Worldwide Vigil Reports - from Dublin

Greetings from Dublin.

A day-long vigil from 9.45 a.m. to 5 p.m. was maintained outside the Israeli Embassy in Pembroke Road, Dublin on 30 September demanding the immediate release of Dr Mordechai Vanunu the Israeli pacifist who has been in jail in Israel for seventeen years.

The rain lashed down relentlessly. There was no room for frills but the lone morning protestor got loads of sympathy, free tea and chocolate biscuits from a local stall and an offer of a cup of tea from the Gardai at the Embassy. Around one o'clock the weather improved and the vigil became more colourful and upbeat with the arrival of a "weapons inspector", dressed in white coat and helmet who relayed over a PR system the reasons for Dr Vanunu's incarceration.

Throughout the rest of the day, he spread the message, sometimes humorously, sometimes defiantly but always effectively. He had a few run-ins with the Guards but he was not arrested. He repeatedly invited the Ambassador to come out and talk but the latter stayed inside.

The Vigil clashed with three other major protest events, including an anti-war vigil outside the Dáil (Houses of Parliament) to co-incide with the return of Deputies after summer holidays. Still five people distributed 800 leaflets.

Several people stopped to express their shock and horror that Dr Vanunu could be given such a sentence for following his non-violent conscience. A few told us that they had over the years themselves written to newspapers about him, a few also said they were delighted he was remembered by some group after the long Irish silence. We were able to tell them that in January 2002 Mairead Maguire of the Peace People, herself a Nobel Peace Laureate, had nominated Mordechai for the Nobel Peace Prize.

We plan a birthday card at a future demo in Dublin city centre.

Love and peace,

Justin