Future of Jewish Emigration Depends on Outcome of Communist Party Congress

Soviet Jews arriving here last night told newsmen that the future of Jewish emigration from Russia depends on the outcome of the Communist Party Congress which opens in Moscow at the end of this month. Only after the Congress will it be possible to ascertain what the Soviet attitude toward Jewish emigration will be, they said. The number of new arrivals was not disclosed. But it was apparently a large group coming from Moscow, Odessa, Riga, Kiev and Vilna. No mention was made of five Jewish families from Kharkov who were reported to have arrived in Vienna last Friday and were said to be due in Israel last night. More planes with Soviet immigrants, including chartered aircraft, are expected within a few days.

Many of the newcomers were greeted by relatives, among them Agriculture Minister Chaim Givati who was at the airport to welcome a relative, a 42-year-old electrical engineer from Kiev. A former Knesset member, Devorah Netzer, embraced her sister, Dr. Bluma Diskin. One of the immigrants, Efraim Possek, told newsmen he had waited six years until his application for an exit visa was approved. He said he had to renew his application each year. Possek brought with him an ancient Torah Scroll that has been in his family for generations. He plans to present it to the synagogue at Kfar Habad where his father lives. He said Soviet customs officials demanded that the scroll be opened to its full length even though it was listed on his export permit as a sacred object. He said the officials were looking for smuggled goods. Possek’s wife, a physics teacher, said she was fired from her job three years ago when her schoolmaster learned of her application for an exit permit.