Between April 16-20, Joshua
Gershman, editor of the Cana-
dian Jewish Weekly (Vochen-
blatt) and Jack Cowan, presi-
dent of the United Jewish
People’s Order, together with
Sour other leading members of
the UPJO in Toronto, were in
Warsaw, Poland, to attend the
Commemoration of the 35th
anniversary of the uprising of
the Warsaw Ghetto.

‘During their visit they at-
tended two special perfor-
| Mances by the Jewish State
Theatre of Poland; partici-
Pated in all-day visit to’ the
former Nazi. concentration
Camp of Auschwitz; took part
i a special ceremony in honor
of Poles who helped the Jews
during Nazi occupation; at-
tended a concert at the Phil-
harmonic Hall especially dedi-
Cated to the Ghetto Uprising
and took part in the laying of
Wreaths at a monument in
arsaw paying tribute to the
Martyrs, in which the cere-
mony was attended by a spe-
cial honor guard of the Polish
People’s Army.

The Tribune interviewed
Joshua Gershman about his
impressions of the visit and the
Significance of the events in
which he took part.

‘The commemoration of the
35th Anniversary of the Warsaw
Ghetto uprising was important for
two main reasons. First, because
It Came at a time when in the West
serious attempt is being made to
not only minimize the Nazi occu-
Pation, but to actually deny the:
deaths of millions of people.

The Commemoration, there-
fore, was a powerful answer to
neo-Nazism and to those who
would play down the terrible

feeds of fascism and seek to

ee

legalize it as a nationalist move-
ment.

Secondly it was important be-
cause of the campaign waged

against Poland due to the events .

in 1968. The commemoration
showed the Polish government
has met its historic task of not
allowing the world to forget Nazi
atrocities in general and espe-
cially against the Jewish people.

Dr. Nahum Goldmann, honor-

ary president of the World Jewish -

Congress, in an interview with the
Polish Interpress agency, expres-
sed this thought when he spoke of
the friendship with which the
Polish authorities received the
Jewish delegation. And, during
his visit to the Jewish Pavilion at
Block 27 in’ Auschwitz, Dr.
Goldmann spoke of the campaign
to minimize Nazi crimes when he
said there was no more approp-
riate time to open the Jewish
pavilion for the world at large at a
time when we see ‘‘a beginning to
forget the crimes and the tragedy
of Nazism’.

It is a fact that many Poles and
others collaborated with the
Nazis. But it is a crime to ignore
the fact that there were many
Poles who, at the risk of their own
lives, helped to save Jews from
certain death. For example, when
one of the leaders of the uprising,

- Mordecai Anielewicz, was cap-

tured by the Nazis in the head-
quarters of the Jewish resistance,

he was arrested and shot together

with the Polish couple who had
hidden him throughout the
struggle.

cial tribute to 19 Polish men and
women for their heroism in saving
Jewish lives.

To me, Dr. Goldmann’s inter-
view with Interpress is of specific
importance because, in reply to a
question about the neutron bomb,
he said: :

“IT am a great believer in
détente. I think the cold war
would be a catastrophe for both
East and West. I was always in
favor of détente. I know that
détente today is in certain danger.
I am convinced that Mr.
Brezhnev wants détente. I know
that president Carter wants
détente, too. IL know that there is
some danger, but personally I be-
lieve that, unless some unforseen

That is why I was deeply im-
pressed by the ceremony at the
headquarters of ZBOVID (Polish
Anti-Nazi Movement) where 32
representatives of the Israeli or-
ganization Yad Vashen (Martyrs
and Heroes Remembrance Au-
thority in Israel) jointly with
Polish representatives paid spe-

things happen, détente will con-
tinue because a new cold war
will be a catastrophe first of all for
the Jews.

Naturally, there are various in-
fluential people against détente.
Détente should continue. I say it
as a Jew, I say it as a democrat. I
say it as a European, as.a human
being. And I hope we’ll prevent a

hold a bake sa

It will be a great day
When our schools get all
the money they need ‘-
_and the air force has to

new cold war which may become
a greater tragedy than the old cold
war used to be.”’

