— Three Soviet Jewish refuseniks, including one who applied to emigrate 13 years ago, have received permission to emigrate, it was reported here by the Greater New York Conference on Soviet Jewry.
Yakov Ariev, an engineer from Riga, first applied to emigrate to Israel in 1968. He had been waiting longer than any other refusenik in the Soviet Union. Ariev was denied permission to emigrate in the interest of “state security” because he spent a year in the army. As one of the most active refuseniks in the Riga Jewish community, he was repeatedly harassed by Soviet authorities.
Grigori Khess of Minsk, who first applied to emigrate in March 1972, and Grigori Kanovich of Leningrad, who first applied in May 1979, were the other two refuseniks who received their exit visas.
Zeesy Schnur, executive director of the Greater New York Conference on Soviet Jewry, welcomed this turn of events following the release earlier this year of Prisoner of Conscience losif Mendelevich. Terming the Soviet decision to grant exit visas to these four POCs, as “significant,” Schnur said “It suggests an understanding on the part of the Soviet authorities that respect for international laws regarding emigration can also be politically beneficial.”
She added: “We must remain concerned about the fate of Viktor Brailovsky, Vlodimir Kislik and Kim Fridman, three long-term refuseniks arrested in recent months. The Soviet authorities should recognize that Brailovsky, Kislik and Fridman also have the right to emigrate with their families.”
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
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.
