Negotiating the right to exit the country in 1950s Israel: Voice, loyalty, and citizenship
2011; Routledge; Volume: 30; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1080/13531042.2011.553063
ISSN1744-0548
Autores Tópico(s)Historical and Contemporary Political Dynamics
ResumoAbstract Between 1948 and 1961, Israeli citizens aspiring to travel abroad needed to obtain an exit permit in addition to a passport, which allowed them to leave Israel to particular destinations for a limited time. During the early days of statehood, it was relatively difficult to obtain an exit permit. This general requirement was finally abolished in 1961. This article examines the various arguments used by citizens in their applications for an exit permit and the different ways in which they portrayed themselves and the state. Citizens' letters to officials, pleading their case, asking influential people for recommendations, or even threatening the government with lawsuits provide insights into the relationship between citizen and state. I posit that although each citizen fought his/her individual battle alone, the struggles enjoyed a cumulative effect. And although such severe restrictions on movement during peacetime seem at first glance to resonate with the draconian policies of non-democratic states, the fact that Israel was fundamentally democratic, that citizens were disgruntled over the exit policy, and that policy makers were well aware of their resentment propelled change. Keywords: Israeli democracyfreedom of movementexit permitcitizenshipJewish identitynation-buildingjustification regimes Acknowledgments I would like to thank the Israel Science Foundation for sponsoring this research. Thanks are due to my dear friend and colleague Dr. Moshe Elhanati who commented on previous drafts of this article. Earlier drafts of this article were presented at several conferences and seminars where valuable comments were received. Special thanks are due to Bernard Wasserstein, Pnina Lahav, Itamar Even-Zohar, Rakefet Shefi, Dafna Hirsch, Menachem Hofnung, Lilach Rosenberg Friedman, Michael Feige, Avi Bareli, Assaf Likhovski, and David Schorr. Notes 1 Letter from Edith L. to the Palestine Post, 25 June 1949, Israel State Archives, Jerusalem (hereafter ISA), Prime Minister's Office (hereafter PMO), G 5552/21. Spelling mistakes and grammatical errors in the quote are as they appear in the original. 2 "Ha-milhamah be-mavrihei ha-hon" (The battle against smugglers of capital), Davar, 25 December 1951. 3 Ha'aretz, 17 July 1950. 4 For a detailed discussion of the policy and the way it evolved over time, see CitationRozin, "Israel and the Right to Travel Abroad," in which I describe and analyze travel restrictions from the viewpoint of policy makers and also compare the Israeli case to that of post-World War II United States and Britain. The Israeli policy is described in detail and data regarding the number of travelers and their reasons for travel are also included. In the current article I aim at completing the picture by looking at the policy from the viewpoint of the citizens. 5 For a detailed discussion of the policy and the way it evolved over time, see CitationRozin, "Israel and the Right to Travel Abroad," in which I describe and analyze travel restrictions from the viewpoint of policy makers and also compare the Israeli case to that of post–World War II United States and Britain. The Israeli policy is described in detail and data regarding the number of travelers and their reasons for travel are also included. In the current article I aim at completing the picture by looking at the policy from the viewpoint of the citizens 6 For a detailed discussion of the policy and the way it evolved over time, see CitationRozin, "Israel and the Right to Travel Abroad," in which I describe and analyze travel restrictions from the viewpoint of policy makers and also compare the Israeli case to that of post–World War II United States and Britain. The Israeli policy is described in detail and data regarding the number of travelers and their reasons for travel are also included. In the current article I aim at completing the picture by looking at the policy from the viewpoint of the citizens; CitationCohen, "From Legalism to Symbolism." 