I UP FRONT
Labor
Continued from preceding page
jected a clause that would
make negotiations with the
organization possible,"
wrote another in Ha'aretz.
Stung, perhaps, by the
harsh reaction in the press,
the Laborites plunged into a
second round of negotiations
and modified their stand on
the key issues by removing
the explicit prohibition on
talks with the PLO,
recognizing the "national
rights" of the Palestinian
inhabitants of the ter-
ritories, and allowing for a
territorial compromise on
the Golan Heights that is
linked with peace.
Still, both sides emerged
from the compromise un-
satisfied and pledged to
resume their battle on the
convention floor.
Yet the political plank is
not the only source of con-
tention in the party. Parallel
to the stand of the doves is
that of the so-called
reformers who want to strip
Labor of outmoded socialist
baggage, and not just such
symbols as the red flag and
the singing the "Interna-
tional" at official events.
The sorest point is the
reformers' attack on the
burden posed by the
Histadrut, or National Fed-
eration of Labor.
Were that institution only
a trade union, matters would
be different. But the
Histadrut is an economic
empire embracing the coun-
try's largest sick fund (in-
cluding clinics and
hospitals), pensions funds,
agricultural and marketing
cooperatives, industries col-
lectively owned by the
Hevrat Ovdim (or Workers'
Company), companies held
by the conglomerate Koor,
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12
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 1991
even a major bank and chain
of department stores.
Conceived and built dur-
ing the pre-state days, it is
an economic dinosaur that
carries a huge bureaucracy
on its back. Koor is deeply in
debt to foreign banks. The
sick fund is itself ailing and
requires periodic infusions of
state funds. But perhaps the
greatest problem faced by
the Histadrut is a kind of
economic schizophrenia: as
employer and trade union
combined, it is a house
divided against itself.
What the reformers pro-
pose is to is divorce the
Labor Party from the
Histadrut and transform the
Histadrut into a true trade
union by divesting it of its
services, cooperatives, and
companies. The intimate re-
lationship between the two,
they claim, has repeatedly
forced the party to sell its
principles down the river to
keep the Histadrut afloat.
On the face of it, the
chances of passing major so-
cial and economic reforms at
the conference seem neg-
ligible, especially as the par-
ty's Social and Economic
Committee rejected the
reformers' ideas by a mas-
sive majority.
Then again, what makes
the upcoming conference so
intriguing is that due to the
makeup of its delegates,
even veteran observers
aren't sure what to expect.
Forty percent of the dele-
gates are new members of
the Labor Party.
There is great curiosity
about who these new people
are, what they think, and
whether they can reverse
the sinking fortunes of the
Israeli Labor Party. ❑
Zip
Jerusalem (JTA) — Israel's
tough foreign currency
regulations will be eased
somewhat to facilitate the
inflow of foreign currency
and stimulate foreign in-
vestments, the governor of
the Bank of Israel announc-
ed at a news conference last
week.
The proposed changes, sub-
ject to Cabinet and Knesset
approval, will take effect "in
the near future," said Jacob
Frenkel, the head of Israel's
central bank.
His announcement was
received favorably by local
investors, but sent prices
down on the Tel Aviv Stock
Exchange. Especially hard
hit were issues traded
overseas.
Under the revised rules,
Israeli citizens will be allow-
ed to hold foreign currency
in Israeli banks and use it to
buy and sell shares on
overseas stock exchanges.
There will be no limit on
the amount of foreign cur-
rency that may be held in
Israeli banks. But it will
have to be purchased with
foreign currency, not
shekels.
One source, Mr. Frenkel
said, might be foreign cur-
rency left over from the
allowance granted for travel.