BY THE ARCHIVIST: The identification of Mindanao as destination of the Jews was an offshoot idea to form an inter-committee to deal with the Austrian and German refugees. In a radiogram to Jacobs, Quezon "has indicated willingness to set aside virgin lands in Mindanao for larger groups of Jewish refugees who wish to engage in agricultural enterprises." Three days later, Philip Frieder organized a luncheon with Quezon and the members of the Jewish Refugee Committee (JRC) in Manila. The President said, in approving the resettling of as many refugees as possible in Mindanao, that he was "willing to give them all the land that they wanted, build roads for them, and do everything in his power so that they could re-establish themselves." Elated, Herbert Frieder, brother of Philip and member of the JRC in Manila, told the Refugee Economic Corp. in New York that Quezon was willing to settle a million refugees in Mindanao, which would mean "a bigger project than Palestine." As an aftermath, Mindanao became the top priority as a potentially successful haven for refugee resettlement. On Dec. 17, 1938, Jacobs advised planners that the scale of the colonization plan carried "elements of danger." Quezon, on Dec. 23, 1938, offered an amended plan suggesting as many as 1,000 persons to be admitted annually until no more than 10,000 persons had been given leave to enter. (To be continued)