7 Boltanski and Thévenot, On Justification, 17; CitationStraughn, "'Taking the State at Its Word"'; CitationFulbrook, The People's State, 7. 8 Fulbrook claims this was the case even in the GDR. See ibid. 9 CitationResnik and Frenkel, "Me-sotziologiyah bikortit," 105–8. For further discussion see CitationSilber, "Sotsiologiyah bikortit." 10 Hundreds of documents were found in the Israel State Archives. After careful examination, I have identified some general categories, examples of which will be presented below. 11 Summary of a discussion of representatives of the Ministries of Finance and Immigration, 16 July 1950, ISA, PMO, G 5552/18. See also Ministry of Immigration to director general, PMO, 26 September 1951, ISA, PMO, G 5552/21. The need for a recommendation sometimes created an opportunity for bribery and it is likely that personal contacts were misused in order for some individuals to profit. See A. Almagor, "Mispar ha-nosim le-hul lo yigdal ki hem lo yukhlu la'amod ba-mehirim" (The number of exit permits will not grow because they will not be able to afford the prices), Yedi'ot Aharonot, 20 June 1952. 12 For a comparison, see CitationFitzpatrick, "Supplicants and Citizens." 13 CitationDavis, Fiction in the Archives, 3. 14 For example, see Baruch G. to Minister of Internal Affairs I. Rokach, 10 February 1953, ISA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, G 2242/14; Yohanan Popper to editor of Ha-Boker, 31 August 1951, Tel Aviv Municipal Archive (hereafter TAMA), 7 (14)-7; Citizens of Free Israel Democratic Republic to minister of immigration, 9 May 1949, ISA, PMO, G 5552/22. 15 Citizen Y. to Mayor Israel Rokach, TAMA, 7 (14)-7. 16 M. Amir, Israeli diplomatic envoy in Brussels, to Mr. Y. Shai, director, Naturalization Department, 2 June 1952, ISA, Ministry of Immigration, G 2242/3. 17 Minutes of the Knesset's Internal Affairs Committee, 4 June 1952, ISA, Ministry of Immigration, G 2242/3. 18 Livneh held independent opinions and was an exceptionally liberal member of Mapai; his liberal views concerning civil liberties were not always popular among his colleagues. See Eliezer Livneh, "Exit Permits an Unnecessary Evil," Jerusalem Post, 24 June 1952. See also Almagor, "Mispar ha-nosim le-hul lo yigdal." 19 Walter Eytan, director general, to minister of foreign affairs, 23 August 1949, ISA, PMO, G 5552/20. The entire diplomatic staff abroad was apparently swamped with appeals by local citizens requiring their assistance to obtain exit permits for Israeli citizens. They were instructed not to interfere except in extraordinary circumstances. See circular no. 19, 21 February 1949, ISA, PMO, G 5552/21. 20 Director general, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to minister of foreign affairs, 10 August 1950, ISA, PMO, G 5552/18. See also circular no. 19, 21 February 1949, ISA, PMO, G 5552/21. 21 CitationRozin, "The Austerity and Rule of Law." 22 "Eifah ve-eifah be-matan heterei yetzi'ah?" (Discrimination in granting exit permits?), Davar, 3 July 1952; Almagor, "Mispar ha-nosim"; "Od al yetzi'ah le-hul" (More on travel abroad), Davar, 6 September 1951. 23 Y.N. Shai, Ministry of Immigration Office, Tel Aviv, to Ministry of Immigration Office, Haifa, August 1949, ISA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, G 2242/7. 24 "24 elef heterei yetzi'ah ba-shanah ha-aharonah" (24 thousand exit permits in the last year), Davar, 30 July 1952; "87 elef heterei yetzi'ah nitnu be-september 1948 ad mars 1952" (87 thousand exit permits granted from September 1948 to March 1952), Ha'aretz, 30 July 1952; "Ha-yeridah" (Emigration), Zmanim, 22 October 1953. 25 Criticism on the quality of immigrants was prevalent. See, for example, Raphael Hasman, "Lekah ha-midrakhah" (Lesson learned from the pavement), Ha-Tzofeh, 23 November 1951. 