Purely Commentary

By PHILIP SLOMOVITZ

Shocking Abuse of Decencies

There is a group of agitators in the Middle East whose chief
aim is to perpetuate the Arab refugee problem in order to utilize
it as a weapon against Israel. This became evident in the past two
weeks in Lebanon. There was comparative quiet on the Lebanese-
Israeli frontier. It is a well known fact that the Lebanese would
cheerfully make peace with Israel. But they fear the .wrath of the
Arab Legion and therefore have remained in the ranks of Israel's
antagonists. However, Lebanon has respected the calm and the
peaceful atmosphere on her border and it was not until only re-
cently that an unfortunate incident occurred there, resulting in the
murder of three Jews near Meron.
As a result of this incident, facts that were well known to the
dispassionate, students of Middle Eastern affairs became more
generally known. Not only has Lebanon undertaken to prevent re-
currence of tragic incidents, but the existing situation among the
refugees has been publicized. Harry Gilroy, the NeW York 'Times'
correspondent in that area, has sent his newspaper several cables
describing the refugees' position. Here is what he cabled from
Beirut, Lebanon:
"The Lekanese government decided to check agitators who
had caused strikes and other protest actions among the 100,000
Palestine Arab refugees in the country.
"Premier Rashid Karame gave assurance to this effect to •
Henry R. Labouisse, director of the United Nations Relief and
Works Agency for Palestine Refugees. The United Nations_ offic-
ial had written the Premier about the possibility that the agency
would have to consider moving from Lebanon if the incidents
continued.
"Mr. Karame immediately called a conference attended by
several of his chief ministers and advisers, Mr. Labouisse and
Raymond Courvoisier, direCtor of the agency for Lebanon.
"The officials told of several recent outbreaks. In one town
refugee children were beaten by other refugees for trying to
attend a United Nations-sponsored school:• In another place elder-
ly refugees were maltreated by agitators when they went for
their supplementary rations. Many of 1,067 Palestinian refugees
on the agency's staff have had insults shouted at them. Staff
members from other nations have received threats.
"Picketing groups tried to prevent the distribution of rations
to refugees in one town.
"Refugee students under the supervision of the American
University at Beirut destroyed records after completing techni-
Cal surveys for a new vocational school.
"The demonstrations' have been caused by the sentiment
against Palestine peace proposals advanced by Secretary of State
Dulles and against the resettlement program of the United Na-
tions refugee agency.
"The fact that the agency has no resettlement program in
Lebanon was cited by Messrs. Labouisse and Courvoisier as an
indication that the ring-leaders were either ignorant or deliber-
ately misinforming the refugees.
"The agency is building concrete shelters for refugees in
three camps. The huts replace tents and makeshift struc-
tures, which are scant protection for the refugees against the
rigors of winter.
"Mr. Labouisse asked government leaders how they stood on
the provision of better housing for refugees. They all agreed
they favored such a move.
"The agency officials also asked that a new site in the south-
ern province of Tyr be granted so that a new camp might be built
to care for the 9,000 refugees thrust six miles north of the Israeli
border in the last two days. The government officials said an
answer would be given soon.
"Mr. Labouisse is well aware of the refugee view on which
the agitators are playing. They talk more than ever about repa-
triation, he said in a private talk today.-
"There is no interest shown in compensation as an alter-
native to the idea that they might receive no reparations But
Labouisse gathers that compensation might become important if
the refugees once had it established that they could go to their
former homes if they wanted to.
"Mr. Labouisse hears from refugees who left property behind'
that they- should receive rents but not a final settlement:
- "The great mass of refugees who had no property still talk of
returning to Palestine exactly _ as they knew it in 1948, before
they were displaced by the Arab-Israeli war.
' "Mr. Lalbouisse finds. that, in general, the refugees show no
knowledge that new Israeli settlements stand in what were open
fields and that life is greatly changed there in many other as-
pects since 1948._ •
"The whole idea of resettlement elsewhere, he observes, is
repugnant to the refugees. This attitude, he thinks, outrules .the
idea of moving a large number to other countries such as Iraq,
as has been suggested at times.
"Mr. Labouisse believes that if the refugees knew they could
return and if they then discovered that the way of life . they fol-
lowed in • the old Palestine had changed under the - Israeli state,
many of them would demand compensation. Undoubtedly many
would ask for the same kind of life they had known,. he thinks,
and large scale development plans would be needed to fill the
demand. But no such desire now exists among the refugees, and
so Mr. Labouisse finds that agitators can arouse a crowd to anger
simply by saying the United Nations is planning to resettle the
refugees and their declaring this is compensation.
"The worst of it is, according to Mr. Labouisse, the chief agi-
tatbrs have motives of personal or political gain rather than _con-
cern for the welfare of the refugees."
Note especially two important points made in this report: that
the refugees were "deliberately" misinformed and the point made in
the last paragraph, that the agitators are acting for personal gain
and from political motives.
In another cable to the New York Times, from Cairo, Mr. Gil-
roy quoted Alexander E. Squadrilli, representative to • Egypt of the
United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees,
who made his first visit to the Gaza strip, to; the effect .that a ser-
ious new problem in the Gaza area is that children are being edu-
cated .better .than their.parents and "then graduating into idleness."
„Mr. Squadrilli stated that idleness is the worse aspect of life for the
adult refugees.
The trouble in Gaza—and in other areas where there are Arab
refugees—is that their leaders seek to perpetuate idleness. By
doing so they increase discontent, continue' the misery of people
who live in camps, prevent-their being integrated into a wholesome
environment and thereby create animosity against Israel. Those who
are misled by false propaganda should consider these facts. When
Arab leaders cease acting selfishly, when they stop using the
refugees as political tools in a game against Israel, the Middle East-
ern problem will be settled, as it should be: by peaceful means, at
a conference table at which Arabs and Jews once again will act
like cousins and not as warring enemies.

