Surpassing the commitment in the Helsinki Final Act to respect the freedom of persons to "profess and practice" their religion. the Madrid document pledges the 35 nations to take the action necessary "to effectively ensure this right." Yet. repression of religious believers in the Soviet Union has increased in the last few years. Over 250 religious activists have been arrested since the Madrid meeting began in 1980. While the 20yearold saga of the Vashchenko and Chmykhalov families has ended happily with their resettlement in the West. at least 30.000 of their coreligionistsmembers of unofficial Pentecostal and Baptist communitiescontinue their struggle to emigrate from the Soviet Union. The Helsinki Final Act committed its signatories to "facilitate" freer movement of people and to deal with emigration requests in "a positive and humanitarian spirit." Western negotiators at Madrid succeeded in expanding those commitments. Requests to emigrate for the purpose of family reunification will be decided "favorably" and within 6 months according to the draft Madrid concluding document. Information on the procedures and regulations governing emigration will be readily available. and the fees charged in connection with emigration will be at a "moderate level in relation to the average monthly income." Applicants whose requests were not granted shall "be informed of their right to renew applications." Yet. during the Madrid meeting. the rates of Jewish. German. and Armenian emigration from the U.S.S.R. have plummetted to their lowest levels in this decade. Thousands of families are divided including at least a dozen Americans married to Soviet citizens. And many Jewish "refuseniks"-those who have been refused exit visashave been given permanent refusals and told that they are forbidden to submit new applications.
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family reunification emigrate emigration