For 13 years. Sonia and Asya have been separated from their son and brother. Yakov. who in 1973 was among the lucky few allowed by the Soviet Government to emigrate. Their attempts to emigrate and join Yakov in Israel have now twice been denied. Asya first applied for an exit visa in December 1978. and for 6 months heard nothing from the government. In the meantime. Asyas father wrote an article for a government newspaper called "Curse on Zionism Which Divided My Family." In May 1979. she learned that her request had been denied on the grounds that she lacked her fathers consent and on the basis of public opinion. Asyas parents had been divorced for years. Later Soviet officials acknowledged that the fact that Asya lacked her fathers consent was not a valid basis for denying her emigration. but still she was not granted an exit visa. Asyas troubles did not end there. In the same month that she was first refused emigration. Asya was fired from her job as a music teacher for the blind. It took several years before Asya was able to get a position as a cashier at a photo studio. Both Sonia and Asya have since applied for emigration but have been denied. The only explanation the government offered for this decision was that there is "no reason for them to leave the Soviet Union." Today. I call upon the Soviet Union to grant exit visas to Sonia and Asya Furman and allow them to reunite as a family with Yakov in Israel.
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emigrate emigration visas visa