NEWS AND VIEWS
Turkish Legislation and Palestine Settlement
The Berlin correspondent of the London Evening Standard writes in the issue of January 2nd, 1912, as follows:
"A few days ago a number of Continental papers published a report from Constantinople that the Ministerial Council was drafting a law for the prohibition of the settlement of Jews in Syria and Palestine. The report has naturally aroused much uneasiness in Jewish, and particularly Zionist, circles, but the real significance to be attached to it may be appreciated from a brief survey of the development of the past thirty years.
"As early as 1882 the Turkish Government passed a restrictive law against the immigration of Jews who, driven forth by the severe persecutions in Russia, came to Palestine and founded the first Jewish colonies there. Ten years later a formal prohibition of immigration was decreed. These measures were really prompted by the fear that a large settlement of Russian Jews would provide the Russian government with the desired pretext for continually interfering in Turkish affairs.
“The fact 15 that the Russian government treats those Jews who settle in the Orient upon quite different principles from its Jewish subjects in Russia itself. As soon as they have left Russia they are considered “real Russians,” and carefully “protected.” Although the immigration — reStrictions have now been in existence thirty years, the fact that the Turkish government does not assume a really anti-Jewish attitude is evident from the circumstance that in the period from 1882-1896 twenty-five Jewish colonies were founded in Palestine, and since then another ten colonies have been founded, without any appreciable difficulties being caused by the government.
“So far as the situation todav is concerned, there have, indeed, heen indications of an anti-Semitic tendency from time to time since the Revolution, but these have been artifically aroused from without to serve the political purpose of foreign agents.
"The Jewish question was also exploited in the internal political struggles which led to the memorable debate on Zionism in the Turkish Chamber last spring. The object of the opposition in that debate was to compromise the ministry. Some time ago a bill drafted by Ferid Pasha for the restriction of Jewish immigration was discussed by the Turkish Council of Ministers, but it was rejected on the ground that it was contrary to the dealing with the question of Jewish immigration was submitted to the State Council, but nothing whatsoever is known about its actual contents.
"The report in the "Temps" that a prohibition of immigration is intended is a pure assumption. It can hardly be supposed that the Turkish Government, harassed by internal confusion, now proposes to bring the Jewish immigration question to a definite settlement. In any case, now that the cabinet has resigned, it is likely to be a long time before the bill will make its appearance in the chamber, and it will then be seen whether it is favorable or unfavorable to Jewish immigration into Palestine.
"The existing restrictions, as already observed, are of no practical importance. The passing of a law forbidding the immigration of foreign Jews would be strictly opposed to the international agreements made by Turkey, as pointed out by the "Berliner Tageblatt." The capitulations guarantee every foreigner the right to settle in Turkey and acquire property, and a limitation of this right to the disadvantage of the Jews would be untenable from the point of view of international law."
Jewish Aid for the Turkish Fleet
The committee of the Hebrew Gymnasium (high school) organized in conjunction with the other Hebrew schools in Jaffa a Hebrew Soirée in the Chanukah week, the proceeds of which were remitted to the Ottoman Navy League.