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Nothing
Has
Changed
Israel hasn't even started dealing
with the immense repercussions
of the Rabin assassination.
INA FRIEDMAN ISRAELI CORRESPONDENT
AP/NATI HARNIK
I
an Arafat-like kefiyah and in an S.S. uni-
want to ask forgiveness of you, Grandfather.
form.
A year has passed and nothing has changed,"
The clips featured prominently in the two-
was how Yitzhak Rabin's grandson Yonatan
Ben-Artzi began his graveside eulogy at the
hour memorial television program. Asked on
memorial marking the first anniversary of the
the show what was being done to prevent a
slain leader's death.
repetition of the verbal and physical violence,
To make the message all the more powerful,
Education Minister Zevulun Hammer (head
Mr. Ben-Artzi was the only speaker to eulogize
of the National Religious Party, which repre-
Mr. Rabin at his grave. At Leah Rabin's express
sents the interests of the religious settlers in
request, and in a flagrant departure from cus-
the territories) matter-of-factly said that only
tom and the standard dictates of state ceremo-
tolerance can combat extremism.
ny, neither President Ezer Weizman nor Prime
When Mr. Hammer referred to assassin Yi-
Minister Binyamin Netanyahu spoke.
gal Amir euphemistically as a "man who had
At the special Knesset session held in Rabin's
erred," novelist Amos Oz — who had opened
memory an hour later, it became easier to un-
the memorial program with a moving eulogy
derstand why the Rabins had been so deter-
of Mr. Rabin — angrily insisted that he take
mined to shut the two leading national figures
those words back and call Mr. Amir a mur-
out.
derer. The embarrassed Mr. Hammer instantly
President Weizman gave a stiff, dry speech
complied. Mr. Oz then launched into an irate
focusing less on Mr. Rabin himself than on the
discourse on the "distortion of language" that
wounds suffered by the entire nation and by Is-
had long served the political right.
rael's democracy in particular. "Cursed is that
When a clip was shown of Knesset Member
night on which we realized that we were living
Rabbi Benny Alon, of the far-right-wing
under an illusion," he said, "and that within our
Moledet Party, within just feet of Mr. Rabin's
very own democracy — of which we were so
car as it was attacked by angry demonstrators
proud — were growing horrid wild grasses
last autumn, he complained of being "am-
which, unless uprooted quickly and with deter-
bushed" and accused the station of falsifying
mination, may spread and destroy everything
the facts by creating a "photo montage."
good."
Even academia got into the act. Dr. Chaim
That warning could well have been made be-
Genaz of Tel Aviv University later appeared
fore Mr. Rabin's murder, which only highlight-
on television arguing that there are certain cir-
ed the widespread feeling that nothing had
cumstances under which a political assassi-
changed. Having the remarks come just after
nation is justified.
Labor Knesset Member Yael Dayan had been
„ All told, there's nothing even vaguely cathar-
burned by a Jewish settler in Hebron throwing
tic
for Israel about this first yahrzeit for Yitzhak
a glass of boiling tea into her face made it sound
Rabin.
On the contrary, it signaled that it will
perfunctory.
be
a
long
time before Israelis are able to sep-
Prime Minister Netanyahu, for his part, con-
arate
mourning
from ideology in their attitude
centrated on the need for national unity while
toward
the
man
and how he met his end.
stressing the marginal character of the "violent
Even the military, in the person of Chief of
and extremist minority [that] should know it
Staff Amnon Shakak, found a way to express
will encounter strong, forceful, and vigorous re-
its disgruntlement over the state of affairs.
sistance from the immense majority that sur-
Speaking at a Defense Ministry memorial, he
rounds it."
bemoaned that the IDF — which Rabin had
But as various politicians and columnists were An Israeli boy holds a torch over a poster of Yitzhak Rabin at the site where the prime minister
built, led, and so loved to his last day — had
quick to point out, as he spoke Israelis living was assassinated.
become a "punching bag" for the political elite.
in the West Bank were openly preparing
But perhaps the expression that best cap-
Messrs. Netanyahu and Weizman both studiously
provocative acts aimed at sabotaging the peace pocks,
avoided the still hyper-sensitive issue of the climate tured the pubic mood was a caricature in Ha'aretz show-
and particularly the VK in Hebron.
The only man who had actually taken "forceful and of incitement against Mr. Rabin that culminated ing a car plastered with stickers of all the leading political
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vigorous" action against such extremists was Mr. Rabin in murder. But the media didn't, running footage of slogans of the past three years — from "The people are
himself (after Dr. Baruch Goldstein had massacred over Mr. Netanyahu speaking at overheated right-wing with the Golan" and "Hebron, ever since and forever" to
demonstrations, where the crowd chanted "Rabin is a "Enough of violence" — sporting the latest addition to the
30 Palestinians in the Cave of the Patriarch in Hebron).
traitor" and carried placards depicting Mr. Rabin in repertoire: "Friend, you are missed." ID
For this, he was vilified for an "anti-democratic" policy.
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