World Zionist Congress

The Second Zionist Congress, held in Basel, Switzerland (1898).

The World Zionist Congress (Hebrew: הקונגרס הציוני העולמי‎‎ HaKongres HaTsioni HaOlami) established by Theodor Herzl, is the supreme organ of the World Zionist Organization (WZO) and its legislative authority. It elects the officers and decides on the policies of the WZO and the Jewish Agency.^[1] The first World Zionist Congress was held in Basel, Switzerland in 1897.

Any Jew over age 18 who belongs to a Zionist association is eligible to vote, and the number of elected delegates to the Congress is 500.^[2][3] 38% of the delegates are allocated to Israel, 29% to the United States of America, and 33% to the remainder of the countries of the Diaspora.^[1] In addition there are about 100 delegates which are appointed by International Organizations (e.g. B'nai B'rith, see below) affiliated with WZO.^[3]

After the First Zionist Congress in 1897, the Zionist Congress met every year until 1901, then every second year from 1903 to 1913 and 1921 to 1939. Until 1946, the Congress was held every two years in various European cities, save for interruptions during the two World Wars. Their goal was to build an infrastructure to further the cause of Jewish settlement in Palestine. Since the Second World War, meetings have been held approximately every four years. Also, since the creation of the State of Israel, the Congress has met every four or five years in Jerusalem.^[4]

At the 34th World Zionist Congress in 2002, the Green Zionist Alliance became the first environmental organization to ever hold a seat at the World Zionist Congress.^[5]

The 36th Congress was held in June 2010 in Jerusalem and Avraham Duvdevani from the modern-Orthodox “Mizrahi” camp was elected as Chair.^[6] Natan Sharansky was elected as head of the Jewish Agency for Israel which was separated again from the position of WZO Chair.^[6]

The upcoming 38th World Zionist Congress will take place in 2020.

Representatives at the World Zionist Congress

The World Zionist Congress includes representatives of Zionist World Unions, Women's Zionist Organizations with Special Status and International Jewish Organizations.^[1]

Zionist World Unions

Zionist participants in the World Zionist Congress are free to form Brit Olamit or Zionist World Unions (ideological groupings), which are somewhat like political parties. While Israeli political parties can participate in the Congress, brits are also organized and voted into the Congress by non-Israelis, making the Congress a multinational deliberative body for the Jewish diaspora. However, as aliyah has brought Jews to Israel from other countries, Israeli representation in the legislature has increased at the expense of non-Israeli Jewish diaspora representation. A Brit Olamit (World Union) must have representation in at least five countries to send a delegation to the Congress.

There are currently six Zionist World Unions (with full voting rights):

• World Zionist Union: Labor Zionist Movement – Arzenu – World Union of Meretz
• United Faction: Kadima–HaNoar HaTzioni– MERCAZ
• World Mizrachi/Ichud Le'umi/Herut/Yisrael Beytenu/Moledet/Tkuma
• World Likud/Shas
• Hadassah/Confederation
• Over The rainbow - the Zionist movement

Zionist Organizations with Special Status

Two women's organizations have special status in the Zionist Organization and have full voting rights:

• WIZO - is an international, non-party Zionist body, which receives global representation by virtue of an agreement entered into in 1964.
• Hadassah – received special status by virtue of a decision of the Zionist General Council, in 1994.^[1] (duplicate?)

International Jewish Organizations

The international Jewish organizations have also been represented in the Zionist Congress since 1972, provided that they accept the Jerusalem Program,^[7] even if not all their members are declared Zionists. These bodies have limited voting rights - they do not vote on matters of candidature and elections to the institutions of the WZO.^[1]

The following are the International Jewish Organizations (limited voting rights):

• Bnai Brith International
• Maccabi World Union
• Na'amat
• WIZO Women's International Zionist Organization (duplicate?)
• World Council of Conservative Masorti Synagogues
• World Emunah
• World Organization of Orthodox Synagogues & Communities in Israel and the Diaspora
• World Sephardi Federation
• World Union for Progressive Judaism
• World Union of Jewish Students
• Zionist Council in Israel

Other Participants in Congress (Advisors, Observers)

• In addition to the delegates with full voting rights participating in Congress, there are also participants in an advisory capacity which can participate in debates but have no voting rights. These may consist of office holders such as members of the Zionist Executive, members of the Zionist General Council who were not elected as delegates to Congress, Chairs of the Zionist Federations, judicial office holders - the President of the Zionist Supreme Court, the Attorney, the Comptroller and representatives of the Aliyah Movement.^[1]
• Observers with no speaking or voting rights can be invited by the Zionist Executive or the Congress Presidium.

The Course of the Congress

The Zionist Congress is conducted by the Congress Presidium. Congress deliberations are divided into five stages:^[1]

• Opening of the Congress, including a speech by the Chairman of the Executive, and other speeches determined in the agenda, election of the Congress Presidium, the report of the President of the Zionist Supreme Court on the election results, reports of the members of the Zionist Executive in supplement to the printed report, election of the Congress committees.
• Election of the new Executive, according to the proposal of the Congress Standing Committee.
• Meetings of the committees.
• Reports of the committees and voting on the draft resolutions presented by them. The report of the Standing Committee and voting on its proposals for members of the Zionist General Council, the Comptroller and the Legal Institutions.
• Congress closing ceremony.

