I rise today to reiterate my concern for the wellbeing of Ida Nudel. a genuine champion of human rights in the Soviet Union. For more than 15 years now. Ida has sought permission to emigrate to Israel. Through her personal struggle. she has come to symbolize the plight of the Jewish community in the U.S.S.R. Sometimes referred to as the "guardian angel." because of her efforts on behalf of other dissidents. Nudel first applied for an exit visa in 1971. Her request was denied on the ground that. as an economist. she had access to state secrets. After 7 years and numerous refusals. Ida demonstrated her frustration by hanging a sign from her apartment window which read. "KGB Give Me a Visa to Israel." Shortly after the incident she was arrested by the Soviet secret police. charged with "malicious hooliganism" and sentenced to 4 years in internal exile. Upon completion of her sentence. Ida was informed by authorities that she would never be granted an exit visa and that she would not be allowed to return to her home in Moscow. Today she lives as a prisoner of conscience in Bendery. a closed city off limits to foreigners. Despite years of harassment. exile. and failing health. Ida continued to speak out on behalf of those denied basic human rights by the Soviet Government. An estimated 400.000 Soviet Jews have. like Ida Nudel. expressed their desire to emigrate. At the same time. the number of those issued exit visas has fallen off to little more than a trickle. Thus far this year. only 541 Soviet Jews have been allowed to leave. down from 51.000 in 1979. The mistreatment of Soviet Jewry violates both the spirit and the letter of the Helsinki Final Act.
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