יומנים > יומן - מלא 02/11/1948
[Tuesday,] November 2, 1948
A Jerusalem delegation, the military governor [Dov Yosef], Moshe [Dayan], and Levitze [Yitzhak Levi]. They demand easing up on conscriptions, because the economy in Jerusalem is crumbling. They want to revive the printing profession. They would like the release of 60 printing press workers - half of the printing press workers. The banks are closed from 11 to 1:30. About 40 clerks need to be released. In general they're demanding an end to discrimination regarding conscriptions in Jerusalem. The guards at the checkpoints in Romema, who recorded imports into Jerusalem and thereby prevented a black market (!), were conscripted. The manager of the post office branch in Rehavia was conscripted. It was decided that the main telegraphist would be released - and he wasn't released. The procedure also makes things hard - all requests for releases are sent to Tel Aviv. In addition they demand freedom of movement from Jerusalem and to Jerusalem.
I suggested that they submit a list of 600 men who should be released for economic reasons; the army will check who among them are needed - whether they can be replaced - otherwise we'll bring 600 to Jerusalem in place of them.
[Mordechai] Bentov is complaining about engineering officer Zvi Kantorovsky [sp.], who works closely with [Emanuel] Shahar, the national officer [commander] of the Engineering Corps, that he's taking gravel without permission from the quarry at kilometer 12. I'll look into this matter in Tel Aviv. Bentov is also demanding the return of a garage that ETZEL stole from the PWD [Public Works Department] in Jerusalem. Moshe Dayan asserts that this is not within his purview - but within that of the Personnel Department.
[Dov] Yosef is calling for the appointment of a committee to examine the ownership of vehicles taken from ETZEL here. Private vehicles will be returned to their owners, the rest are government property, and the army will use what it needs.
Yosef complains that the army here is using too many telephones - they have 800 telephone devices, and a private individual cannot get ahold of a telephone.
In the afternoon I returned to Tel Aviv.
- Ziama [Aran requests my presence]: on Sunday (November 7), at a meeting with 500 lecturers from the party, a political-military briefing.
He wants a second meeting: [Ya'akov] Dori, [Levi] Eshkol, Shaul [Avigur], B.G. Ziama, [Yosef] Yizraeli, [Yosef] Avidar, [Shlomo] Shamir, Elik [Shomroni], Elhanan [Yishai], Yehudit [Simhonit], Aharon Remez, Gershon Zak, Ahuvia [Malkin], Netzer the younger [Moshe Netzer], Asaf Simhoni, [Haim] Ben-Asher, [Yeshayahu (Isaiah)] Avrech, Karkovy [Yosef Kariv], Ze'ev Tchernetsky [sp.] [Aharon]. On Monday, November 8, at 9 a.m. [all the invitees were party activists serving in the army]. He wants "The Ten Commandments of the State."
He says that the members from the Negev are demanding that a Negev governor be appointed, not necessarily from among Mapam members.
- Alon [Yehuda Arazi] reports (yesterday) that the ship Asia set sail that morning from Naples carrying 12 naval [cannons] and auxiliary devices packed in 30 crates (total weight 40 tons), 9,000 rounds for them, 159 tons of bombs (27,000), 24 tons gunpowder and various other things.
- Yisrael Amir: We were tasked with mediating between employees of the Mossad [for clandestine immigration] and the Navy - the salaries of Mossad recruits will be equal to [those of] the Navy.
The recruitment center should be abolished, and it should be made part of the Defense Ministry. I asked [Yisrael] Amir to bring me figures on the enlistment of former Haganah members - it's not fair to punish Haganah members and subject them to conscriptions that do not apply to every person in Israel.