Last update - 00:00 24/03/2008
Holocaust commission on treatment of survivors wraps up hearings
By Anshel Pfeffer, Haaretz Correspondent
The Dorner Commission on the government's treatment of Holocaust survivors on Sunday ended the hearings phase of its work with testimony by Reuven Merhav, executive committee chairman of the Conference on Jewish Material Claims against Germany. The commission will now begin its deliberations and submit its report in a month.
Merhav insisted on testifying despite retired justice Dalia Dorner's assertion that the Claims Conference is an American organization and outside the commission's purview. However, Merhav reportedly wanted to set the record straight following criticism of Claims Conference policies over the past year.
The commission also heard testimony from Finance Minister Roni Bar-On, who said the new government plan for benefits to Holocaust survivors is better than the German government's compensation law.
The Claims Conference has reportedly pressured various beneficiary bodies in Israel to thank them and not to criticize it.
"The matter of showing gratitude is basic," Merhav told Haaretz last week. "Not only do they not recognize those who help, they claim they are not getting any help at all."
The Jewish Agency's treasurer recently wrote the Claims Conference that the agency withdrew its criticism.
"We are studying the letter and considering the right way to continue working with the agency," Merhav said.
Last year, the draft report of an audit by Jewish Agency Chairman Zeev Bielski and Pensioner Affairs Minister Rafi Eitan leaked to the media revealed the Claims Conference had a billion-dollar surplus. The Conference said the funds were earmarked for future nursing care for survivors.