Jewish Agency Officials Say a ‘large Measure of Understanding’ Has Been Reached with Hias on the Iss

The Jewish Agency leadership announced here last night that it had reached “a large measure of understanding” with HIAS after marathon talks on the question of aid to Soviet Jewish emigrants who opt to go to countries other than Israel once they leave the Soviet Union.

Unofficially it is understood that HIAS leaders, meeting here with Jewish Agency Executive chairman Leon Dulzin and Agency Board of Governors chairman Max Fisher, have agreed to accept the Agency-Israel government new arrangements regarding the dropouts on an interim basis. The arrangements are to be reviewed at the end of the year.

The talks between HIAS president Edwin Shapiro and HIAS executive vice president Leonard Seidenman, on the one hand, and Jewish Agency leaders, on the other, went on behind the scenes throughout the three-day meeting of the Agency’s Board of Governors.

HIAS had balked at the Agency-Israel government proposal that only dropouts with first degree relatives in a Western country other than Israel should be offered aid by HIAS or the Joint Distribution Committee to settle in that country. HIAS leaders had sought to extend the category of first degree relatives — parents or children — to at least incorporate those with siblings in a Western country.

But Dulzin, who is the moving spirit behind the new arrangement, strongly objected to broadening the category in this way. He reportedly argued that to do so would severely reduce the prospects of cutting down the dropout rate, which in recent months has climbed to over 80 percent.

Dulzin hopes that the new arrangements will cause a sharp decline in the number of dropouts. He believes that the rising dropout rate is the chief cause for the recent reduction in the overall number of exit permits issued by the Soviet authorities. A recent statement by the Soviet Ambassador to Canada, Jacob Lev, seemed to bear out that theory (which Dulzin himself has subscribed to for many years.)

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE ASSEMBLY

Among the resolutions adopted by the Agency assembly was one calling on the Israel government and the Knesset to put a stop to fundraising campaigns abroad on behalf of Israeli political parties. The Agency held these were divisive and tended to prejudice the United Jewish Appeal and Jewish National Fund efforts.

Other highlights of the three-day assembly included Agency treasurer Akiva Levinsky’s emphasis, in his financial report, on streamlining and money-saving efforts by the Agency. Levinsky noted that several companies owned in whole or in part by the Agency had been sold off, and the proceeds used to liquidate longstanding debts.

In the two years, from 1979-1981, the budgeted personnel of the Agency had been cut from 3712 to 3190, Levinsky added. The current annual budget, he said, was $400 million plus an additional $87 million for Project Renewal. It was based on an aliya projection of 28,000 olim. Levinsky said the Agency would be instantly prepared should the number of olim suddenly increase. He promised stepped-up support for the various immigrant associations in Israel which aid absorption on a voluntary basis.

On rural settlement, Levinsky noted that over the past two years the Jewish Agency had been instrumental in establishing 32 new small settlements (mitzpim) in the Galilee. Future plans called for doubling this number — while at the same time working to strengthen and support the fledgling settlements already established. He said this was particularly important in view of the recent violence on the Lebanese border.

ASSESSMENT OF PROJECT RENEWAL

While Levinsky pledged to wage ongoing war against inefficiency and duplication, a top government official working on Project Renewal told the Agency assembly that the Agency was often guilty of inefficiency and duplication and had “violated agreements” with the government in renewal work.

Prof. Dan Shimshoni, the government’s Project Renewal coordinator, accused the Agency of consistently deviating from jointly-made decisions and of duplicating the government’s functions to no useful purpose. Despite Shimshoni’s strictures, however, the overall atmosphere at the assembly towards Project Renewal was markedly more positive than it had been in the past.

Delegates clearly came away with the feeling that the ambitious Project Renewal was at last moving out of its teething pain stage and that impressive and significant work was beginning to be done and to show results. There was widespread satisfaction that the government side of the project had now been put in the hands of the energetic Housing Minister, David Levy, and that a special deputy minister, Moshe Katzav (Likud-Herut) has been appointed specifically to deal with Project Renewal.

However, the Agency’s project director, Yehiel Admoni, warned that the project would face disaster unless the fundraising effort on its behalf produced concrete results — and soon. Admoni said only half of the $350 million planned as the Agency’s share in the project had been pledged — and only 10 percent had actually been paid by donors. Six renewal neighborhoods had not yet found “twin” cities/communities abroad, Admoni added.

URGES MILLION-DOLLAR PLEDGES FOR PROJECT RENEWAL

Swiss Jewish millionaire and head of the World Sephardi Union, Nissim Gaon, proposed that 300 Jews around the world be solicited to contribute $1 million each towards Project Renewal. He himself pledged $2 million.

Gaon said that there was affluence in many Jewish communities and the donors could be found. He proposed that whoever donated $2 million or more to Israel should be made an “honorary citizen” of the State.

UJA chairman Herschel Blumberg said UJA income this year was running 17 percent higher than last year — despite the difficult economic situation in the U.S. Pledges were also up, he noted. There was particular interest in Project Renewal, he said, although during the last month only $1 million in cash had come in, compared with the $2 million monthly required. Blumberg called on UJA leaders to remind donors of the pledges. He also called for better cooperation between the government and the Jewish Agency on Project Renewal.