26 CitationBoltanski and Thévenot, "The Sociology of Critical Capacity," 364. 27 CitationBoltanski and Thévenot, On Justification, 237–73. 28 Resnik and Frenkel, "Me-sotziologiyah bikortit," 106–7. 29 Director general, Ministry of Internal Affairs, to Department of Exit Permits, 27 May 1952, ISA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, G 715/5; Mazon Food Corporation to Ministry of Religion, 25 December 1951, Rabbi S. Zedorowsky, Ministry of Religion, to Ministry of Immigration, 10 January 1952, and Zedorowsky to Mazon Food Corporation, 15 January 1952, ISA, Ministry of Religious Affairs, GL 6326/18. 30 CitationHirsch, "Banu hena lehavi et ha-ma'arav," 3–4. 31 Ministry of Agriculture to Ministry of Immigration, 6 December 1948, ISA, Sec. 42, Ministry of Immigration, G 277/52. 32 Boltanski and Thévenot, On Justification, 118–23; Resnik and Frankel, "Me-sotziologiyah bikortit," 106–7. See for example, D. Moshin to Ministry of Defense, 21 June 1949, ISA, PMO, G 5552/21; Ministry of Agriculture to Ministries of Finance, Immigration, and Foreign Affairs, 25 June 1950, ISA, Ministry of Immigration, G 2242/7. 33 Attorney general to B. Yekutieli, E. Pintchuk, 25 May 1951, ISA, Ministry of Justice, G 5674/10. 34 Straughn, "'Taking the State at Its Word.'" 35 The Eranos conferences, initiated by one of Carl Gustav Jung's students, brought together many of the key thinkers of the twentieth century. See http://www.eranosfoundation.org/ (accessed 27 September 2010). 36 Minister of justice to Mr. Silverberg, Ministry of Immigration, 15 August 1951, ISA, Ministry of Justice, G 8003/18. See also letter to Ministry of Immigration from Attorney Y. Elket, 5 August 1951, ibid. 37 For example, see "Kakh nosim le-hul ve-osim asakim al heshbon ha-medinah" (That's how people travel abroad and do business at the expense of the state), Ha-Dor, 2 November 1952. 38 Department of Journalism, Propaganda (Hasbarah) and Cinema to district office, Ministry of Immigration, 28 August 1951, ISA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, G 715/5. 39 Haim V. Pakris, Weizmann Institute of Science, to Yosef Yizraeli, December 1949; Yosef Yizraeli to Dr. Goldin, Ministry of Immigration, 11 January 1949, Israel Defense Forces Archive, Kiryat Ono (hereafter IDFA), 580/387/1956. 40 See, for example, government secretary to Visa Department, 13 July, 1948; Visa Department to government secretary, 14 July 1948, ISA, PMO Office, G 5552/20; Avraham R. to prime minister, 30 September 1949, ISA, sec 43, PMO office, G 324/32; Israel G. K. to minister of defense, 6 December 1948, ISA, PMO, G 5552/22. In one case, Rosen – writing on behalf of a certain applicant – stated explicitly that his wife would not join him abroad. See minister of justice to minister of immigration, 23 June 1950, ISA, Ministry of Justice, G 5671/14. 41 Israel allowed those stating their wish to emigrate to do so, once they paid their taxes and reimbursed the Jewish Agency for any property given to them. ISA, Ministery of Internal Affairs, Procedure regarding Exit Permits, March 4, 1953, G 2242/37. The policy created a substantial inequity between those seeking to emigrate and those seeking to travel and then return. See, for example, minutes of meeting of the Internal Affairs Committee, 4 June 1952, ISA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, G 2242/5; see also reply to a query submitted by MK Gershom Schocken, 25 July 1956, ISA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, G 2242/37. Israel could not afford to resemble Eastern Bloc states, which were reluctant to let their Jews leave (except in exchange for large sums of money), since it demanded that Jews residing in those countries be allowed to emigrate at will. Until 1961 the GDR allowed many emigrants to leave, but this policy changed later. See CitationHirschman, "Exit, Voice," 179–80. 