Speech #980053098

I rise today to comment on a subject in an article that appeared on Tuesday. June 7 on the front page of the New York Times concerning the official Soviet AntiZionist Committee. The committee. set up 6 weeks ago. publicly claimed that emigration from the Soviet Union had virtually halted only because most Soviet Jews who wanted to leave had already gone. That claim is patently false. I cannot think of a more shocking claim except perhaps one made by the committees chairman. a retired Soviet general. that "Zionism is increasingly modeled on the ideas and methods of Hitler." Consider the irony of that invidious comparison. Such distasteful deceit is indicative of the depths to which Soviet emigration policy has now descended. The Kremlin obviously decided to establish this committee in an effort to attempt to justify the sharp curtailment of the emigration of Soviet Jews. Its false claims should not go unchallenged. Without question there are several hundred thousand Soviet Jews struggling to emigrate. The National Conference on Soviet Jewry estimates that by late 1979. 300.000 Jews had asked relatives abroad to send invitations to emigrate. These invitations are a prerequisite to applying for an exist visa. Another estimate put the number still seeking to leave at 200.000. Between 1979 and 1982. Jewish emigration decreased by 95 percent in a systematic denial of the right to emigrate declared by the Helsinki Final Act. Last year. fewer than 3.000 were permitted to leave. in 1979 the number was 51.000. I myself visited the Soviet Union less than 1 year ago and met in both Moscow and Kiev with numerous Soviet Jews seeking to emigrate. These refuseniks told of living in constant fear and suffering official oppression. In both cities Jews appeared tense and uneasy. I heard many stories of Jews refused exit visas for years without explanation. even though separated from families. In Moscow. refuseniks were willing to meet with me in large groups while in Kiev they would only meet in private homes in very small groups. They identified their priorities as: First. change in the overall Soviet policy to permit mass migration. and second. pressure for action on notorious cases. such as Anatoly Shcharanskys. The Soviet officials at that time acknowledged to me denying to Jews the right to emigrate on the grounds that such efforts to leave the U.S.S.R. were treasonous and could only lead to a dangerously increasing number of emigration requests. The establishment of this new antiZionist committee makes it even clearer that the Soviet Union is not interested in a fair and humane policy for Soviet Jewry. At a time when U.S.U.S.S.R. relations are so strained. the Soviet Government refuses to liberalize its emigration policy. Yet its officials have been informed by many. including this Senator. that doing so would lessen tensions without requiring any effort or cost by the Soviet Government. According to the National Conference on Soviet Jewry. since 1979. letters of invitation to emigrate sent by relatives to the hundreds of thousands of Jews who wish to leave have been effectively blocked by Soviet authorities. This action further interferes with the rights of Soviet Jews. It further confirms that the Soviet Government will apparently resort to any means. however devious. to block emigration. In addition to firsthand evidence from my trip. day after day I receive letters on behalf of Soviet Jews. Just this week letters were received concerning Dr.