Native Jews in Algeria, deprived of their French citizenship by Gen. Giraud’s abrogation of the Cremieux Decree, are refusing to apply for citizenship individually in protest against the order, it is reported in France-Amerique, a French newspaper published in New York by supporters of Gen. de Gaulle.
“We learn from Algiers,” the paper writes, “that the Jews, deprived of their French nationality by the arbitrary act of Gen. Giraud, energetically refuse to seek, individually, reinstatement as French citizens, not recognizing the legality of the measure taken against them and preferring to wait until the Republic repairs this injustice.”
Pour la Victoire, another French newspaper published in New York, carries an article by Henri de Kerillis, former French Nationalist deputy, in which he asserts that the time has come, since the Germans have been chased from North Africa, “to begin the liquidation of anti-Semitism” and to eliminate certain collaborationists.
De Kerillis, who left France the day after Marshall Petain demanded an armistice and after having been an ardent supporter of General de Gaulle became no less an ardent partisan of General Giraud, declared that “as long as German guns thundered on the African soil I deliberately abstained from dwelling upon certain particularly delicate topics connected with General Giraud’s political conduct.” Today, de Kerillis demands re-establishment of the Algerian Jews as French citizens and full abrogation of all anti-Semitic laws and ordinances.
“Surely enough, General Giraud has abolished the Nuremberg laws. Unfortunately, the Nuremberg laws were not the only anti-Semitic instrument in Algeria…They had been carried further by the abrogation of that famous Cremieux law…which extended French citizenship to all Jews born in Algeria. And General Giraud did not re-establish the Cremieux law.”
Mr. de Kerillis says further that it is easy to understand General Giraud’s reasons for acting as he did. He points to the danger of stirring up the allegedly traditional Arab anti-Semitism “considerably increased through German propaganda” and asserts that the situation in Algeria might be compared to that in Palestine. He concludes:
“Nevertheless, the circumstances seem favorable for an immediate re-establishment of the Cremieux law-unless there be considerations which are not known to us. The moral and political significance of a radical elimination from French territory of all traces of anti-Semitic legislation is self-evident. If it is true that the Cremieux law is not altogether euqitable since it favors a Jewish minority as compared to a Moslem majority, the political status of Arabs may be raised so as to give them satisfaction…”
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