42 See, for example, H.W. Keiser-Blitt to Minister of Internal Affairs I. Rokach and Minister of Justice P. Rosen, 22 May 1955, ISA, Ministry of Justice, G 8003/18. The author of the letter thought that the state had no right to interfere in his son's travel plans. His son intended to visit his uncle, who was serving as an American soldier in Germany, on his way to Argentina. The High Court of Justice was able to intervene and reverse the ministers' decisions. See High Court of Justice 3/51, El-Said vs. Minister of Immigration, PD, He (5) 5711-5712 (1951), 1075–78. 43 See, for instance, Department of Exit Permits to attorney general, 4 June 1952; attorney general to Department of Exit Permits, 11 June 1952, ISA, Ministry of Justice, G 8003/18; Fishershtein, Visa Department, to Executive Committee, Histadrut, 17 August 1948, IDFA, 580/389/1956. 44 For instance, students pursuing academic studies in areas needed in Israel but not yet available there. Y. Kanev (General Sick Fund) to Mr. Y. Goldin, 12 August 1954, ISA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, G 2242/14; Rafael S. to prime minister, 11 October 1949, ISA, PMO, G 5552/22. 45 Legal advisor, Ministry of Religious Affairs, to manager, district branch (?), Ministry of Immigration, 27 July 1951, Rabbi S. Zederowsky to district office, Ministry of Immigration, 18 January 1952; Nissim A. to Ministry of Religious Affairs, 3 June 1951; legal advisor, Ministry of Religious Affairs, to Immigration Department, Tel Aviv, 5 June 1951, ISA, Ministry of Religious Affairs, GL 6326/18. 46 Levi D. to Ministry of Religious Affairs, 6 August 1951, ISA, Ministry of Religious Affairs, GL 6326/18. A sworn statement by a witness named Bechor Shaul, dated 6 August 1951, had been originally attached. 47 Israel Sobel, director, Office of Minister of Religious Affairs, to Mr. Silberberg, district office, Ministry of Immigration, 6 August 1951, ISA, Ministry of Religious Affairs, GL 6326/18. 48 The fear of losing people who could convert or marry non-Jews was indeed significant. See, for example, Dr. Y.D. Berr, legal advisor, Ministry of Religious Affairs, to Ministry of Immigration, 21 September 1953, ISA, Ministry of Religious Affairs, GL 6326/18. 49 "Bein aremot shel havilot u-mikhtavim" (Among piles of packages and letters), Davar, 31 October, 1950; "Hevrat 'Care' mathivah [sic] lifol be-Yisrael" (The "Care" company begins to operate in Israel), Davar, 14 September 1949; Asher Lotan, "Halifah amerikayit" (An American suit), Davar, 28 August 1953. 50 Barukh Gofer to Minister of Internal Affairs I. Rokach, 10 February 1953, ISA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, G 2242/14. 51 K. Shabtai (Shabtai Klugmann), "Arikah ve-ga'agu'im" (Desertion and longing), Davar, 30 November 1953. 52 For example, Sarah D. to prime minister, 14 December 1948; Rabbi Herman Lieber to David Ben-Gurion, 2 June 1949; Moshe P. to David Ben-Gurion, 26 July 1950, ISA, PMO, G 5552/22. 53 ISA, Minutes of the Second Government, vol. 12, 14 August 1951, p. 18 (Moshe Shapira). See also, Director General Walter Eytan to minister of foreign affairs, 23 August 1949, ISA, PMO, G 55552/20. 54 See n. 1 above. For additional examples, see Aliza B. to attorney general, 9 September 1951; Moshe L. to minister of immigration, 23 July 1951, ISA, Ministry of Justice, G 8003/18. 55 See Boltanski and Thévenot, On Justification, 164–93. 56 See Straughn, "'Taking the State at Its Word,'" 1613. 57 Gershon M. to minister of war victims, 22 June 1949; Y. Spiegel, secretary to the minister of religious affairs, to Gershon M., 5 July 1949, ISA, Ministry of Religious affairs, GL 6326/18. 58 Fitzpatrick, "Supplicants and Citizens," 81. 59 Avraham R. to Prime Minister Ben-Gurion, 30 September 1949, ISA, PMO, G 324/32. 60 Aviva K.E. to minister of defense, 20 October 1948, ISA, PMO, G 324/32. Ben Gurion's youngest daughter Renana had a boyfriend who was killed during the war (personal communication from one of her relatives who wishes to remain anonymous, 21 April 2008). 61 Major Nehemia Argov, Ministry of Defense, to Ministry of Immigration, 31 October 1948, ISA, PMO, G 324/32. 