Zionist Reports Dutch Government Did Not Offer Haven to 30,000 Jews in Surinam

The charge that the Dutch Government has not offered a haven to 30,000 Jewish refugees in Surinam despite an announcement to that perfect by the Freeland League last year, has been made here by Mrs. Archibald Silverman, noted American Zionist who visited a number of countries on behalf of the Jewish National Fund and the Palestine Foundation Fund. Mrs. Silverman recently returned from a trip to Dutch Guiana. Mrs. Silverman, who interviewed a number of government, business and labor leaders in Surinam, stated that the government of the Netherlands colony has agreed admit some 200 specially trained, physically fit and skilled displaced Jews from ?rope who are to lay a foundation for others to follow. The plan, which Mrs. Silverman asserted has not yet been accepted but is still being debated in the government, Alls for the clearing of Jungles, building of roads and dykes, construction of games, a hospital, schools and places of entertainment as well as the development of agriculture and industry during the first five years, after which the government will decide upon a taxation rate and will lease the land to the Jews for 75 years. She stressed that the Jews will not own the land, merely rent it from the government. She also insisted that before any contract is signed between the Jews and the government all funds required for completion of the entire resettlement program

FREELAND LEAGUE TERMS REPORT “ABSOLUTE DISTORTION OF TRUTH”

The Freeland League, replying to Mrs. Silverman’s charges, termed them “an absolute distortion of the truth from beginning to end.” A statement issued by the League said that the organization would not go into polemics about the details, but would limit itself “to refuting the main accusation casting doubt on the veracity” of the League’s declarations.

“On April 20, 1947,” the League’s statement said, “a three-member delegation of the Freeland League concluded in Paramaribo a preliminary agreement with the government commission of Surinam, on the main points of the colonization plan. On November 26th, Dr. E. Sassen, delegate of the Netherlands Government, declared before the General Assembly of the United Nations: ‘Recently, on the initiative of the state of Surinam and the legislature in that part of the realm, and with the wholehearted support of my government, an agreement was concluded with a Jewish organization named The Freeland League, providing for large-scale resettlement in Surinam, in principle of 30,000 Jews.”

“On December 4, 1947 in an official letter to the Freeland League, Dr. J.C. Brons, the Governor of Surinam wrote as follows: I take this opportunity to state that the coming of this commission (Experts Commission of the Freeland League) is in conformity with the decisions of the legislative Council of Surinam and of the Netherlands government to admit 30,000 Jews into Surinam for colonization.”