Campaign for Jews forced out of Arab lands

The Jewish Chronicle's Jenni Frazer reports that the move to launch an international campaign for rights and redress of Jews from Arab lands follows a declaration by Canadian Prime minister Paul Martin that 'the situation of Jewish refugees from arab lands must be recognised.'

"JJAC (Justice for Jews from Arab Countries) executive director Stan Urman told the JC:" A kind of ethnic cleansing took place of Jews from Arab countries after 1948. The focus of our campaign is to get world government recognition of what happened. It's our last best chance to document a glorious and tragic chapter in Jewish history."(..) It is anticipated that if Palestinians ask for compensation under the aegis of a comprehensive peace process, Jewish refugee rights will also be put on the table.

(...)"Veteran Israel-based campaigner Mordechai Ben-Porat is optimistic that Libya and Iraq - which both had large Jewish populations in 1948 - will now be receptive to acknowledging the rights of their former citizens. He wants to locate abandoned Judaica in Arab Countries with the aim of restoring it to the relevant communities in Israel.

"Ideally we'd like to follow the suggestion proposed by President Clinton before he left office that a fund should be etablished in which compensation could be made available to refugees on both sides of this situation, Palestinians and Jews."

Link to Jewish Chronicle site here