Pollard Cleans Toilets on Seder Night

Justice4JP Media Release - April 22, 2000

BUTNER, NORTH CAROLINA

- Jonathan Pollard did not have a Passover seder this year. Instead, he spent Leil HaSeder (seder night), scrubbing toilets and washing floors. He was given a direct order to do this work on Leil HaSeder in preparation for a special inspection the next day. Refusal to obey a direct order has serious consequences and would likely have landed him in "the hole" - a punitive cell in isolation, totally incommunicado, for up to 90 days.

Requesting kosher food for Passover has provided just one more opportunity for Jonathan to be harassed and humilated on a daily basis. Jonathan therefore disengaged from this farce, and is now subsisting largely on fruits and vegetables, which are not easy to come by.

Justice4JP points out that the above does not represent any particular discrimation against Jonathan Pollard in prison. This is simply what prison life is for him on a daily basis.

Neither the Government of Israel nor the Embassy in Washington has made any effort at all to inquire about or to assure Jonathan's Passover needs, his financial needs, his health needs, or his security.

Jonathan Pollard may not be a victim of prison discrimination, but he is without a doubt a victim of the callousness and the indifference of both the Government of Israel and the American Jewish community that has allowed this case to fester and Jonathan to spend his 15th Passover in prison.

Justice4JP notes that Bnai Brith has recently repeated its call to President Clinton to release Jonathan Pollard for Passover. Justice4JP calls upon all Jewish organizations and community leaders to immediately follow suit, before the opportunity for a Passover redemption is lost completely.