ReutherInsisis
Take Square Stand
In Middle East

The new look at Geneva is a
tactical shift only, declared Wal-
ter Reuther on Tuesday night in
an address before 500 people at-
tending the Golden Jubilee Din-
ner of the Detroit Labor Zionist
Movement.
"Russia is ,attempting to pene-
trate the Near East," Reuther de-
clared. "Whether their maneu-
vers jeopardize Israel or not,
Russia will not hesitate."
The "maneuvers" referred to
the. recent arms agreement sign-
ed by Russian-dominated Czecho-
slovakia and Egypt. He warned
American leaders not to "play
footsie" with Egypt by saying if
you don't take Russian arms we'll
give you ours.
Instead, Reuther said, the
U. S. should be prepared to sign
an agreement with the Arabs
and Israel, putting the power
and prestige of the American
Government behind each na-
tion.

"Then, if - the Arabs refuse to
accept the agreement, the U. S.
should sign an agreement with
Israel and stand behind it. The
entire complex of the Middle
East would change," Reuther
said.
Reuther, president of the UAW-
CIO, was delivering his first
public address since returning
from Israel. He called his trip
a two-fold mission: to build
friendship between U. S. labor
and Israel labor; and to partici-
pate in the dedication of. the
Philip Murray Center at Elath.
"If America is known as •the
melting pot," Reuther said, "then
Israel is a pressure cooker." The
power of the Israelis, who have
doubled their population in only
a few years, he added, is that
they are fighting for something
they believe in.
The Union leader concluded by
saying that the Arabs 'are op 7
Posea tO:tgrael'because it sym-
bolizes If there was dictatorship
in Israel," Reuther said, "there
would be peace."
. Morris Lieberman, chairman of
the jubilee celebration, was the
evening's toastmaster. He intro-
duced the guest artist, Shoshana
Shoshan, who sang several Israel,
Yiddish and operatic _selections
in a beautiful soprano voice. She
was accompanied by Rebecca
Frohman.
Baruch Zuckerman, chair-
man of the Labor Zionist As-
sembly and a member of the
Jewish Agency executive,
shared the speaker's•platform
with Reuther.

In an emotional speech—be-
cause he has lived all 50 years of
Labor Zionism in America and
was one of its founders—Zucker-
man reviewed its history and ap-
pealed for a• continuation of ef-
forts in behalf of Israel.
Harry Bodzin, a pioneer local
Labor Zionist in Detroit, spoke
nostalgically of the beginnings of
the movement here. Both he
and Zuckerman spoke in Yiddish.

Detroit- Delegation
Leaves. Paris for Israel

PARIS—Satisfaction with 'what
has been accomplished by Ameri-
can generosity in rehabilitating
the Jews of Europe was expressed
here by four Detroit business and
communal leaders, before leav-
ing for Israel.
Max M. Fisher, Max J. Zivian,
Samuel H. Rubiner and Isidore
Sobeloff, members of a special
United Jewish Appeal survey
mission to study the current
needs of Jews overseas, left
France after attending the 10th
annual Country Directors Con-
ference of the Joint Distribution
Committee, major U.S. welfare
agency aiding helpless Jews
abroad with funds provided by
the UJA. •
At the four - day conference
held in UNESCO House here,
the mission members heard re-
ports from JDC directors in 21
countries in Europe, North Afri-
ca and the Middle East, along
with reports from Jewish corn-
munity leaders in those areas.

2--DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

Friday, October 21, 1955

WHY,
DADDY?

