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Fate of Jews in Communist Countries is Major Problem, Goldmann Says

June 25, 1957
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A major problem facing world Jewry today is the fate of an estimated 3,500,000 East European Jews, Dr. Nahum Goldmann, president of the World Jewish Congress, told a meeting of the General Assembly of the WJC here last night.

“We must be realistic,” Dr. Goldmann said, we know that we cannot ask the regime to become non-Communist just because of the Jews under that regime. But when the Jews’ spiritual life is condemned to death, the time has come for Jewry to begin to make its demands on the Soviet Union publicly known.”

The WJC leader asserted that “we want beside the protection of their legal position, respect for Jewish life. “Dr. Goldmann expressed the belief that this is the time to seek such action because the Soviet leaders are beginning to realize that they have solved many problems in their country but not the Jewish problem.

Turning to the situation in North Africa, Dr. Goldmann said the World Jewish Congress must remain outside the dispute between the French and the nationalists because the WJC is a world movement which cannot take a position on a local French matter. However, he pointed out, this does not prevent individual affiliated chapters of the WJC, like the French and Algerian sections, from taking a position. The Congress he stressed, could only involve itself if Jewish rights were threatened in Algeria, which is not the case.

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