in the Soviet Union. It is rather lengthy and I would not impose upon the subcommittee's time to read it but I think it should be submitted to all those who have an interest in this issue, Jew and non-Jew alike.1 Mr. KEMP. I would only add in conclusion the question: What do you feel, Mr. Maass, is being done to enlist the support of more non-Jews in this country? It seems to me that it is the grassroots support that is going to bring about the type of progress in this area that is so desperately needed today. Can you address yourself to that particular question?

Mr. MAASS. That really is the major problem with which the conference itself has to grapple and we are attempting to do this by the formation of local committees or councils for Soviet Jewry in just about every major city in the country and of course many of the smaller ones as well. We will work through the national church groups particularly.

SUPPORT FROM NON-JEWS

We have found over the years that some of the more fundamental groups understand the issue very clearly and work very closely with us. The Southern Baptist, for example, and the Catholic Church has responded on a number of occasions. The problem is getting support from some of the more so-called liberal Protestant churches which has not been as forthright and outspoken in the past on this issue and on others in which we may have a joint interest.

But I think that certainly the National Council of Churches and the World Council of Churches have a tremendous responsibility here. The World Council of Churches is the largest conglomeration of Protestant churches in the world and has done not too much in this area and we have a feeling that a great deal can be accomplished if we are able to get statements from them from the highest level. We have found that Governors in many of the States have been very willing to issue proclamations on the subject of Soviet Jewry, when there are particular days that have been set aside as memorial days for celebration of some sort, and mayors of cities as well, but it has to reach the average person through the local pastor really, and if we can have in the country a day where there would be ceremonies on the topic, a single day in the entire nation where there would be ceremonies on the topic in as many churches as possible on a particular Sunday, this points up the issue.

It is not a gimmick and not a publicity thing, but it puts the problem in the heart and consciousness of the congregants who are in church that day and I think that would be most helpful.

Mr. KEMP. Thank you for your comments. I conclude by thanking you once again, Mr. Chairman, for your personal efforts as well as those of Congressmen Buchanan and Murphy, in addition to other members of the subcommittee not now here but who have done so much. I reiterate that it is our desire to focus more attention on this. The people of this Nation can affect world opinion. The Congress should act. Then the people through their 435 elected representatives

1 The monograph, "The Treatment of Jews in the Soviet Union," prepared by Barbara Mihalchenko, analyst in the Foreign Affairs Division, Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress, appears on p. 263 of the appendix.

can impose their will upon the administration so we can get this to the floor of the General Assembly of the United Nations. My resolution does specifically mention Mrs. Gluzman and cases like this, and I think it would give dramatic and illustrative evidence of the concern that U.S. citizens and the Congress have about this case. I thank you for being here, Mr. Goodman and Mrs. Gluzman and Mr. Maass, and we will not relax in our efforts.

Mr. ROSENTHAL. Thank you very much. We are grateful to you for joining us. I particularly want to thank you, Mr. Kemp, for joining us and the significant contribution you have made on behalf of not only Soviet Jews but our society in general.

The subcommittee stands adjourned until 2 p.m. this afternoon. (Whereupon, at 12:05 p.m., the subcommittee adjourned, to reconvene at 2 p.m. the same day.)

AFTERNOON SESSION

The Subcommittee on Europe met at 2:15 p.m., in room 2255, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Benjamin S. Rosenthal (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding.

Mr. ROSENTHAL. The subcommittee will be in session. Our first witness this afternoon is our distinguished colleague from Illinois, John B. Anderson, one of the coauthors of the principal resolution that the subcommittee has under consideration. Congressman Anderson.

STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN B. ANDERSON, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF ILLINOIS

Mr. ANDERSON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Mr. Chairman, I would like to have permission to put the text of the prepared statement that I have in the record along with an appendix entitled "Soviet Educational Policy and the Jews" by Marc Hurwitz,1 and then proceed to perhaps read portions of my statement and try to summarize it.

Mr. ROSENTHAL. That will be the order of the committee without objection.

(Congressman Anderson's prepared statement follows:)

STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN B. ANDERSON, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF ILLINOIS

Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to appear before your committee this morning in support of H. Con. Res. 390, a bill that I introduced calling for Presidential, diplomatic, and United Nations action to protest Soviet denial of the legally guaranteed rights of Soviet Jews and other minority groups. Over 100 of my colleagues in the House joined me in introducing this measure which illustrates the strong support for Congressional action in this matter of international

concern.

OTHER MINORITIES SUFFER

The harsh plight of minority groups in the Soviet Union is well-known to you. Two thousand Roman Catholics from a single parish in Lithuania have recently charged in an open letter that their freedom of religion was being restricted by local authorities and that priests were being arrested for preparing children for communion. Ukrainian Catholics have complained of systematic harassment and persecution. Other Christians, especially Seventh Day Adventists, Jehovah's

1 The article by Mr. Hurwitz appears on p. 251.

Witnesses, Baptists and Evangelicals have also been subjected to governmental pressures and restrictions.

