Katzia and Marina Ratner. handdelivered to the Soviet Embassy a letter signed by myself. Representative LANTOS. and 58 of our colleagues. The letter insisted that Judith. her husband Leonid. and their two children be granted permission to emigrate to Israel. The RatnerBialy family applied for an exit visa over 10 years ago and have been refused ever since on the grounds of "considerations of state security." This familys case is typical. Although Leonid was fired from his engineering job after his wifes parents applied to emigrate over 16 years ago. he is still being denied an exit visa due to "state security considerations." He has worked as a television inspector until recently. when a severe heart attack left him disabled. Judith was also fired from her job after her parents emigration. and she too has become disabled after a 1979 automobile accident. Their sole wish is to be reunited with their family in Israel. Judiths mother. Katzia Ratner. is 82 and of failing health. She has campaigned relentlessly on behalf of her daughter and her family. Before Katzia handed her petition to the Soviet Embassy. she read us the following poem which reminds us of the useless suffering caused by the Soviet Unions manipulation of its rate of emigration.
Keywords matched
emigrate emigration visa