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P *«* H THE SOUTHERN ISRAELITE March 3. 1978
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Zionism’s
100th
birthday
Theodor Henl with members of (he Russian delegation to sixth Congress.
The World Zionist Congress,
just concluded in Jerusalem,
brings to mind the early
struggles in behalf of Zionism.
Here are some highlights from
that history.
Throughout 2,000 years of
Jewish dispersion, Jews have
longed for a return to Zion. Unlike
immigration to other countries, a
return to Eretz Yisrael was called
aliya, a rising, spiritual exaltation
of both the individual and the
nation. The longing for aliya grew
despite persecution and numerous
obstacles.
The Zionist Movement had its
early beginnings at the end of the
19th century. Theodor Herzl, a
Viennese journalist, convened the
Zionist Congress in Basel,
Switzerland, in 1897. This
congress was an important step in
recognizing that Jews were
destined to return to their
homeland.
Throughout the years of the
Jewish dispersion, the country was
subjected to repeated conquests.
The Romans laid waste to much of
the country. The Moslems ruled
for hundreds of years. The
Crusaders came to conquer the
country and begin Christian
settlement. These and various
other campaigns began, but none
was permanent. By and large,
Eretz Yisrael remained a
wasteland.
During the second half of the
19th century, there was an
intensification of the Jewish
longing^for national revival.
Hovevelyflion (Lovers of Zion)
unions were formed, and a
movement began for immigration
and renewed settlement in Israel.
The result by 1880 was that 25,000
Jews lived in Israel—four times the
1840 total.
The first new Jewish settlement,
Petah Tikva, was founded by a
group of Jews who left the old
yishuv (settlement) in Jerusalem,
in 1878. Then came the settlements
of Rishon Lezion, Zichron
Ya’akov, Rosh Pina, and others.
The people of the First Aliya (as
the wave of immigration at the end
of the 19th century was called),
influenced by Hovevei Zion, were
active in these settlements.
With the majority of the Jews
still living in Europe, Theodor
Herzl convened the First Zionist
Congress at Basel’s Casino Hall on
August 29, 1897(1 Elul 5657). This
constituted a turning point in the
history of the national revival
movement. This assembly of Jews
from throughout the countries of
dispersion included 197 delegates
representing 17 countries.
Herzl made the opening speech,
and Max Nordau lectured on the
conditions of Jews around the
world. The delegates established
the World Zionist Federation,
and defined Zionism’s aim in the
Basel Programme, which states
that Zionism seeks to establish a
home for the Jewish people in
Palestine secured under the public
law.
It was after this congress that Herzl
wrote in his diary: "If / were to
summarize the Basel Congress in
one phrase—which out of a sense
of caution I will not make public—
it is this: at Basel. I established the
Jewish state. If I were to say this in
public today, it would be received
as a joke. Perhaps in another five
years, at the very most 50 years, it
would be universally recognized."
In the wake of the first congress,
an organizational framework was
established to organize immigra
tion and settlement. The result was
the Second Aliya which began in
1904, and made the first attempts
at cooperative settlements.
Cooperative farms were
established at Sejera (1907), and
Kinneret (1908). Degania, the first
kibbutz, was founded in 1909, the
same year that the city of Tel Aviv
had its beginnings.
A decisive turning point came
during World War I. At the height
of the war, there were indications
that Turkey would fall, and Israel
would be taken by the British.
Chaim Weizmannn and Nahum
Sokolow, at the head of the Zionist
Movement, conducted widespread
political activities to gain support
for the objectives of the movement.
The result was that on November
2, 1917, the British government
issued the Balfour Declaration,
which stated in part:
His Majesty's Government view
with favour the establishment in
Palestine of a national home for
the Jewish people, and will use
their best endeavours to facilitate
the achievement of this object. It
being clearly understood that
nothing shall be done which may
prejudice the civil and religious
rights of existing non-Jewish
communities in Palestine or the
rights and political status enjoyed
by Jews in any other country."
When the Allies met in 1920 to
settle the political problems
created by the end of World War I.
representatives of the Zionist
Movement appealed to the peace
conference to implement the
Balfour Declaration. Britain was
given a mandate on February 24,
1920.
During the first years of the
Mandate, the country was open to
immigration, and there were Jews
who were prepared to immigrate.
But the Zionist Organization
lacked the funds to undertake
extensive settlement activities.
And by the time they recovered,
the Mandate Government put
obstacles in the way.
In July 1920, a special Zionist
conference was convened
London to collect money for
immigration and settlement
activities. Keren Hayesod was
founded at this meeting.
Unfortunately, its annual income
was L200-300.000.
But immigration continued.
Immigrants of the Third Aliya
(1919-1923) were prepared for
whatever awaited them.
Additional waves of immigration
expanded the yishuv. By the end of
1931, there were 174,000 Jews
living in Eretz Yisrael. They had
established 116 agricultural
settlements, and owned more than
250,000 acres.
Thp Tprhninn in
Invitation to the First Zionist Congress at Basle, 1897,
signed by Herzl as head of the preparatory committee and
Marcus F.hrennreis as secretary.
Haifa in 1913, and Hebrew
University in Jerusalem in 1925.
The institutions of the yishuv
which began in the early 1920s,
such as Knesset Israel and the
National Committee, were
consolidated with the aid of the
Zionist Executive.
