World Zionist Congress


For the most recent meeting see 39th World [Zionist Congress]
Image:Second Zionist Congress.jpg|200px|right|thumb|The Second Zionist Congress, held in Basel, Switzerland.
The Zionist Congress was established in 1897 by Theodor Herzl as the supreme organ of the Zionist Organization and its legislative authority. In 1960, the names were changed to World Zionist Congress and World Zionist Organization, respectively. The World Zionist Organization elects the officers and decides on the policies of the WZO and the Jewish Agency, including "determining the allocation of funds." The First 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. 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. In addition there are about 100 delegates which are appointed by International Organizations affiliated with WZO.
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.
The 39th World Zionist Congress is scheduled to convene in Jerusalem from October 28–30, 2025.

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.
File:PikiWiki Israel 40771 Tel Aviv.jpg|thumb|Basel Street in Tel Aviv named in honor of the first Congress of 1897

[|Zionist World Unions]

Zionist participants in the World Zionist Congress are free to form Brit Olamit or Zionist World Unions, 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 must have representation in at least five countries to send a delegation to the Congress.
There are currently six Zionist World Unions :
Since the creation of the State of Israel, there are no elections held for Israeli delegates to the World Zionist Congress. Rather, elections to the Knesset, Israel's parliament, are deemed to fulfill this function, and Zionist parties represented in the Knesset are apportioned a number of Congress delegates proportional to their strength in the Knesset. The late left-wing leader Shulamit Aloni on several occasions criticized this practice, stating that "Most Israeli citizens neither know nor care that when they go to the polls they are among other things also electing delegates to the World Zionist Congress."

Zionist organizations with special status

Two women's organizations have special status in the Zionist Organization and have full voting rights:
The international Jewish organizations have also been represented in the Zionist Congress since 1972, provided that they accept the Jerusalem Program, 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.
The following are the [|International Jewish Organizations] :
The Zionist Congress is conducted by the Congress Presidium. Congress deliberations are divided into five stages:
  • 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.

    History

The Zionist Congress, later to become the Zionist Congress, was held at intervals of 1 year, then 2 years until the outbreak of the Second World War, with an eight-year break due to the First World War.
Country/RegionMembersDelegates
Poland299,165109
US263,741114
Palestine167,562134
Romania60,01328
United Kingdom23,51315
South Africa22,34314
Canada15,2208

NumberNameCityCountryYear
1BaselSwitzerlanddts|1897sortname|Second |Zionist Congress

Important moments

  • The First Zionist Congress, held in 1897 in Basel, Switzerland, had Theodor Herzl acting 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. In contrast with the older Hibbat Zion movement, the ZO took a clear stance in favour of political Zionism, stating in its programme that
Herzl wrote in his diary,
  • The Twenty-third Zionist Congress, held in 1951 in Jerusalem, 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.
  • 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.