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The Canadian Jewish News, Thursday, August 9,1984 - Page 9
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SIMON GRIVER
JERUSALEM [WZPS]—
Yigael Yadin, who died at the age of 67 on June 28 (CJN July 19), was a native born Israeli whose versatile qualities typified the abilities and ideals of the nascent Jewish
■.."state..,,
Yadin was a modern Maccabee who combined an intellectual pursuit of history and place with courage and prowess in defense of his people.
Yadin *s activities and interests spanned the past, present and future Of his people. Indeed, at his funeral in the military cemetery On Mount Herzl, President Ghaim Herzog's eulogy referred to Yadin as "a living bridge between ancient and modern history."
The eulogy was hideed poignant; for as one of the world's leading archeologists, Yadfai uncovered the richness of the Jewish heritage, while as Israel's second chief of staff, he was the architect of the defence forces that protected the presence of the Jewish people in its homieland.
As deputy prime minister, Yiatdin demonstrated his passionate concern for social niatters and the future of his people.
Born in Jerusalem on March 21, 1917, he was the son of archeologist Eliezer Sukenik and educationalist Hassia (nee Fainsod). His father gained international acclaim for recognizing the authenticity of the Dead Sea Scrolls, and his mother was a renowned pioneer of early childhood educational methods.
Yadin himself graduated from the Hebrew Gymnasium High School in 1934 and went straighten to the Hebrew University to stu' y archeology. By that time, he was already a member of the Haganah, the pre-state Jewish defence forces.
It was in the Haganah that he began his rise to fame, He was appointed commander of the Jerusalem district, and afterwards head of the officers' training school, before leaving the academic, life in 1947 to becoirie the Haganah's chief of operations. In this post Yadin was responsible for planning and executing Israeli army operations during the War of Independence in 1948.
One year after Israel gained independence, Yadih became the Israel Defence Forces' second chief of staff. In the subsequent three years belaid the foundations for the fledgling army to become a well organized modern military machine.
He introduced conscription and pefhaps, most significantly, he devised the system, of long-term reserve duty which truly made the IDF a citizens' army. ,
Yadin, and then Prime Minister David Ben Gurion, shared a mutual respect for each
Prof. Yigael Yadin leading Ben-Gurion to the lower pavilion of King Herod's palace on Masada, 1963. Yadhi, soldiers, scholar, politician as well as one of the world's leading archeologists, died June 28 at the age of 67. [WZPS photo]
other, but their strong wills led them to In the world Of archeology Yadin's fame occasionally clash over important policy spread worldwide. He analyzed much of the matters. In 1952 Yadin resigned following Dead Sea Scrolls and other Second CommOn-budget cuts in the army which he felt were wealth writings. Amongst his better known unnecessarily imposed by the government,    finds were the Bar Kochba letters, the
Yadin then returned to his first love — archeology. He was also a family man. He had married Carmejla Ruppin, the daughter of Zionist leader Arthur Ruppin, and they had two daughters (Carmella died in 1976).
Ben Gurion and other leaders frequently tried to coax Yadin back into public life, offering him senior cabinet portfolios. But he always asserted that he was not cut out for the rough and tumblelife of politics. A sentiment that was to be prOven true when he finally entered the fray during the 1977 election campaign.
excavations at Hazor and their water systems, and most famous of alli his organization of the dig at Masada.
For these achievements Yadin received an avalanche of awards. In 1956 he received the Israel Prize for Jewish Studies, hi 1959 he was named professor of archeology at Brandeis University, gaining the same position at the Hebrew University in 1963. In 1964 he was elected to the French Academy of Sciences... the first Israeli to he sO honored.
Aithough , he formally never entered politics during this period, Ya:lin did take on
vital national responsibilities. He sat oh a commission that examined the country's intelligence and security services, and in 1967 became military advisor to Prime Minister Levi Eshkol. Following the Yom Kippur War he was a member of the Agrahat Commission, appointed to investigate Israel's failure of preparedness prior to the Egyptian-Syrian attacks.
It was Yadin's involvement in post-1973 soul searchingthat probably propelled him to spearhead a new party, the Democratic Movement for Change. After 29 years of Labor rule, Yadin led the new party which was pledged to electoral reform of the Israeli political system, came from nowhere to take 15 seats in the 1977 election, and become the third largest Knesset party. ■
In forming the party, Yadin had anticipated that he could become a purifying coalition partner of Labor, Instead, partly due to the DMC's success at the polls at the expense of Labor, MenachemBegin's Likud was able to form a coalition with the religious parties. After much discussion, the DMC decided to join the government and Yadin was appointed deputy prime minister.
Yadin was outwardly unhappy ■ about Begin's policies, which favored expanded settlement in Judea and Samaria, but his involvement with the Camp David peace process made him feel that his participation was justified.
However, most of the PMC felt otherwise. The Shinui faction, led by Amnon Rubinistein, broke away immediately, and Yaidin's party literally disintegrated as it was unable to alter Begin's policies, nor implement the electoral reform upon which its piarty platform was primarily baised.
If Yadin did make an impact, it was in the field of social affairis where his endeavors contributed to closing the social gap between Ashkehazim arid Sephanlim. He was co-chairman of Project Renewal firom the start and did much to get that program, which has achieved impressivie results, off the grourid.
Following the 1981 elections, in which he did not participate, Yadin returned to archeology and seldom spoke about his foray into - politics. His wife's cousin, Eitah Ruppin. claims that Yadin feh that he had made a mistake entering politics, but was; never bitter about his decision.
