From the Institute for Palestine Studies:
On 3 November 2011, the
self-appointed media watchdog CAMERA (Committee for Accuracy in Middle East
Reporting in America) informed the Journal of Palestine Studies of an incorrect
citation in an article by Illan Pappé (“The 1948 Ethnic Cleansing of
Palestine”) published in its autumn 2006 issue. The incorrect citation referred
to a quotation by Israeli founding father David Ben-Gurion supporting the
expulsion (“transfer”) of Arabs from Palestine.
CAMERA asked JPS to
“issue a correction stating that the quote attributed to Ben-Gurion does not
appear in the references cited” in JPS and its website “to prevent
further erroneous uses of this quote.”
CAMERA’s accusations (e.g., 3
February 2012) that Pappé “invented” or “fabricated” the quotation,
suggesting that the Zionist leader had never supported transfer, led JPS to
have the original source—Ben-Gurion’s 5 October 1937 letter to his
son—translated into English. The letter vindicates Pappé’s reading of
Ben-Gurion’s position on transfer and the essential accuracy of his article.
While JPS regrets the lapses of citation, the 2006 article, fully consonant
with the historical record, remains in our view an excellent summation of
Zionist planning behind the Palestinian expulsions of 1948.
Here is the Journal
for Palestine Studies official response to CAMERA (published in their
winter 2012 issue), and a link to the Pappé
article in question.
Also, the Institute has published a full English translation of the
1937 Ben-Gurion letter Pappe refers to (the Institute says it’s the first time
an English translation of the letter has been published). It is a truly
fascinating exchange between Ben-Gurion and his son Amos, who appears critical
of his father’s decision to support a partition plan put forward by the Peel
Commission. Here, Ben-Gurion describes how he sees partition fitting into the
Zionist movement’s long term goals:
My assumption (which is why I
am a fervent proponent of a state, even though it is now linked to partition)
is that a Jewish state on only part of the land is not the end but the
beginning.
When we acquire one thousand or
10,000 dunams, we feel elated. It does not hurt our feelings that by this
acquisition we are not in possession of the whole land. This is because this
increase in possession is of consequence not only in itself, but because
through it we increase our strength, and every increase in strength helps in
the possession of the land as a whole. The establishment of a state, even if
only on a portion of the land, is the maximal reinforcement of our strength at
the present time and a powerful boost to our historical endeavors to liberate
the entire country.
We shall admit into the state
all the Jews we can. We firmly believe that we can admit more than two million
Jews. We shall build a multi-faceted Jewish economy– agricultural, industrial,
and maritime. We shall organize an advanced defense force—a superior army which
I have no doubt will be one of the best armies in the world. At that point
I am confident that we would not fail in settling in the remaining parts of the
country, through agreement and understanding with our Arab neighbors, or
through some other means.
Here is the entire letter:
Letter from David
Ben-Gurion to his son Amos, written 5 October 1937
Obtained from the Ben-Gurion
Archives in Hebrew, and translated into English by the Institute of Palestine
Studies, Beirut
5 October 1937
Dear Amos,
I was not angry at you, but I
was very sorry indeed that there was no reply from you. I cannot accept the
excuse that you have no time. I know you have a lot of work at school, in the
field, and at home, and I am happy that you are so preoccupied with your
studies. But it is always possible to find free time if necessary, not only on
Sabbath days but even during weekdays. Your excuse that I keep moving from one
country to another is not convincing. You can write to me in London. Here they
[the Jewish Agency office] always know where I am, and they are efficient in
forwarding my mail. As to the question of my membership in the executive
committee [of the Jewish Agency], I shall explain to you in person if I meet
you in Tel Aviv upon my return. Here what I want to talk about is the conflict
you are experiencing between your reason and your emotions with regard to the
question of the state. Political matters should not be a question of emotions.
The only thing that should be taken into account is what we want and
what is best for us, what will lead to the objective, and which are the
policies that will make us succeed and which will make us fail.
It seems to me that I, too,
have "emotions" [quotation marks in original. Hebrew: regesh].
