American and Soviet representatives at the General Committee of the U.N. Assembly differed today on the extent of representation to be given the Jewish Agency, while the British delegation was still fighting to bar the Jews from all U.N. bodies except the fact-finding committee that is to be set up.
Senator Warren Austin insisted that the Jewish Agency cannot be seated in the Assembly for legal reasons and, therefore, should be asked to appear before the Political Committee. However, Andrei Gromyko strongly advocated the seating of Jewish representatives without qualifications, saying that a hearing before the Political Committee was only a “fifty-fifty” policy and adding that he saw no reason why the Jews should not state their case directly before the Assembly, since representatives of the Arab countries have already stated their arguments.
British delegate Sir Alexander Cadogan said that Jewish representation could not be admitted even to the Political Committee under present U.N. rules, but added if the steering committee decides to recommend their admission they must be limited to certain points.
AUSTIN SAYS AGENCY DOES NOT SPEAK FOR ALL JEWS
In proposing admission of the Jewish Agency to the Political Committee, Austin advanced the following conditions:
1- Only the Agency be admitted and all other Jewish groups barred.
2- The admission of the Agency should not be considered a precedent for others, since the Agency enjoys the unique international position of being recognized by the Mandate.
3- It should be understood that the Agency does not speak for all Jews, since many Jews in Palestine do not share the views of the Agency, and the U.S. Government has received communications from Jewish groups that the Jewish Agency is not representative of all the Jews.
4 – Views expressed by the Agency should be limited to statements on the single item on the Assembly’s agenda.
Austin emphasized that the participation of the Agency in the discussions of the Political Committee is essential in view of the possibility of a discussion there of an eventual trusteeship for Palestine. After making a number of legal points to prove that the appearance of the Agency before the Political Committee is justified under U.N. rules, Austin said that the American Government felt that the U.N. Charter should be amended if necessary to permit such participation.
At the same time, he asked the Polish and Czech delegates to withdraw the original Polish resolution — as amended by the Czechs — calling for the Assembly to invite the Agency to appear, in favor of a U.S. resolution urging the steering committee to refer the Jewish requests to the Political Committee for a decision.
POLE REFUSES U.S. PLEA TO WITHDRAW PRO-AGENCY PROPOSAL; BACKED BY SOVIET
The Polish delegate expressed regret that he could not withdraw his resolution, because, he said, the Austin text would mean unnecessary prolongation of the discussion, since the U.S. was merely asking the Political Committee to decide whether the Agency should be invited, while the Polish resolution provides for the Assembly itself to make a decision.
Gromyko supported the Polish-Czech resolution, pointing out that the requests of the Jewish organizations to participate in the Assembly merit that body’s consideration. He stressed that while many Arab statements were made during the last few days both in the steering committee and the Assembly, no Jews were heard. He said that this was unfair, especially since the Palestine issue involves the settlement of Jews in that country. The Jews of the world, he declared, and also non-Jews, will find it hard to understand why Jews are refused a hearing.
Gromyko advised the committee not to adhere strictly to legal formalities and to find a way to invite representatives of one or several Jewish groups to appear before the Assembly. He said that he disagreed with those delegates who claim that the prestige of the Assembly might suffer if the Jews, who are not a member state, participate in the Assembly proceedings. On the contrary, he said, the U.N. cannot permit a situation where the Jews are barred when the U.N. is discussing an issue in which world Jewry is vitally interested. He criticized the proposal of the United States to relegate the Jews to the Political Committee and he insisted that they be given a full hearing before the Assembly.
The Jewish Agency, he said, was clearly a representative body, qualified to speak for the Jewish population of Palestine. He added that he would not object to giving a hearing also to other Jewish organizations which had applied for an opportunity to express their views.
