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lowing fact: after Ben-Gurion's unequivocal words in favor of establishing the state
immediately, which meant rejecting the American ceasefire proposal, a vote was held. The
tally was close: Mapai was split, with only Ben-Gurion and Sharett supporting a "declaration
now;" they were joined by Bentov and Zisling of Mapam, Bernstein of the General Zionists,
and Sheetrit of the Sephardim – a total of six. Four were in favor of accepting the ceasefire
proposal, which meant postponing the declaration of the state: Kaplan and Remez of
Mapai; Rosenblüth of Aliya Hadasha; and Shapira of the Po'el HaMizrahi. "By a hair's
breadth", as Shabtai Tevet described it in a wide-ranging article about the drama of that
day, which appeared in Haaretz on the eve of Israel's 25th Independence Day anniversary
(May 6, 1973). "It is doubtful whether a quorum of Jews had ever been called upon to
decide on the course of Jewish history," said Zeev Sharef, who was present at the meeting
in his capacity as secretary of the People's Administration.
And this brings us back to the problem of the protocol. The statements of the participants
in this marathon meeting were recorded in the protocol, but it bears no hint of any vote
having taken place, and the factual basis for the slim majority (6:4) about which so much
has been written, is not clear. A controversy has developed around the matter, with the
camp that denies that any vote ever took place being led by Prof. Yigal Eilam, who wrote
a major polemical article over two successive volumes of the journal Kivvunim Hadashim
(12-13, 2005). According to Eilam, as well as other sources, a vote did indeed take place
– but on a different subject: whether to specify in advance the borders of the state. Five
members voted against, 4 were in favor. This, seemingly, was the source of the erroneous
record.
I wish to add my own humble voice to those who deny that any vote was taken on the
declaration. In support I cite no lesser a source than David Ben-Gurion himself, who
wrote to me in 1968, when I was busy writing my MA thesis for submission to the Hebrew
University. After two meetings with him, I sent him a letter in which I sought clarification
as to the dramatic discussion on May 12, 1948, and the vote. In particular, I wanted his
confirmation as to the identity of the six and of the four. He replied as follows:
To Mordecai Naor – Shalom, Sde Boker, Nov. 20, 1968
[The first section addresses the vote about delineating borders]
S econd proposal – Ceasefire in Eretz Yisrael - I am not familiar with this at all, and
in the protocols in my possession there is no such resolution, and I do not know on
what basis you believe that six voted against it and four in favor. Therefore I cannot
tell you the names of those against and those in favor, because there was no vote on
[word unclear] according to the material in my possession.
Respectfully yours,
D. Ben-Gurion
148 The Friday That Changed Destiny
immediately, which meant rejecting the American ceasefire proposal, a vote was held. The
tally was close: Mapai was split, with only Ben-Gurion and Sharett supporting a "declaration
now;" they were joined by Bentov and Zisling of Mapam, Bernstein of the General Zionists,
and Sheetrit of the Sephardim – a total of six. Four were in favor of accepting the ceasefire
proposal, which meant postponing the declaration of the state: Kaplan and Remez of
Mapai; Rosenblüth of Aliya Hadasha; and Shapira of the Po'el HaMizrahi. "By a hair's
breadth", as Shabtai Tevet described it in a wide-ranging article about the drama of that
day, which appeared in Haaretz on the eve of Israel's 25th Independence Day anniversary
(May 6, 1973). "It is doubtful whether a quorum of Jews had ever been called upon to
decide on the course of Jewish history," said Zeev Sharef, who was present at the meeting
in his capacity as secretary of the People's Administration.
And this brings us back to the problem of the protocol. The statements of the participants
in this marathon meeting were recorded in the protocol, but it bears no hint of any vote
having taken place, and the factual basis for the slim majority (6:4) about which so much
has been written, is not clear. A controversy has developed around the matter, with the
camp that denies that any vote ever took place being led by Prof. Yigal Eilam, who wrote
a major polemical article over two successive volumes of the journal Kivvunim Hadashim
(12-13, 2005). According to Eilam, as well as other sources, a vote did indeed take place
– but on a different subject: whether to specify in advance the borders of the state. Five
members voted against, 4 were in favor. This, seemingly, was the source of the erroneous
record.
I wish to add my own humble voice to those who deny that any vote was taken on the
declaration. In support I cite no lesser a source than David Ben-Gurion himself, who
wrote to me in 1968, when I was busy writing my MA thesis for submission to the Hebrew
University. After two meetings with him, I sent him a letter in which I sought clarification
as to the dramatic discussion on May 12, 1948, and the vote. In particular, I wanted his
confirmation as to the identity of the six and of the four. He replied as follows:
To Mordecai Naor – Shalom, Sde Boker, Nov. 20, 1968
[The first section addresses the vote about delineating borders]
S econd proposal – Ceasefire in Eretz Yisrael - I am not familiar with this at all, and
in the protocols in my possession there is no such resolution, and I do not know on
what basis you believe that six voted against it and four in favor. Therefore I cannot
tell you the names of those against and those in favor, because there was no vote on
[word unclear] according to the material in my possession.
Respectfully yours,
D. Ben-Gurion
148 The Friday That Changed Destiny