After reading Dr. Goldmann’s
interview and hearing his
speeches in Warsaw and Ausch-
witz, I began to understand the
urging by him of the need to
“‘break up the Jewish lobby in the
USA’, in connection with achiev-
ing a Mid-East peace. Because it
is the same people whom Dr.
Goldmann speaks about who are
endangering détente and who do
not want to give up their harmful
anti-Soviet campaign and their
slanders against the USSR.

Dr. Goldmann’s call for a com-
promise with the Arab states ex-
presses the will and desire of the

‘Ban National
Front’ Scots
trade unions —

le to buy a

ABERDEEN —
major clampdown on the National
Front was carried unanimously
by the Scottish Trade Union
Council. The resolution wants
new laws to-curb and if necessary
prohibit racist, fascist prop-
aganda and activities.

*“‘The issue is racism, not law
and order. The Home Secretary

under the Race Relations Act to

and police must use their power 4

Monument in Warsaw to the Ghetto uprising with honor guard from the Polish People’s Army.

majority of Jewish people every-
where and particularly those in Is-
rael where 30,000 Israelis de-
monstrated under the slogan
‘Peace Now!”’.

I do not believe the cold war
elements will succeed in further
misleading the Jewish people
when they express dissatisfaction
that the Polish representatives
during the commemoration did
not directly mention the question
of re-establishing diplomatic rela-
tion between Poland and Israel.

The fact remains that a minister
of the Polish government who
spoke at Auschwitz expressed
hope for better relations with
Jews ‘‘wherever they live’’
which, to me, includes the Jews of
the state of Israel. In fact, in the
newspaper of the Polish United
Workers Party, Tribuna Ludu,
May 3, Premier Edward Gierek,
in reply to a question said, ‘There
is nothing that is undertaken once
and for all and nothing is final.
Just as we had diplomatic rela-
tions with Israel and were among
the initiators for the establish-
ment of the state of Israel, so it
does not exclude that in the future
such relations shall be renewed.”’

At no public event — and there
were many — did any leader of
the Polish government leave any
doubt of their great desire for
peace between all the world’s
peoples.

In his speech at the Warsaw
Philharmonia, the leader of
ZBOVID, Mr. Wronski, spoke of
the plight during the Nazi occupa-
tion of both peoples — Jews and
Poles. The spirit of the entire
commemoration. was expressed

in the thought that nothing binds |

peoples together more than com-
mon suffering.
The particular role played by

. 3

mee ae 3 :

the small Jewish community of
Poland in the commemoration did
not only have the approval of the
Polish government and the Polish
United Workers Party, but on the
basis of my talks with leading
people in the Jewish community,
they were encouraged and as-
sisted in every way possible.

As the editor of the Canadian
Jewish Weekly (Vochenblatt) to-
gether with Jack Cowan, presi-
dent of the United Jewish
People’s Order, I felt very proud
of being able to attend this grand-
iose manifestation of commem-
oration for the victims of Nazi
occupation.

We both regretted the absence
of the ‘‘official’’ Jewish institu-
tions in Canada although the
major call for the Ghetto com-
memoration in Warsaw was a call
to Jewish people the world over.

Those of us who went to Au-
schwitz, Treblinka and Warsaw
will agree with Dr. Goldmann that
Auschwitz should become a place
of pilgrimage of. Jews and anti-
Nazis the world over. There were
representatives from 19 countries

_who witnessed the determination

on the part of the Polish govern-
ment to carry out in life the slogan
of the martyrs, ‘‘Never to forgive,
never to forget!’’

We left Poland with the deter-
mination to strengthen our ties
with the small but very vibrant
Jewish community of the Polish
People’s Republic and work to-
ward improvement of
Canadian-Polish relations. Let
me state that as a Canadian I am
very thankful that the Canadian
embassy felt its obligation to laya
wreath on April 19 at the monu-
ment of the Warsaw Ghetto
uprising.

Dr. Nahum, Goldmann, (left) honorary president of the Worid Jewish

ban National Front demonstra-
tions,”’ the resolution demanded.

Congress talking with Professor Jabionski, chairman of the state coun-
cil of the Polish People’s Republic.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—June 2, 1978—Page 7