More than 2.5 million Jews remain in the Soviet Union. where often their rights are withheld. their jobs are taken away from them. and their right to study the Hebrew language and to practice their religion is officially denied them. So long as these and other injustices exist. we cannot permit the world to believe that real human right exist in the Soviet Union. Most glaringly evident is the restraint of free emigration conducted by Soviet officials against Jews. To give an idea of how serious the emigration picture is. only 368 Jews were granted exit visas by Soviet officials in October 1981. as compared to more than 4.700 in October 1979 and almost 1.500 in October 1980. This problem really is a crisis not only for Jews around the globe but for everyone who values basic human rights. Only in the last 13 years have Jews been able to emigrate from the Soviet union without indiscriminate opposition by Soviet authorities. And yet even now that an official process for emigration has been established. the Soviet Government continues to make emigration a difficult and exhausting ordeal. often unobtainable for Jews. And there is no clearly foreseeable end in sight to this struggle. Indeed. 1981 was. the bleakest year for Jews seeking to leave the Soviet Union since 1970.
Keywords matched
emigrate emigration visas