Important discussions concerning the United Jewish Appeal and the fate of separate fund-raising campaigns for Israel in the United States were inaugurated here today. Attending the discussions, which will be continued tomorrow, are: Premier David Ben Gurion, Israeli Finance Minister Eliezer Kaplan, Eliahu Dobkin, Henry Montor, Dr. Joseph J. Schwartz, and representatives of the Hadassah and the Histadrut.
The major topic of today’s discussion was the question of whether separate fund raising drives conducted by organizations such as the Histadrut and the Hadassah in America should be continued or terminated in favor of strengthening the United Jewish Appeal. The impression prevailing in well-informed circles is that if the Histadrut would agree to relinquish its own campaign in the United States, it would then be easier to get all other groups in America to forego their separate drives.
It is understood that Premier Ben Gurion and Mr. Kaplan favor the withdrawal of the Histadrut’s campaign, providing all other groups act likewise. During today’s conference, Mr. Montor criticized the failure of the Zionists in the United States to support fully the United Jewish Appeal campaign. He complained that each Zionist group is taking an individual interest in its favorite drive.
A committee was appointed at today’s meeting to formulate recommendations for the solution of the problem. The committee is composed of representatives of the Israeli Government, Jewish Agency, Joint Distribution Committee, Histadrut and Hadassah. It will submit its recommendations tomorrow.
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