Land valuation programme, blocked refugee accounts – UNCCP 341st meeting (New York) – Summary Record

UNITED NATIONS CONCILIATION COMMISSION FOR PALESTINE

SUMMARY RECORD OF THE THREE HUNDRED AND FORTY-FIRST MEETING (CLOSED)

Held at Headquarters, New York, on
Tuesday 18 May 1960, at 3.30 p.m.

CONTENTS

1. Adoption of the agenda

2. Valuation programme

3. Letter dated 15 December 1959 addressed to the Chairman of the Commission from the Secretary-General transmitting the text of General Assembly resolution 1456 (XIV) of 9 December 1959

4. Arrangements for the release of Arab refugee bank accounts blocked in banks other than Barclay's and the Ottoman Bank

5. Note of 26 April 1960 from the permanent representative of Jordan addressed to the Commission concerning the records of "Land Registration" of Jewish immovable property in the Jerusalem District, Shufat and Nebi Yacoub

1. ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA

The agenda was adopted, and the members of the Commission expressed their welcome to the Chairman, Mr. Eldem, and to Mr. Jarvis, the Commission’s new land expert.

2. VALUATION PROGRAMME

Mr. JARVIS (Land Expert) commented on a report which he had prepared for the Commission analysing the programme for the valuation of Arab refugee property holdings in Israel. He wished to know whether the Commission considered that efforts should be made to recruit additional staff in order to accelerate the work, whether it wished to fix any time-limits for the completion of the programme, the ultimate purpose to which the valuation was to be put, and the degree of detail which the Commission thought desirable.

Mr. PEDERSEN (United States of America) expressed appreciation of the report prepared by Mr. Jarvis. The United States considered the valuation programme to be important and that it should be accelerated. He proposed that the Commission decide to accelerate the programme so as to enable completion of the analytical work at least by 1 August 1961, and that any necessary staff and equipment increases should be undertaken to make that possible. He hoped that if this were done there would be at least a loose approximation of the over-all property value available before the two-year review of UNRWA which the Assembly was to undertake at its sixteenth session. He also considered that with the acceleration of the analytical work, the ultimate goal should be to complete the valuation of individual parcels of immovable property by late spring of 1962. As regards the question of the ultimate use to be made of the valuation, he did not think it possible to be definitive in that matter at the present time. There seemed to be need of some compromise in the matter of the degree of reliability of the valuation, since any information that might one day be released needed to be defensible, but time limitations precluded doing as thorough a study of rural lands as it was proposed to do on urban areas. While it might prove necessary at a later stage to restudy the valuation of rural property, he thought that for planning purposes the current assumption of working in more detail on urban areas was satisfactory.

Mr. DAUGE (France) also thanked Mr. Jarvis for his report. He shared the views of the United States on the importance of the valuation programme and thought that all possible should be done to accelerate it. It would be satisfactory if the analysis could be furnished by August 1961 and the application to individual parcels by the spring of 1962, and if necessary he thought two additional experts should be recruited to facilitate that result. He did not believe the ultimate use of the valuation could be determined at the moment, but considered that the work should be continued on the present assumptions as a useful piece of work in itself. He also agreed that the analysis should combine the more detailed study of urban areas with a wider overall figure for rural property.

The CHAIRMAN, speaking as representative of Turkey, agreed with the views that had been expressed and considered that in existing conditions, the only course open to the Commission was to speed up any technical work that it could. Later when the work had been completed it would be possible to determine how best to utilize it.

It was agreed that the Commission should address a letter to the Secretary-General informing him that the Commission had decided, in the light of resolution 1456 (XIV) and taking into account the report on the valuation programme prepared by the Commission’s. land expert, that the work on the programme should be speeded up and that the Secretary-General should be requested to recruit the required additional personnel in order that the work of analysis might be completed before August 1961.

3. LETTER DATED 15 DECEMBER 1959 ADDRESSED TO THE CHAIRMAN OF THE COMMISSION FROM THE SECRETARY-GENERAL TRANSMITTING THE TEXT OF GENERAL ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION 1456 (XIV) OF 9 DECEMBER 1959

Mr. PEDERSEN (United States of America) considered that in undertaking its responsibilities in connexion with the Assembly’s resolution, it would be useful for the future planning of the Commission to have available a complete record of significant factors related to the Assembly’s resolutions. Accordingly, the United States recommended that the Secretariat of the Commission be directed to undertake two studies. The first would be to bring up to date the historical survey that had been prepared in 1955 on the question of compensation. The second would be a comparable and fully documented survey, with emphasis on repatriation, of proposals regarding the implementation of paragraph 11 of resolution 194 (III). He considered that the survey should cover both formal proposals and less formal suggestions, including those that might be found in the public statements of spokesmen of interested Governments, both from the area and elsewhere. In order to be as comprehensive and as helpful as possible, he considered that the study should cover proposals made both inside or outside the United Nations, and hoped that it would end with a summary analysis of the current positions of Israel and the pertinent Arab States as reflected in the available records.

Mr. DAUGE (France) considered that it would be useful and not too difficult to bring the study on compensation up to date. As for the second proposal for a study on repatriation, he considered that it would require considerably greater work and wondered what use would be made of such a study — whether it was intended for the internal use of the Commission, as a basis for its work, or as part of the Commission’s report to the Assembly, for publication. He thought it might be useful for the Commission to see a first draft or an outline before deciding on the final form or disposition of such a survey. Moreover, he thought too great detail should be avoided, as some proposals had been put forward which by now had only a historical interest.

The CHAIRMAN, speaking as representative of Turkey, considered that the proposed studies would be very useful, and that the one on compensation should be brought up to date as soon as possible. Regarding the second paper, he thought the Commission should first consider an outline so as to be able to give the Secretariat more detailed information about what it wished done.

It was agreed to request the Commission’s Secretariat to bring up to date the study on compensation and to prepare an outline of a survey of proposals made on the subject of repatriation.

4. ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE RELEASE OF ARAB REFUGEE BANK ACCOUNTS BLOCKED IN BANKS OTHER THAN BARCLAY’S AND THE OTTOMAN BANK

The CHAIRMAN informed the Commission that following the announcement by the representative of Israel on 11 November 1959 that his Government had decided to release the bank accounts of Arab refugees blocked in Israel in banks other than Barclay’s and the Ottoman Bank, efforts made in Jerusalem by the Commission’s Liaison Officer to obtain information as to the technical arrangements for such release had been unavailing. Accordingly, he suggested that the Commission should address a letter to the representative of Israel at the United Nations requesting him to make inquiries with his Government in order to expedite a reply on the matter to the Commission’s Liaison Officer.

After some discussion, the Commission agreed on the text of a letter to the permanent representative of Israel to the above effect.

5. NOTE OF 26 APRIL 1960 FROM THE PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF JORDAN ADDRESSED TO THE COMMISSION CONCERNING THE RECORDS OF “LAND REGISTRATION” OF JEWISH IMMOVABLE PROPERTY IN THE JERUSALEM DISTRICT, SHUFAT AND NEBI YACOUB

The CHAIRMAN drew attention to a request from the representative of Jordan for the records of land registration of Jewish-owned immovable property in Shufat and Nebi Yacoub, in the Jerusalem District. After consultation with the Commission’s land expert, Mr. Jarvis, it was ascertained that the Commission did not have in its possession records of land registration in villages mentioned in the letter from the representative of Jordan.

After discussion of a draft letter that had been prepared to be addressed to the representative of Jordan stating that the Commission did not have the records which he had requested, the Commission agreed on the text of such a letter.

The meeting rose at 4.50 p.m.