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Presidency of the Jewish Community Baghdad Report Contains Accounts of the Presidency of the Jewish Community in Baghdad for the period ⟦illegible⟧ from 1-4-1949 to 31-1-953 Al-Ra'i Press - Baghdad
IJA 1890
Report of the Jewish Community Leadership, Bookkeeping and Accounting
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This is the report of the Baghdadi Jewish community leadership including bookkeeping and accounting from 4/1/1949 to 1/31/1953. It discusses the affects of the policies regarding abrogation of Iraqi citizenship and contains detailed accounting records of income and expenses of the Frank Iny and Shamash Secondary Schools. The documents mostly address a proposal raised from within the Jewish Lay Council to cancel tuition to the Frank Iny and Shamash Secondary Schools due to the dire financial situation experienced by many Baghdadi Jewish families.
AI en Translation, Pages 1-25
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Presidency of the Jewish Community Baghdad Report Includes Accounts of the Presidency of the Jewish Community in Baghdad ⟦Expanded⟧ From 1-4-1949 to 31-1-1953 Al-Ra'i Press - Baghdad
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My dear brothers Greetings The movement to revoke Iraqi citizenship from the vast majority of the members of this community has had a complete impact on the situation of the community in terms of its law, its system, its institutions, and its administration, which led to the suspension of some provisions of the aforementioned law and system. The community leadership has consulted the honorable Ministry of Justice, presenting some solutions necessitated by the need to manage the affairs of the community; however, the honorable Ministry suggested the necessity of amending the Community Law No. 17 of 1931 and its Regulation No. 36 of 1931 in a manner that makes them consistent with emerging developments, and that the community leadership is on its way to submitting the necessary amendments to the aforementioned law and regulation for legislation by the competent authorities. We had wished to withdraw from exercising our duties, but for fear of the collapse of the community's entity and to preserve its rights, we have remained persistent in our work until the completion of the amendment of the law and the aforementioned system, whereby others can assume the responsibility that we have accepted to bear throughout this period. We have continued our work based on Article 31 of Community Regulation No. 36 of 1931, and the honorable Ministry of Justice has been informed of this pursuant to letter No. T-2688-52 dated August 20, 1952. A group of the members of this community has begun spreading rumors and statements devoid of any basis, the goal of which is to obstruct the progress of the community leadership's work at a time when it would have been more appropriate for that group to cooperate with this leadership, which accepted responsibility in such difficult circumstances that are unprecedented in the history of this community. We have endured all those statements that this group began to launch, as long as we are performing our duty according to what the law and conscience require, our guide in all of that being the general interest of the community. The community leadership was forced to publish its accounts, in view of the recent uproar that occurred as a result of Mr. Naeim Ibrahim Zubaida (member of the Lay Council) issuing a statement which he distributed to the members of this community in various synagogues on October 2, 1952, the text of which we publish below: Statement of the Plain Truth My brothers, honorable members of the Mosaic community Greetings and respect Based on the persistent urgings from the majority of the community members requesting the admission of their children into the Frank Iny and Shamash schools for free, in view of their narrow financial situation and extreme need, which led to their inability to pay school fees, and out of my feeling toward the members of the community and in response to their desire, I submitted today a proposal in this regard to the Mosaic Lay Council, and this is its text: His Excellency, President of the Lay Council of the Mosaic Community, Respected Greetings and respect I am pleased to inform you that many people from the members of this community have approached me while in a regrettable state of financial need, requesting to enroll their children in the community's schools for free. I have seen it as my humanitarian duty to provide them with actual assistance, so I ask you to cooperate with me by presenting this matter
