Letter: President of Shalom International to President Clinton

SHALOM INTERNATIONAL
PO BOX 31
Corona, CA 91718
909-270-0195 Fax 909-270-2663

Frank Eiklor, President

April 28, 1994

President Bill Clinton
The White House
Washington, D.C. 20500

Dear Mr. President Clinton:

Having been involved in the Jonathan Pollard case from the beginning, I was disappointed and deeply disturbed by your decision not to pardon him.

Nearly a decade in prison - including solitary confinement - for spying for an ally (giving information that should have been released in accordance with then-President Reagan's Exchange of Intelligence Agreement with Israel).
No trial but only the promise of leniency by the Justice Department if Pollard cooperated -- which they admitted he did.
No such sentence ever meted out in America to anyone who ever spied for an ally.

Mr. President, you called the proposed caning of a young American in Singapore a cruel act. Whether or not I agree with you, I have to respect you for going against the tide of American opinion in this regard. Won't you show the same courage in going against the tide of advisors who, for whatever reason, continue to call for a punishment to be inflicted on Pollard beyond anything in our country's history.

I'm not a Jew, Mr. President. I am a Christian minister who fights anti-Semitism and related injustice - something Jonathan Pollard's case smacks of.

Please - reconsider your decision. When you look back someday, you'll be glad you did.

With respect,

Dr. Frank Eiklor
President