62 Rita V. to Immigration Department, Tel Aviv, 30 October 1950, ISA, Ministry of Justice, G 5674/10. 63 Dr. Avraham Landsberg (attorney) to minister of justice, 28 January 1951, ISA, Ministry of Justice, G 5674/10. 64 Minister of justice to director general, Ministry of Immigration, 18 February 1951, ISA, Ministry of Justice, G 5674/10. 65 B. Henden, secretary of minister of justice, to attorney Dr. A. Landsberg, 16 March 1951, ISA, Ministry of Justice, G 5674/10. 66 Israeli passports included a proclamation stating that the passport was valid for all countries except Germany. For a photograph see CitationDankner and Tartakover, Eifoh hayinu, 84. In 1953 it was still very hard to get an exit permit and a passport that allowed a visit to Germany. See, for example, circular to the heads of all districts from deputy director general, 7 May 1953, ISA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, G 2242/37. The negotiations on the reparation agreement signed between Israel and West Germany were conducted in the Netherlands, because Israelis did not consider a visit to Germany an option. 67 The same kind of rewriting technique can also be detected in minister of justice to minister of immigration, 13 June 1950; and report by Max P., 5 February 1950, ISA, Ministry of Justice, G 5671/15. 68 Guta R. to Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion, 4 August 1950, ISA, PMO, G 5552/22. 69 Yosef and Thea L. to Ministry of Internal Affairs, 23 April 1953, ISA, Ministry of Justice, G 8003/18. 70 Rozin, "Israel and the Right to Travel Abroad," 148, 157, 167–68. 71 Avraham R. to David Ben-Gurion, 30 September 1948, ISA, PMO, G 324/32. 72 This sense of belonging or of shared responsibility was sometimes manifested in advice given by ordinary citizens to ministers on matters related to their ministries. See, for example, Yosef Haver to Minister of Finance L. Eshkol, 5 February 1953, ISA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, G 2242/14. Haver wrote that he knew of people who, having obtained an exit permit, had left the country after selling all their belongings and buying foreign currency on the black market, and he suggested that people should have to bring proof of what they did with their property – namely, where they obtained the money. See also Dr. Hava Shalom (Salomon) to minister of internal affairs (n.d.), ISA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, G 2242/3. 73 Aharon S. to Ministry of Religious Affairs, 17 May 1951, ISA, Sec. 98, Ministry of Religious Affairs, GL 6326/18. 74 Fulbrook, The People's State, 239–41. 75 CitationPeled and Shafir, Being Israeli, 4–6. See also CitationKedar, Mamlakhtiyut, 165–69. 76 H.W. Keiser-Blitt to Minister of Internal Affairs Israel Rokach, 22 May 1955, ISA, Ministry of Justice, G 8003/18. See also n. 42 above. 77 Dr. H. Schneider to Ministry of Defense, 20 September 1948, IDFA, 580/56, file 387. Schneider was probably unaware of the fact that the authority to grant exit permits had been transferred to the Ministry of Internal Affairs a month before, in August 1948. 78 Unknown author (second page missing from file) to minister of immigration, 9 May 1949, ISA, PMO, G 5552/22 (the letter was written in English). 79 Elazar Globus to Dr. Herman L., 4 March 1949, ISA, PMO, G 324/32; High Court of Justice ruling, Hanna Vacht and Baruch Vacht v. Minister of Immigration (206/51); Willy Zeev Afteweitzer v. Minister of Immigration (112/51); Lamberger v. Minister of Internal Affairs (162/52), ISA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, G 2242/5. 80 El-Said v. Minister of Immigration, n. 42 above. 81 See, for example, "Heterei yetzi'ah le-shloshah hodashim bilvad" (Exit permits valid for three months only), Ha'aretz, 25 July 1956; "Eifah ve-eifah be-matan heteri yetzi'ah?" (Discrimination in granting exit permits?), Davar, 3 July 1952; "Hagbalat hofesh nesi'ah le-hul" (Restricting the right to travel abroad), Ha'aretz, 21 February 1952; "Tnu'ah lema'an bitul heter ha-yetzi'ah" (Movement for abolishing the exit permit), Ha'aretz, 14 January 1952. 