This represents a decrease of 97 percent. In addition to continued religious oppression. those Jews who remain in the Soviet Union must face consequences of having expressed a desire to leave the country. Many lose their jobs as a result of applying for exit visas. some face continuous harassment over the course of the months or years that the application procedure may take. The loss of jobs and continued inability to find work is often used as a pretext for arrest on charges of "parasitism." Moreover. the newly established Soviet antiZionist Committee has launched a vigorous attack on Soviet Jewish citizens. condemning Zionist activities in an effort to "protect" the Jews that might be persuaded to try to emigrate. Some Soviet Government agencies claim that the reason for the decline in emigration is that most of the Jews who want to leave the country have left. We know that this is not the case. There are many more who wish to emigrate. and there are several reasons why Jews might wish to leave the Soviet Union. The first is religious freedom. Jews are not allowed to practice their religion freely in the U.S.S.R.
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emigrate emigration visas