Bolivian President Victor Paz Estenssoro has denied that his government intends to discriminate against prospective Jewish immigrants to Bolivia and has affirmed his determination to prevent discrimination of any sort under his regime, it was reported here today by Dr. Maurice L. Perlzweig, head of the International Affairs Department of the World Jewish Congress.
Dr. Perlzweig made his statement upon his return from Bolivia, where he went to discuss reports that the Bolivian Government had issued a directive to its consuls abroad not to issue Jews visas for immigration to Bolivia. The President explained that the directive had gone out by mistake when a minor official had mechanically reproduced a text of a document of another regime.
The Bolivian President told Dr. Perlzweig that the document in no way reflects the policies of his regime. He declared that the Jews “had made a significant contribution to the development of Bolivia” and stressed the similarity of the efforts to develop Bolivia and Israel and to develop in both countries democratic institutions. Dr. Perlzweig praised President Estenssoro as a man of the “highest ideals and exceptional integrity of spirit” who is determined to eradicate anti-Semitism.
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