The Knesset’s Immigration and Absorption Committee called on all Israeli and Zionist bodies abroad to fire yordim and halt any other action which may legitimize yerida. The Committee defined yordim as Israelis who have settled overseas permanently or who have lived away from Israel for more than five years.
The recommendations were addressed to Israeli diplomatic and other missions abroad, educational institutions of the World Zionist Organization and other bodies. It called on Foreign Ministry and Zionist missions overseas to limit the terms of their official emissaries to three years because a longer time period “might cause a break in the contact between the emissary and his family and the country.”
Other specific recommendations were that the United Jewish Appeal abolish immediately its “Israeli Department” which is active among Israelis living abroad; that the Israel Broadcasting Authority remove from the air immediately its weekly Hebrew television program for Israelis residing in New York, which is funded by Israel; and that national insurance payments to yordim be stopped immediately. It also demanded that the government revoke the passports of Israelis who have lived abroad for more than five years.
MEASURES REFLECT CONCERN OVER YERIDA
The harsh measures recommended reflected the committee’s concern over the apparent increase in yerida this year, which is expected to reach 15,000, and the fact that there are more Israel-born professionals and army veterans among these yordim than in past years. They outnumber foreign-born immigrants who left the country out of frustration, the committee said.
According to the Knesset body, the main cause of yerida was lack of national and Zionist identification and lack of appreciation of such basic values as home, country, language and culture. But the committee acknowledged that social issues were also responsible when it recommended that the State ensure adequate housing and employment for veterans similar to the benefits accorded new immigrants.
It also recommended that the government concentrate on efforts to prevent yerida and action among yordim to encourage them to return. It expressed concern over what it saw as a lack of coordination among the various bodies dealing with the matter and suggested that the Prime Minister’s Office coordinate these efforts.
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.
