Government Assumption of Expenses and Terms of Palestine Modus Vivendi Discussed by Warburg and Weiz

but united in the common platform of concrete, forward-looking accomplishments and progress,” Mr. Warburg outlined the tasks facing the Agency in immediately devising ways and means to insure that the upbuilding work in Palestine, sanctioned and supported by the Agency, be carried out through expert and qualified instruments. He pointed out that Theodor Herzl from the very beginning had clearly distinguished “between the Society of Jews representing the moral or idealistic forces of the movement, and a Jewish company representing its financial and economic forces and endeavored to create a separate body to carry forward the economic work.

“After the war an advisory committee on the economic development of Palestine was formed under the chairmanship of Herbert Samuel, and its sub-committee on finance, advised the Zionist Organization as follows: ‘It will be necessary for the body which will organize Jewish activities to be provided with special agencies to deal with the financial side of that development. The general policy to be pursued by those agencies must be determined by the body which is directing the movement as a whole, but it is essential that the day to day management be free from political interference and be conducted on pure business lines.’

“Despite the obvious purpose of this report and that of the Joint Survey Commission the Zionist Executive in Palestine continued to direct its energies in the day to day management of far-flung activities through perhaps a too complicated machine. In consequence it is prevented from carrying out its real functions of directing and co-ordinating general policies along the lines laid down by the Agency, of several social and economic corporations and institutions carrying on the day to day work under experienced management.

POLITICAL WORK SHOULD BE UNDER AGENCY’S PRESIDENT

“Appropriations to the various bodies carrying on the actual work should be made by the Administrative Committee so that the Executive may be free to do its appointed work of general direction and co-ordination and be immune from political pressure or experience and freed from the burden of actual administration. The real political work should center in London and Geneva and be under the President of the Agency and its political committee in London in consultation with the chairman of the Administrative Committee.

GOVERNMENT AND EXECUTIVE SHOULD COOPERATE

“There should be cooperation between the government and the Executive as to increasing the capacity of the country (Palestine) to absorb new settlers, and regarding the development of agriculture, industry and trade; but these are primarily economic matters and should be so viewed inasmuch as their political aspects are settled by the Mandate. It is true that a number of internal political problems are constantly arising which effect the Jews in Palestine, but these in the course of time, we trust, may be more and more dealt with by Palestinian Jewry and its representatives, as is done in other countries.

“The problem of how best to encourage and prepare the self-dependent Jewish population of Palestine to increasingly assume a large measure of responsibility for these activities of a social and communal character, for which their man power and their means may qualify them, is a most vital matter to which the Vaad Leumi will undoubtedly address itself.

SHOULD STUDY RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN VAAD LEUMI AND AGENCY

“What shall be the relationship of the Vaad Leumi and the Agency and the ponits of contact between the Vaad Leumi and the Executive might well be the subject of careful study and recommendation of a committee to be appointed at this meeting. In general it seems to me that relieving the eexcutive of its ‘high political’ work and burden of administrating directly manifold social and economic activities, allocating and dispersing large funds, and the elevating of the Executive to the position of a directing and co-ordinating body alive to the more important social and economic problems, effecting Jewish settlement should immensely improve its status.”

EXECUTIVE MUST BE RELIEVED OF DAY TO DAY WORK

Having outlined the functions of the Executive Mr. Warburg declared it desirable that “the Agency work through suitable and separable institutions in Palestine” in order to relieve the Executive from its absorption in detailed day to day work, from the persistent pressure of conflicting claims to its limited budget and in order “that strong, well-managed institutions with adequate reserves may be established so that in a critical moment a large part of the economic welfare of Palestine may not rest solely upon the Agency. The present over-centralized organization would be a great threat to the economic future of any land, even one more richly endowed by nature than Palestine.”

EXPLAINS FUNCTIONS OF ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEE

Mr. Warburg then proceeded to explain, as he saw it, the functions of the Administrative Committee. So far as economic work is concerned they are a general policy which will guide the work of the Agency in Palestine and the revision of such a policy from time to time when necessary; secondly, appropriate funds for the Agency within the limits of the budgets adopted and available to bodies existing or to be created. The functions of the Executive would be to co-ordinate the work of the economic agencies of Palestine so far as is possible in accordance with the general economic policy as determined by the Administrative Committee and council of the Agency, to cooperate with the Palestine government in accordance with this general economic policy, and to advise and guide Palestinian Jewry in economic matters among themselves ts well as towards the government.

The decisive factor in such a plan, Mr. Warburg pointed out, “is the allocation by the Administrative Committee of its funds directly to suitable economic and social agencies. It involves a release of the Executive from the day to day routine of manifold activities and the concentration of the energies of the Executive on the coordination and supervision of economic work in conformity with the policies of the Agency. Most of the items in the present budget can very easily be allocated to existing bodies for administration.

ORGANIZE COMPANY TO FINANCE COLONIZATION, AGRICULTURAL SETTLEMENT

“One important exception is colonization and that part of agricultural settlement which has to be financed by the Agency before the settler has reached the self-supporting stage. It is very important that the Executive be relieved of this difficult task and that a corporation be organized to take over the task with an expert agricultural administrator in charge. We ought to give earnest thought to the practical application of such a principle and to the feasibility of utilizing to the best advantage such bodies that now exist or are to be organized.

HEALTH WORK IS APART FROM EXECUTIVE

“With respect to health work, as this budget goes directly to Haddassah and Kupath Cholim, this activity is virtually directly apart from the channels of the Executive. In time it may further be expected that women’s organizations like Wizo and Hadassah will be able to raise all the funds for educational work and social service, leaving the Agency free to concentrate on economic work. In the field of health, education and social service, effective co-ordination and effort between the Agency and the Vaad Leumi should increasingly enlist the government support for participation in these communal undertakings.

SAYS ACCEPT PLAN IN PRINCIPLE AND WORK OUT DETAILS

Whatever reasons may be urged against the plan, the principal involved is simple. In order, however, to avoid objections to the details, it might be the surer way to progress to have the principle accepted by the Administrative Committee and a sub-committee appointed to work out the plan in detail. Some such plan seems imperative if the Agency hopes to realize even in a small measure, the high expectation of world Jewry as to its work in Palestine; but perhaps a warning should be given lest expectations run too high. The task of the Agency is arduous and cannot be realized in a few months or even in a few years.

It should be remembered that if the budget of $3,750,000 set for the first year is raised, one-fourth of this must go to meet obligations heretofore in-