Manufacturers against protectionism
At the end of February 1952, after months of preparations, Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion published the "Government Plan for the Correction of the Economy," through changes in the austerity regime and a series of economic regulations designed to combat inflation.
The reactions of the various sectors of the economy to the plan that was formulated were varied, but the opinion of the most important factors - the manufacturers - was not yet heard, and it was clear that without cooperation on their part, the economic plan was doomed to failure.
They all waited for the word of mouth of the president of the Manufacturers 'Association, Aryeh Shenkar, and his associates announced that he would address the plan at the Manufacturers' Conference scheduled for early March 1952.
A lot of tension accompanied the attendees to the conference held at the Habima Theater in Tel Aviv on the 2nd of the month.
"No less than 694 new factories were built in Israel between March 1950 and December 1951," Shenkar said at the beginning of his speech, in front of a packed hall, adding that "half of the 60 million pounds invested in industry during this period came from local capital, and the number of employed in Hebrew industry jumped. To 130,000 people. "
Shenkar, who was aware that everyone was eagerly awaiting his statement, added: "We could rely on the new economic plan as presented by the Prime Minister, but we will not be able to cooperate as long as the selection clause is part of the plan in question." It was determined that the government is the sovereign to decide on the distribution of imported raw materials between the various factories; DS).
The Minister of Trade and Industry, Dov Yosef, who spoke after Shenkar, announced in his opening remarks that "President Shenkar's demand is acceptable to the government, and as early as tomorrow morning the committee participants will be coordinated and a convening date will be set in the coming days."
If you or your relative have previously worked in a closed factory - please send us details to Yor@ShimurIsrael.Org, thus assisting the Council for the Advancement of Israeli Heritage in the National Project for the Preservation of the Heritage of Hebrew Industry
Quarreling over the compensation advance from Germany
Nahum Goldman (left) with Chaim Weizmann, 1935, Photo: The Israel Encyclopedia in Pictures, 1952
At the end of February 1952, West Germany transferred $ 175 million to Israel as "Kadima Kadima" at the expense of reparations (compensation for the suffering suffered by Jews during the Holocaust), all before the official negotiations between the two countries, which were to open on March 17, 1952 in Brussels, Belgium. With the participation of representatives from the Israeli government, various Jewish institutions and West Germany.
Immediately upon receiving the money, a quarrel began between all those involved in the matter: the Israeli government, the Jewish Agency, the JDC, the Organization of German Expatriates and more.
A "mini-conference" was therefore convened in the first week of March 1952 in Paris, to which representatives of every organization and institution were invited who thought they had the right to claim some of the reparations expected to be received.
The conference was chaired by Nahum Goldman, an active Zionist leader who was close to President Haim Weizmann for many years.
Goldman was among the prominent activists for the reparations agreement, but at the beginning of the conference in Paris he immediately cooled the enthusiasm of those present, saying: "In my opinion, the maximum amount the Germans will pay will be about $ 300 million. .
Regarding the distribution of the funds received, it was determined that three percent would be transferred to the German-born organization, five percent to the JDC, in exchange for its much humanitarian work for European Jews before, during and after World War II, and the balance to one-third to the Jewish Agency and two-thirds to the government.
"Cowboy's Jews" farm - in the Negev
Sde Boker in aerial photography from the 1950s, Photo: Nevo Collection, Beitmona website
An American Jew named Jesse Slade arrived in Israel in May 1948 from Texas, USA, in order to volunteer for the IDF during the War of Independence.
During his stay in Israel he traveled a lot in the Negev and found it suitable for establishing a Texan-style cowboy farm.
At the end of the battles, a group of friends formed around him who were captivated by the idea of settling in the Negev as the first "cowboys" of Jews, and together they located a suitable spot in the Negev, 40 km south of Be'er Sheva.
Alongside Slade, the group was headed by Yaakov (Buda) Orav, an Israeli agronomist who specialized in exploiting floods and improving grazing.
In 1949, the group turned to the settler institutions in the country, asking for help from them to set up a cow farm, but their request was rejected, and the disappointed Slade returned to the United States. The rest of the group also dispersed everywhere.
