An urgent appeal has been made to the International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneva, Switzerland, to intercede on behalf of an imprisoned Soviet Jew, Anatoly Shcharansky, who is reported to be in danger of losing his eyesight in Chistopol Prison. Hans Morgenthau, chairman of the Academic Committee on Soviet Jewry, urged in a telegram to Dr. Alexandre Hay, president of the international body, that the Red Cross immediately seek to “assure adequate medical care” for Shcharansky, whose arrest last year elicited the personal intercession of President Carter. Morgenthau pointed out that Shcharansky “has been suffering severe headaches and pain in his eyes, yet is denied access to medical treatment by Soviet prison authorities.
Dr. Harris Schoenberg, secretary of the Academic Committee, noted that Shcharansky’s mother has warned that he is in danger of losing his eyesight unless he receives prompt treatment. “It would be criminal to allow this brilliant young man to go blind because he courageously with stood Soviet attempts to rob him of his Jewish identity and fundamental human rights.”
Meanwhile, Morgenthau disclosed that an “appeal for freedom” for Shcharansky and all other Soviet Prisoners of Conscience had been signed by over 300 educators. The appeal, he said, sponsored by the members of the Academic Committee on Soviet Jewry whose names appear, compares the Shcharansky trial of July 14, 1978, “unfavorably” to the “infamous Dreyfus case” in France. It declares in part:
“As in the Dreyfus case, anti-Semitism was joined to absurd allegations of treason. There was one difference. At least Dreyfus enjoyed the benefit of a vigorous defense attorney. Shcharansky was refused counsel of his own choice. His legal rights under Soviet law were in fact violated before, during, and after his trial.”
Referring to the appeal, Morgenthau added that “whatever happens in U.S.-USSR relations, the issue of freedom for Mr. Shcharansky and other Soviet Prisoners of Conscience remains urgent as long as the policies of the Soviet Union remain what they are.” He defined these policies as “anti-Semitism and violations of elementary civil liberties.”
In a related action 18 Congressmen rose in the House of Representatives to demand the Soviet government release. Shcharansky and allow him to rejoin his wife, Avital, in Israel. Rep. Robert Drinan (D.Mass.), who heads the International Committee for the Release of Anatoly Shcharansky, opened the discussion that lasted for an hour.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
