Two members of the Jewish community here have given interviews to the press in which they expressed their confidence in Neo-Destour leader Habib Bourguiba, who recently returned to Tunisia after years of exile in France. The two Jewish leaders are Albert Bessis, former president of the local Keren Hayesod, and Serge Moatti, a former director of the Jewish journal “La Justice” and a Tunisian Socialist leader.
M. Bessis, who served as an expert consultant to the Tunisian delegation which negotiated Tunisian autonomy with the French, said M. Bourguiba’s assurances of equality for all Tunisians without distinction as to race or religion will enable a unified Tunisia to go forward to material prosperity with high morale, which will serve as an example to the mother country.
M. Moatti praised the consideration given to Jewish citizens by M. Bourguiba and his close associates. This consideration, in turn, merits the highest respect, he added, because in it lies the guarantee of complete understanding without which nothing can be achieved.
Ahmed Ben Salah, leader of the Tunisian Trade Union Federation, confirmed today the organization’s determined stand against all forms of discrimination and “religious fanaticism.” In a statement, Mr. Ben Salah said the federation’s central committee had taken this stand, and he called upon all Jewish and Christian workers in Tunisia to rally to his organization.
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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.
