The Board of Deputies of British Jews today adopted a resolution calling on the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany to give the Board representation on the Conference’s five-man praesidium. The resolution was adopted at a meeting where considerable criticism was voiced of the all-American composition of the praesidium, which is headed by Dr. Nahum Goldmann.
During the heated discussion it was pointed out that “there is still a great deal of work to be done on this side of the Atlantic” in behalf of obtaining payment of reparations claims. It was also stressed that since the United States was not in solitary occupation of Germany and that since representations would have to be made to Britain and France, local representative Jewish bodies would be invaluable in furthering the work of obtaining reparations payments.
Barnett Janner, chairman of the Board’s foreign affairs committee, who represented the organization at the meetings in New York of the Conference on Jewish Claims, said that in his discussions with the various leaders of the reparations organization he had been told it was intended to have representatives of the Board of Deputies on the praesidium. He reported that he first heard of the decision to establish such a praesidium on the day before he left New York to return to London.
Mr. Janner revealed that after the appointment of the five Americans to the praesidium the Board had cabled its protest to the New York headquarters of the Conference, but had received no reply. In addition, he said that it was “essential” that a Board representative should have attended the meeting in Paris between an Israeli delegation and the praesidium, but the Board was not invited to send such a delegate. He said there should not have been “manipulations” to prevent the attendance at the meeting of a Board representative.
L. Bakstansky, general secretary of the Zionist Federation of Britain, opposed passage of the resolution demanding Board representation on the praesidium. He insisted that nothing be done to delay the opening of negotiations with Germany.
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