^ . . ..
Page 2 - The Canadian Jewish News, Thursday, December 17, 1981
World-lVational
M-T V
ance
Rabbi Plant
By RABBI W. GUNTHER PLAUT
r- Unmarked.letters reaching my desk are not a "rarity. These anoriymous missiles usually contain attacks on me or the Jewish people or the Hum^ Rights Commission; frequently they threaien me andalways'revile me in terms which 1 do not care to reproduce in print.
Butihe other day an oversized'envelope of a different sort came frdm an ' unnamed sender. This time the content was different:
Dear Rabbi Plaiii —
Apropos your recent moving article about the Holocaust .memorial meeting (the writer referred to the Liberators' meeting in Washington) and your comments ^bout '."revisionists" (meaning, people who deny that the Holocaust took place) I enclose some vile garbage which reached me through the mail in response to a furious letter by me commenting on a credulous magazine anicle. which blandly stated that the Nazi extermination camps simply "never existed." There is a strong Nazi revival which should be countered, now.
Sincerely.
■ One Outraged Non-Jew
Enclosed were publications which the Writer w-as now forwarding to me. 1 had seen these types of publications before. However. 1 noticed a general upgrading of the stuff. It has taken on a professional look. Obviously the revisionists are now calling on competent layout artists and have enough money to translate their material into a respectable format.
The publishing outfit calls itself Steppingstones Publications and claims that it has "the nation's best selection on Americana, politics, anthropology, genetics, social movements, history and philosophy." A pretentious claim which reaches the reader frorh Silver Springs\ Maryland. .
By far the largest amount of space in the particular issue I was sent is taken up by a review
of Paul. Rassiriier'.s book, "The Drama, of the European Jews." Rassinier is a French profe;ssor who. like.his American counterpart Arthur Butz, presents a "scholarly" volume on the thesis that theHolocaust never took place. I notice with some dismay that the book is already in its third piinting in the American edition~(it was this book, incidentally, to which Noam Chomsky wrote an introduction, thereby unwittingly giving the thesis added credibility).
To convey the idea of what is involved, let me quote the last paragraph of the review:
"Icouldgodri at great length in regard to all the fraud, half-truths, fabrications and swindles involved in this legend (that six million died) but I believe the reader should read the Rassinier book, and judge for himself. Professor Rassinier rejects the propaganda figure of the six miillion on the basis of a very detailed, well documented statistical study based overwhelmingly on Jewish sources...."
And so h goes. The editor trots out— often with illustrations .—- book after book of the new revisionist advocacy. Featured is a picture book on Adolf Hitler, decorated by the fuehrer's familiar state portrait. Other books talk about the "threatened extermination of the German people." National Socialist ideology, a volume called "Germany Awakes!" rwhich was originally published by the Nazis in December 1933.
The very- mass of the material constitutes another proof — if proof is indeed still needed — that the revisionist movement is gaining a wider circle of readers. It imposes on us and our friends the responsibility for letting the facts of the Holocaust be fully known.
1 know that some people are tired of talking about the subject and say "enough already!" In the resolute spirit of the forthcoming Chanukah holiday we must say to them over and over again: if we let the world forget, the world will begin to believe that it never happened. If it believes that it never happened, it will come to believe that it could never happen.
Judah Maccabee called his people to physical resistance. Ours is a call to spiritual strength, 'inieliectual vigor and continuous vigilance,
Soviet build-up of weapons is greatest danger to peace
ByBEVERLEYSTERN
TORONTO —
The greatest danger to world peace comes from the Soviet Union's mUitary bolld-ap and expansion of its client states around the world, Paul Robinson, U.S. ambassador to Canada, recently told a meeting of the Beth Sholom brotherhood, held in the S3magogue.
It was Robinson's first public appearance in Toronto since his nomination by U!S. President RonaJd Reagan in the. sainmer. Robiiison, 51, a strong Reagan supporter, was an international, businessman who headed a flnh of
, specialist brokers in group insurance and mutual funds prior to his diploma-,tic post.
A finance chairman.for the Reagan 1979-80 primary dampaigri in IlUndis. his home state, Robinson; .. confined his: rertiarks on. Israel to expressions of support from Reagan and his administration. "The U.S, position will always be hi favor of a strongly independent arid free state of Israel,";he
■ said. He added that the sale of AWACS to Saudi^ Arabia should only be construed in the context of "United States' attempts to defend \i& interests in the Middle East. No other signaJ was intended, '■' he said.
