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52 Pages
Thursday, November 22, 1984 Cheshvan 27, 5745 25^
Second Class Mail Registration Number 1683 - Postage Paid at Toronto
Governocrgeneral JeaniK Sauve was li gaddt lit the Council of Jewish Fed-
eratioiu in Toronto; Here, she talks with Mendd Kajplaii, world chairman of Keren Hayesod as a former world chairman, Phil Granovsky, looks on. [Graphic Artists photo]
Old system called obsolete
TORONTO -
Outgoing Council of Jewish Federations president Martin Citrin told the 2,800 persons attending the 53rd General Assembly — believed to be a record number — that the federations must reassess their "historical ways of doing business" in order to meet the extraordinary challenges facing. North
American Jewry and Israel-
He called for more emphasis on "the collective interest of the North American Jewish community" and more interdependence between federations in the United States and Canada.
Federations should consider *-the pooling of riesdurces, creating new
linkages, gearing up to react to crisis, streamlining and reallocating our human and flnancial resources,*' he said, **on the hasis of national and international priorities to a greater extrat than ever before."
The old way of doing business, ^'zealously guarding local autonomy in setting priorities and
objectives is no longer adequate and has become obsolete,'' said Citrin.
SlObillion
SHELDON KmSHNER
Lebanon presented Israel with a whopping bill last week, and Israel turned it down flat.
The Lebanese negotiator, at talks aimed at a withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanon, demanded $10 billion in war reparations for damage allegedly committed by Israel during its 1982 invasion;'
He also called for an immediate release of Lebanese prisoners in Israeli jails.
Israel described the^de-mand ifor war reparations as a "non-starter," and instead asked for a detailed Lebanese plan on security arrangements that would take effect if it
withdrew its troops.
The Israelis did not say wh&ther they would empty their prisons of Lebanese, but Israel did let go four Lebanese Shiite leaders seized on Nov. 8, the day the present military cUsciissions got underway under United Nations auspkes.
The Shiites were detained after yet another Israeli soldier was killed in an apibush, bringmg to 601 the total number of Israelis slain in Lebanon since the start of Israel's operatron in June of 1982.
The Lebanese government suspended the talks and agreed to a resumption only after Israel releaseid three of the Shiites. A fourth Was given his freedom a few days later.
According to otkservers, the success of the talks seem problematical.
Lebanon, having come un<ter heavy Syrian pressure, is against the presence of the Israeli-backed South Lebanon Army. Lebanon wants to deploy its army in areas vacated by Israel, but Israel distrusts the ability of the Lebaniese to police the Tegibn and prevent in-filtratwn of guerrillas into the noirthernjpalilee.
Syria, the preeminent Arab power, has already informed Israel it will not curb guerrilla raids after an Israeli puUback.
The talks, being held in the Lebanese town of Na-qura, are expected to be protracted and may yield few concrete results.
Shoshana Cardin ...new CJF president
The 5-day annual conference, held at the Sheraton Centre and Royal York Hotel, consisted of over i 00 sessions on a wide variety of topics of current concern to the North American Jewish community. The overall theme, "Thie Community Leader as a Learning Person, " said keynote speaker Jewish Theological Seminary chancellor Ger-son Cohen, reflects the im-portantrole lay peolejiave played throughout Jewish^ history and the need for them to be knowledgeable about JudaisrtT.
Much of the progriam-ming was devoted to particularly American concerns.- erosion of the prin-
(Cont'd on page 13)
U.S.asked
to ease
JANICE ARNOLD
TORONTO -
Israeli deputy prime minister Yitzhak Navon urged North American Jewry to join with the government of Israel in pulling its economy out of the current emergency situation.
Navon referred to an agreement reached by a committee of North American Jewish leaders and the Israeli government earlier in Jerusalem under which the communities of Canada and the United States will be mobilized to make concrete contributions to the restructuring of the Israeli economy, (CJN Nov. 8). Chairman of the committee is Max Fisher of Detroit, former chairman of the international board of governors of the Jewish Agency and past Council of Jewish Federations president. Co-chairman is Charles Bronfman of Montreal.
the specific goals of the plan are to: (1) increase funds raised through United Jewish Appeal and State of Israel Bonds; (2) increase the United Israel Appeal's allocations to Israel; (3) increase foreign Investment in Israel, and (4) find new markets for Israel's exports.
