The Association of Americans and Canadians in Israel urged the government and the Jewish Agency last night to improve housing and other absorption measures for two groups of potential olim from North America–young single people and elderly retired persons–who, according to the AACI, would settle in Israel in the tens of thousands if conditions were right.
The matter was raised at the closing session of the 25th anniversary convention of the AACI attended by 250 delegates representing the 11,000 Americans and Canadians in this country. The convention was opened Tuesday night by Premier Yitzhak Rabin who said it was easier for Israel to deal with its Arab enemies and condemnations by the UN “than with the struggle within ourselves to become a better society.”
The problems of single olim and pensioners from abroad were given special attention by convention speakers who alleged that little or nothing has been done to encourage aliya by those groups. They proposed the construction of small flats of one-and-a-half rooms for singles, reduced flight fares to Israel and special agencies to find jobs for them. They said that because of the lack of proper housing for older people in Israel, thousands of retired Jews were settling in Florida and Central America.
The AACI stressed that special residential quarter should be pleased by the olim for olim. They said that mutual assistance would ease the absorption of immigrants from the West by helping to overcome the language barrier and other problems in the initial stages of life in Israel.
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