Speech #990005092

During the last year. Soviet Jews have endured greater discrimination and persecution than at any other time in recent Soviet history. The year 1984 marked the nadir for Jewish emigration from the Soviet Union. Only 896 Jews were permitted to leave. the lowest single year total since 1970. In fact. the 1984 total represents less than 2 percent of the 1979 peak year emigration figure of 51.320. The reduction in the number of Jews granted exit visas has meant that the number of refuseniks stranded In the Soviet Union has climbed to over 20.000. This figure. however. includes only those Jews who submitted formal applications to leave for Israel and have received official refusals. it does not include the estimated 380.000 others who have initiated the complex process of applying for a visa. Although the numbers themselves are shocking. nothing is more shocking than the new wave of officially sanctioned antiSemitism that commenced 2 years ago. This campaign to eradicate Jewish culture from Soviet society has taken on many ugly forms. including the steppedup harassment of refuseniks and the arrest and imprisonment of several Hebrew teachers. Most Soviet Jews who apply to emigrate are routinely dismissed from their jobs and forced to take menial jobs. They are often attacked in the media. arbitrarily arrested. and their personal property is confiscated by Soviet authorities. Moreover. refusenik children are not permitted to attend a college or university in the Soviet Union.