Martyrs' and Heroes Remembrance (Yad Vashem) Law 5713-1953

There is hereby established in Jerusalem a Memorial Authority, Yad Vashem to commemorate:

1. the six million members of the Jewish people who died a martyrs' death at the hands of the Nazis and their collaborators;
2. the Jewish families which, were wiped out by the oppressors;
3. the communities, synagogues, movements and organizations, and the public, cultural educational, religious and benevolent institutions, which were destroyed in a heinous attempt to erase the name and culture of Israel;
4. the fortitude of Jews who gave their lives for their people;
5. the heroism of Jewish servicemen, and of underground fighters in towns, villages and forests, who staked their lives in the battle against the Nazi oppressors and their collaborators;
6. the heroic stand of the besieged and fighters of the ghettoes, who rose and kindled the flame of revolt to save the honour of their people;
7. the sublime, persistent struggle of the masses of the House of Israel, on the threshold of destruction, for their human dignity and Jewish culture;
8. the unceasing efforts of the besieged to reach Eretz Israel in spite of all obstacles, and the devotion and heroism of their brothers who went forth to liberate and rescue the survivors;
9. the high-minded Gentiles who risked their lives to save Jews.

Function and Powers of Yad Vashem

The task of Yad Vashem is to gather in to the homeland material regarding all those members of the Jewish people who laid down their lives, who fought and rebelled against the Nazi enemy and his collaborators, and to perpetuate their memory and that of the communities, organizations and institutions which were destroyed because they were Jewish; for this purpose, Yad Vashem shall be competent –

1. to establish memorial projects on its own initiative and under its direction;
2. to collect, examine and publish testimony of the disaster and the heroism it called forth, and to bring home its lesson to the people;
3. firmly to establish in Israel and among the whole people the day appointed by the Knesset as the memorial day for the disaster and its heroism, and to promote a custom of joint remembrance of the heroes and victims;
4. to confer upon the members of the Jewish people who perished in the days of the Disaster and the Resistance the commemorative citizenship of the State of Israel, as a token of their having been gathered to their people;
5. to approve and give guidance to projects concerned with perpetuating the memory of the victims and heroes of the Disaster, or to co-operate with such projects;
6. to represent Israel on international projects aimed at perpetuating the memory of the victims of the Nazis and of those who fell in the war against them;
7. to do any other act required for carrying out its functions.

Yad Vashem a corporate body

Yad Vashem is a corporate body, entitled to enter into contracts, to acquire, hold and dispose of property and to be a party to any legal or other proceeding.

Governing bodies of Yad Vashem

The governing bodies of Yad Vashem shall be a Council and an Executive

Budget of Yad Vashem

The contribution of the Treasury towards the establishment and maintenance of Yad Vashem shall be fixed in the State Budget; Yad Vashem shall operate under its own budget, the revenue for which shall be derived from the said contribution and form contributions
by national and public institutions and organizations, from its own projects and services, from payments by members, subscribers and supporters, from legacies, allocations and donations, and from such monies and other resources as it may raise with the approval of the Government.

Statutes of Yad Vashem

The member of the Government empowered by it to implement this Law (hereinafter "the Minister") shall, with the approval of the Government, enact the statutes of Yad Vashem, which shall come into force on the day of their publication in Reshumot.

Provisions of statutes

The statutes shall lay down –

1. the composition, mode of establishment and powers of the Council and the procedure for convening it;
2. the composition, mode of establishment, powers and working methods of the Executive;
3. the methods and procedure for the summoning of conferences and conventions;
4. conditions for the receipt of commemorative citizenship, and the procedure for the grant thereof ;
5. the means of commemorating the participation of Jewish soldiers and underground fighters and residents of the besieged ghettos in the battles against the Nazi oppressor and his collaborators;
6. the procedure of the preparation and approval of the budget, and provisions for equipment and the administration of monies;
7. such other provisions as the Minister may decide to be necessary for the maintenance of Yad Vashem as a memorial authority.

Regulations

The Minister may make regulations on any matter relating to the implementation of this law.

MOSHE SHARETT, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Acting Prime Minister
BEN-ZION DINUR, Minister of Education and Culture
YITZCHAK BEN-ZVI, President of the State