82 Rozin, "Israel and the Right to Travel Abroad," 157–58. 83 K. Shabtai, "Ashemim gam anahnu" (We are also guilty), Davar, 3 December 1953. 84 Department of Exit Permits, Jerusalem, to Department of Immigration and Naturalization, Jerusalem, Haifa and Tel Aviv, 28 June 1952, ISA, Ministry of Immigration, G 2242/3. See also A. Silberberg, Tel Aviv District office, to Y. Goldin, director, Department of Exit Permits, 24 March 1952, ibid. 85 Fitzpatrick, "Supplicants and Citizens," 95–98. 86 For a theoretical framework, see CitationEven-Zohar, "Culture Planning and Cultural Resistance." Available at http://www.tau.ac.il/∼itamarez/works/books/EZ-CR-2005.pdf (accessed 28 December 2010. 87 I have found cases of favoritism but no actual proof of bribery, though this was obviously kept out of sight. See Almagor, "Mispar ha-nosim" (n. 11 above). Ben-Gurion reports in his diary about corruption related to the exit permits (probably bribery), mentioning the name of a party member. See Ben-Gurion Archive, Sde Boker, Diary, entry for 18 September 1951. Corruption was indeed a serious problem in a regulated economy. See Rozin, "The Austerity Policy." 88 ISA, Minutes of Meetings of the First Government, vol. 27, 26 July 1950, 47–51. 89 Proposals for immigration and passports law, Expert Opinion Paper presented by the Israel Tourist and Travel Association, Central Zionist Archives, Jerusalem, Eliyahu Elyashar Private Archive, A 430/81; Israel Tourist and Travel Association to Al ha-Mishmar, 22 August 1956; D. Melames and S. Korolick, Israel Tourist and Travel Association to Mr. Y. Gewirz, Ministry of Internal Affairs, 22 August 1956, ISA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, G 2242/13. 90 Mainly the General Zionists Party, and members of the Progressive Party, See Rozin, "Israel and the Right to Travel Abroad," 157–61. See, for instance, Minister of Internal Affairs Israel Rokach to Barukh Gefer, 23 February 1953, ISA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, G 2242/14. 91 See, for example, "Ha-idiliyah she-nimshekhah 5 shavu'ot" (The idyll that lasted 5 weeks), Herut, 17 April 1953; A. Izakson, "Lema'an bitul heter ha-yetzi'ah" (For the abolition of the exit permit), Ha-Boker, 20 April 1952; Eliezer Livneh, "Exit Permits an Unnecessary Evil," Jerusalem Post, 24 June 1952. 92 ISA, Minutes of the Second Government, vol. 12, 14 August 1951. Moshe Shapira explicitly said: "I have to say, during the time I had been under severe pressure, I became a bit lenient, for instance if someone had resided here for ten or fifteen years and had not met with his family abroad, if his family sent him a return ticket [and] undertook that his entire stay abroad would be at its expense – this may be not so essential, but it's very human, and it's impossible to withstand the pressure – I used to give an exit permit." Minister of justice to minister of immigration, 12 January 1951, ISA, Ministry of Justice, G 5674/10. 93 "Zikhron devarim me-va'adat ha-sarim le-inyan heter ha-yetzi'ah" (Memorandum from the Ministerial Committee on the Exit Permit), 27 October 1949; and letter from minister of immigration to minister of finance, 13 November 1949, ISA, PMO, G 5421/10; ISA, Minutes of the First Government, vol. 22, Apr. 12, 1950, 87–89; ibid., vol. 27, Jul. 26, 1950, 51. Other ministers who criticized the policy were Minister of Foreign Affairs Moshe Sharett and Minister of Education Zalman Shazar. 94 "Ha-sha'arim ha-hadashim sagru sha'arei ha-yetzi'ah le-hul" (New currency rates closed the gates of exit abroad), Herut, 21 February 1952. 95 Rozin, "Israel and the Right to Travel Abroad," 155–62. 96 Minutes of the Internal Affairs Committee, 2 May 1953, ISA, sec. 74, GL, 21986/54. 97 CitationEven-Zohar, "Cultural Repertoire," 396. 98 CitationDick, Martian Time-slip. 99 Thanks are due to my former professor and current colleague, Yaacov Shavit for discussing this fact in his classes.
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