In some cases. we met with wives of those who are imprisoned in the Soviet Union. We learned of arrests under bizarre and unusual circumstances. in the middle of the night. of imprisonment for charges such as hooliganism and parasitism. of planted evidence. of 12hour searches of homes. and of a prisoner. now 90percent blind as a result of being stabbed in his eyes in his jail cell. which authorities say was selfinflicted. We learned of people who have now been refused the right of emigration and repatriation for as long as 12. 14. even 16 years. They are painfully aware that the number of Jews being permitted to emigrate has been steadily declining since 1982. Those with whom we visited are part of approximately 350.000 Soviet Jews who desire to emigrate. Ten thousand of these are refuseniks. those who have applied and who have been refused. Many of the refuseniks with whom we met were learned individuals with extensive degrees and educational backgrounds who. after applying for exit visas now find themselves either doing menial work or altogether unemployed. Mr. Speaker. while we celebrate the freedom of Anatoly Shcharansky today. it is of the utmost importance that we do not forget those refuseniks who remain trapped in the Soviet Union. We must continue to apply pressure to President Gorbachev and other Soviet authorities to allow these people the fundamental right of emigration. We must publicize the plight of the refuseniks and other Soviet Jews who suffer oppression. live in fear. and are the victims of antiSemitism every day of their lives. Mr.
Keywords matched
emigrate emigration visas