Without these emotions I would not have been able to endure decades of our hard
work. It definitely does not hurt my feelings [regesh] that a state is established,
even if it is small.
Of course the partition of the country gives
me no pleasure. But the country that they [the Royal (Peel) Commission] are
partitioning is not in our actual possession; it is in the possession of the
Arabs and the English. What is in our actual possession is a small portion,
less than what they [the Peel Commission] are proposing for a Jewish state. If
I were an Arab I would have been very indignant. But in this proposed partition
we will get more than what we already have, though of course much less than we
merit and desire. The question is: would we obtain more without partition? If
things were to remain as they are
[emphasis in original], would this satisfy our feelings? What we really want is
not that the land remain whole and unified. What we want is that the whole and
unified land be Jewish [emphasis
original]. A unified Eretz Israeli would be no source of satisfaction for me--
if it were Arab.
From our standpoint, the status
quo is deadly poison. We want to change
the status quo [emphasis original]. But how can this change come about? How
can this land become ours? The decisive question is: Does the establishment of
a Jewish state [in only part of Palestine] advance or retard the conversion of
this country into a Jewish country?
My assumption (which is why I
am a fervent proponent of a state, even though it is now linked to partition)
is that a Jewish state on only part of the land is not the end but the
beginning.
When we acquire one thousand or
10,000 dunams, we feel elated. It does not hurt our feelings that by
this acquisition we are not in possession of the whole land. This is because
this increase in possession is of consequence not only in itself, but because
through it we increase our strength, and every increase in strength helps in the
possession of the land as a whole. The establishment of a state, even if only
on a portion of the land, is the maximal reinforcement of our strength at the
present time and a powerful boost to our historical endeavors to liberate the
entire country.
We shall admit into the state
all the Jews we can. We firmly believe that we can admit more than two million
Jews. We shall build a multi-faceted Jewish economy-- agricultural, industrial,
and maritime. We shall organize an advanced defense force—a superior army which
I have no doubt will be one of the best armies in the world. At that point I am
confident that we would not fail in settling in the remaining parts of the
country, through agreement and understanding with our Arab neighbors, or
through some other means.
We must always keep in mind the
fundamental truths that make our settlement of this land imperative and
possible. They are two or three: it is not the British Mandate nor the Balfour
Declaration. These are consequences, not causes. They are the products of
coincidence: contingent, ephemeral, and they will come to an end. They were not
inevitable. They could not have occurred but for the World War, or rather, they
would not have occurred if the war had not ended the way it did.
But on the other hand there are
fundamental [emphasis original]
historical truths, unalterable as long as Zionism is not fully realized. These
are:
1) The pressure of the Exile,
which continues to push the Jews with propulsive force towards the country
2) Palestine is grossly under
populated. It contains vast colonization potential which the Arabs neither need
nor are qualified (because of their lack of need) to exploit. There is no Arab
immigration problem. There is no Arab exile. Arabs are not persecuted. They
have a homeland, and it is vast.
3) The innovative talents of
the Jews (a consequence of point 1 above), their ability to make the desert
bloom, to create industry, to build an economy, to develop culture, to conquer
the sea and space with the help of science and pioneering endeavor.
These three fundamental truths
will be reinforced by the existence of a Jewish state in a part of the country,
just as Zionism will be reinforced by every conquest, large or small, every
school, every factory, every Jewish ship, etc.
Our ability to penetrate the country will
increase if we have a state. Our strength vis-à-vis the Arabs will likewise
increase. The possibilities for construction and multiplication will speedily
expand. The greater the Jewish strength in the country, the more the Arabs will
realize that it is neither beneficial nor possible for them to withstand us. On
the contrary, it will be possible for the Arabs to benefit enormously from the
Jews, not only materially but politically as well
I do not dream of war nor do I like it. But I
still believe, more than I did before the emergence of the possibility of a
Jewish state, that once we are numerous and powerful in the country the Arabs
will realize that it is better for them to become our allies.
