Speech #920263677

Mr. Chairman. together with the gentleman from California . I have filed a bill which "declares it to be the policy of the United States to use export controls to oppose the denial by any country of the rights of its Jewish and other citizens to free immigration and the free exercise of religion." At first glance this would appear to some to be a most drastic approach toward conveying to the Soviet Union this countrys displeasure with the illegal and often inhuman treatment by the Soviet Union of its citizens of Jewish faith. I would point out to those having this viewpoint that the Soviet Union has been made aware of this Nations attitude by protests filed by the Department of State in diplomatic channels and more importantly. by passage by this House of a resolution on April 17. 1972 urging the President to call upon the Soviet Union to allow the free expression of ideas and the free exercise of religion. second. to use our diplomatic contacts with the Soviet Union to seek to persuade that nation to end discrimination against religious minorities. third. request the Soviet Union to permit its citizens to emigrate to another country if they wish to do so. and fourth. to raise the issue of the breach by the Soviet Union of its treaty obligations under the U.N. Declaration of Human Rights in the United Nations. It is hoped that President Nixon discussed the matter seriously on the occasion of his recent trip to the Soviet Union. If he did so. the efforts of that intervention have not been made public. and the fact remains that the response of the Soviet Union to the entreaties. to the protests. to the formal resolution of the Congress. to the request of the President have been minimal. Immigration from the Soviet Union to Israel or to other countries has increased but not nearly enough to give any expectation or hope that the conditions of discrimination against its Jewish citizens have been changed. Today Jews who seek to leave Russia are still harassed and mistreated. they are fired from their jobs. some are committed to mental institutions. some are drafted into the army. others have been jailed. Every obstacle to their leaving continues to be placed in their way. including the requirement that each person pay the equivalent of $1.000 in order to obtain an exit visa. In April 1972. the American Representative in the U.N. Economic and Social Council.