Mr. Speaker. Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and his government have tried to make it appear that they are improving their record on emigration for the Soviet Union. They have espoused a policy of "glasnost." or openness. The facts do not back up these claims. In 1986. Jewish emigration from the Soviet Union totaled only 914. as compared to 1.140 in 1985. Such new initiatives as a new emigration decree appear to be merely cosmetic. Soviet emigration policy is as unjust and inhumane as ever. The Lifshitz family. and thousands like them in the Soviet Union. are experiencing persecution at the hands of their own government. There is no justifiable reason for the Soviet authorities to reject or ignore the Lifshitz request to emigrate. Their actions constitute a flagrant violation of the Helsinki Final Act of 1975 and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1947. both of which were signed by the Soviet Union. These documents should be adhered to in the spirit of justice. human rights. and international harmony.
Keywords matched
emigrate emigration