Prof. Alexander Lunz, a prominent Jewish activist from Moscow who was one of 100 Soviet Jewish immigrants arriving at Ben Gurion Airport last night, charged that the policies of President Ford and Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger with regard to emigration from the Soviet Union led to increased pressure on Jews seeking to leave the USSR.
Lunz, 52, a mathematician who received his exit visa only after four years of struggle with the Soviet authorities, spoke bitterly against those who, however well intentioned, advocate “quiet diplomacy” as the means of liberalizing Soviet emigration practices. He said “quiet diplomacy” brought no results while direct pressure did. Lunz said the recent visit of British Chief Rabbi Immanuel Jakobovits to the Soviet Union achieved little. Jakobovits has been an advocate of dialogue with the Soviet authorities to achieve emigration and the rights of Jews remaining in the USSR.
Lunz said that when Ford and Kissinger stated publicly that the Jackson Amendment was counterproductive in that it resulted in fewer Jews leaving the Soviet Union, they were making a dangerous allegation that was interpreted by the Soviet authorities as an incentive to increase pressure on Jews.
He also spoke scornfully of the “yordim”–Jews who went to Israel but returned to Russia. He said he was convinced that many of them were sent by the Soviet authorities in order to smear Israel, but that would be difficult to prove. He said the appearance on television of several “yordim” on the eve of the Brussels conference was “sickening.”
Lunz, who arrived with his wife and 18-year-old son, denied Soviet allegations that only 1.5 percent of visa requests are refused. According to Lunz, there were 4000-5000 refusals last year when 12,000 Jews left the Soviet Union. He said many Jews feared to apply for visas because of harassment and that it took great courage to apply. He stated that he was continuously harassed by the KGB (secret police), his home searched and personal belongings confiscated, repeatedly interrogated and threatened with criminal prosecution and was once jailed for two weeks for participating in a demonstration.
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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.
