YOUTH ALIYAH

A set of stamps was issued in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of Youth Aliyah, a branch of the Zionist movement founded with the aim of rescuing Jewish children and young people from persecution, deprivation, or hardship and providing them a home and education in Eretz Israel. In 1932 Recha Freier of Berlin conceived the idea of taking Jewish children out of Germany, where conditions were worsening, and educating them in Palestine. The first group of 12 young people left Germany in October 1932 to the Ben Shemen youth village. In 1933 the 18th Zionist Congress decided to set up a department for the settlement of German Jews in Palestine and Henrietta Szold became the leader of the Youth Aliyah office. By the start of World War II, some 5,000 young people had reached Eretz Israel and another 15,000 had be sent to West European countries, particularly Britain. By the time of the establishment of the State they numbered 15,000 in Israel. As the years went by and fewer charges came from outside the country, Youth Aliyah devoted its educational efforts to native-born Israelis as well. In the 1990s Youth Aliyah became a division of the Ministry of Education.

The themes are the stamps deal with aspects of immigration and education.

IMMIGRATION BY SHIP AND PLANE

From 1934 large numbers of convoys of Jewish children were brought by ship and plane to Eretz Israel. In the initial period of Youth Aliyah, the threat and reality of war prompted the move by the children. After 1948 children from distressed situations, especially from families coming from the Middle East and North Africa, joined the ranks of Youth Aliyah.

In 1949 "Operation Magic Carpet" airlifted some 40,000 Jews from Yemen to Israel. This is symbolized by the stamp showing a Yemenite girl in traditional garb in the foreground against a picture of an airplane.

AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION

From the beginning it was intended that all the children brought to Israel under the Youth Aliyah project would be absorbed in agriculture. It was felt that a life close to nature, in peaceful rural surroundings would contribute most towards the physical and spiritual health of children who had suffered hardship, stress, and neglect in their countries of origin. The "From town to country" movement was introduced in 1941 when the first three Youth Aliyah groups settled on the land. In recent years less emphasis is placed on settling the land, but the value of living close to nature is still highly regarded. The stamps show a boy holding a lamb and a girl watering plants in rural setting.

TRAINING IN CRAFTS

Many of the children of Youth Aliyah, particularly from Oriental communities, came to Israel equipped with artistic skills acquired in their countries of origin or traditional in their families. These accomplishments, such as weaving, embroidering, silver-working, and rug-making, were not allowed to go to waste and were integrated with the academic education provided by Youth Aliyah. The stamp shows a person working with pottery.

SCIENCE EDUCATION

Scientific and technical training is important to the national economy of Israel, and modern vocational training played a significant role in Youth Aliyah education. The young people were taught a trade providing them the opportunity to fit in to urban life. The range of choices is wide, including fields such as sewing, carpentry, and agricultural chemistry. On the stamp appears a young man working as a surveyor with a factory building in the background.