They will derive benefits from our
assistance if they, of their own free will, give us the opportunity to settle
in all parts of the country. The Arabs have many countries that
are under-populated, underdeveloped, and vulnerable, incapable with their own
strength to stand up to their external enemies. Without France, Syria could not
last for one day against an onslaught from Turkey. The same applies to Iraq and
to the new [Palestinian] state [under the Peel plan]. All of these stand in
need of the protection of France or Britain. This need for protection means
subjugation and dependence on the other. But the Jews could be equal allies,
real friends, not occupiers or tyrants over them.
Let us assume that the Negev
will not be allotted to the Jewish state. In such event, the Negev will remain
barren because the Arabs have neither the competence nor the need to develop it
or make it prosper. They already have an abundance of deserts but not of
manpower, financial resources, or creative initiative. It is very probable that
they will agree that we undertake the development of the Negev and make it
prosper in return for our financial, military, organizational, and scientific assistance.
It is also possible that they will not agree. People
don’t always behave according to logic, common sense, or their own practical
advantage. [Unlike the jews.] Just as you yourself are sometimes split
conflicted between your mind and your emotions, it is possible that the Arabs
will follow the dictates of sterile nationalist emotions and tell us: “We want
neither your honey nor your sting. We’d rather that the Negev remain barren
than that Jews should inhabit it.” If this occurs, we will have to talk to them
in a different language—and we will have a different language—but such a language
will not be ours without a state. This is so because we can no longer tolerate
that vast territories capable of absorbing tens of thousands of Jews should remain
vacant, and that Jews cannot return to their homeland because the Arabs prefer
that the place [the Negev] remains neither ours nor theirs. We must expel Arabs and take their place. Up to now, all our
aspirations have been based on an assumption – one that has been vindicated
throughout our activities in the country – that there is enough room in the
land for the Arabs and ourselves. But if we are compelled to use force – not in
order to dispossess the Arabs of the Negev or Transjordan, but in order to
guarantee our right to settle there – our force will enable us to do so.
Clearly in such event we will
have to deal not only with the Arabs living in Eretz Israel, since it is very
probable that Arabs from the neighboring countries will come to their aid. But
our power will be greater, not only because we will be better organized and
equipped, but also because behind us stands a force still greater in quantity
and quality. This is the reservoir of the millions in the Diaspora. Our entire
younger generation of Poland, Romania, America, and other countries will rush
to our aid at the outbreak of such a conflict. I pray to God that this does not
happen at all. Nevertheless the Jewish state will not rely only on the Jews
living in it, but on the Jewish people living in every corner of the world: the
many millions who are eager and obliged
[emphasis original] to settle in Palestine. There are not millions of Arabs who
are compelled or willing to settle in Palestine. Of course it is likely that
Arab adventurers and gangs will come from Syria or Iraq or other Arab
countries, but these can be no match for the tens and hundreds of thousands of
young Jews to whom Eretz Israel is not merely an emotional issue, but one that is
in equal measure both personal and national.
For this reason I attach
enormous importance to the conquest of the sea and the construction of a Jewish
harbor and a Jewish fleet. The sea is the bridge between the Jews of this
country and the Jewish Diaspora – the millions of Jews in different parts of
the world. We must create the conditions that will enable us in times of necessity
to bring into the country in our own ships manned by our own seamen, tens of
thousands of young men. Meanwhile we must prepare these young men while they
are still in the Diaspora for whatever task awaits them here.
I am confident that the
establishment of a Jewish state, even if it is only in a part of the country,
will enable us to carry out this task. Once a state is established, we shall
have control over the Eretz Israeli sea. Our activities in the sea will then include
astonishing achievements. Because of all the above, I feel no conflict between
my mind and emotions. Both declare to me: A Jewish state must be established
immediately, even if it is only in part of the country. The rest will follow in
the course of time. A Jewish state will come.
My warm
greetings [Hebrew: Shalom Rav].
When do you return to Kadoorie
[agricultural school]? Write to me. Show this letter to
your mother and sisters.
Sincerely,
Your father
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