Nevertheless, the mistreatment of Jews in the Soviet Union is especially severe because they are discriminated against both because of their religion and their nationality. Judaism is not permitted any central or coordinating structure, unlike the other ten recognized religions in the Soviet Union; each congregation must function in isolation.

Publication of religious literature and Bibles is not permitted nor is the manufacture of any religious articles. There can be no replacement for the few aging Rabbis because there are no religious schools or rabbinical seminaries nor are theology students permitted to study in foreign lands. Synagogues have been closed in almost systematic fashion as a result of both direct and indirect governmental action. In 1956 there were 450 synagogues, in April of 1963 100, and today the figure has dwindled to less than 60.

Unlike most other nationalities, the distinctive language, activities and community institutions of Jews have also been severely restricted. There are no longer any Jewish publishing houses, newspapers, theaters, or communal institutions. Discrimination against Jews exists in the vital decisionmaking sectors of Soviet society, particularly in government, political life and in fields involving foreign contracts. Jews are virtually excluded from sensitive positions in the bureaucracy, Army and foreign service.

QUOTAS AT UNIVERSITIES

The quota system at universities, the key to advancement in Soviet society, operates particularly to the disadvantage of the Jewish population. Jews make up 3% of the total student population at institutions of higher learning. This is double the percent of Jews in the Soviet population but it makes it impossible for many highly qualified young Jews to receive higher education. At this point in the record, I would like to insert a brief study by Mare Hurwitz, "Soviet Educational Policy and the Jews," which elaborates on this point.

The often-tense international situation creates additional problems for Soviet Jews. Soviet hostility toward the State of Israel makes Soviet Jews vulnerable to official attacks on grounds of divided loyalty. They are suspect of having ties with Western Jews. Czechoslovakian Jews were even blamed in the Soviet press for the developments in Czechoslovakia that led to the Soviet invasion in 1968,

And yet despite the attempt on the part of the Soviet government to obliterate all external manifestations of Judaism, the Soviet Jew cannot shed his identity and become a fully assimilated Russian. Jews are treated as a nationality and they must always list their nationality as “Jewish” in the domestic passport that all Soviet citizens must carry.

Therefore, Soviet Jews yearn to emigrate to Israel and other lands where they would be afforded the opportunity to freely practice their religion and preserve their rich cultural heritage. Yet they are not permitted to emigrate, despite the fact that this right is guaranteed in the Soviet constitution. During the past three years, over 40,000 Jews have filed applications for an exit visa to Israel. However, only a small number have been granted permission to leave. Almost all who have applied have lost their jobs and have been subjected to intimidation by the police. The Soviet secret police, the KGB, regularly searches the homes of visa applicants and sometimes carts them off to jail on trumped-up charges. There is no way of ascertaining how many Soviet Jews would apply for exit visas if they could do so without fear of severe economic and social reprisals but their number has been estimated at 300,000-300,000 human beings who are simultaneously being denied basic human rights and the freedom to emigrate to lands where these rights would be honored.

AN INTOLERABLE SITUATION

The resolution I introduced and which you are considering this morning is an attempt to alleviate the intolerable situation I have just described. It calls for a governmental commitment to use formal and informal channels, including the United Nations, to express this concern at Soviet suppression of religious and cultural freedoms as well as restrictions on the right to emigrate.

Specifically, the President is asked to call upon the Soviet Government to honor the words of its own constitution by permitting the free expression of ideas and exercise of religion by all its citizens-and he is asked to utilize all available channels, formal and informal, to convey this position.

Moreover, the President is requested to demand of the Soviet Government that it permit its citizens the right to emigrate to the countries of their choice as affirmed by the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights. The right to free emigration is basic and fundamental to human liberty. Without this right, national borders become prison walls. We must not remain silent while the Soviet-or any other-government imprisons its own citizens in a society where they can neither practice their religion nor make their way to countries where they might give full expression to their religious and cultural identity.

Finally, this resolution calls upon the State Department to raise in the General Assembly of the United Nations the issue of the Soviet Union's transgression of the Declaration of Human Rights-a Declaration that was unanimously adopted by the United Nations.

UNITED NATIONS AS A FORUM

I believe that the United Nations is the appropriate forum for raising this issue of international concern for it is a body that was organized to promote peaceful relations between nations as well as personal liberty within nations. Article 55 of the U.N. Charter states:

The United Nations shall promote universal respect for, and observance of, human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion.

And Article 56 makes this binding on all member nations:

All members pledge themselves to take joint and separate action in cooperation with the Organization for the achievement of the purposes set forth in Article 55.

The exact nature of these human rights have been specifically spelled out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in various U.N. Conventions: The right to emigrate is affirmed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 13 (2)) (1948); the International Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (1965); and in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966).

