Australian Zionists Reject Sir Isaac’s Plea; Demand Abrogation of White Paper

A crowded protest meeting held here last night to demand abrogation of the British White Paper on Palestine unanimously rejected the plea by former Governor-General Sir Isaac Isaacs that the Zionists drop the fight against the White Paper in order not to jeopardize an Allied triumph by arousing Moslem antagonism.

Prof. Chisholm of Melbourne University charged that Sir Isaac’s suggestion “looked terribly like one more appeasement policy.” John V. Barry, K.C., prominent Labor Party leader, said that “it is preposterous to suggest that anyone here would do anything to impede victory.” The president of the Zionist Federation, Alex Masel, who is also president of the Jewish Advisory Board, declared that the Australian Jewish community is “four-square behind the sponsors of this meeting. Sir Isaac is completely out of step with the views of the Jews of the Empire and America.”

A resolution adopted at the meeting urged that Palestine be opened immediately to all victims of fascism, and that uncultivated lands be utilized for Jewish colonization. It also appealed to the Australian Government to “see that justice is done to the Jewish people.”