Palestine white papers

The Palestine white papers are the British government statements of policy presented to Parliament regarding Mandatory Palestine, issued between 1922 and 1946.

White Papers

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Date Common Name Full Title Cmd. # Purpose Immigration and land policy Other policies
June 1922 Churchill White Paper Correspondence with the Palestine Arab Delegation and the Zionist Organization Cmd. 1700 Jews' right to immigrate but must not exceed "the economic capacity of the country at the time to absorb new arrivals." Jewish national home: "a center in which the Jewish people as a whole may take, on grounds of religion and race, an interest and a pride."
November 1928 Statement of Policy ... (Wailing Wall) Cmd. 3229 No benches or screens could be brought to the Western Wall by Jews, since they had not been allowed during Ottoman rule.
May 1930 Statement to the Permanent Mandates Commission Palestine, Statement with regard to British Policy Cmd. 3582 government must issue clear statements safeguarding Arab rights and regulating Jewish immigration and land purchase welcomed an investigation by an international commission of the conflicting claims to the Western Wall
October 1930 Passfield White Paper Statement of Policy by His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom Presented by the Secretary of State for the Colonies to Parliament by Command of His Majesty. (Passfield) Cmd. 3692 Obligations "of equal weight" to both communities Stricter controls to be placed on Jewish immigration and land purchase Renew the effort to establish the legislative council proposed in 1922
July 1937 White Paper on Partition Statement of Policy on the Peel Commission report Cmd. 5513 Recommended partition
December 1937 Statement of Policy, appointment of the Woodhead Commission Cmd. 5634
November 1938 Statement of Policy on the Woodhead Commission's report Cmd. 5893
May 1939 MacDonald White Paper Statement of Policy presented by the Secretary of State for the Colonies ... (MacDonald) Cmd. 6019 No partition, with creation of self-governing institutions and shared authority over 10 years Limited Jewish immigration to 75,000 over five years; subsequent immigration would require Arab approval. Purchase of land would be limited in some parts of Palestine and forbidden in others

Other command papers

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  • Cmd 1499: An Interim Report on the Civil Administration of Palestine During the Period Ist July, 1920–30 June 1921. London: HMSO, 1921.
  • Cmd 1540: Palestine Disturbances of May, 1921: Reports of the Commissioners of Inquiry ... (Haycraft) London: HMSO, 1921.
  • Cmd 1785: Mandate for Palestine. London: HMSO, July 1922.
  • Cmd 1889: Papers relating to the elections for the Palestine Legislative Council. London: HMSO, 1923.
  • Cmd 3530: Report of the Commission (Palestine Disturbances of August 1929; Shaw). London: HMSO, 1930.
  • Cmd 3683-3687: Report on Immigration, Land Settlement and Development by Sir John Hope Simpson London: HMSO, 1930.
  • Cmd 5479: Report of the Palestine Royal Commission ... (Peel) London: HMSO, 1937.
  • Cmd 5854: Report of the Palestine Partition Commission (Woodhead) London: HMSO, 1938.

See also

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References

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