Newspaper Page Text
The Southern Israelite
A Weekly Newspaper for Southern Jewry — Established 1925
XXXIV
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 1959
NO. t
SSvfS lsrael Struggles To Absorb
TEL AVIV, (JTA)—Premier
David Gen Gurion fervently be
lieves that Israel can absorb
3,000,000 Jews from East Europe,
he said last week-end, but ex
pressed regret that “I cannot
see this yet—it is very far off.”
In a wide-ranging discussion
of issues connected with the new
large-scale immigration Israel
is receiving, the Prime Minister
rejected Arab contentions that
immigration would force Israel
to seek territorial expansion. He
noted that in Egypt alone, the
population increased by a half
million annually. He likewise
repudiated an Arab assertion
that Communist agents might
be among the immigrants.
He expressed the belief that
the Rumanian Government had
decided to permit the exit of the
Jews for the humanitarian rea
son of reunion of families. ‘‘We
consider all Jews one family,”
he said, adding that Israel was
ready to receive the entire Jew
ish community of Rumania.
Israel, he said, relied on world
Jewry to finance the absorption
and he hoped that aid would be
adequate.
(In Moscow, the official news
paper Izvestia declared last
week-end that the Soviet Gov
ernment would not alienate its
Arab friends by permitting emi
gration of Jews to Israel. It con
demned Zionism as “a reaction
ary movement.”
(In Jerusalem, a Foreign Min
istry official said that the immi
gration was an “internal affair"
of this country and expressed
the hope that Arab interventions
would be “rebuffed” by the
governments to whom the Arabs
addressed themselves.)
Turning to the question of
Arab-Israel relations, Mr. Ben
Gurion reiterated his belief that
peace was possible “within one
hour” whenever the Arabs wefe
ready. He expressed hope that
the Arab leaders would recog
nize that peace with Israel was
in their own interests. Egypt,
as the strongest Arab country,
would have to be the first
among them to make a peace
move, he said.
Mr. Ben Gurion disclosed that
Israel was ready to resume par
ticipation in the Israel-Jordan
Mixed Armistice Commission
but repeated that Israel consid
ered the Egyptian commission as
non-existent because the Egyp
tian armistice was “null and
void.”
Three factors that would favor
an Israel-Arab peace, Mr. Ben
Gurion said, would be the de
velopment of democratic govern
ments in the Arab countries, the
realization by the Arabs that
they could not destroy Israel
and, finally, a lessening of world
tensions.
Mr. Ben Gurion welcomed the
announcement of independence
for Cyprus and said this was an
example of how long-standing
hostility could be settled by the
disputants sitting down together
to negotiate. He expressed the
hope that if the United Nations
did the same for the Arab-Israel
dispute, there might be similar
results.
He said Cyprus independence
meant for Israel “the positive
fact” of having “in the neigh
borhood” a peaceful country
Ask Labor Zionists
To Pledge Week’s Pay to
Special UJA Fund
NEW YORK, (JTA)—Members
of three Labor Zionist organiza
tions, the Labor Zionist Organ
ization of America, the Farband
and the Pioneer Women, as well
as of Habonim, the youth or
ganization, have been called
upon by their national leaders
to make an additional contribu
tion of at least one week’s in
come to the United Jewish Ap
peal Special Fund over and
above regular contributions. The
three major groups number
80,000 members.
with which Israel will be able
to trade, give aid, and be aided.
In reply to a question as to
whether he planned to visit the
United States, Mr. Ben Gurion
said that he did not think he
would be able to make such a
visit while he was Prime Min
ister.
First German Made
Cars, Tiny Isettas,
Imported in Israel
JERUSALEM, (JTA) — The
first import of German-made
cars was recorded in Israel
with the arrival this week of
120 tiny two seater Isetta ve
hicles at the Haifa port.
The cars will sell for 3,500
pounds, about half the price
charged for the Israel-assem
bled four-seat Dauphine Re
nault cars. The importers said
that if the Isettas sell well,
an assembly plant may be
opened in Israel to produce
them.
Private Services Held
For Zalman Shneur,
Hebrew Poet, Writer
NEW YORK, (JTA)—Private
funeral services were held here
February 22 for the late Zalman
Shneur, noted Hebrew and Yid
dish novelist and poet, who died
of a heart ailment at the age
of 72 on February 20.