Two and a half years later, the settlement department changed its mind and began looking for suitable settlers for the establishment of agricultural farms in the Negev.
Buda, who regrouped most of the group members, learned of this, but the trace of the idea's owner, Slade, was lost in America.
At the beginning of March 1952, a cooperative called "The New Cowboy Organization Sde Boker" was registered, and its members, with the help of the Agency and the Ministry of Agriculture, climbed a point 30 km north of Ramon Crater. On the ground, and the spot got its name: Sde Boker.
Mapai Real Estate Corruption
In March 1952, the Mapai Secretariat announced that "all party members who received plots of land in Shikram Tzameret in north Tel Aviv waived their right." In the eastern part of the State Square today, in the direction of Namir Road.
The list of land recipients included the then Minister of Agriculture, Pinchas Lavon, Histadrut Secretary General Mordechai Namir (later Tel Aviv Mayor), Clara Aharonovich (wife of MK Zalman Aran of Mapai and later Minister of Education), David Horowitz (who was Director General of the Ministry of Finance), and other personalities who were close to the ruling party.
The threat to oust those who will not give up the territories from the party ranks has finally prevented corruption in the affair.
Two lions to "Ziratron"
The Lion Poster in Tel Aviv, Photo: Design: R. Blass, courtesy of the Zionist Archive
On March 3, 1952, the ship "Eretz" arrived at the port of Haifa, with two roaring lions.
Jim Rose, a French Foreign Legion officer who specialized in lion training, managed to lower the cages to the pier.
The lions were destined to join the "Ziratron" circus team, and their feeding was entrusted to the Tel Aviv Zoo, which undertook to provide 10 kg of meat daily.
In return, the zoo requested that during the winter months, when the circus is on hiatus, the lions be moved for display in its area.
No foreign currency for students?
Since in the 1950s it was forbidden to issue foreign currency when leaving the country, a regulation was issued according to which the parents of a student studying abroad received an exceptional permit from the Ministry of Finance to purchase foreign currency at a bank in Israel. At the beginning of March 1952, when Israel's foreign exchange reserves reached the Red Line, the Ministry of Finance determined which subjects were essential to the country (engineering, medicine, etc.), and for which the procedure continued.
All other students who studied unnecessary subjects abroad were denied the right to assignment.
The Disappeared / Singing Bands from Once Upon a Time
The cheesebread
Emblem of the Cheesebread Band,
The Palmach Singing and Entertainment Band, which operated from 1949-1948 and was later considered the first military band. It was formed during the War of Independence at the initiative of Palmach Commander Yigal Alon.
The task was assigned to the songwriter Haim Hefer (then Feiner), who was appointed the band's commander and composed most of her songs, including "Hey Jeep", "The Penny and the Moon", "The Meeting Song", "They Can" and more, starring Naomi Polish, Gideon Singer , Shaike Ofir, Shmuel Rosen and Shlomo Bar Shavit.
The grocery store / items from the past
GDNA backpack
Photo: Nostalgia Online Archive,
Sometimes it is surprising to remember how modest we once were, and were content with little: today enlisting in the IDF, going to the reserve or going on a trip, equipped with a large and well-padded bag, with orthopedic suspenders and a back-fitted back, with all kinds of pockets and ruffles visible and hidden. Those were just a small, simple backpack, also called a "military backpack," and although it was passed down for generations in the family - it was never worn or torn.
"The best taxi station in the country" was chosen
Source: Sebastian Oyola,
On March 2, 1952, the Taxi Drivers' Organization opened a referendum among passengers on choosing the best taxi rank in the country.
A month later, the winner was announced: the Haifa 2525 taxi station, which was also the largest in the country, with 41 taxis, each of which had a "walkie-talkie" wireless walkie-talkie installed.
The passenger satisfaction poll yielded 2525 (in the photo, as the station's telephone number) a score of 8.7, which placed the station in first place in the country out of 47 stations that participated in the survey.
Ads that were
Do you have pictures or souvenirs from the first days of the country? Write to us: Yor@ShimurIsrael.Org
Were we wrong?
Fixed!
If you found an error in the article, we'll be happy for you to share it with us