The right of national minorities to carry on their own educational activities as well as the general right to education without discrimination is recognized in the Convention Against Discrimination in Education.

Freedom from discrimination in employment and occupation is affirmed in the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention of 1958.

A 1963 UNITED NATIONS STUDY

In order to implement the human rights provisions of the Declaration on Human Rights, the Commission on Human Rights established a subordinate body, the Subcommission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, to undertake studies in the protection of human rights in various countries. In 1963 the Subcommission completed a Study of Discrimination in Respect of the Right of Everyone to Leave Any Country Including His Own and to Return to His Country, in which was included information on the Soviet violation of the right of Jews to emigrate.

United States representatives to the United Nations have emphasized the importance of bringing this matter up before the United Nations. Ambassador George Bush asserted: "People must have the right to leave a country and the United States should address itself, in my view, to this important question." He further stated that the United States has "every intention of making a strong presentation" at the United Nations in favor of the free movements of peoples."

Mrs. Rita E. Hauser, U.S. Representative to the U.S. Commission on Human Rights. has insisted that no nation may now assert that violation of human rights within its territory is a domestic issue, not amenable to international scrutiny. In a letter to the New York Times, she wrote:

"Serious violations of human rights are continually debated in the Human Rights Commission. Our country adheres to the view. a recent and singular one in international law, that no member of the United Nations may assert that a persistent and gross violation of human rights within its territory is a 'domestic' issue not amenable to international scrutiny. We believe the U.N Charter obligates all members to promote the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all persons; a defaulting member is subject to criticism by others."

The situation of Soviet Jews was raised at the 33rd Session of the Council of the Inter-Governmental Committee for European Migration by the U.S. Delegation's Congressional Adviser. And in Committee III of the U.N. General Assembly on December 9, 1970, U.S. Representative Dr. Helen G. Edmonds denounced the harassment of Jews wishing to leave the Soviet Union:

"In line with the purposes of the U.N. to expose and eradicate every form of discrimination, my Delegation has spoken out several times on the issue of the treatment of the more than three million Jews in the Soviet Union.

"Last year before this committe we pointed out that, despite the guarantee of the Soviet Union's constitution and laws, Jews are not treated as citizens on an equal level with all other Soviet citizens. From all reports, they suffer from discrimination in employment and opportunities, disabilities in public life; and most important of all, the Jews are being deprived of the cultural ingredients needed to preserve their separate identity: schooling, training centers for religious leaders, and other cultural tools. We have serious doubts as to their ability to freely practice their religion.

"In this atmosphere, it is not surprising that large numbers of Jews are seeking to leave the Soviet Union. Their hopes are supported by Article XIII of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which says that 'Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country.' However, the Soviet Government is allowing few Jews to emigrate. There have been countless cases of families who have vainly sought permission for several years to leave the Soviet Union. Numerous petitions in which these unfortunate people narrate their plight and plea for compassion have reached the outside world.

"One would think that a simple denial of application to leave would be cruel enough. However, mere requests for emigration are becoming causes for persecution and prosecution by the Soviet Government. A mere application for a permit is often followed by demotion, loss of job, or worse. More than 30 Jewish petitioners for emigration have been jailed."

1959 NIXON LETTER

The Nixon Administration is highly aware of the desperate situation of minority groups in the Soviet Union.

More than 12 years ago, Vice President Nixon requested Premier Khrushchev to recognize this basic moral and human right for Soviet Jews. In a letter dated August 1, 1959, he wrote:

In the interest of continuing improvement in relations between the United States and the Soviet Union, I believe that matters such as this involving principles of non separation of families which we both support should not persist as irritants to larger solutions.

In this regard, I can state that the United States Government does not stand in the way of persons including its own citizens who desire to depart from the United States to take up residence in the U.S.S.R.

On January 11, 1971, in a message to American Jewish leaders, President Nixon stated: "You may be certain also that this Administration, reflecting the traditional liberties upon which this country was founded, joins with you in urging freedom of emigration as explicitly provided in Article 13 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in its commitment to cultural and religious freedom at home and abroad.”

And this, in essence, is the intent of the resolution under consideration by this committee. Those of us who are fortunate enough to enjoy the free expression of ideas and religion have a responsibility to work for the relief of oppressed people the world over. Our country is recognized as the leader of the free world and I think it only fitting that our President play a prominent role in this undertaking.

Mr. Chairman, there is no doubt that countless numbers of Soviet Jews would emigrate, were they given the chance. Between February of 1968 and October of 1970, a total of 220 petitions from Soviet Jews were received by the United Nations and prominent Western personalities, asking for the right to emigrate. This is part of an attempt to sensitize world public opinion to their plight. And many petitioners noted that Premier Aleksei Kosygin, at a press conference on December 3, 1966, promised that "the door is open" and "no problem exists" for Soviet Jews wishing "to leave the Soviet Union."