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Ending on 31 March 1950 Expenditures Fils | Dinar | Fils | Dinar Community Administration To Salaries | 832.177 To Cost of Living Allowances | 1,452.250 To Miscellaneous Expenses | - | 4,725.590 | 2,441.163 To the Spiritual Council | 2,386.868 To the Slaughterhouse | 4,000.497 Religious Councils To Yeshivot Salaries | 579.200 To Cost of Living Allowances | 304.500 To Retirees Salaries | 705.136 To Cost of Living Allowances | 217.075 To Needy Salaries | 201.327 To Cost of Living Allowances | 185.750 | 2,193.663 Schools Allocations | 14,225.000 Hospitals Allocations | 4,327.000 Charitable Institutions Allocations To Synagogues Committee Allocations | 28.000 " Aid to Tomchei Torah Society | 170.000 " Aid to Girls' Charitable Sewing Society | 150.000 " Aid to Karrada Kindergarten | 60.000 " Aid for Helping the Poor | 66.300 " Cemetery Guarding | 90.000 " Gratuities | 62.000 | 626.300 Miscellaneous Allocations To the Primary School in Amarah | 200.000 " Additional Allocations for Schools | 500.000 " School Employees' Reserve Fund | 500 | 1,200.000 To Purchase of Furniture | 87.000 To Property Tax and Insurance | 315.500 To the amount paid to the Liwa Treasury for trespassing on lands adjacent to cemeteries | 296.798 To the surplus of revenues over expenditures according to the general budget | 3,258.404 37,642.620
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- 15 - A lump sum monthly payment (also without receipts) paid to some employees of the slaughterhouse who receive salaries from the community administration separately. I have no other observations worth mentioning. Accept, with greatest respect. Sincerely, Saleh Cohen D - Observations on the budget for the fiscal year 1949-1950 1 - The slaughter fees (Gabila) amounted to 2861.000 Dinars. 2 - The Physical Council's share of marriage fees (Ketubot) amounted to 435.370 Dinars. 3 - The expenses of the former head of the community for the period from February 1, 1949 (the date of his re-election as head of the community) until December 1949 (the date of his resignation from his position) amounted to 2133.427 Dinars, and they are detailed as follows: Dinar | Fils Eleven months' salaries on the basis of 72.750 Dinars per month | 250 | 790 Unforeseen expenses (meat preservation) according to checks to his order | 275 | 454 Cigarettes and refreshments | 302 | 173 Expenses for his private car | 600 | 415 Hospitality allowances for the year 1949-1950 allocated to him personally | ... | 300 Only two thousand one hundred thirty-three dinars and four hundred twenty-seven | 2133 | 427 fils, no more. 4 - The Hospital Management Committee, headed by Mr. Sassoon Abed, decided on a debt of 10937.000 Dinars according to Meir Elias Hospital letter number 1205 dated 11-13-1950, that this debt must be paid by the Physical Council. The Physical Council has repaid the larger part, as will be explained in detail in the following pages.
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-20- C - Auditor's Report Regarding the budget of the fiscal year 50 - ⟦1951⟧ Baghdad, October 25, 1951 Subject - Audit of the accounts of the Lay Council for the fiscal year ending March 31, 1951 Excellency, President of the esteemed Lay Council. Greetings, Based on your instructions, I have audited the accounts of the Jewish Lay Council in Baghdad for the fiscal year ending March 31, 1951, and I attach herewith the following:- 1 - The balance sheet of accounts as it is on March 31, 1951. 2 - The income and expenditure account for the year ending March 31, 1951. I am satisfied that all the entries recorded in the registers during the year under review were made with the knowledge of the Vice President and based on resolutions from your esteemed council, and that all expenditures were supported by proper receipts. Please accept my highest respect. Sincerely, Saleh Cohen D - Notes on the budget for the fiscal year 1950 - 1951 1 - Slaughter fees (⟦Gabella⟧) amounted to ⟦line⟧ 27,110 Dinars (twenty-seven ⟦thousand⟧ one hundred and ten Dinars) 2 - The Lay Council's share of marriage fees (Ketubot) amounted to 2241.547 (two thousand two hundred and forty-one ⟦Dinars⟧ and five hundred and forty-seven Fils).
