LEFT TO THE LEAGUE COUNCIL.

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 160, 24 July 1937, Page 4

LEFT TO THE LEAGUE COUNCIL.

There can be no question as to Mr Neville Chamberlain having taken office as Prime Minister of the United Eangdoni at a time when its Government had an exceptionally big handful of international problems with which to deal. Ihough perhaps not one of the very greatest immediate moment, still one that has very many important possible implications for the future, is the problem of Palestine. For one thing, it has to be considered in connection with the Mediterranean question, which at the moment holds so forward a place in British policy. For Great Britain' 's trade. and other communications with India and the Far East, and in minor degree with he* Pacific dominions and possessions also, free passage of the Red Sea is of almost as vital consequence as that of the Mediterranean. In fact, in that respect, one is of no great use without the other. In his review of foreign affairs at the beginning of the week Mr Anthony Eden made this fairly plain rwlien he said that "it had always been and was to-day a major British interest that no great Power should establish itself on the eastern shore of the Red Sea." That shore and practically the whole region lying behind it are mainly in the possession and occupation of Arab peoples under one rule or another and it is an open secret that Italy — herself the chief menace to British interests in the Mediterranean — has been using her utmost endeavour to ingratiate herself with them and, inci dentally, to stir up feeling against Great Britain, Then, as we know, in his recent triumphal tour through North Africa, largely inhahited by people of the Ai'ab hlood, Signor Mussolini proclaimed himself as soinetliing of a chanipion of Islam and its aspiratipns, thus also greatly encouraging the visions entertained of re-establishing a great consolidated Arabie Empire with its lieadquarters in the Red Sea region, and, of course, with Italy as its chief European supporter. There is thus every good reason why the British Government in dealing with the Arah-Jewish diffxculty over, Palestine should exercise care to give full and just consider ation to Arab claims even in that little country. It is not to be forgotten that, from the Arab point of view, it is the Jews who are interlopers in Palestine. That they have flocked thither at the virtual and, as the Arabs "regard it, quite unjustifiable invitation of Great Britain, as expressed in the Balfour Declaration, makes the situation only the more difficult and delicate. As for the Jews they, like mnay others Britain has taken under her sheltering wing, have but little thought for anything except their own peculiar interests and would seek. to interpret the Balfour Declaration as a pledge to re-establish Palestine as a wholly Jewish possession and to keep Britain up to the complete fiilfilment of that entirely voluntary promise, regardless altogether of how it might affect British mterests .otherwhere. It is probably useless at this stage to point out, as does the Colonial Secretary, Mr Ormsby-Gore, that this is an altogether false interpretation of the Declaration, which he says promised "not that Palestihe should be a home for .the Jews, but merely that there should be a Jewish national home in Palestine," a very different thing, of course. The fact is that, as not seldom in her history, Great Britain has landed herself in something of a false position by allowing sympathies with an oppressed people to lead her into commitraents of which the evdhtual outcome were unforeseeable. However, the latest development shows the whole question to have been shelved for a ilttle time. The British Government had declared its adoption of its Commission 's recommendations for a division of Palestine between Jews and Arabs as embodying its own proposals to he laid before the League's Mandate Commission at Geneva. When, however, parliamentary confirmation of this procedure was sought the Government found the House of Commons in anything but an altogether compliant mood. Mr Winston ' Churchill, always something of a thorn in the side of any Government he professes. to support, came forward with an amendment to the effect that the Commission's proposals shoul dfirst be submitted for discussion by the Mandate Commission, leaving it for Parliament to deal with it in the light of any further suggestions the League might have to advance. This amendment has bxeen accepted, possibly something to the relief of the Government, which will thus have a good deal of the responsibility as to final decision lifted from its shoulders and, presumably/ leaving both Jews and Arabs to lay their cases directly before the League Commission.