In accordance with the last sentence of paragraph 12 of the Prime Minister’s letter to Dr. Weizmann of the 13th. February, an ordinance was promulgated on Friday last to protect tenancy and occupancy rights including the rights of squatters throughout Palestine, Dr. Drummond Shiels, the Under Secretary of State for the Colonies, said in the House of Commons this afternoon, in reply to Colonel Howard-Bury, who asked whether any ordinance had been promulgated in Palestine to stop the alienation of Arab holdings or what steps had been taken to prevent further additions being made to the number of landless Arabs.
As stated in the preceding part of that paragraph, Dr. Shiels went on, the centralised control of land transactions will take effect as from such date only as the authority charged with the duty of carrying out the policy of land development shall begin to operate.
In giving effect to the policy of land settlement, as contemplated in article 11 of the Mandate, it was said in the paragraph in question in Mr. MacDonald’s letter to Dr. Weizmann, it is necessary, if disorganisation is to be avoided, and if the policy is to have a chance to succeed, that there should exist some centralised control of transactions relating to the acquisition and transfer of land during such interim period as may reasonably be necessary to place the development scheme upon a sure foundation. The power contemplated is regulative and not prohibitory, although it does involve a power to prevent transactions which are inconsistent with the tenor of the scheme. But the exercise of the power will be limited and in no respect arbitrary. In every case it will be conditioned by considerations as to how best to give effect to the purposes of the Mandate. Any control contemplated will be fenced with due safeguards to secure as little interference as possible with the free transfer of land. The centralised control will take effect as from such date only as the authority charged with the duty of carrying out the policy of land development shall begin to operate.
The High Commissioner will, pending the establishment of such centralised control, have full powers to take all steps necessary to protect the tenancy and occupancy rights, including the rights of squatters, throughout Palestine.
Dr. Shiels’ statement appears therefore to refer to two distinct ordinances, one for establishing some centralised control of land acquisition and transfer, which will take effect only from such date as the authority charged with the duty of carrying out the policy of land development in Palestine begins to operate, and the other, which was enacted on Friday, giving the High Commissioner of Palestine full powers, pending the establishment of such centralised control, to take steps to protect the tenancy and occupancy rights, including the rights of squatters throughout Palestine, which has entered into force immediately.
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