UN Palestine Commission – Importation of food stuffs – Communications received Secretariat Advance Party

UNITED NATIONS PALESTINE COMMISSION

Memorandum, dated 29 March 1948, from the Advance

 Party, concerning Measures proposed by

 the Government of Palestine Regarding

 Import of Foodstuffs During the Period 15 May — 30

 June 1948

(Memorandum by D. Ghosh)

The following memorandum by Mr. Ghosh was received in Advance Party Air Pouch, number 4 and 5 on 12 April 1948.

29 March 1948.

PALESTINE COMMISSION ADVANCE PARTY

Measures Proposed by the Government of Palestine
 re. Import of Foodstuffs During the Period
 15 May to 30 June 1948.

(Memorandam by D. Ghosh)

At the meeting on 26 March 1948 the Principal Assistant Secretary of the Palestine Government explained to me the position which his Government had taken in relation to the revised request for advance purchase of food for time period from 15 May to 30 June 1948, which it had recently received from the U.N. Commission. The Palestine Government, as it has stated before, was unable to provide money for purchase of food beyond 15 May. It was, however, prepared to issue at present, extra import licenses to private importers to enable them to import the necessary quantity of foodstuffs.

In pursuance of this idea it had approached the Jewish and the Arab Chambers of Commerce to take up the responsibility of vetting and forwarding applications for import licences by their member firms, subject to the informal condition that the number of applications should be, for reasons of administrative convenience, as few as possible.

The Government had also indicated that Messrs. Steel Bros., who had an extensive organisation which had worked efficiently during the war and post war years, might be used by them as their sole or chief agent if they so wished. The matter had also been brought to the notice of the Jewish Agency and the Arab Higher Executive. No replies had yet been received.