"During Rabin’s tenure, Israeli society boasted its freedom of expression, and opposing sides freely expressed their opinions."
By URI SAVIR(From left to right) Jordan’s King Hussein, prime minister Yitzhak Rabin and Uri Savir(photo credit: COURTESY URI SAVIR)
Twenty years have passed since the most momentous and dramatic event in the annals of Israeli democracy after the signing of the Declaration of Independence took place: the assassination of the Israeli prime minister by a Jewish Israeli for the purpose of altering government policy. Yigal Amir succeeded in his mission – to murder Rabin and put an end to his policies.As the director-general of the Foreign Ministry under foreign minister Shimon Peres, I experienced firsthand a dramatic improvement in Israel’s international status. Our diplomatic relations with China, India and many other countries around the world strengthened, and our strategic relationship with the US blossomed as it never had before. Israel was invited to regional economic conferences in Casablanca in 1994 and in Amman in 1995, in which heads of the private sector of Israel and the Arab world participated.This shift also had a significant impact on Israel’s domestic socioeconomic situation. The economy grew by 10 percent, the technology industry became one of the world’s leading markets, budgets earmarked for communities in the periphery and the Arab sector increased and funding for the territories decreased.The political and religious Right rose up against these policies, focusing on one central issue: the division of the Promised Land.Amir was not a pawn who was operated by someone else, but neither did he carry out this terrible act in a vacuum.He was inspired by the words of many rabbis who lived in the territories, some of whom publicly claimed that prime minister Yitzhak Rabin qualified as a “rodef” (a person who according to Jewish law must be stopped – even if it means killing him).The Right deplored Rabin’s murder and felt the national tragedy, but did not mourn the cessation of Rabin’s policies.Benjamin Netanyahu knowingly and blatantly destroyed every policy that Rabin created during the era of the Oslo Accords, from an improvement in regional relations, to an upgrading of US-Israeli relations, socioeconomic growth and a strengthening of Israel’s democracy.During Rabin’s tenure, Israeli society boasted its freedom of expression, and opposing sides freely expressed their opinions.And so now that, 20 years later, the messianic settlements are in full bloom, anti-Arab racism is running rampant, Israel’s security relationship with Arab communities has been destroyed, the Israel-US relationship is at an all-time low, and the economy is in a deep crisis, we can safely say that Yigal Amir succeeded in murdering the prime minister and his policies.
The people of Israel are currently being asked to choose between two different heritages: the Rabin camp and the Yigal Amir camp.In order for us to resurrect Rabin’s heritage, we need a strong Israeli leader who has tremendous courage like Rabin had, someone who will do the right thing for our country, even if it is not the popular choice.In times like the present, between war and peace, when terrorism reigns strong (for there are opponents of peace on the other side, too), we need a leader who will work hard and long so that the people of Israel can lead normal lives, and so each family can live in dignity and safety.The author is co-founder of the Peres Center for Peace and founder of the YaLa Young Leaders Peace Movement. He was the chief negotiator of the Oslo Accords.Translated by Hannah Hochner.