Speech #960329216

President. before the Presidential election this fall. I had an exchange of letters with Governor Reagan and President Carter regarding section 402 of the Trade Act of 1974. known as the JacksonVanik amendment. My letter of October 2 posed the issue as follows: As you know. current law prohibits the extension of mostfavorednation treatment and government credits to nonmarket countries that deny their citizens the fundamental human right to emigrate. This provision of the Trade Act of 1974 has long been the principal hope of thousands of Soviet Jews and others who have struggled to obtain visas so that they might emigrate to Israel. the United States. or other countries where they are free to live and worship according to their faitha freedom denied them in the Soviet Union. There have been a number of proposals since 1975 aimed at revising the Trade Act to remove or weaken the credit and MFN restrictions in order to facilitate trade concessions for the Soviets without a significant agreed movement toward freer emigration from the Soviet Union. Last year. for example. there were proposals that the credit/ MFN restrictions could be waived without an explicit understanding with the Soviets on future emigration practices. an approach that would violate the freedom of emigration provisions of law embodied in the 1974 Trade Act. I very much hope that you share my view that there must be no weakening of the existing law either by amendment or interpretation. I suggested in my letter that many brave men and women who have suffered reprisals as a result of having insisted on the right to emigrate would be heartened to know that the next President of the United States will support section 402 of the Trade Act. My letter concluded as follows: A statement of your support for Section 402. and your insistence on a clear Soviet commitment to freer emigration as a condition of any waiver of the Acts restriction on MFN and credits. would be especially welcome in the current mood of uncertainty. I received responses from both President Carter and Governor Reagan which I wish to include in full in the RECORD. I can report that both letters affirm continuing strong support for section 402 of the Trade Act of 1974. I am particularly delighted that Governor Reagannow Presidentelect Reaganincluded in his response this firm assurance: I have supported the legislation. now public law. known as the JacksonVanlk Amendment. I believe that it was right and proper to link trade concessions to the Soviet Union with significant movement toward free emigration. As President I would implement fully the letter and the spirit of the freedom of emigration provisions of the 1974 Trade Act. We would seek to make it clearly understood that we wil uphold the law. and that we will make no effort to modify the JacksonVanik Amendment. I ask that the letters from Governor Reagan and President Carter be printed in the RECORD.