Rabin's victory

By DANIEL BLOCH

(November 1) - The Wye agreement is the ultimate defeat for Yigal Amir. This despicable person wanted not only to kill Yitzhak Rabin but, with his death, to put an end to the Oslo peace process.

For a time, it seemed that even though he was placed behind bars for life, he might still be the winner. Rabin's heirs, those who vowed to preserve his legacy, lost the elections. The winners were those who vehemently opposed his peace policies, demonstrated against him and did not censor the extremists who wanted to change his policies in a violent manner.

But the forces of history and peace seem to be stronger than the bullets of an assassin. For a while the process was in mortal danger. Its momentum was stalled. But luckily, only for a short while - and not only because of the work of the Israeli enemies of peace.

The anti-peace forces among the Palestinians, combined with the weakness of Yasser Arafat, and the preoccupation of the White House with other matters, made the process move at an even slower pace.

But the quest for peace was stronger than all its enemies. It was only fit, from the point of view of historical justice, that the latest agreement was signed close to the third anniversary of Rabin's assassination.

Three years after this tragic event, the pain of our great loss is even stronger. We miss his style of leadership, his frankness and integrity, even his sometimes blunt style of speech.

One of Rabin's important qualities was his ability to understand reality and change course when circumstances demanded it. He had strong convictions and perceptions, but he had the courage to listen, learn and change. He consulted with experts in all fields, he worked with pollsters and media advisers, but after consultations, he made up his own mind and pronounced his decision clearly and truthfully.

Rabin never promised something he could not fulfill. If he had to change his mind, he admitted the change and tried to explain it. He never changed the truth to suit his image-building needs.

As prime minister in his first term, 1974-1977, he started the peace process with Egypt. He reformed the tax system, curbed inflation and helped rebuild the spirit of the country, especially the army, after the shock of the Yom Kippur War.

In his second term ,while making the fight against unemployment his first priority, he understood that the quest for peace was not only a prudent policy for security reasons but also a vital ingredient for promoting economic growth.

Thus, he tried every possible venue to resume the peace process. He thought it best to try and first of all achieve an agreement with Syria, because he did not believe the PLO was a credible peace partner. But when convinced that this opportunity really existed, he changed direction and signed the Declaration of Principles with Arafat.

His happiest day, however, was signing the formal peace agreement with Jordan's King Hussein, and he did hope, on that fateful night in Tel Aviv, that before the 1996 elections came around, he would be able to finalize the peace negotiations with Syria's Assad.

After a period of trial and error - too many errors - Binyamin Netanyahu, together with Ariel Sharon, now understands that there is no way but to continue the Oslo peace process. The process is not without its obstacles, as Rabin would have been the first to admit, and now Netanyahu suffers from the same incitement that was focused on Rabin three years ago.

This time, the vast majority of the public and the political arena support both the peace process and the need to prevent the recurrence of violence and, God forbid, another assassination attempt.

We know that Yigal Amir acted on his own initiative, but he was groomed in an atmosphere that did not condemn any kind of political murder as a strict taboo, against any possible interpretation of God's will. Unfortunately, this atmosphere still exists in certain remote areas of the extreme religious Right.

The only way to fight it is by totally separating all ties between Halacha and the political process, and by doing everything possible to wake up and unite the vast and silent majority under the banner of peace, democracy and a secure future.

Mordechai: Continue Rabin's legacy
A lesson in remembrance (Feature)
Nothing has changed (Opinion)
Rabin's victory (Opinion)

From the day following the assassination:
November 5, 1995
Rabin Assassinated

From the day of the funeral:
November 7, 1995
Rabin laid to rest on Mt. Herzl

From the First Anniversary:
October 24, 1996
Yitzhak Rabin: The Sabra, the Mensch
From Father to Son

From the Second Anniversary:
November 9, 1997
Massive rally honors Rabin

Yitzhak Rabin Peace Center

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