. ':' the m-eeting attracted about 400 people including many dignitaries such: as John Aird, lieutenant-governor of Ontario, Jack Ackroyd, chief of police, Larry Grossman and Den-. nis Timbrell, both mem- ; bers of the Ontario cabinet; as well as members of the judiciary,, muhicipal politicians and the Metro Toronto police, force, Co- , . chairmen of the dinner were Mendel Green and Frank Cadesky.
Primarily, Robinson looked at Canada-United States relationships arid fired salvos at the Soviet Union which, he said, had embarked on an unparalleled military build-up over the last 20 years which bore no relationship to its needs.
Afgiiing in favor of increased defence expenditure in the United States, Robinson siaid he supported Reagian's view that the United States must act "to ■ prevent our adversaries from underestimating its resolve to . protect' its;: homeland or its allies." ;
. : Robinson,, who was a -
commissioned officer in the U.S. Navy during the Korean war, said World War II could have been avoided if the West had been better prepared miiitarilv.
■ He urged NATO's 15 partners, including ; Canada. . to increase their defence expenditures. In . particular, he siid that while defence provisions in the new federal budget had risen, they were still too low, in his opinion.
■ 'We know we can count on Canada when the chips are down but weneed your
■ help now," said Robinson. •
He made no comment ori ■ the growing peace movement protesting:con-tinued nuclear arms buildup in Europe, but indicated there was insufficient . appreciation of Soviet Onion expansion not only
■ across Eastern Europe but through the Middle East. Africa .and Centra! America..
While the United States had reduced its. arms ex-, penditures. by. 20% .over the last 10 years, the Soviet' Union took that opportunity to outpace the U.S. in. field .'artillery, tanks, submarines and other weaponry, he said,
On the . matter of Canada-United States relation s h i p's.. R o b i n s o n, who . has Canadian ancestry originating in a farm ; community north of Kingston. O.ni.,was both approving and critical.
He applauded the 5,500 mile unguarded Canada-United States border across which goods arid people traveled to the great benefit of both nations and said that it was the ^'envy of the World."
But he acknowledged i there werie serious prob- -; lems between' the United States and Canada on the. matters of the National Energy Policy [NEP], the fisheries boundaries dispute and acid rain falloritv
■ Robinson dispelled notions that U.S. businessmen were opposed to Canadianization of the oil and gas industries,. Rather, he said, "we object to your'federal government's methods. The government is changing the riiles of the game in the middle of the play." he said.
Specifically, he referred to the.25% that American . firms ha vetoforfeit on their discoveries on crown land retroactive to October 1980. Robinson said he objected to such' retro-, activity and would like to see a "greater sense of fair play."
At present, foreign companies control 60 to 70% of Canada's oil and gas production. The NEP goal is to reduce foreign ownership in those industries to at least 50% by 1990.
Robinson also referred to FIR A, the foreign investment review agency, as an agency "which has grown like Topsy in the last seven years." He
expressed hope that FIRA's screening of foreign investment, which has already affected many American firms.would not get any tougher.
As for acid rain fallout, Robinson claimed that while 50% of the pollution which falls on Canada is generated by the United States, about 25% of the fallout on the New England states comes from Canada.
"Pollution is a great problem and we are doing It to each other," he said.
Rabbi David Monson of Beth Sholom presented Robinson with an illustrated book of scriptures on behalf of the brotherhood as well as a coin minted by the Israeli government in honor of Canada's centennial year. The coin is from the collection of Beth Sholom congregant Louis Mayzel. ■
By SHELDON KIRSHNER
Turkey, which turned its back on the Middle East when Kemal AtAturk established . a Western-style secular. republic in the 1920s, has embarked on a program of improving relations with the Arab world.
And as a consequence, the Turks have downgraded theh- ties with Israel.
The military junta which staged a coup d'etat last _y:.ean. ostensibly to thwart the drift toward Islamic fundamentalism and rampant terrorism,'^" has stepped up Turkey's efforts to build bridges to the Middle East.
Gen. Kenan Evren, the leader of the junta, has adopted a bold policy of "economic realism" de-. signed to cure the ailing Turkish economy, beset by hyper' inflation and high unemployment and besieged by ever-rising oil ■prices.
In a serious bid to solve its problems. Turkey has wooed such countries as Iraq, Libya and Saudi Arabia, all at Israel's expense.
Under a new agreement, Iraq will replace West Germany as Turkey's primary trj^xlJng partner. This comes as recession-bound Europe reduces its imports Of Turkish .goods and migrant workers.
Turkish businessmen, representing 335 companies, have pumped some $7 billion worth of capital investments into Arab lands, mainly Iraq, Libya and Saudi Arabia. This is expected to reach SI0 billion by.l982. Meanwhile, Turkey's exports to the Middle East have soared. There are said to be 200,000 Turkish guest workers in the region, sending much-needed remittances back to Turkey.