JEWS PLEASED WITH GROMYKO’S STAND; HIT AUSTIN FOR QUESTIONING AGENCY STATUS
Jewish circles were pleased with Gromyko’s stand. They would not comment on Austin’s suggestion that the Agency be heard only by Political Committee. However, Agency sources termed “vicious” his statement that the Agency did not represent all Jews and not even all the Jews of Palestine. They pointed out that while he made these statements Austin had before him a copy of a cable from the Jewish National Council of Palestine to the U.N. pleading for the admission of Agency delegates as representatives of the entire Yishuv.
Meanwhile, the Americans also were at odds with the British delegation on the question of representation for the Jews, with the latter opposing any hearing for the Jews except before the fact-finding committee. Behind the British opposition to having the Jews state their case before the Political Committee lies the fear that the Jews, rather than attacking the Arabs–whose delegates have been directing their fire at the Jews for the last three days, while conspicuously abstaining from any attacks on British policy in Palestine –will aim their darts at the British regime in Palestine and the White Paper policy, emphasizing the Jewish achievements in Palestine and their contribution to the development of the Arabs there.
Such a situation would, in the opinion of some of the British delegates, encourage critical remarks against Britain by some of the delegations friendly to the Jewish cause or who are not friendly to the present British policy in Palestine. The Assembly they fear could become an anti-British forum, where statements that would have world-wide repercussions would be made.
JEWS WANT TO BE HEARD FROM SAME PLATFORMS AS THE ARABS
Leaders of the Jewish Agency take the attitude that the Jews must be given an equal opportunity to state their views in the same places where the Arabs have spoken. They indicated that they oppose the U.N. inviting representatives of the Palestine Arab Higher Committee to any of the sessions as non-voting participants, pointing out that the case of the Palestine Arabs has already been stated by the representatives of the five Arab countries and it would only mean adding a sixth Arab delegation, if the Higher Committee were seated or permitted to participate it the proceedings of the Political Committee.
In the opinion of the Agency, the Palestine Arabs, as well as the Palestine Jews through the Jewish National Council of Palestine, will have an equal opportunity to state their cases before the fact-finding committee when it arrives in Palestine, while the Jewish Agency is not only a spokesman for Palestine Jewry, but for the Jewish people and constitutes a body recognized under the Mandate.
Earlier, the Jewish request for participation in the Assembly was opposed by Trygve Lie, U.N. Secretary-General, who told the steering committee that requests of non-governmental organizations for such participation have always been rejected. “If you give one concession you must be prepared to give other concessions,” he warned.
Asaf Ali, the Indian delegate took the same line. “One exception,” he said, “means endless exception.” He advocated that all non-governmental agencies be heard by the fact-finding committee which the Assembly will establish. All again paid his meaningless compliments to Jewish ability, but attacked the Mandate as a “major blunder” and appealed to Jews not to depend on the backing of other nations, but to live in friendship with the Arabs, adding that “Palestine may be bombed out if no real unity exists between Jews and Arabs.”
He also appealed to Britain, the United States and the USSR to settle the Palestine question and “not make Palestine a pawn for strategic or economic purposes. Don’t create a situation in which Jews may feel elated for the time being and later on may find they are nothing but exiles who will suffer nothing but injury and humiliation and perhaps be destroyed,” he warned.
POLISH DELEGATE SAYS ARABS HAVE BEEN GIVEN SUFFICIENT HEARING
In defending his resolution the Polish delegate emphasized that he was not suggesting that Palestine Arabs also be invited to appear, since the Arab case has already been presented by the delegates of the five Arab countries. He admitted that the U.N. rules do not provide for participation of non-governmental bodies, but argued that the Assembly is its own master and can find a way to act affirmatively on his resolution, especially since Arab representatives have already spoken for three days.
“I do not see how the terms of reference for the fact-finding committee can be prepared without a hearing for the Jews” he declared. Winiewicz explained his government’s concern for the fate of the Jews in Palestine, declaring that 50 percent of Palestine Jewry speak Polish and have shown an interest in Poland. “We cannot, therefore, forget them in their distress” he said. At the same time, he stressed that Nazi extermination of Jews in Poland makes Poland morally bound to take an active interest in the fate of Jewish people.
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.