The author of more than 60
works, Mr. Shneur’s* novels and
poetry have been translated into
twenty or more languages. Cri
tics have placed his literary
works on a par with those of
Sholem Asch and I. J. Singer in
prose, and with Chaim Nachman
Bialik in verse.
Mr. Shneur was born in White
Russia, and studied medicine in
Berlin as a young man. However,
he turned to writing and did
many of his works in subsequent
years in a number of European
literary centers until he came
to this country in 1941.
About 40 members «of his
family and close friends attend
ed the funeral services. Among
those present were Mrs. Golda
Meir, Israel’s Foreign Minister,
and Simcha Pratt, Israel Con
sul-General in New York. Burial
was private at the National
Workers Alliance-Farband Cem
etery in New Jersey.
Thousands Pouring Into Country
MRS. MOSES DYCKMAN na
tional president of M i z r a c h 1
Women, who will be the main
speaker at the annual donor
luncheon of the Atlanta group
(story on page 4).
by BORIS SMOLAR
Editor-in-Chief, Jewish Telegraphic Agency
JERUSALEM, (JTA) —Twen
ty thousand Jews have received
exit permits in Rumania dur
ing the last two Weeks. Those
permits are good only for travel
to Israel—and not for any other
country in the world.
These facts were learned au
thoritatively here this week. It
was also established that the
20,000 in the last two weeks are
but a fraction of the vast num
ber now registered for emigra
tion from Rumania under new
regulations put into effect by the
Bucharest Government.
The new regulations were seen
here as actually an improve
ment, because they provide that
the exit visa is valid for three
months, as against four weeks
under previous rules. This gives
the emigrant more time to dis
pose of nis property.
Under the new rules, depart
ing Jews receive no emigration
passports, but only a special
card valid for Israel carrying a
transit visa and an Israel en
trance visa. These documents
are obtained not by the emi
grant, directly but by the Ru
manian authorities.
The emigrant thus has no di
rect contact either with the Is
rael Consulate in Rumania or
with the consulate of any coun
tires through which he would
pass in transit. This special card
is not recognized by any govern
ment, other than Israel, as a
valid identity document. None
of the Rumanian Jews, there
fore, could go to any country
except Israel.
The special resettlement prob
lems of the Jews of Rumania
coming from the ranks of that
country’s intellectuals and pro
fessionals were vividly outlined
here at Givataim in discussions
with a group of some 200 such
experts.
They discussed their problems
with a group of visiting Ameri
can radio and newspaper corre
spondents, and reported a gen
eral belief that the exodus from
Rumania was motivated by eco
nomic reasons— and apparently
has the approval of the Soviet
Union.
Apparently much more happy
with their new homeland and
much less demanding than simi
lar, earlier emigrants from Po
land, these professionals are
taking intensive Ulpan courses
to learn Hebrew quickly as the
essential first step toward re
suming their professional careers
in Israel. They include doctors,
lawyers, engineers, accountants,
civil servants and similar highly
educated types. In age they
range from 35 to 60-years and
over.
Virtually all of them, regard
less of their age, are convinced
that, as soon as they know He
brew, they will become self-
supporting quickly. Speaking
with love of Israel, they express
determination to adjust them
selves speedily to life in Israel.
The obstacles the professionals
face are best illustrated in the
problem presented by the large
Atlanta To Honor Eban
Barney Medintz has been named General Chairman of the
Abba Eban dinner committee, it was announced by the Atlanta
Jewish Wel'are Fund this week.
The dinner is to be held Sunday evening, May 3, and will be
a farewell testimonial honoring Ambassador Eban prior to his leav
ing this country permanently to return to Israel. The plan is to
make May 3, the target date for a campaign victory dinner.
“The Ambassador Eban dinner will be one of the outstanding
events of the year,” Mr. Medintz said. “We are asking all members
of the Jewish community to keep this date open in honor of the
Ambassador.”
number of doctors coming in the
Rumanian influx. Israel now
has 4,000 physicians, a ratio of
one to 500 inhabitants, the high
est in the world. Moreover, Is
rael has more opportunities for
general practitioners than for the
specialists arriving from Ru
mania.
