark
can be reached for comment at [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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The Mulindwas
communication group
"With Yoweri Museveni, Uganda is in
anarchy"
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