“Dan and Dina on State Business” was the name of a children’s news section published in the Mishmar for Children supplement of the Hashomer Hatzair youth movement’s newspaper, Mishmar. On November 20, 1947, nine days before the UN vote on the Partition Plan, the children Dan and Dina presented arguments for and against the Partition Plan. At that time, the Hashomer Hatzair movement supported the establishment of a bi-national state in Israel and opposed the Partition Plan.
In the debate, Dan opposes the Partition Plan because it defines borders that would see Jewish settlements handed over to the Arabs. Dina is also not happy with the Partition Plan’s borders, as she believes it would be dangerous to pass through certain areas. But Dina also argues that the establishment of an independent Jewish state is more important so that the Jewish people will no longer need to rely on the mercy of foreigners. Once a Jewish state is established, she claims, its borders can change.
How did the argument between the children end? According to the article, Dan ends up convinced that the Partition Plan must be supported. The article ends with a play on words: “The divided opinions have led to the division of the land, and peace (shalom in Hebrew) will again bring about the wholeness (shlemut in Hebrew) of the country.”
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