Mr. Speaker. in the first months of 1987. the Soviet Unions Glasnost policy has had a visible effect upon the plight of the countrys Jewish citizens. In the month of March. 450 Soviet Jews were granted permission to emigrate. That is more than half the number who were allowed to leave during the entire year of 1986. Last week Soviet officials met with two of Americas leading activists for wouldbe Soviet Jewish emigres and assured them that the 11.000 longterm "refusniks" would receive permission to leave within the year. These events are cause for some optimism. But before we give the Soviets too much credit. we should remember that until 1979 emigration of Jewish citizens stood at a rate of about 4.000 per month. When the United States and 33 other nations signed the Helsinki accords with the Soviet Union in 1975. basic human rights were part of the agreement. General Secretary Gorbachev seems to perceive more clearly than did his predecessors the value of advocating those rights.
Keywords matched
emigrate emigration