Amidst these developments, Turkey's relationship with Israel continues to falter.
Turkey, 98% of whose population is Moslerii, recognized Israel In 1949 and thus broke ranks with Islamic nations from Morocco to Indonesia. Economic and ciiltural relations were opened, much to the anger of the Arabs.
..,11 Under Iraqi pressure. Turkey recalled its No.J diplomat from Israel in the _ wake of_lhe 1956 Sinai" Campaign. After a while, he returned to his post.
Since the Six Day War, the Turks.have called upon Israel to withdraw from the pre-1967 territories and backed the idea' of Palestinian self-determination. Tliey have insisted that the Arab-Israeli- dispute should be solved through peaceful means.
In the mid-1970s, Turkey, feeling the impact of stagflation, began to cultivate the Arabs. The Turks agreed to host the 1976 Islamic conference of foreign ministers, whereas in the past they shunned it. Turkey's drive toward a . rapprochement with the Arabs was undoubtedly assisted by the chauvinistic National Salvation Party, which blamed the country's economic difficulties on "international Zionism" and urged an end to relations whh Israel. :
Israel's relationship with Turkey underwent sharp deterioration in 1980. In July, Turitey, reacting to Israel's Jerusalem Law, called home its charge d'affaires from Tel Aviv. In August, the Turks announced that they would close their consulate-general in Jerusalem "because of the fait accompli which Israel tried to create regarding the legal status" of that city.
At a rally in the Islamic religious centre of Konya in September, the National Salvation Party .— represented in the govern- . nvent in the late 1970s — LTged Ankara to sever
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(AP Laser photo] Gen. Kenan Evren'
diplomatic realtions with. Israel, and called upon Moslems "to liberate Jerusalem."
Last December, Turkey ordered relations with the Jewish state reduced to the level of second secretary.
The Turks also halted Turkish Airlines flights to Israel, though they per-' mitted El Al .to fly to Istanbul, and barred Israelis from taking part in the. Izmir International Fair. According to the American Jewish Committee, Israeli scholars we.re "disinvited" from Turkish learned conferences.
Turkey is likely to keep-Israel at arm's length indefinitely, but observers don't expect it to cut relations altogether. Oh the non-political level, Israel's friendship with Turkey is still relatively dur-
ties
able. A few months ago, for example, the president of Turkey's labor federa-__tIon, Turk-Is, visited Israel at the invitation of the Histadrut. Ibrahim De-niczer invited his Israeli opposite number, Yero-Kam Meshel, to pay a visit to Turkey. .
Before Deniczer went back to Turkey, he and Meshel signed ji_memo-randum establishing closer ties l>etween the two organizations.
As Deniczer'affixed his signature to the document, the emir of Kuwait, Sheik Jaber al Ahmad al Sabah, arrived in Ankara for a state visit —the first by an Arab head of state from a Persian Gulf nation.
Deputy Prime Minister Turgut Dzal, chief architects of Turkey's: austerity plan, had long discussions with al Sabah on economic co-operation.
Shortly before the emir's trip. OzaP flew to Tripoli to confer with Lib-. yan Trade Minister Buzet Durda. Gzal and Durda agreed that Turkish exports to Libya would rise to $1 billion in 1982.
Sharply different political philosopldes have not deterred the growth of Turkish-Libyan trade. ° Libya is Turkey's third most important supplier of petroleum afteir Iraq and Iran, During Turkey's
1974 Invasion of Cyprus, which Libya strongly supported, the Libyans reportedly provided Turkey with fuel for its air force. By way of reciprocating,. Turkey has trained Libyan pilots and sold the Libyans landing craft. . Israel, of course, is disappointed by Turkey's de-. marche to the Arabs. But no one-in^Jerusalem is really too surprised by the turn of events.
Because of its Ottoman legacy,, Turkey has had traditional links with the Arab/Islamic worlds, the policies of Kemal Atatruk notwithstandhig. And Turkey^, despite secularization, is still a deeply
religious country, particularly In the countryside.
Ataturk's revolution, while sweeping In some respects, affected urban dwellers in the main-Rural Turks stood in awe of Ataturk, but their adherence to Islam did not vanish. There was always a reservoir of sympathy for Arabs simply because they were believers like themselves.
This factor, combined with the Turiis' failure to put their economic house in order, compelled Turkey to re-establish its old ties with the Arabs. As a result, Turkish-Israeli relations were bound to suffer.
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