The agreement is an outgrowth of Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres' talks in Washington with President Ronald Reagan last month.
Navon, who is also minister of education and culture in the new national unity government, said Israel wants to base its economy on the most sophisticated level of industry, but "we need your help — your skills, brains and investment to create it.
"I ask you to join with us, to spare no effort to give concrete support to Israel's ultimate goal of economic independence."
Navon, the former presi-
woes
Yitzhak Navon ...attended GA
dent of Israel, was the keynote speaker at a plenary session of the General Assembly of the Council of Jewish Federations held last week in Toronto.
The committee of North American Jewish leaders has a parallel group in" Israel composed of Peres and cabinet ministers Yitzhak Modai, Moshe Arens and Gad Yaacobi.
Navon said the government is planning to cut another $500 mi I lion from its budget in addition to the $1 billion announced days after the new government was sworn in. Almost half
$10 billion — of the total annual budget of $21 billion now goes toward debt servicing, he said. Another $4Vi billion is earmarked for defence.
He said mismanagement oh the part of the previous Likud government was partly to blame. (Cont'd on page 13)
^ toos^,^ Jsrael
TORONTO -
Tremendous political possibilities have opened up for Israel as a result of the decline of Arab oil
in 2 parts
In this issue of The C JN, running throughout the Natiohal and World News sections, we bring you reports of the major sessions of the 5-day General Assembly of the CouncU of Jevtish Federations, held in Toronto last week.
With six of our staff reporters on the job to cover the more than 100 sessions, it was a tough editorial decision selecting the ones we felt had to be covered. We believe we picked the ones which will attract the interest of most readers.
But we ran out of space in this edition! So there will be a second report on the GA Nov. 29.
power, the civil war within the PLO and Israel's alliance with the U.S., the Israeli ambassador to the United Nations said here last week.
Binyamin Netanyahu^ in a wide-ranging survey of Israel' s position on the world stage, cited two immediate consequences which have already occurred because of the flagging influence of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
During the 1982 war in Lebanon, the Arab oil producers never onc^ brandished the threat of an embargo, as they did in the wake of the 1973 Torn Kippur War.
And the Arab world, he added, lost s6me of its clout fin Black Africa when African leaders discovered that they could not obtain cheap oil and endle^ economic aid from the Arabs.
Addressing the 53rd
(Cont'd, on page 13)
TEL AVIV (JTA) -
The cost-of-living index rose by 24-3% during October, another record, but lower than had been feared in forecasts by officials and economists before the announcement.
The Central Bureau of Statistics said that inflation by the end of the year would be about 500%.
Israelis will feel a drop in their living standards this month. As the increase this month is under 25%, the COL allowance would have increased by only 80% of the rise. Biit under an economic package deal, empbyees forego one-third of the "normal" increase. They will thus receive on Dec. 1 only'a 12.8% increase in gross income.
The October increase does not represent any changes due to the economic freeze, this will begin to be felt only next month, when the COL rrse is expected to be stillhigh,
hopefully followed by lower increases as the package deal begins to be â– felt.
Meanwhile, a committee of senior finance ministry officials and academicians is working on plans to forestall a feared resurgence of hyperinflation when the present wage-price freeze package expires in January, Experts have predicted that February would be the critical month for the economy.
They say it will be known by then whether the freeze put a permanent brake on inflation or whether it will burst out anew once the wage price ^restraints are lifted.—
The team preparing for the post-freeze period consists of the director-general of the finance ministry, Emanuel Sharon; Deputy Finance Minister Adi Amorai; and two . economists, Prof Michael Bruno and Eitan Berglass.
Finance Minister Yitzhak Modai maintainis that a new round of inflation after the freeze is not inevitable. He said last week that much depends on the behavior of the public and predicted a gradual but significant slowdown in the inflation rate between now and January.
The freeze is creating difficulties of enforcement. The press reported a multitude of cases where merchants are simply ignoring the government-established maximum prices. Several dozeii merchants have been hauled to court for violations.
Police action against black market money changers has had little ef-fectj^however, despite the arrest of five dealers in Jerusalem. Illegal transactions in foreign currency simply moved' to side streets and continued undisturbed.