Influx of Afro-Asians Negates Claim Israel is Being Isolated
TEL AVIV (JTA)—Israeli Foreign Minister Abba Eban declared Friday that
"all the attempts to isolate Israel have not been effective." This, he said, is the
political significance of the arrival in Israel this week of 175 prominent guests from
63 African, Asian and Latin American nations to attend the Sixth Rehovot Conference.
The guests include vice presidents from two African states, Gambia and the Malagasy
Republic, and 20 cabinet ministers.
Eban told reporters that the interest of world leaders in Israel is "greater than
ever." He added: "If the effort to turn Israel into a sort of leper colony had succeeded,
Inconsistencies:
UN General
Assembly as
Anti-Israel
Platform
JEWISH NEWS
Tragic USSR
Anniversary
Editorials
Page 4
Vol. LIX, No. IT .
I would not have to spend two-thirds of my time at Lydda Airport" welcoming digni-
taries. Eban, who is the moving spirit behind the Rehovot conferences, also spoke of
the fruitful results of the previous conferences. He said the ideas discussed there have
been utilized in the developing countries. This year's subject is "Urbanization in
Developing States."
The meeting, which opened in Jerusalem and then moved to the Weizman Insti-
tute in Rehovot, also is attended by representatives of 11 international organizations
and by dozens of distinguished scientists.
Michigan Weekly
Review of Jewish News
Correcting
an Injustice:
AJCongress and
ADL Factual
Statement on
Quakers'
M. E. Distortions
Commentary
Page 2
Michigan's Only English-Jewish Newspaper — Incorporating The Detroit Jewish Chronicle
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$8.00 Per Year; This Issue 25c August 20, 1971
Israeli Pound May Be Devalued;
Trade Unharmed by Nixon Policy
Survey of Youth Attitudes Reveals
Protests Against 'Establishments,'
Demand for Changes in Communities
CHICAGO (JTA)—According to 65 per cent of 600 respondents to a
questionnaire sent to one thousand Jewish students on campuses all over
the country, changes will have to be made in Jewish communal life if
the Jewish community wants to encourage youth to participate in it.
The survey, conducted by the Chicago chapter of the American
Jewish Committee, sought to elicit responses from students on: "Jewish
establishment; religious services; Jewish identity; Jewish education;
reading matter, and reactions to Israel."
The report, entitled "Not Just A Number . . ." was written by Sheryl
.Leonard, AJC's midwest director of public relations and education.
Explaining the title, Miss Leonard stated: "Young people are not num-
bers or categories. They are distinct individuals with deep perceptions,
concerns and ideas."
Dr.
Dr. Bernard Beck, associate professor of sociology, Northwestern
University, in his commentary on the survey said: "While there is some
independence of answers to different questions, there is a core of agree-
ment on the 'positive' side of all major questions."
On what repre-
- Some of the findings of the survey were as follows:
17 per cent replied
sented the "Jewish establishment" to the student,
that it was Jewish organizations; 15 per cent—financially powerful and
:influential Jews; 13 per cent—the Jewish community; 9 per cent—syna-
,_ gogiies and temples, and 5 per cent—the-family structure. To 30 per cent
of the students, "establishment" was a combination of two or three of
these categories; 6 per cent found it was all of the above, and 5 per cent
gave no answer.
on the subject of attendance at religious services, 48 per cent attend
On holidays only; 19 per cent attend regularly; 17 per cent stay away
entirely, and 16 per cent go occasionally.
Regarding the question of whether or not something should be done
to encourage greater participation with the religious community, 65 per
cent stated "yes" and 34 per cent said "no." Those who expressed
having no concern in this topic were less than 1 per cent.
Some of the specific statements by students regarding change in
synagogue structure were: Don't engage merely in rituals and unrelated
prayers; spend more time on philosophical and cultural meanings rather
than on repetition of rigidly structured services; help the family to
learn about holidays and customs together, so they can be enjoyed as a
family unit; sermons are often too long and meaningless to the immedi-
urgencies and relevancies of today's burning issues; redirect "estab-
hment" groups back to religious ideals instead of using the synagogue
a fund raising device; on the Shabbat and holidays, invite students
away from home to the homes of congregants; students should not be
urged a fee for attendance at High Holy Day services. Along with their
suggestions for change, a number of students expressed their frustra-
tions with statements to the effect that "what's the use of responding ...
no one's going to change anyway."
On the subject of having a sense of Jewish identity, 90 per cent
responded in the affirmative and 6 per cent responded negatively. Less
than , 1 per cent left the question unanswerd. Although the majority ex-
pressed a sense of Jewish identity, only 54 per cent of this group felt
something should be done to encourage greater participation with the
religious community. In giving their reasons for what constitutes the
basis for their sense of Jewish identity, the following emerged: 24 per
cent cited cultural-intellectual reasons; 13 per cent—moral-ethical; 11
percent--religious; 10 per cent—family; 7 per cent—social; 7 per cent—
Israel; 28 per cent felt it was a combination of the above factors. The
word "pride" was used in many positive responses.
