To: Machaon who wrote (2312 ) 10/15/2003 3:23:40 PM From: Elmer Flugum Respond to "The immigration process had not changed since the early days of the Mandate, The authorities assigned the Jewish Agency a specific number of immigration permits, which the agency then distributed more or less as it saw fit. However, Jews with capital, their relatives, and certain other categories of Jews were for all practical purposes allowed to come without restriction. As before, the Jewish Agency asked for more permits than the authorities granted; the quotas were subject of constant negotiation with the High Commissioner and the endless source of complaint for the Jewish Agency, which argued that the British were discriminating against the Jews. At times, discussions became heated. If the government continued to deny the Jews permits and put obstacles in their way, Weizmann told Wauchope, then they would swim over. Zionist leaders more than once complained of the immigration official's contemptuous attitudes. Some immigrants found ways to enter Palestine without permits. Most of them came to the country as tourists and simply stayed. The great majority of illegals were allowed to remain; only a few dozen were deported. Women would obtain permanent resident permits via fictious marriages."*