To get a first-hand view of
how Israel is handling the new
comers, the American corre
spondents were taken to Kiiyat
Gan. This settlement is typical
of about 25 others, to which
most of the newcomers from
Rumania and other East Euro
pean countries have been taken
in the last ten weeks. More than
400 Rumanian Jewish families
have been settled in newly-
built houses prepared for them
in advance at Kiryat Gat. The
settlement is in central Israel,
about halfway between Bethele-
hem and the coast in the Lachish
area.
Immigrants come to Kiryat
Gat from Lydda from the port
of Haifa and are put up in one-
story and two-story homes, mod
estly furnished. Each home is
equipped with kitchen utensils
and bedding—and contains an
eight-day supply of food.
The arrangements are design
ed to give the immigrant family
head at least one week’s freedom
from the worries of looking for
a job and to adjust himself and
his family to the new life in
Israel. . _
In addition to the 400 Ru
manian families, there are also
270 families from Poland and
Russia, and about 30 families
from Hungary in Kiryat Gat.
In dealing with the employ
ment problem, the Israel Gov
ernment is expanding industry
and helping to establish new
industries in the area, based on
regional raw materials. In the
Kiryat Gat region—where cot
ton and sugar beets are grown
—textiles and sugar factories
are being set up, simultaneous
ly with the construction of new
homes. Workers from the ranks
of the newcomers are employed
on the new construction.
Moving scenes of the reunion
of families long sundered were
enacted at dockside in Haifa as
a Greek ship chartered by the
Jewish Agency brought 257 Jew
ish immigrants one day this
Two hundred of the new
comers aboard the vessel, the
SS Aeolia, had left R umama on
ly a week ago. They had gone
by train to Naples, via Vienna.
From the Italian port, they were
brought on this ship to Haiia
where parents were reunited
with children, brothers and sis-
tes once more came together,
families long tom apart because
Rumania had closed its gates on
its Jews eight yearn ago were—
at last — reunited. Journalists
here observing the tearful-joy
ful scenes viewed the re-enact
ment of the 1 early years of
large-scale Jewish immigration.
Atlanta Welfare Fund Round-Up
Youth Rally March 1 At AJCC
For Welfare Fund Drive
Cathy Barnett, Ramon Franco, Cary King and Marilyn Mak-
over, Chairmen of the Youth Division of the 1959 Welfare Fund
Campaign met last Friday to plan for the rally which is to be held
Sunday, March 1, at the Community Center.
The participation of the Youth Division in the campaign ac
tivities is considered to be one of the most important phases pf
Welfare Fund work. Welfare Fund leadership looks to the Youth
Division not so much for its aggregate dollar contribution as much
as for its contribution in the form of future leadership material
for our community.
The Youth Group is separate and apart from religious school’s
campaigns and represents the youth groups ranging from 14 to 19
years. This covers boys and girls in high schools and first years
in college. The campaign in the schools is carried on by the schools
under the direction of the Bureau of Jewish Education.
General Solicitation Organizes
Hyman B. Meltz, Co-ordinator of the General Solicitation Di
vision, met with the chairmen at a luncheon meeting in the con
ference room of the Welfare Fund office last Monday. Co-chairmen
of the division are Jack Balser, Ralph Benator, Irving Galanty,
Harry Glassman, Bernard Gordon, Alvin Halpern, Sam Hirsh,
Perry Morris, Alfred Schwartz, Irving H. Shaw, Arnold Shulman,
Jerry Siegel. \
The purpose of the meeting was to organize the division and
plan the campaign follow-through.
In view of the urgent need for funds for phases of rescue work
at this time, the group leadership is most anxious to get its portion
of the campaign under way at the earliest possible date.
Advance Gifts I Chairmen Meet
Sidney Feldman, Nathan Lipton and Milton Weinstein, Co-
Chairman of Advance Gifts, I and the members of the committee,
were guests of Ben J. Massell, President of the Atlanta Jewish
Welfare Fund, at a luncheon meeting held at Mr. Massell’s office
last Wednesday.
The purpose of the meeting was to organize the work of the
committee and to plan the annual fund raising dinner to be held
at the Standard Town and Country Club, Sunday, April 12. The
dinner will be preceded by a reception.
Advance Gifts I represents the top bracket of giving in the
Welfare Fund campaign, that by its performarlce sets both the
tone and the pace for the annual community effort.