Purely Commentary- Clarified
THE DETROIT
Senator Hart's Position
. . . Injustc
i
in Jabotinsky C
Case e
Senator Hart and the Johnson Report
U. S. Senator Philip A. Hart has rendered a distinct service
to the need for proper understanding of the situation relating to
the report of Dr. Joseph E. Johnson
on the Arab refugee problem.
That report has died in transit
between himself, the State Depart-
ment and the governments of Israel
and the Arab states. It was unaccept-
able and therefore must be • consid-
ered rejected.
While the report found a spot in
an official document issued on behalf
of the Senate committee on refugees
and escapees, the Michigan Senator's
statement to us reaffirms his estab-
lished sincerity in matters relating to
Israel, the Arabs, the refugees and
the need for peace and realism in the
Middle East.
Always striving to protect Israel's
integrity as a nation, Senator Hart's
position again emerges clearly and
firmly in his assertion: "Support of
Senator Hart
the democratic people of Israel is essential in our struggle to free
the oppressed. The fires of hope in others will soon die should we
default in our promises to the Israelis."
If only Senator Hart's views could be heard by the masses of
the Arab peoples! They would then realize the enormity of the
aims of many Senators who, like him, strive for peace in the
Middle East.
*
*
Jabotinsky's Remains Belong in Israel
In a statement asking for "Justice for Jabotinsky," Dr. J. B.
Schechtman renews the demand that the last remains of the late
Revisionist leader should be transferred to Israel.
Stating his case, 23 years after the Revisionist leader's death
in the Betar camp in upstate New York,
Dr. Schechtman, author of a two-volume
biography of Jabotinsky and himself an
active Revisionist, makes the claim tha,
even those who opposed Jabotinsky's
Zionist credo "have come to re-evaluate
their judgement in the light of the tragic
events of the last two decades," and he
quotes Dr. Nahum Goldmann's comment
on his Jabotinsky biography: "Jabotin-
sky's combination of moral and intellec-
tual vigor — brilliance of mind, heroic
consistency, daring vision and illimitable
idealism—was matched by few men in a
generation whose leaders were of inor-
dinate quality"
Dr. Schechtman also recalls that three
years ago the late President Itzhak Ben-
Zvi of Israel was host to a representative
gathering in Jerusalem to mark the 20th
anniversary of Jabotinsky's passing. Jabotinsky
Nevertheless, the Revisionist spokesman writes, "Jabotinsky's
dearest hope and wish—to be buried in the free and sovereign
Jewish State—has not materialized." At this point he reviews the
history of the refusal by David Ben-Gurion to grant permission
for the reburial of Jabotinsky's remains in Israel, and he states:
In his last will Jabotinsky wrote that he wanted to
be buried
". . . just wherever I happen to die; and my remains
(should I be buried outside of Palestine) may not be
transferred to Palestine unless by order of that
country's eventual Jewish government."
Such an order has not been given during the 15 years
of the existence of the state of Israel. To all inquiries why
it is so, the Prime Minister of Israel was answering that
Israel "needs live Jews, not dead ones;" the only exception
from this ruling, he said, were Theodor Herzl and Baron
Edmond de Rothschild, whose remains had been reburied
in Israel.
There was, of course, little use in arguing .with Mr.
Ben-Gurion about the truly sacrilegious reference to Jabo-
tinsky as a "dead Jew." There is probably even less sense
in reminding—just at random—that the , remains of Nahum
Sokolow and Ber Borokhov had been in our times brought
to and interred in Israel. It is common knowledge that
Jewish public opinion the world over, including Mr. Ben-
Gurion's own party, has been deeply disturbed by and
indignant because of the posthumous exile of a great Jew-
ish thinker and patriot.
Mr. Ben-Gurion is no longer the Prime Minister of
Israel. The implications of his resignation are many and
varied. One of them seems to be, according to the Israeli
press, the emergence of a distinctly different "climate" in
the country's political life. Mr. Levi Eshkol, the new Prime
Minister, made it unmistakably clear that he intends gov-
erning "in a spirit of conciliation." In reply to his prede-
cessor's urging "not always give in and seek compromises,"
Mr. Eshkol firmly replied: "The movement and the nation
now need a somewhat conciliatory spirit."
