Speech #980142305

The Soviet Union is a signatory to numerous international human rights agreements. including the Helsinki Final Act and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Yet. they have failed to comply with these agreements and routinely violate even the most basic human rights of their citizens. particularly their Jewish citizens. For example. the right to emigrate is guaranteed by these agreements. Yet. from 1979 to 1982. Soviet Jewish emigration declined by more than 95 percent51.320 in 1979 to 2.688 in 1982. This year. the figures are even more alarming. with only 1.162 Soviet Jews allowed to leave through October. With only 2 months remaining in 1983. it appears certain that Jewish emigration from the Soviet Union this year will be no more than about onehalf of what is was for 1982. To make matters worse. the Soviet Government formed an antiZionist committee earlier this year to intensify what was already a vicious antiSemitic campaign. This antiZionist committee has even gone so far as saying that the Jews who wanted to leave the Soviet Union have already left. Nothing could be farther from the truth. In fact. over 400.000 Soviet Jews have begun the emigration process. and some 20.000 have been denied permission to emigrate on more than one occasion. Particularly distressing are the considerable number of Soviet Jews who have been arrested. imprisoned and denied freedom of religious expression in retaliation for requests to emigrate. Most recently. the Soviet Government tried and convicted Jewish activist losif Begun on trumpedup charges of antiSoviet propaganda. and agitation. He received the maximum sentence of 7 years in jail and 5 years of internal exile. Begun has long been singled out by the Soviet Government as an example of what will happen to other Soviet Jews who openly pursue basic freedoms. such as the right to emigrate. or religious and cultural freedoms. The simple fact of the matter is that Iosif Begun was arrested and tried for merely practicing his strong Jewish religious and cultural beliefs. and for wanting to emigrate to a nation that would allow him basic human rights. By placing Begun on trial and convicting him. the Soviet Union demonstrated a total disregard for the letter and spirit of the Helsinki Final Act. a commitment to basic human rights. including the right to emigrate and free religious and cultural expression. which was reaffirmed by the Soviet Union earlier this year. I had joined many of my colleagues in urging the Soviet Union to release Iosif Begun and allow him to emigrate to Israel where he could join his wife and son. Instead. the Soviets elected to make a further mockery of their socalled commitment to human rights. Mr.