Premiere Aids Wiesenthal Center 10 Rep. says Jewish survival depends on Israel 11 Boris Smolar pays tribute to editor emeritus Slomovitz 18 Your 'Bookie' in Washington 25 HE JEWISH NEWS 40c PER COPY Flexing their muscles Hadassah women helped block Ariel Sharon's bid for a Jewish Agency post, indicative of American Jewish assertiveness in Israeli affairs. BY CHARLES HOFFMAN Special to The Jewish News Jerusalem — Minister without Portfolio Ariel Sharon is a general with a reputation as a tough fighter and a brilliant field commander. He led Israel's thrust across the Suez Canal into Egypt in 1973, and smashed the Syrian armor and air- defense in Lebanon in 1982. But the "unstoppable Arik" finally met his match recently in Jerusalem when he was beaten back by a group of Hadassah women in his bid for the chairmanship of the Aliyah Depart- ment of the Jewish Agency. Sharon and his backers in the ruling Herut Party failed to "read" correctly the array of forces on the Can Labor Party regain control? As Israel gears up for new elections, Peres is pleased, Shamir is shaky and Weizman is willing BY SYLVIA MEHLMAN Jewish News Israeli Correspondent erusalem Shimon Peres and the Labor Party are relishing their J political victory this week, winning a consent of Israel's tenth Knesset to dissolve itself and call for early elections. Labor has had little to cheer about of late and Peres credited his party regulars for a rare Display of unity, noting that they acted "with perfect discipline and in complete harmony." This from a Labor Party that has been ripped apart by internal feuds — chief- ly between Peres and his arch-rival, former Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin — since it fell from power almost seven years ago. Peres gambled that presenting the motion for early elections would force Aharon Abuhatzeira, leader of the small but influential Tami Party, to break ranks with the government coali- Continued on Page 14 tion and support Labor's initiative. And that's what happened. After hours of debating and vote-dealing, the mo- tion passed 61-58 last Thursday night, fare Federation has provided a grant with Yitzhak Berman and Mordechai to subsidize the teen mission program. Ben Porat, both former members of the Additional financial assistance can be Likud cabinet, voting against Likud for discussed with the Fresh Air Society early elections. Former Prime Minister Begin was through a confidential scholarship reportedly planning to come out of interview. The American and Israeli teens seclusion and vote with Likud against will get acquainted prior to the trip through the exchange of slides, tape recordings and photographs. This will be accomplished locally when the De- troiters get together for a six-part orientation series, when they will also learn more about each other and Is- rael. In addition, a weekend retreat will be held at Camp Maas just before departure for Israel. Upon their return to the U.S., the teens will meet again for a three-day retreat at Camp Maas. The 20 Detroit teenagers will each participate during the 1984-1985 school year and/or following summer in paid employment with local Jewish communal agencies. For information on the Israel Teen Mission, call the Fresh Air Shimon Peres Society, 661-0600. field of battle where Sharon went down to defeat. This was the General CounCil of the World Zionist Organ- ization (WZO), which would have been the first step on his way to the Aliyah portfolio. The delegates from the Zionist Confederation, which is composed mainly of Hadassah lead- ers, held the balance of power in the council voting between the confirmed pro-Sharon and anti-Sharon blocs. The Confederation delegates heard appeals by Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir and Defense Minis- ter Moshe Arens to support their party colleague, but were unmoved. They felt that the divisive and pug- nacious Sharon was the wrong man Detroit teens to visit Ramla Ramla, Israel — Detroit's Project Renewal sister community — is pre- paring for the arrival this summer of 20 Detroit teenagers. For 38 days, the Detroit youths will live, work and travel with 20 teens from Ramla. The Israelis' families will provide home hospitality for the 16-day stay in Ramla, a city half-way between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. The Fresh Air Society, in coopera- tion with the Jewish Community Cen- ter, United Hebrew Schools and the Jewish Welfare Federation, is offering this first Israel Teen Mission, July 11 to Aug. 19. Space is still available for 11th and 12th graders who wish to partici- pate. The 22-day touring program will include stops in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Galilee, the Negev, Masada, the Dead Sea, Eilat and coastal areas. Special programs will be included, such as nature studies, desert camping and hiking. The Max M. Fisher Jewish Com- munity Foundation of the Jewish Wel- MARCH 30, 1984 SERVING DETROIT'S METROPOLITAN JEWISH COMMUNITY the motion if his vote had been need- ed, but in the end it wasn't and he didn't show. What happens now is that the Knesset bill must go to a committee where a date for the new elections will be set. Then the bill comes back to the full Knesset for a second and third reading. In the meantime, under Israeli law a Knesset continues to function un- til its successor is elected. Historians remind us that since the state was founded in 1948, only one Knesset — that of Golda Meir's govern- ment in 1973 — completed a full four years. There is considerable speculation as to why Tami leader Aharon Abu- Hatzeira made his bombshell an- nouncement to vote for new elections only a few days after the Tami secretariat indicated the party would not seek early elections at this time. Abu-Hatzeira expressed dissatisfac- tion with the way the Likud govern- ment is functioning, especially in the economic sphere. He indicated that the last straw was the 12 percent rise in-in- flation last month and predictions by experts that the cost of living will go even higher. This would hit hardest on Tarni's constituents, mainly impoverish- ed Sephardim, many of them immi- grants from Abu-Hatzeira's native Continued on Page 26 Yitzhak Sham.ir