Paul Calvert spoke with campaign volunteer Lena Rozenberg



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Paul: Do you think that it is fair to release so many Palestinian prisoners for Gilad?

Lena: I think it is fair, because Gilad Shalit is a very intelligent and clever person. In Israel you can choose to study and not to go to the army and study a little bit more if you are very clever, but he didn't think about himself and his career, he thought about the country and wanted to do the best. He chose knowing he could pay a price. I think that Gilad and every soldier in Israel making this step and decision to fight for the country, then the country has a responsibility to bring him back. It's not a matter of price, but we have a commitment and the Israeli army is known by this, that we have a commitment between the soldier and the country that if the soldier is kidnapped, the country brings him back, wherever he is; even soldiers swear for each other, that they are not going to leave anybody there alone. I think the country has a responsibility and they need to bring Gilad back whatever is the cost.

Paul: Do you think the country as a whole will support a prisoner release, to see many terrorists released just for one soldier?

Lena: As someone who is speaking to so many people, I am going a lot with a t-shirt which says 'Gilad still alive', all over Jerusalem and the country. A lot of people come to me and I know most Israelis say to bring Gilad at any price. The reasons too is if everybody thinks as we think that today it is Gilad but tomorrow it could be another soldier, so if it's going to be your son or daughter or your cousins then you say the same, bring him at any price.

Gilad Shalit Could Be Released

We prepared a march, the Shalit family and a lot of people close to them marched from their house, 12 days to Jerusalem to the house of Benjamin Netanyahu to tell him it's enough. Gilad has been in jail for four years and it is enough; you need to release him. When they started to announce this in the newspaper, Noam Shalit was speaking to the media about the fact that he's not waiting anymore for Benjamin Netanyahu, but we are going now and fighting for this. The telephone never stopped ringing and we had before the event 10,000 Israelis say they would come and march with us. There were even a lot of famous actors, singers and people from the government pledged to attend and it was just amazing to see. It means that all Israel will march and stand for Gilad and saying Gilad's suffered enough, he's paid a price. Gilad needs to come back home today.

Paul: What are you doing to bring about the release of Gilad?

Lena: For about three years I have been part of a team that's been in shifts next to the house of Benjamin Netanyahu. We have a tent there and make our presence felt from 10am to 10pm, to keep up the pressure to see Gilad released.

I have been part of a demonstration that we made in Tel Aviv. We went to the prisons to hold demonstrations where they are holding the Hamas terrorists. We went with the family to the government. It's very encouraging that some guys from the government actually decided to open in the government a little organisation that will fight in the government, fighting for Gilad to come home soon. It was encouraging to hear that some of the government people told us that in the beginning they were against releasing the Palestinian terrorist prisoners, but now they changed their mind and they want Gilad to come back at any price.

Paul: Why are you doing this, after all this isn't your son?

Lena: Because I believe in God and I know that God puts things in our hearts - his desires - or sometimes he gives us a heart for something. All my life I didn't like unrighteous circumstances with people and when I heard about Gilad and when I see his mother and I look at her eyes and when I saw the desperate eyes and what she is going through as a mother I really felt for her. My son has been talking about going in the army; our sons even when they are 16 years old they are already in their head are soldiers and they do grow up in this mentality, that they want to serve the country and fight for the country because God only gave us one country. At first I was thinking it could be my son and I have a son that will go and I want to stand together with Aviva. I want to encourage her and put my warm hand over her and tell her really it's going to be ok and God gave me a special love for Aviva and Noam Shalit and for the family. I promised myself and I promised God that I will do the best I can for them to bring Gilad back. CR

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.