How do you answer the child who asks: "Why isn't -
there enough room in our schools for all our children?" . .
or "Why don't we have enough school books?" . . . or "Why
isn't there a full time teacher for each classroom?"
,61 ,4 wools Ah
The best answer to these questions is to
-%
give
your full support to your community -
(
school board, to your religious and commu-
nity , United Hebrew Schools' supervisory
bodies, to the PTAs and similar public-spirit-•
ed organizations. •
'16#4,
Comt0
The illustrations on the First and Edi-
torial pages of this issue have been prepared by the National
Citizens Commission for the Public Schools in cooperation
with the Advertising Council of America, for the Better
Schools Campaign. The special articles in this issue aim to
guide our people towards a better understanding of our
educational problems.
For a fuller understanding of the truth
S84•1
that better schools build better communities
(t`
--an ideal applicable to our United Hebrew
Schools as well as our public schools—write
for the free booklet, "How Can Citizens Help
Their Schools?", by •addressing Better
Schools, 2 W. 45th St., New York 36.

Moroccan Clashes Analyzed in Britain;
Position of Jews Remains Unsettled

LONDON, (JTA)—The French
Moroccan struggle for national
autonomy has aggravated the
position of the Jews in Morrocco,
according to a report presented
to the Board of Deputies of
British Jews.
Some of the Moroccan Jews,
"more advanced economically
and socially," are "assumed" to
be siding with France, while
"large groups of Jews" support
the nationalist movement, but
the net result is that Jews often
suffer attacks "for allegedly
supporting one side or the other,
and - their position has become
gravely unsettled," the report
states.
To gain support of world opin-
ion, the report continues, nationa-
list parties declare that they. are
not anti-Jewish. But, the report
points out, "whenever nationalist
demonstrations against t h e
French occur, Jews and Jewish
shops are among those attacked.
A number of Jews have been
killed, and much Jewish property
has been destroyed.
Declaring that it is impossible
to foresee how long the present
tensions will persist and whpt
further outbreaks may take place,
the report states: . "It is under the
pressure of this dangerous posi-
tion that an ever-increasing num-
ber of Moroccan Jews is becom-
ing increasingly and anxiously
interested in, immigration to Is-
rael whose government and Par-
liament are now devising means
of taking in as many of them as
possible."
In New York, Dr. Maurice L.
Perlzweig director of the inter-
national affairs department of

the World Jewish. Congress, de-
clared at a meeting of the Ameri-

can Jewish Congress that
the conflict in Morocco "repre-
sents only one front in a war be-
ing fomented throughout North
Africa and the Middle East" by
a Moscow-Cairo Axis which,
"has long been in preparation."
The Moscow-Cairo alignment,
he declared, "revealed itself
overtly with the projected sale of
Communist arms to Egypt' but
has been evident "for many
months in French MOMCCO, par-
ticularly in the form of incessant
incitement by Radio Cairo - and
Radio Budapest."
The United States government
was called upon by Dr. Israel
GOldstein, - president of the AJC,
addressing the opening session,
to declare its "unequivocal
guarantee of Israel's integrity" in
order to prevent armed conflict
in the Middle East. "In the light
of the 'arms agreements which
Egypt has reached with Com-
munist nations," he stated, "the
urgency of a guarantee for Is-
rael's security has become the
mere pressing."

Claims Delegation
Arrives in Austria

(Direct JTA Teletype Wino
To The Jewish News)

VIENNA—A delegation of the
Committee on Jewish Claims on
Austria is arriving here this
weekend ,to work out with offi-
cials of Austrian finance ministry,
regulations governing a fund
from which payments will be
made to Jews, who formerly held
Austrian nationality.

Between You and Me

By BORIS SMOLAR

(Copyright, 1955, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Inc.)

Washington Echoes .
-
Washington is sincerely worried over Moscow's increased ef-
forts to penetrate the Middle East through arming the Arabs and
offering them economic assistance . . . And the- worry is not due
so much to the fact that the Soviet move creates danger for Israel,
but to the possibility of Moscow realizing its _old ambition of be-
coming a "protector"- of the Arab world . . . It is no secret in
Washington that the Soviets have a stock of arms which they can
give to the Arab nations without suffering any depletion in their
arsenals . . . They • have thousands of postwar tanks that are ob -4
solete by Soviet standards, but are modern by Arab standards .. .
They also have about 5,000 MIG's that are outmoded by later
Soviet jet fighters, but would be grabbed by any small nation .. .
Thus, by getting rid of a lot of surplus weapons, the Soviet loses
nothing and stands to gain. not only influence in the Middle East,
but also access to the Mediterranean and Indian. oceans . . . This
would mean that the Truman doctrine, Which was an American
move to block Soviet penetration in the Mediterranean, -would be
breached like the Maginot Line was breached in France by the
Nazi Army during World War II . . . This dismal prospect gives
the State Department a headache because at the moment none of
the higher officials knows what can be done ,to effectively paralyze
the Soviet action • . . It is clear that an important sector of the
Middle East would become a Soviet outpost because arms gener-
ally do not come unescorted, but bring parts, replacements, tech-
nicians and influence . . . If the Soviet deal with the Arab countries
is not effectively checked now it will en.danger .NATO and the
entire defense structure which the U S has: built 'pveir,sgaq!Nr a

kree • :W-orad.