During the years of the
Mandate, a "state on the way” was
organized, and it developed the
instruments which led it toward
independence. The Jewish Agency
executive functioned as the
government, establishing
departments for labour,
settlement, industry, etc. It
organized immigration—legal and
illegal, and established Youth
Aliya. It took care of security in the
form of the Hagana, which became
the basis for the Israel Defence
Forces. An active political
department was also begun, which
represented the yishuv in dealing
with the British, and abroad.
After the unparalleled disaster
of the Holocaust, and the loss of 6
million Jews, world Jewry united
around Zionism and its political
struggle. A far-reaching publicity
campaign aimed at gaining
support in the United Nations,
which ultimately decided, on
November 29, 1947, to establish a
Jewish state.
Jewish Agency/WZO chairman A.L. Pincus addresses opening session of 25th Congress in Jerusalem, 1961.
On May 14,1948(lyar5628), the
establishment of the State of Israel
was proclaimed. It took slightly
more than 50 years from the
convening of the First Zionist
Congress to establish a Jewish
State in Eretz Yisrael. During this
time, the Jewish population grew
from 50,000 to 650,000.
In August 1948, the Zionist
General Council met to discuss the
function of the Zionist Movement
following the establishment of the
state. It was impossible to imagine
that the 650,000 Jews then living in
Israel, fighting for their
independence, could organize and
finance the needed mass
immigration As a result, the
functions of the World Zionist
Organization were determined to
include organizing immigration,
absorbing the immigrants and
settling them in agriculture and
industry, educating the youth,
financial aid, education,
information and preparing and
designating land through the
Jewish National Fund (Keren
Kayemet LeYisrael).
This concept of functions was
approved by the 23rd Congress in
1951— the first congress convened
in Jerusalem. Having achieved the
establishment of the state, it was
Impending doom is reflected on the faces of Zionist leaders, from left, Moshe Shertok (Sharett), David Ben
Weizmann and Eliezer Kaplan, at the 21st Congress, on the eve of World War II.
i-Gurlon, Chaim
Theodor Herzl, founder of modern Zionism, opens debate at the Second Zionist Congress in Basel, 1898. Early
discussions centered around settlements in Eretz Yisrael and the movement's future course.
the 23rd Congress which defined
Zionism’s function as strengthen
ing the State of Israel, in gathering
the exiles, and ensuring the Jewish
People’s unity.
This platform became known as
the first Jerusalem Programme.
The status of the Zionist
Organization was defined by the
Knesset in 1952. And in 1954, the
government of Israel and the
Zionist Executive entered into a
covenant which gave the Zionist
Organization and the Jewish
Agency formal status as
representatives of world Jewry.
Since the establishment of the
state, closer ties have developed
between Diaspora and Israel.
Regardless of organizational or
ideological affiliation. Diaspora
Jewry worked to finance the
Jewish Agency activities, through
the United Jewish Appeal in the
U.S., and Keren Hayesod in other
countries. This identification with
Israel was fully witnessed in 1967,
in the weeks preceding and
following the Six-Day War.
Increased identification resulted
in differing organizational
demands. As a result, the World
Zionist Organization opened
discussions with the United Jewish
Appeal and Keren Hayesod to try
to alter the structure of the Jewish
Agency to include these
organizations. These changes
became effective in June 1971, and
resulted in separating the World
Zionist Organization from the
Jewish Agency.
The World Zionist Organization
became responsible for organiza
tion and information, immigra
tion. education in the Diaspora,
youth and pioneering, publica
tions, cultural institutions, and the
activities of the Jewish National
Fund.
In the 50 years since the
founding of the World Zionist
Organization, a revolution has
taken place in Jewish history the
establishment of a sovereign
Jewish state. However, as long as
the majority of Jews live in the
Diaspora, the aims of the World
Zionist Organization remain
unchanged to organize, unite,
and educate the Jewish people
towards identification with the
revival of the Jewish nation in
Israel.
The Zionist shekel voting certificate.
Zionist Congress
brings back shekel
From its inception, Zionism was as much a movement to
preserve elements of Jewish tradition as it was a revolutionary one
seeking to revamp traditional ways of doing things. The shekel is a
case in point. It was in use as a coin in biblical times. Since then,
Jews have used a polyglot of other currencies in a multitude of
lands
The biblical name was reborn at the First Zionist Congress
(Basel. 1897) when it was reinstated as both the membership fee
and card of the Zionist movement. Its price was fixed at 1 franc, I
mark, 1 Austrian crown, 2 shillings, half a dollar. 40 kopeks, etc.
At the First Zionist Congress, the shekel was decided on as the
voting certificate for elections to the Congress. Until the 25th
Congress (1960), the number of delegates allocated to each country
was calculated on the basis of the number of shekels sold there.
Eretz Yisrael had the privilege of the double shekel.
The new constitution of the WZO( 1960) determined that the size
of the delegations would be independent of the number of shekels
sold in any country. The 27th Zionist Congress (1968) resolved that
each country might determine the system of congress elections to
be held there. In effect, this abolished the shekel as an obligatory
institution. In 1970 a decision was adopted by the Knesset to call
the unit of Israeli currency the shekel. This decision has not yet
gone into effect, but even when it does, the shekel as such will no
longer be the symbol of the world parliament of the Jewish people.
Page 15 THE SOUTHERN ISRAELITE March 3, 1978
