Debate on Palestine Develops in Uno Committee; Arab Delegates Raise Palestine Issue

Although the question of Palestine is not on the agenda of the General Assembly of the United Nations Organization, a debate on Palestine developed today in the Social, Humanitarian, and Cultural Committee of the Assembly. Representatives of the Arab countries as well as Russia, Australia and New Zealand participated in the discussion.

The debate started when a delegate from Egypt criticized Polish Minister Jan Stanczyk for a remark which he made at a previous session of the committee, stating that the problem of the Jewish refugees in Europe cannot be separated from the Palestine question. The Egyptian representative expressed the hope that the United Nations Organization, when tackling the refugee problem, will make a distinction between the political and humanitarian aspects of Jewish immigration to Palestine. He also insisted that the UNO take into consideration the demographic conditions of every country concerned in the refugee problem.

The representative of Lebanon similarly expressed regret over the fact that “the Polish delegate complicated the problem by bringing in a political aspect.” The Lebanese delegate stressed that “Zionism is not a humanitarian, but a political movement, aiming at introducing the maximum Jews into Palestine, to secure for them Palestine citizenship and eliminate the Arab majority.” He added that with regard to Jews who cannot be repatriated to their native lands, Lebanon is ready to cooperate “proportionally to its population and resources.”

The Iraq delegate told the committee that the Jewish problem “is not connected with Palestine.” He claimed that the Jews arriving in Palestine “attack the Arab population by every means and dispossess them.” Jews must be able to live in the countries of Europe, he argued.

Peter Frazer of New Zealand, who is the chairman of the committee, interrupted the Iraq delegate when he started to refer to Lt. Gen. Morgan’s statement on the Jewish refugees from Poland seeking to reach the American zone in Germany. He urged the Arab representative to keep to the subject.

The Soviet delegate urged a speedy liquidation of the refugee problem which, he said, must not be allowed to become permanent. He referred specifically to the victims of racial persecution in Germany.

The Australian delegate pointed out that the refugee problem is also a political problem, which cannot be divorced from its humanitarian aspect.