Speech #530132404

Mr. Terlitsky was the chief architect for the Moscow government buildings. He has been waiting nearly 10 years to emigrate from the Soviet Union. And he still waits. Years ago. he redesigned Brezhnevs apartment. Terlitsky was refused an exit visa in 1976 for "possession of secret information." After his refusal he was demoted to a draftsman. and soon after was dismissed altogether. He has not been able to find work since and his wife has also lost her job. Each time Terlitsky reapplies to emigrate. he is refused. So the Terlitsky family sits in the U.S.S.R. wondering how many more years they will have to wait and how much more they will have to suffer. As difficult as Mark Terlitskys plight is. it is not an unusual one for a Soviet Jew. There are over 400.000 Soviet Jews who desperately want to emigrate but who are denied their freedom. Despite its professed commitment to the human rights conditions agreed to during the Helsinki Final Actwhich guarantees an individuals right to freedom of religion. cultural practices. and emigrationthe Soviet Union continues to deny even the most fundamental liberties to these citizens. Last year was the grimmest yet for Soviet Jewish emigration. Only 1.314 Jews were granted exit visas. less than half the number permitted to leave in 1982. and a decline of 98 percent from the number allowed to leave in 1979. Restrictive measures toward emigration have gone beyond merely limiting the number of exit visas. In 1983. the Soviets mounted a deliberate campaign of antiSemitism and attempted to convince the world that Soviet Jews no longer desire to emigrate. Such policies of restrictive emigration and active discrimination cannot go unchallenged. While we continue to push for the release of Anatoly Shcharansky. Josef Begun.