Natan Sharansky
Natan Sharansky
Natan Sharanskyon 20 January 1948) is a Soviet-born Israeli politician, human rights activist and author who spent nine years in Soviet prisons. Natan Sharansky has served as Chairman of the Executive of the Jewish Agency since June 2009...
NationalityRussian
ProfessionWriter
Date of Birth20 January 1948
CountryRussian Federation
believes painful partner people ready together wants
Bibi Netanyahu believes our people are strong. We will be ready for painful concessions but only when and if we have a partner we can live together with, who also wants to live in peace.
people fundamentals invention
Bush explained his fundamental concept to me, that freedom is not an American invention, but rather a gift from God to all people.
believe people may
People may believe that there can be a society where dissent is not permitted, but which is nonetheless not a fear society because everyone agrees with one another and therefore no one wants to dissent.
country people desire
The three main sources of scepticism are first, that not every people desires freedom second, that democracy in certain parts of the world would be dangerous and third, that there is little the world's democracies can do to advance freedom outside their countries.
order people enemy
Non-democratic regimes always need to mobilize their people against external enemies in order to maintain internal stability.
army thinking people
Just as the 99% of Soviet citizens who supported the Soviet regime in 1985 was no indication of what the people inside the USSR really thought, the army of true believers that we think we see in the Arab world is an illusion.
people littles fearful
As soon as people become a little less fearful, they will also begin demanding more freedom.
correct dissent free mechanisms protect russian-writer societies
But by having a right to dissent and having institutions which protect that right, free societies also have mechanisms to correct those abuses.
clear constantly left lose mean plan result risk support
It's better to have a clear plan -- even if it will mean that he will lose some of the support on the right or the left -- than to have no plan, and as a result constantly to risk (losing) the support of everybody.
assured family public solution week
It's as if nothing is being done, ... The public has been assured that there would be a solution for every family, but not one family here has any idea where they will be a week from now.
atmosphere decisions difficult elections electoral fruitful issues political serious
It will be very difficult to have such serious discussions or fruitful discussions with the atmosphere of elections because, of course, those decisions will become part of the political issues for the electoral debate,
consensus minister prefer prime traveling trying
The prime minister is traveling without trying to make consensus here. I prefer to be with the majority.
russian-writer
There were no dissidents then in the USSR because they were all killed.
advancing appreciate critically essential freedom helping hope plays readers role russian-writer security understand
By helping readers understand these mechanics, I hope they will appreciate why freedom is for everyone, why it is essential for our security and why the free world plays a critically important role in advancing democracy around the globe.