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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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Israel
Index
Principal among these bodies were the World Zionist
Organization
(WZO--see Glossary)
and the Jewish Agency. The Jewish
Agency for Palestine was established in 1929 under the terms of the
League of Nations Mandate for Palestine as the operative arm of the
WZO in building a Jewish national homeland. In 1952 the Knesset
enacted the World Zionist Organization-The Jewish Agency (Status)
Law, defining the WZO as "also the Jewish Agency." The 1952 law
expressly designated the WZO as "the authorized agency which will
continue to operate in the State of Israel for the development and
settlement of the country, the absorption of immigrants from the
Diaspora and the coordination of activities in Israel of Jewish
institutions and organizations active in those fields." The same
statute granted tax-exempt status to the Jewish Agency and the
authority to represent the WZO as its action arm for fund raising
and, in close cooperation with the government, for the promotion of
Jewish immigration. The specifics of cooperation were spelled out
in a covenant entered into with the government in 1954. The 1954
pact also recognized the WZO and the Jewish Agency as official
representatives of world Jewry.
These two bodies played a significant role in consolidating the
new State of Israel, absorbing and resettling immigrants, and
enlisting support from, and fostering the unity of, the Diaspora.
Their activities included organizing immigration, resettling
immigrants, assisting their employment in agriculture and industry,
education, raising funds abroad, and purchasing land in Israel for
settlers through the Jewish National Fund (Keren Kayemet). In
principle, the WZO was responsible mainly for political and
organizational matters important to Zionists--Jewish education in
the Diaspora and supervision of the Jewish National Fund--whereas
the Jewish Agency's main concern was for financial and economic
activities. In practice, the division of functions was more often
obscured, resulting in a duplication of efforts and a bureaucratic
morass.
In 1971 the relationship between the WZO and the Jewish Agency
was reconstituted as part of a continuing effort to improve the
operations of these bodies and to harmonize and strengthen ties
between the state and the Diaspora. The need for this step was
thought to be particularly acute after the June 1967 War, when
contributions to Israel from previously uncommitted sections of the
Diaspora reached unprecedented proportions. Impressed by the show
of support, the congress of the WZO, which is usually convened
every four years, directed the Jewish Agency to initiate
discussions with all fund-raising institutions working for Israel.
The purpose of these negotiations was to establish a central
framework for cooperation and coordination between the Jewish
Agency and other fund-raising groups. These discussions led to an
agreement in 1971 whereby the governing bodies of the Jewish Agency
were enlarged not only to provide equal representation for Israeli
and Diaspora Jews but also to ensure a balance in geographical
representation. The reconstitution helped to address the
long-standing grievance of non-Zionist and non-Israeli supporters
of Israel that the Jewish Agency was dominated by Israel-based
Zionists.
Under the 1971 rearrangement, the WZO was separated in terms of
its functions, but not its leadership, from the Jewish Agency. This
was necessary because of the restrictive provision of the United
States tax code pertaining to contributions and gifts. Those of its
activities that were "political" or otherwise questionable from a
tax-exemption standpoint had to be grouped separately and placed
under the WZO. The organization was directed to "continue as the
organ of the Zionist movement for the fulfillment of Zionist
programs and ideals," but its operations were to be confined mainly
to the Diaspora. Among the main functions of the WZO after 1971
were Jewish education, Zionist organizational work, information and
cultural programs, youth work, external relations, rural
development, and the activities of the Jewish National Fund. For
the most part, these functions were financed by funds funneled
through the Jewish Agency, which continued to serve as the main
financial arm of the WZO. However, because of United States tax law
stipulations, funds allocated for the WZO by the Jewish Agency were
required to come from those collected by
Keren HaYesod
(Israel Foundation Fund--see Glossary),
the agency's financial arm in
countries other than the United States.
The Jewish Agency's task was not only to coordinate various
fund-raising institutions but also to finance such programs as
immigration and land settlement and to assist immigrants in matters
of housing, social welfare, education, and youth care. The United
Jewish Appeal (UJA, sometimes designated the United Israel Appeal)
raised the agency's funds in the United States. In the 1980s,
contributions and gifts from the United States usually accounted
for more than two-thirds of the total revenue of the Jewish Agency.
In 1988 American Jews donated US$357 million to Israel through the
UJA.
The Jewish National Fund was the land-purchasing arm of the
WZO. It dealt mainly with land development issues such as
reclamation, afforestation, and road construction in frontier
regions. Keren HaYesod provided partial funding for programs, which
were implemented in close cooperation with the Jewish Agency and
various government ministries.
Data as of December 1988
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