A nagging fear exists in the hearts of Israelis that Jews are not prepared to come to the Jewish State of their own free will and this fear is at the bottom of the crisis now sweeping the State of Israel, Aryeh L. Pincus, chairman of the Jewish Agency executive, asserted here tonight.
Speaking at a session of the World Zionist Actions Committee, now meeting here, warned that unless the Zionist movement saw to it that an ever-increasing stream of immigrants came from countries of prosperity, there was the danger of an “abyss” opening between the Jews of Israel and those of the rest of the world.
He presented to the delegates a dramatic picture of the achievements of the Jewish Agency and Israel, including the absorption of 1,300,000 immigrants and the establishment of nearly 1,000 settlements.
He stressed that though immigration had decreased, there were still thousands of newcomers arriving each year and that even during the crisis of economic retrenchment, they were being absorbed and given new homes. He sketched the economies and streamlining operations carried out by the Jewish Agency in the past year despite the need to give individual attention to immigrants now arriving. He said another 100 settlements would soon be removed from the Agency’s care and handed over to the Agriculture Ministry.
PINCUS FORESEES INCREASED IMMIGRATION FROM THE SOVIET UNION
Mr. Pincus also said that 250,000 recent newcomers still needed help in education and that social absorption, which he defined as the immigrant’s feeling he was welcome, was one of the main tasks. This he explained means a need for clubrooms and community centers. He also reported he had reason to believe that there might be an increase in the number of immigrants from the Soviet Union.
He said that in spite of criticism of Israeli Jews, there was an increasing awareness of the role of Zionism among Israel’s youth, high school students, army officers and educators. All of them are looking for a bridge with the Jewish people as a whole, he decided. He stressed the role of the Youth Aliyah movement and the importance of the ties established with Jewish youth organizations and the Center for the Diaspora set up with the Israel Government.
He said the Agency had decided not to take on any new debts and noted that repayment of existing debts was a heavy burden which meant some activities had been curbed. “The people and the state today need a strong Zionist movement more than ever before,” he stated.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