Public opinion the world over would certainly welcome
the demise of the rigidly partisan and aggressive style
which has been for so long a time exacerbating political
life in Israel. Mr. Eshkol is likely to have a, fresh look at
the transfer of Jabotinsky's remains. He has no axe to
grind and is not committed to Ben-Gurion's stand. He
would make a valuable contribution to the "conciliatory
spirit" he intends to create in Jewish political life by his
government's decision to transfer and rebury in state the
mortal remains of one of the major architects of Jewish
statehood.
While the debate on this issue is linked with party politics,
Dr. Schechtman's statement certainly is not unreasonable. It has
been felt al: along that Jabotinsky's remains belong in Israel.
We join with Dr. Schechtman in expressing the hope that
Jabotinsky's final wish will be honored. The stand that had been
taken by the retired Israeli Prime Minister was unfair. While
there were serious differences of opinion between Revisionists
and other parties in Zionism, the fact remains that Revisionists
By Philip
Slomovitz
were part of the world movement for Israel's liberation, and the
name of the founder of the Revisionist Party, who at one time
was among the most distinguished leaders in Zionism, must not
be maligned interminably.
There still remains also the mystery over the death of one of
the most brilliant of the younger Zionist leaders, Chaim Arlozor-
off, who might have been among Israel's greatest leaders had he
lived. There still are labor Zionist who place blame for his death
upon Revisionists. The charge is being disputed. There ought to
be an end to unnecessary implications and the continuation of
animosities. The first step in the direction of internal amity
among various parties in Israel certainly should be government
action in favor of reinterment of Jabotinsky's remains in Israel.
*
When Is Soviet Aid Permissible and Acceptable?
There is so much inconsistency in world politics and in inter-
national relations that it is no wonder that people are bewildered.
Take the matter of foreign aid and of our official policy of
rejecting Soviet policies and propaganda.
Last week President Kennedy refused the request of Guiana
for aid from the United States , on the ground that Guiana has
links with the Communist world, including Cuba.
But at about the very same time it was a U. S. Government
source that made known an Egyptian arms deal with the Soviet
Union for a build-up of UAR missile production.
Surely, any tie-up with Moscow by a Middle Eastern or any
other power can not contribute to world peace.
Yet, while rejecting Guiana's bid for our aid, we go all out to
give Nasser nearly everything he asks for. In the latter's case, our
aid is given because we try to offset Communist intrusions in the
Middle East. The aim is to give Nasser assistance he might other-
wise ask for from Moscow. Yet he remains tied to Russia by his
arms deals in return for which he gives the USSR cotton.
Such are the contradictions created by the East-West strug
gle. Expediency seems more of an influence than morality. One
wonders whether there ever will be a change in international
relations to assure greater consistency in dealings among nations.
*
*
*
Rationalism Menaced
A Milwaukee Restaurateur had insalled a United Nations
flag next to the American flag in the parking lot of his restau-
rant, believing that "it was the second most important flag to
the United States banner." He began to get phone calls denounc-
ing him as a Communist and, fearing he would get a brick
through his window, he promptly removed the UN flag.
Which proves how vital it is to educate the masses of our
people to the needs of the international organization and to
the importance of amity among nations.
Is it possible that the rightists have an easier access to
people • and that it is easier to appeal to the baser elements
in man?
The Milwaukee incident certainly proves that rationalism
is being menaced by appeals to hatred.
* ,
Nasser's Poison Gas
Use of poison gas was outlawed in the last two world wars.
Even the Nazis, and the Kaiser's forces in the war that preceded
the one that was created by the Hitlerites, were to have been
held to account if poison gases were to be used in the last two
tragic international conflicts.
But Egypt's Gamal Abdel Nasser seems to feel free to resort
to poison gas, even against his own kinsmen.
Richard Beeston of the London Daily Telegraph charges
that Egyptian forces in Yemen have used poison gas against
mountain villagers who remained loyal to the royalists. He
charges that he had personally witnessed, in the northern Yemeni
village of Al Kawma, the sufferings that were inflicted by the
gas bombs that were dropped by Egyptian bombers, seven having
perished from the poisons and 25 suffering a lingering death.
Yet the democratic powers continue to appease the dicta-
tor. He has caused enough damage with the poisonous propa-
ganda which has misled his own people in their attitude toward
Israel. He appears to have failed in his efforts to create an Arab
"unity" as a result of the determined opposition of the Baath-
ists; and there are many other elements among the Arabs them-
selves who oppose the Nasser schemes. But our government
has given him encouragement in his territorial designs against
the Yemenites. Nasser has charged Israel with seeking territorial
expansion while lie himself was pursuing schemes of swallow-
ing up every available piece of land in the Middle, East. His
schemes can only lead to war, and it is high time, now that he
resorts not only to oppression of minorities but also to the use
of poison gas against his adversaries, to call a halt to his
destructive activities.