Involved in archeology once again, Yadin remained actiye until the, end, despite a worrying heart condition. On that fateful day in June he \yent to his vacation home in Michmoret near Haifa, He complained of pains to his actor brother Yossi Yadin and then collapsed lifeless to the ground.
■■/-By : VIGALHADEFF
■TEL;AVIV-
In most countries of the world you can find a black market if you know where to look. In most countries of the world there is some commodity — more, often than not the ubiquitous American dollar — which iis being surreptitiously bought and isold at prices considerably higher than the legal rate.
But what is remairfcable about the Israeli black market Is that although the transaction of dollars anywhere other than in the banks is totaUy iUegal, it takes place blatantly, with the foU knowledge of the police and under the nose of the authorities.
In fact, on several occasions In recent weeks, so great was the discrepancy [35%] between the official shekel price for the dollar and thebhick market price for the dollar, that most of the' country's newspapers splashed the "lUegal" price in bold headUnes right acrass the top of Page 1. Not to be outdone/ IsraelTelevision weighed hi by broadcasting the black market rate for the dollar hi Its major 9 p.m. news.
Moshe Lilienblum was a 19th century Zionist leader. The street named after him cuts across the heart Of industrial Tel Aviv and is Within-^asy walking distance of Allenby, King George and the Shalom Tower. It is also the heart of Israel's black market. Many of the buildings on Lilienblum are worn, ^ome are dilapidated, virtually all show signs of having lived through most of Tel Aviv's 75-year history. This is where Tel Aviv began.
Now, the latter-day attraction of cosmo-
politan stores and neon lights has inevitably enticed the tourist and modern shopper to Dizengoff, Hayarkon and Ben-Yehuda. But Lilienblum remains the city's industrial centre and here, as well as East Jeruisalem's Salah-e-Din St., is where Israel's Jjlack market flourishes.
The market Operates oh the most basic law of economics — supply and demand. And with the swiftly eroding value of the shekel, which buys less with each passing day, the demand for dollars among Israelis has rocketed to unprecedented proportions.
When the state came into existence in 1948 black markets sprang up for every imaginable product. As the country got on its feet and shortages were steadily eliminated, they disappeared — except for the one which sold foreign cash. In the earlydays of the state you were allowed to take $5 out of the country as traveling allowance — a stringent law which spurred the activity of the black money market as Isi-aelis sought to supplement the allowance. Intermittent devaluations of the lira aided fuel to the situation, which received an injection of foreign capital — and therefore of illicit activity — after the 1967 war, when foreign Arabs began sending money to their families inside Israel's newly-defined borders.
Then Yoram Aridor's finance ministry and the Bank of Israel radically disajjpeared as dollars became freely available over the counter. "
Inevitably, the situation'gotout of hand — and a staggering $700 million flew out of the country. Yigal Cohen-Orgad took over the finance ministry, the screws were tightened — and Lilienblum and Salah-e^Din were back in business.
As recently as last year you lowered your voice when you approached the area, glanced nervously over your shoulder and furtively inquired where one bought dollars and for how much. Today questions are unnecessary: the queues stretching out of the approximately 22 dealers' shops are all you need to look out for, and the price is clearly audible to anyone who cares to stroll past.
The only missing item is a flashing sign reading "Black Market."
Even a passing police car does not deter the "businessmen" who range from well dressed executives, diplomats and clergymen to ishabbily dressed tramps clutching a fistful of / IGOO-shekel notes. .
The dealers are mainly of East-European origin, wearing dark coats, even in the summer heat, and misshapen felt hats.
The anomaly of the black macfcet — the fact that it is so blatant yet the police do not clamp down — has inevitably elicit^ a great deal of curiosity and comment both here in Israel and abroad. One theory has it that an faidividual named Kalmari, Who Is in fact an official of the Bank of Israel, regulariy floods the market with dollars in order to bring the price down. This claim gained credence recently when the black market price for the dollar was 35% above the official rate — but within a week plummeted to 12 V7 % above the official rate. No one has ever seen Kalman, if he exists at all, but the rapid fluctuations of the black market price strongly suggest that someone is manipulaiing, if not controlling It.
Some argue that the market serves a purpose, which is why the police ignore it; they reason that a large percentage of the dollars comes from tourists and are being bought by Israelis not intending to travel but
merely wanting to hold dollars under the mattress rather than shekels in the bank, so at least it is foreign exchange entering the country.
Others insist that if the black market were to close down people would have to find an alternative source of ready dollars and would turn eventually to brokers, thereby drawing law abiding citizens into an illegal sector of society. .
The attorney-general and the Bank of Israel say it is up to the police to crack down on the black market; the police say they don't have the manpower.
It is clear, however, that the big fish don't come to Lilienblum. The police obviously prefer to devote their energy to chasing the big-timers, rather than to the small man who comes to buy $1,000. they concentrate instead on syndicates which regularly channel hundreds of thousands of dollars at a time out of the country to numbered accounts or pre-arranged dropoff points in Europe or the United States.
London, other than Switzerland, has become the popular venue for Israelis, to deposit their cash, as foreign currency accounts are readily available in English banks since the abolition of British-currency controls in 1979, and it is certainly easier to explain to Israeli authorities repeated passports stamps marked London thanit would be to explain a plethora of Zurich entries.
Obviously, Lilienblum and Salah-e-Din continue operating because the authorities have chosen to let them continue operating. As far as is known, no black mairket money changer has ever been closed down. And still they come, the groomed executives and the shabbily dressed tramps ...