Representatives of five Jewish organizations will confer tomorrow with General Lucius D. Clay, American military governor in Germany, to work out the final details of a restitution law which, it is hoped, will make available for rehabilitation and resettlement of Jewish displaced persons considerable amounts of Jewish property seized by the Germans during the Nazi regime.
At tomorrow’s meeting, to be attended by aides of the State Dept., and of the American Jewish Conference, the American Jewish Committee, the World Jewish Congress, the Jewish Agency for Palestine and the Joint Distribution Committee, it is expected that a decision will be made as to whether to go ahead with the enactment of a law as an American Military Government regulation in just the American zone or whether to continue attempts to make a bi-zonal law effective in both American and British zones.
The Jewish groups will press for the early enactment of the law rather than ##t for British agreement, it is understood. General Clay originally sought to reach a quadripartite agreement making the law effective in all four zones. About a month ago, when it became clear that agreement on that basis was not in sight, he hoped to reach a bi-zonal agreement with the British in view of the economic union between the two zones, it is learned.
BRITISH RELUCTANT TO AGREE ON BI-ZONAL RESTITUTION LAW
The British are reluctant to enact such a law in their zone, however, because of the difficulty of translating property into foreign exchange which could then be used to facilitate rehabilitation and resettlement without draining off precious American dollars. Also, the British, although they will agree in principle that the money be used to aid victims of the Nazis, are worried lest the funds be used to finance illegal Jewish immigration into Palestine.
Addressing a National Press Club luncheon here today, Gen. Clay said that the only solution to the problem of displaced persons was resettlement in countries with resources to support their immigration, since the German economy cannot support even these who might be willing to remain there.
He declared that there were now about 700,000 displaced persons in Germany, including Poles, Balts, Ukrainians and Jews. The Poles might be able to go home, he asked, but the Balts and Ukrainians cannot and the Jews have no place to go.
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