- On the subject of a need for more basic Jewish education, 80 per
cent responded there was such need and 20 per cent felt Jewish education
was unnecessary 50 per cent stated that - Jewish education should begin
at the pre-school level; 25 per cent at the 'primary - grade level, and
16 per cent at the upper grade level.
On the subject of Israel, 88 per cent stated that it did have special
meaning for them; for 12 per cent Israel had no meaning. Yet 3 per
cent out of the 12 per cent, who had a negative response to Israel, did
express a strong sense of Jewish identity, and 5 per cent felt there
is a need for more Jewish education.
•
JERUSALEM (JTA)—Finance Minister Pinhas Sapir said Tuesday night that he
did not plan to propose any devaluation of the pound in the wake of President Nixon's
wide-ranging changes in United States fiscal and trade policies. He made the state-
ment to the ministerial committee on economics.
But some sources reported that a definite decision on devaluation would be taken
at a later date, possibly in a few weeks, after the impact of the Nixon economic moves
on world monetary markets could be more accurately assessed. In the meantime,
foreign currency transactions were restricted to dollars.
Uncertainty over the future of the Israeli pound caused a jump Tuesday in
the ratio of the dollar in the free market to more than four pounds as against the
three-and-a-half pound official rate. But by Wednesday morning, the dollar had drop-
ped and was trading at just under four pounds.
But fears of devaluation spurred purchases of securities on the Tel Aviv stock
exchange and a rush to buy such appliances as refrigerators and washing machines by
Israelis seeking to protect the value of their pounds. However, merchants said that
deliver: of such purchar,..;,s would be in accordance with new pound rates‘if any changes
took place before delivery. Officials stressed that while such buying was heavier than
normal, it did not reach anything resembling panic buying.
Israel economists, who have
long demanded devaluation of the
Israeli pound, renewed that pro-
posal with added emphasis after
consideration of President Nixon's
announcement of sweeping changes
in United States wage, price and
WASHINGTON (JTA)—The State Department has
international trade policies.
refused to endorse the bills in both branches of Con-
Profs. Chaim Barkai and Michael
gress to provide 30,000 emergency visas for Jewish
Michaeli
of the Hebrew Univer-
citizens of the Soviet Union who wish to leave that
sity were among such experts
country and settle in the United States, it was dis-
queried by newsmen seeking in-
closed here Wednesday.
formation on possible effects of
The State Department claims that the U. S. attor-
the new United States policy on
ney general has the authority to admit "a substantial
Israel's economy, particularly its
number of Soviet Jews" and that "there is therefore
little technical need" for the proposed legislation.
international trade.
The department's position was revealed in a letter
Prof. Barkai, head of the univer-
to Rep. Emanuel Celler, New York Democrat, chair-
sity's economics • department, and
man of the House judiciary committee, whose office
Prof. Michaeli, social sciences dean
Bills to Admit 30,000
Jews From USSR to U.S.
Rejected by State Dept.
made it public. The congressman, who is traveling in
(Continued on Page 3)
(Continued on Page 14)
Believes
Peking Daily Denies Diplomat
East Germany May
Contact With Israel Seek Ties With Israel
LONDON (JTA) — An article in the Peking
newspaper, Peoples Daily, denied that contacts
had taken place between the Peoples Republic of
China and Israel in order to establish diplomatic
relations between the two countries. The article
described the reported contacts as "lies delib-
erately fabricated to confuse public opinion."
On July 27 it was reported that repeated con-
tacts between Chinese diplomats of the Peoples
Republic and Eli Ben-Gal, representative of the
Israeli Mapam Party, had been conducted in
Paris. A spokesman for the Chinese embassy in
Paris, Tsa Kwei Seng, told the JTA that "no
member of the embassy had met Ben-Gal."
The article in the Peoples Daily stated that
the Chinese government had always supported
the struggle of the Palestinian and other Arab
peoples and would continue to do so. The article
took exception to the fact that reports of the
alleged contacts had been repeated by Tass, the
official Soviet news agency. This was, in the
Chinese view, an attempt to conceal the Russians'
"own sinister activities" in the Middle East and
their "collusion with Israel."
COPENHAGEN (JTA)—East German political
personalities have expressed the hope that diplo-
matic and economic relations with Israel will
soon be undertaken, a senior Danish statesman
told the JTA.
Vigo Karpman, who was Denmark's -prime
minister from 1960-62, told the JTA correspondent
here that he had met with various East German
political personalities and that they expressed the
view that relations would be established with
Israel after Israel and the Soviet Union renew
their diplomatic ties.
The Soviet Union broke her relations with
Israel during the Six-Day War while East Ger-
many and Israel never established diplomatic or
economic relations.
According to Karpman, contact between East
Germany and Israel, particularly along economic
lines, could reach the scope equal to that now
existing between Israel and West Germany.
Karpman, who is well known for his friend-
ship toward Israel, is chairman of the Denmark-
German Democratic Republic Friendsip Associa-
tion.