POLICY IN PALESTINE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 9 December 1938, Page 7

POLICY IN PALESTINE

DEBATE IN THE HOUSE OF LORDS HOPES OF STEADY PROGRESS. CONDITIONS OF AGREEMENT. (British Official Wireless.) (Received This Day, 10.42 a.m.) In a debate on Palestine in the House of Lords, nearly all the speakers agreed with the Government's decision to hold discussions in London. Lord Harlech said his view was that Jewish settlement would grow very slowly, but on sure foundations. To bring such a policy to fruition, there must be friendly co-operation, and growth must not be too fast. The tragedy of the policy of the Jewish national home in Palestine was that it had been made a refuge because of Jewish persecution. Emigration into Palestine had grown from eleven thousand a year to an inrush of from 60,000 to 70,000, mainly owing to German persecution. Neither an Arab nor a Jewish Government would be a solution, and he was convinced that the only hope of success for the round-table conference was *to make it perfectly clear that the British administration-would go on in Palestine.

The Marquess of Lothian suggested that the introduction of the federal principle might go far to solve the problem and that a great deal, would depend on getting a measure of agreement between the parties.

Earl Swinton maintained that there should be no relaxation of the British Government’s efforts to maintain law and order against the campaign of violence. He believed it was possible to get co-operation between the two races in Palestine.

The Marquess of Dufferin and Ava, replying for the Government, denied that there was any truth in the charge that Ministers had rushed with undue haste into accepting a policy of partition. The Government had to act, and it believed that both sides would have accepted that solution. The Government was right in believing that. However many factors had intervened to destroy that effort, and the Arabs had concentrated against the policy of partition. If there had been a desire to work the scheme it would have succeeded, but as there was no desire to work it., it was doomed to fail. The Government, therefore, had to try to discover some other way out of the difficulty. It was true that the Arab campaign of violence still continued, but there had been a great diminution in the number of outrages since the reinforcement of British forces and great progress had been made in restoring authority in those areas which had fallen into the hands of Arab gangs. That policy would continue until, by other means, appeasement was reached in Palestine.

DEPORTED ARABS RELEASE APPRECIATED. LOCAL AMNESTY SUGGESTED. (Independent Cable Service.) (Received This Day, 10.10 a.m.) JERUSALEM, December 8. Arab circles appreciate Mr Malcolm MacDonald’s conciliatory gesture, in the release of deported Arabs, and suggest that an amnesty to Arabs and Jews detained locally would help to ensure goodwill. It is hoped that the return of those deported will lead to the higher Arab Committee choosing inter-party representation at the London conference.