The Jewish Trail of Tears The Evian Conference of ... - Haruth.com

necessitated a rapid solution and mutual cooperation. Representations were made by
Jewish, Catholic and other non-Aryan groups and were thematically divided into “four
main trends of thought.” The first called for an increase in Jewish immigration into
Palestine by “substantially” increasing the annual quota allowed by the Mandate Power
and noted that 45,000 German Jews had entered Palestine since the Nazi takeover of
government in 1933.
A second approach called for aid to refugees that would facilitate their
assimilation into the dominant society of the nation “into which they are transplanted.”
Article 15 of the Geneva Convention of February 10, 1938, concerning the status of
German refugees, called for the “contracting parties” involved in resettlement to provide
the structure and facilities for vocational training. In addition, the new immigrants would
be dispersed throughout the country of reception to avoid urban concentrations that could
generate “hostility” among the native population. 7
This Convention was applied to
stateless German and Austrian refugees who were unable to obtain a Nansen passport and
consequently were granted “certain privileges of sojourn and residence in signatory
states,” suitable identification and travel documentation and protection against
involuntary repatriation to Germany. Several organizations called for an immediate
ratification of this Convention by its signatories and the widest degree of application.
The third opinion called for resettlement in isolated and underdeveloped regions
to avoid “mingling with indigenous ethnical elements” and presumably avoid the risk of
generating local anti-Semitism. The fourth suggestion requested the granting of all rights
protecting minorities to refugees in “their present country of residence.” In addition,
7 As with the future planning of the agenda of the Evian Conference Latin American countries did not
participate in the construction and drafting of these League Conventions on Refugees.
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