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- 31 - Summary of Accounts for the period from 1-4-1952 to 30-1-1953 - 30 - D - Notes on the budget Fiscal Year 1951 - 1952 1 - Slaughter fees (Gabelle) decreased to 7981.666 Dinars. 2 - Marriage fees (Ketubot) decreased to 534.544 Dinars. 3 - Since the esteemed Ministry of Interior has entrusted the task of deporting detained persons whose Iraqi nationality has been revoked to this Presidency, in view of the dissolution of the Revocation and Deportation Committee and the existence of (250) persons who have not yet been deported, with most of them unable to pay the airfare, and as some of them are prisoners who have completed their sentences, this Presidency has, as assigned by the esteemed Ministry of Interior, undertaken the task of deporting them. The deportation expenses during this fiscal year alone reached (2922.290 Dinars). 4 - The burdens placed on the administration of the community have increased, in view of the dissolution of most sub-institutions such as the Spiritual Council, the Schools Committee, and the Hebra Kadisha Society (Preparation and Shrouding), and the work of those institutions is now being performed by the administration of the community. 5 - Since the competent authorities have entrusted the task of providing community members with certificates proving their personal status to this Presidency, for the purpose of providing them with IDs of non-revocation of Iraqi nationality or for other purposes, we have been keen to provide them with these as quickly as possible while facilitating their transactions, a matter sensed by every person who visited the Presidency of the community. 6 - The Presidency of the community spent an amount of 6367.625 Dinars on the Ozer Dalim Society (Aid for the poor and needy) to be spent on the poor and needy and their livelihood. 7 - In view of the demand of the creditors of Meir Elias Hospital for the settlement of their debts, this Presidency spent to the aforementioned hospital an amount of (3320.150 Dinars) for the purpose of paying part of those debts, this is in addition to spending the annual allocations amounting to (4420.000 Dinars).
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B - General Budget (Financial Position) Fils | Dinar | ⟦line⟧ | 800 | Rachel Shahoon School loan 036 | 89 | Deposit account 335 | 661 | Ottoman Bank (Fixed trust account for the Hospitals Committee) 210 | 876 | Iraqi loan bonds for the year 944 (88 bonds for the Isaac Hayyim Synagogue account) 250 | 1548 | Bills receivable ⟦line⟧ | 44 | The three Battaween lands 489 | 1544 | Balance in the Ottoman Bank ⟦line⟧ | 100 | Permanent advance at the Community Fund 098 | 169 | Sundry debits ⟦line⟧ | 70 | Permanent advance for Frank Iny School 552 | 484 | Hadiya Mansha Saleh School for Girls 930 | 125 | Municipality of the Capital ⟦line⟧ | 10 | Water fees for the gut factory ⟦line⟧ | 84 | Mr. Reuben Heskel Ezra 340 | 3068 | Israeli Hospitals Committee 910 | 55 | Hevra Kadisha Society 675 | 431 | Frank Iny School advance for purchasing textbooks ⟦line⟧ | 40 | Mr. Sassoon Ovadia (Clerk at the Community Presidency) | | Deficit and surplus account as follows 071 | 637 | Deficit balance on 1-4-1950 342 | 6365 | Deficit resulting from the excess of expenditures over income for the period from 1-4-1952 to 31-1-1953. 413 | 7002 | 238 | 17205
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- 39 - for the transfer of the guardianship over the endowments of the late Ezra and Heskel Menachem Daniel to the Lay Council of this community, but the truth is that the revenues of the mentioned endowments are conditioned to be spent on establishing the educational and health institutes mentioned in the endowment deed - which is a matter difficult to achieve at the present time - a matter which led to the community's lack of benefit from those revenues. 8 - Since the greatest part of the cemetery is not fenced, and in view of the occurrence of violations against the sanctity of the cemetery, the Lay Council decided in its session held on 9-5-952 to fence the cemetery, and it was estimated that the necessary expenses for that would be approximately (from 12,000 Dinars to 15,000 Dinars). However, the occurrence of unexpected expenses - such as deportation expenses - prevented the implementation of this project. While I regret the failure to complete this fencing due to the lack of financial credit for its implementation, I place the implementation of this project as a debt on the neck of every individual of this community, whether he is a member of the Council or from outside it, and that everyone exerts all they can to bring this project into existence. And success is from God. Heskel Dawood Shemtob Acting President of the Community President of the Lay Council