Soviet Permits
Jewish Family
to Leave Russia
RIO DE JANEIRO, (JTA) —
The Soviet government has
granted permission to a Jewish
family, originally from Brazil,
to leave the Soviet Union to re-
turn to this country.
The family, 12 members in
all, and comprising a Mr. and
Mrs. Sisman, their children and
grandchildren, is the first from
Brazil to be permitted to leave
Russia.
The Sismans were among a
group of some 1,000 Brazilians—
about half of them Jews—who
settled in Russia several years
ago for ideological reasons.
When Brazil and the Soviet
Union established diplomatic re-
lations two years ago, the
Brazilians began to besiege this
country's legation in Moscow
with requests for aid in seeking
to return here. The Sismans
were the first family to receive
Soviet permission.
Rate of Jewish
Births in Israel
Trails Arabs'
(Direct JTA Teletype Wire
to The Jewish News)
JERUSALEM — Israel's Jew-
ish birth rate fell by one-third
during the past decade, while
the Israeli Arabs' rose by 10
per cent in the same period,
Deputy Health Minister Yitzhak
Raphael declared Monday in
parliament.
He disclosed the rate in reply
to critics who had urged govern-
ment measures to promote birth
control. He reported that while
Jewish births fell from 32.9 per
thousand, the Arab rate rose
from 46.5 per thousand to 51.
He also reported that there
were 20 known abortions to
every 100 births currently, as
compared to 15 per hundred in
1952.
Report Majority
of Mixed Marriages
Among Holland Jews
AMSTERDAM, (JTA) — A
total of 14,503 affiliated Jews
are listed in the 1963 census of
the Netherlands. Making up the
total, are 6,885 men and '7,618
women.
The vast majority of the affili-
ated Jews — 13,349 — belong to
the Ashkenazi community; '708
belong to the Liberal wing and
446 comprise the Sephardi com-
munity.
Intermarriages have outnum-
bered full Jewish marriages in
recent years, the figures show-
ed. During the period between
1954 and 1961, there were a
total of 613 intermarriages,
compared with 469 full Jewish
marriages. In 1961 alone, there
were 87 intermarriages corn-
pared with 74 full Jewish
marriages.
U.S. to Provide Raw Material Ingredient
for Atomic Research Project in Israel
(Direct JTA Teletype Wire
to The Jewish News)
WASHINGTON—The United
States Government has agreed
to provide Israel with four tons
of heavy water for use in a
research project at the Israel
Institute of Technology (Tech-
nion) in Haifa.
This is the first time " the
United States has agreed to
supply heavy water to Israel. It
is to be provided pursuant to
an agreement for civil peaceful
uses of atomic energy between
the United States and Israel.
Periodic safeguard inspections .
will be conducted to assure that
it will not be diverted by Israel
to non-peaceful uses.
The Department of Nuclear
Sciences at the Technion, in
collaboration with the Israel
Atomic Energy Committee, is
in process of establishing a nuc-
lear science center on the new
Jewish Communities in Italy.to Aid Nazi Victims
FLORENCE, (JTA) — Secre-
taries of the six largest Italian
communities and of the national
Union of Italian Jewish Com-
munities made plans at a meet-
ing here to aid Italian Jewish
victims of Nazism, in the ex-
pected enactment by the Italian
government of a restitution law
for the distribution of
$10,000,000, paid by West Ger-
many to Italy for such purposes.
The Jewish officials also dis-
cussed the continuation of a
fund-raising campaign for the
Algerian Jewish refugees in
France. The meeting was one of
a series aimed at improvement
and modernization of services
by the Jewish communities.
Technion campus to broaden
programs in nuclear engineer-
ing, research and instruction,
including graduate work.
The laboratory will have a
small reactor, pulsed neutron
generator, reactor physics labor-
atory, associated nuclear instru-
mentation and related facilities.
The laboratory will house as
a principal item a natural uran-
ium expotential experiment for
lattice. It is termed a "heavy
water uranium oxide (D29-UO2)
lattice research project." The
heavy water will be used in this
experiment.
The United States Atomic
Energy Commission decided to
fulfil Israel's request after the
Department of State was con-
sulted and raised no objection.
It was noted here that the
new project is not connected
with the Israeli nuclear activi-
ties at Dimona in the Negev.