spokesman of the Club of Jewish Deputies, said during the debate on the Bill in the Sejm in March, 1931. It is a question, he said, not only of a constitutional duty to the Jewish population but of the honor and the prestige of the Polish State, which could not permit a state of affairs in which the old Tzarist laws continue to be in force. The Jews will not stop here, he went on, but will continue to fight to have all the provisions of the Constitution relating to the rights of the Jews as citizens and as a minority carried into effect. We Jews demand our rights and the Club of Jewish Deputies will not cease from its fight so long as these rights have not been given full realization.
One of the Deputies of the Government Party, a Priest, speaking at the same session, said that he was very happy not only that the restrictions against the Jews would be abolished, but also because the Tzarist laws contained restrictions against the Roman Catholic Church which had been enforced by the Tzarist regime.
It now remains to be seen to what extent the decision of the Supreme Ministry of the Tribunal referred to in my opening paragraph will in effect produce a real abolition of the discriminatory clauses. The actual effect of the decision will not be known until experience proves how Polish courts in various parts of the Republic will interpret the decision.
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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.