First published in 1993 by
FRANK CASS & CO. LTD.
Published 2013 by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY, 10017, USA
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
Copyright 1993 Zeev B. Begin
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Begin, Zeev B.
Zionist Stand: Collected Speeches by
Zeev B. Begin
I. Title
956.05
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Begin, Z.B.
A Zionist stand : collected speeches / by Zeev B. Begin.
p. cm.
1. IsraelPolitics and government. 2. JewishArab
relations1973 I. Title.
DS126.5.B356 1992
ISBN 13: 978-0-714-64500-1 (hbk)
ISBN 13: 978-0-714-64089-1 (pbk)
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.
Typeset by Regent Typesetting, London
Printed in Great Britain by BPCC Wheatons Ltd, Exeter
An Introduction to A Zionist Stand
MY APPROACH to my fellow man rests on one foot, the same foot as that of the Gentile who learned the entire Torah from Hillel the Elder while standing on one foot: What is hated for yourself, do not do to your friend. This essence is the source of mans right to equality, which is the source of his right to freedom. These are the foundations for a social programme that can be applied to all, and what was self-evident to our predecessors became obvious to a small part of humanity over the past few hundred years.
This personal stand can be expanded; the demand for equality among nations leads to the peoples claim for national sovereignty over its land, in order to allow its sons to live there in freedom as do all other nations. My Zionist stand is based on the Zionist aim the creation of a safe haven for the Jewish nation in Eretz Yisrael and it rests on two pillars: the right of the Jewish nation to Eretz Yisrael and the right of the Jewish State to national security. From the combination of these, a policy for the State of Israel ensues, based on the prevention of foreign rule west of the Jordan River, an initiative towards establishing understanding and mutual respect between ourselves and our Arab neighbours, and efforts to reach peace treaties between the State of Israel and the Arab state.
The idea that in order to realize the Zionist aim it is necessary to apply the right of our nation to our land, is accepted today among large parts of the public both in Eretz Yisrael and abroad. Yet, for many it is not self-understood, and for some it is even not understood. A recurring complaint is that these ideas, which were clear to Zionists two or three generations ago, are not rational.
The values of mans equality and freedom are commendably upheld in free countries in peaceful times. But in moments of test, it sometimes becomes clear that citizens and their leaders have not yet totally absorbed these values, and it is difficult to use rational arguments to convince of their importance. Under the pressure of immediate events and the influence of peers advocating expedient short-range solu positive decisions sometimes resonate internal edicts and a built-in compass. These reactions are the result of a cultural reflex, and decisions of this kind may be considered irrational. Yet, an intelligent person would not dismiss them as such, if they are rooted in the foundations of equality, freedom, truth and justice.
Such is the Zionist stand, whose foundations I have presented above. There are those who dismiss it as based on aspirations whose origin is a call of the past, not on a rational examination of difficulties in the present. I sometimes find myself envious of the children of other nations, not as ancient as our nation, not as rich with spiritual treasures, not as tied to the cradle of their heritage. Nevertheless, they have deep feelings towards their country and express a relationship that is self-evident.
About a year ago I hosted a mission in the Knesset, headed by an American Congressman representing the state of Alaska, which was transferred from the Russian Czars in the Alaska Purchase approximately 130 years ago. I asked him, How would you react if the President of the USSR were to propose, for the sake of world peace, that Alaska be leased to the USSR? My honourable guest smiled and did not answer, as did his colleagues: it was clear that I had raised an inconceivable proposal, and that the land of Eskimos and ice, earthquakes and natural gas, whose star was added to the Stars and Stripes only about 40 years ago, that this Alaska was forever, in their eyes, an inseparable part of the United States. I reminded my guests that the Hebron Purchase took place over 4,000 years ago between Abraham the Hebrew and Ephron the Hittite; that the Jerusalem Purchase was concluded 3,000 years ago between David the Jew and Arava the Jebusite; I added that we have in our possession a document which testifies that in both cases our forefathers paid in cash.
My mother instilled in me a special inclination for tales of travel, stamps from faraway countries, scenic photographs, maps of the world. I have kept a notebook from my childhood, into which I copied the names of the capitals of the world and the map of Marco Polos travels. In this notepad I found a table, drawn up in my handwriting, of the distances between cities in Eretz Yisrael. At the bottom of the table I added a footnote: The distance between Jerusalem and Beer Sheva is calculated through the Hebron road, which is now occupied by the Jordanians. I wrote these words when I was ten or twelve; Hebron had been captured by the Hashemites for five, maybe seven, years and there were those who assumed it was a lament for generations, but in our home this was self-evident.
And not only in our home. A laymans atlas was printed in those days by the Yavne press. The 1949 cease-fire lines were included, but the West Bank was not, and in its place was the comment, Trans-Jordanian-occupied land. The author, Moshe Braver, MSc, went to great lengths to ensure that, regardless of the maps small size, long, complicated, Arabic and Hebrew names appeared: Jenin (Ein Ganim), Tubas (Tevetz), Anata (Anatot), and in Egyptian-occupied land he labelled Khan Unis (Chanot Yonah). All of that was once self-evident.
We are in the midst of a struggle between the Jewish nation and the Arab nation over the control of Eretz Yisrael. Such a battle between two national wills will be won by him who mobilizes on a long-term basis full of the soul, and combines all tools, spiritual and material, at his command. He who appreciates pure wisdom, which convinces that its time to act, as well as deep feelings which call upon him to get up and do. It is perhaps to this combination that the prophet Isaiah alludes, mentioning in one verse both the spiritual ability to overcome fear and the control of the mind over courage: In calmness and confidence should be your bravery.
This land is ours.
Yediot Aharonot
