A statement defining the future policy of the British government as regards Palestine is now in preparation and will be issued in a fortnight, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency learned today from reliable sources.
Outlining the principles which the British administration will have to follow in Palestine, the statement of the British government will also recommend the establishment of a legislative assembly there. Such an assembly was suggested as early as 1922 but failed to materialize because of the opposition of the Arabs. Now, however, there is reason to believe that the Arab leaders will be amenable to the suggestion.
The statement will also contain a definition in clear and positive terms of the meaning which the British government attaches to the passages in the Mandate for the safe-guarding of the rights of the non-Jewish community in Palestine and will lay down for the guidance of the Palestine government directions more explicit than any that have yet been given as to the conduct of the policy on such vital issues as land and immigration.
The expected statement will define the British policy in general terms while the details will be worked out later together with the measures for giving effect to this policy.
Negotiations are now pending with regard to the release of the immigration certificates which were suspended last May by the Colonial Office. The time limit of the suspended certificates expired September 30, but they have not yet been released notwithstanding the fact that the accredited representative of the British government at Geneva officially stated before the Mandates Commission that this suspension was merely temporary.
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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.