2015 United States Elections for World Zionist Congress

The United States will send 145 delegates to the 2015 Congress with 11 slates (including two newly qualified) competing in elections held during January 13 through April 30, 2015.^[8][9] Total number of seats won are shown in parenthesis after the list name and description:

The U.S. slates (parties) include:

• Alliance for New Zionist Vision^[10] (2 delegates)
• American Forum for Israel (American Forum Of Russian Speaking Jewry)^[11] "The Home for Russian American Jews for Israel" (10 delegates)
• ARZA: "Representing Reform Judaism" (56 delegates)
• Green Israel: Aytzim / Green Zionist Alliance / Jewcology^[12] (1 delegate)
• HATIKVAH - "The Progressive Zionist Voice" - a joint slate of Ameinu, Partners for Progressive Israel, Habonim Dror and Hashomer Hatzair, that includes individuals who are lay-activists and staff people associated with such groups as J Street, New Israel Fund, Americans for Peace Now, Open Hillel, and the Jewish Labor Committee. (Affiliated with Labor and Meretz) (8 delegates)
• Herut North America - "The Jabotinsky Movement" (1 delegate)
• Mercaz USA: "The Zionist Arm of the Conservative Movement"^[13] (25 delegates)
• Ohavei Zion - World Sephardic Zionist Organization^[14] (Affiliated with Shas) (4 delegates)
• Religious Zionists: "Vote Torah for the Soul of Israel" - Religious Zionists of America, AMIT, Bnei Akiva, Torah MiTzion, Orthodox Union, Yeshiva University, Touro College, RCA, Young Israel^[15] (24 delegates)
• Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) - "Defend Jews & Israeli Rights", endorsed by World Likud, AFSI, JCCWatch, APT, Stand With Us and One Israel Fund^[16] (7 delegates)
• Zionist Spring: "Restoring Vision to World Zionism" (Bnai Zion Foundation, Young Judea, World Confederation of United Zionists) (7 delegates)

Some of the older and larger American Zionist groups, such as Hadassah and Emunah, do not run and are automatically assigned seats.

History

The Zionist Congress, later to become the World Zionist Congress, was held at intervals of 1 year (1897-1901), then 2 years (1903-1939) until the outbreak of the Second World War, with an eight-year break (1913-1921) due to the First World War.

• First Zionist Congress^[17] - Basel, Switzerland (1897)

Theodor Herzl acted as chairperson. The Congress was attended by some 200 participants who formulated the Zionist platform, known as the "Basel programme", and established the Zionist Organization (ZO). In contrast with the older Hibbat Zion movement, the ZO took a clear stance in favour of political Zionism, stating in its programme that

"Zionism seeks for the Jewish people a publicly recognized legally secured homeland in Palestine."

Herzl wrote in his diary,

"Were I to sum up the Basel Congress in a word - which I shall guard against pronouncing publicly - it would be this: At Basel I founded the Jewish State."^[18]

• Second Zionist Congress^[19] - Basel, Switzerland (1898)^[18][20]
• Third Zionist Zionist Congress^[21] - Basel, Switzerland (1899)^[18][20]
• Fourth Zionist Zionist Congress^[22] - London, England (1900)^[18][20]
• Fifth Zionist Zionist Congress^[23] - Basel, Switzerland (1901)^[18][20]
• Sixth Zionist Congress^[24] - Basel, Switzerland (1903)^[18][20]
• Seventh Zionist Congress^[25] - Basel, Switzerland (1905)^[18][20]
• Eighth Zionist Congress^[26] - The Hague, Netherlands (1907)^[18][20]
• Ninth Zionist Congress^[27] - Hamburg, Germany (1909)^[18][20]
• Tenth Zionist Congress^[28] - Basel, Switzerland (1911)^[18][20]
• Eleventh Zionist Congress^[29] - Vienna, Austria (1913)^[18][20]
• Twelfth Zionist Congress^[30] - Carlsbad (Karlovy Vary), Czechoslovakia (1921)^[18][20]
• Thirteenth Zionist Congress^[31] - Carlsbad (Karlovy Vary), Czechoslovakia (1923)^[20][32]
• Fourteenth Zionist Congress^[33] - Vienna, Austria (1925)^[20][34]
• Fifteenth Zionist Congress^[35] - Basel, Switzerland (1927)^[20][36]
• Sixteenth Zionist Congress^[37] - Zürich, Switzerland (1929)^[20][38]
• Seventeenth Zionist Congress^[39] - Basel, Switzerland (1931)^[20]
• Eighteenth Zionist Congress^[40] - Prague, Czechoslovakia (1933)^[20]
• Nineteenth Zionist Congress^[41] - Lucerne, Switzerland (1935)^[20]
• Twentieth Zionist Congress - Zürich, Switzerland (1937)^[20]
• Twenty-first Zionist Congress - Geneva, Switzerland (1939)^[20]
• Twenty-second Zionist Congress - Basel, Switzerland (1946)^[20][42]
• Twenty-third Zionist Congress - Jerusalem, Israel (1951)

The Twenty-third Zionist Congress was the first to be held after the establishment of the State of Israel, and the first held in Jerusalem, which would become the norm. It was opened at the graveside of Theodor Herzl, whose remains had been moved from Vienna and reburied on the top of a hill in Jerusalem that was renamed after him, Mount Herzl. The Congress issued the "Jerusalem Program", placing its main focus on the newly created state as the central unifying element for the Jewish people.^[20]

Ruth Popkin was the first woman to be Chair of the Presidium and President of the World Zionist Congress, being elected to both positions in 1987.^[43]

The 35th World Zionist Congress was held in June 2006,^[44] where Zeev Bielski of Kadima was elected WZO Chairman.

See also

• First Zionist Congress
• World Zionist Organization
• Jewish Agency for Israel

References