Justice Rutlege
on 'Separation'
S. Africa Jews Differ with Israel's Stand on Their Country at UN
By EDGAR BERNSTEIN
(Copyright, 1962, Jewish
Telegraphic Agency, Inc.)
JOHANNESBURG—Dr. Teddy
Schneider, chairman of the Jew-
ish Community Council in Pre-
toria said: "We are aware
of Israel's special difficulties
and serious problems, yet we
cannot but regret her overall
vote for sanctions against our
country." He was expressing
the general feeling of South
African Jews about Israel's sup-
port of the Afro-Asian motion
for sanctions against this repub-
lic, for the rupture of diplomatic
relations and for South Africa's
expulsion from the Unit e d
Nations.
Nor did it alleviate this feel-
ing that Israel had expressed
reservations, in the UN debates,
about the use of sanctions and
the move for expulsion: as far
as South Africans were con-
cerned, Jewish no less than
Gentile, Israel had, in the final
resort, voted in favor of the
resolution, where all the West-
ern nations which had ex-
pressed similar reservations—
the United States, Br it a i n,
France, Holland, Greece, Ca-
nada, Australia, D e n m a r k,
Sweden, Norway, even the
Latin American states — had
either opposed the resolution
or abstained the vote.
The basic reason for Israel
taking the stand she did—
her growing relations with
the Afro-Asian States—was
understood; notwithstanding
that reason, it was felt, Is-
rael's support of the resolu-
tion had offended a tried
and trusted friend. And South
Africa, it was pointed out
on all sides, had been a par-
ticularly good f r i end of
Israel's. It was not only one
of the first countries to give
Zionism official government
support; it was also sym-
pathetic to the efforts made
by South African Jews to
raise funds for the work of
Zionism. Cabinet Ministers
appeared on Zionist plat-
forms, giving their blessing to
Zionist campaigns. South
Africa as such — and espe-
cially Afrikaners, whose own
national struggle helped them
to understand the justice of
the Jewish national struggle
—became warmly pro-Israel.
"We have all in the past,"
said Dr. Schneider, "rejoiced
at the friendly relations which
existed between our country
and Israel. All the more, there-
fore, do we regret these un-
happy developments. They have
been very painful to every Jew
who loves South Africa and
also cherishes and hopes to
continue his association with
the Holy Land."
The newspapers have can-
vassed Jewish reactions and
found Dr. Schneider's feelings
echoed everywhere. The Prime
Minister, Dr. Verwoerd, deliver-
ing a policy address at Roode-
poort on the same night as
Dr. Schneider was speaking
in Pretoria, said he had al-
ready received widespread in-
dications of South .A f r i c a n
Jewry's dismay. (It had been a
spontaneous reaction: from
many parts of the country, Jews
had sent him telegrams de-
ploring I s r a e l's vote.) Dr.
Verwoerd showed a warm ap-
preciation of the reaction. "My
strongest sympathy," he said,
"is with South African Jewry
in this situation." Everyone
must clearly distinguish, he
said, between South African
Jewry and the government of
Israel, in the situation which
had arisen. "It is the govern-
ment of Israel," he said, "which
I
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has taken the decision. I am
convinced that South African
Jewry is deeply disturbed and
does not agree with what the
government of Israel has done."
In taking this stand, he
was moving constructively
forward from his reaction to
Israel's similar vote last year.
He was also giving a clear
lead to the country against
associating anti-Jewish feel-
ing with the reaction to
Israel's vote.
He put some uncomfortable
questions to Israel. Having
voted for the resolution, was
she going to be consistent and
carry it out? Her ties with
South Africa meant more to
Israel than to South Africa:
was she going to sacrifice them,
knowing how that would affect
Jews in South Africa? Had
she considered that where sanc-
tions were concerned, Jews, be-
cause of the prominent part
they played in commerce in
South Africa, might be among
the hardest hit? And would
South African Jewry, he won-
dered, still send gifts to Israel,
and her sons to settle there?
The Johannesburg Star, South
Africa's leading English daily,
thought the Prime Minister
was carrying the issue too far.
"It would be well, "it said, "to
understand the position in
which Israel finds itself in the
present ideological offensive.
Situated on the fringe of the
African world and surrounded
and threatened by Arab States,
it can certainly not afford to
incur the hostility of a con-
tinent. It remains to be seen
what action it will, in fact,
take to implement the resolu-
tion for which it voted . . .
It would be good diplomacy
not to press Israel too hard to
make these decisions now.
Sanctions are an embarrass-
ment it may well be anxious
to avoid."
The Star also opined it
would be unfair to expect
South African Jews to break
their associations with Israel.
"That they have close family
and sentimental ties with Is-
rael is inevitable and in many
respects both praiseworthy
and beneficial to South Af-
rica. In much the same way,
most English-speaking people
have similar ties with Britain,
a fact which has been and
still is greatly to South Af-
rica's advantage."
The leading Afrikaans weekly,
Dagbreek, took a different view.
While it welcomed the state-
ment made by the chairman of
the Board of Deputies, it hoped
South African Jews would take
steps to show in the economic
field its disapproval of Israel's
attitude. If, it said, "the South
African fountain which has so
beneficiently showered mone-
tary and other help will dry
up, Mr. Ben-Gurion may have
second thoughts."
On this aspect, a joint state-
ment by the Board of Deputies
and the Zionist Federation
makes the attitude of South
African Jewry abundantly clear.
While declaring. "We are ap-
preciative of the understanding
shown by the Prime Minister of
the difficulties which face the
South African Jewish commu-
nity as a result of the recent
events at the United Nations,"
and reaffirming that "South
African Jews owe political al-
legiance to the Republic of
South Africa alone," the state-
ment goes on to explain: "It
must be stressed, however, that
the love of the Holy Land is
inherent in the very conception
of the Jewish religion. The Jew
sees in the revival Of the Land
of Israel and the Ingathering
of the Exiles in their ancient
homeland a fulfilment of the
Biblical prophecies in which it
is his sacred duty to partici-
pate." Recalling that (as the
Prime Minister himself re-
marked) governments and
people in South Africa have al-
ways understood and sympa-
thized with this ideal, the state-
ment says: "The funds which
have been collected in South
Africa for Zionist causes have
been for the relief and resettle-
ment of Jewish refugees and of
Jews oppressed in the countries
in which they live. Israel has
been and is the only country
whose gates are always open .to
receive them. Because of their
conception of the sacredness of
this duty, Jews fervently desire
that their association with this
work of Jewish redemption and
rehabilitation shall continue."'
The great condition of reli-
gious liberty is that it be Main-
tained free from sustenance, as
also from interferences, by the
state . . . Public money devoted
to payment of religious costs,
educational or other, brings the
quest for more. It brings too the
struggle of sect against sect for
the larger share or for any.
Here one by numbers alone will
benefit most, there another . , .
The end of such strife cannot be
other than to destroy the cher-
ished liberty. The dominating
group will achieve the dominant
benefit; or all will embroil the
state in their dissensions. -
Supreme Court Justice Rut-
lege, quoted by Mr. Justice
Douglas in the Engel vs. Vitale
Case.
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