James Rice, executive director of the United Hias Service, today questioned a statement by Rep. Frances E. Walter, Democrat of Pennsylvania, who had declared that the European refugee problem had been virtually solved.
Rep. Walter, chairman of the House Immigration subcommittee, based his evaluation on a seven-week study of refugee and other problems in Europe and Latin America. Bills in Congress still call for the admission of nearly 70, 000 persons to the United States alone.
Rep. Walter said that only 28,000 refugees registered for transfer to the Western Hemisphere remained on the lists, and therefore “there is now no European refugee problem.”
Mr. Rice said that the 28,000 figure was accurate only for refugees still living in European camps, but that there were still at least an additional 70, 000 persons who, though not living in refuges camps, actually were homeless. He said they lived on relief or marginal jobs while waiting for an opportunity to migrate for permanent settlement. This he said, would make the true total of European refugees at around 100,000, and not 28,000.
Mr. Rice said that there were 6,000 Jewish refugees in Europe registered for immigration with Hias, including 1,000 Jewish expellees from Egypt. He said there were also other Jewish refugees in Europe who had not registered for resettlement for various temporary reasons.
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