U.S. Urged to Set Up International Inquiry to Investigate Conditions of Soviet Jews

An “international inquiry” under United Nations auspices to investigate “Soviet action against its Jewish population” was urged at a House sub-committee hearing here today on the plight of Soviet Jewry. The proposal was made by Stanley Lowell, vice president of the American Jewish Congress and vice chairman of the American Jewish Conference on Soviet Jewry Mr. Lowell also outlined a program of action on Russian Jews that he said could be undertaken by the U.S. Congress and the State Department. He was one of five experts who testified at the hearing conducted by Rep. Leonard Farbstein, a New York Democrat, chairman of the subcommittee on Europe of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. The hearing was held at the U.S. Customs Court House.

Mr. Lowell called on both houses of the Congress, by joint resolution, to “demand that the U.S. State Department and Charles Yost, U.S. Ambassador to the UN, call for an international inquiry into Soviet action against its Jewish population” and that the State Department “make direct inquiry of the Soviet Union’s Foreign Ministry with respect to the status of Jews in the USSR.” Mr. Lowell also proposed that “world opinion be marshalled to demand that the USSR permit those of its Jewish citizens who wish to leave to emigrate freely to Israel and other lands that are willing to receive them.” Mr. Farbstein opened the proceedings by stating that “In my opinion Jews are being held virtual prisoners in the Soviet Union.” He was joined at the hearing by another member of his sub-committee, Rep. John Buchanan, Republican of Alabama. Moshe Decter, specialist in Jewish minorities research, said, “there is no such thing as a Soviet Jewish community” because Jews there are “forbidden to create one, nor is one allowed to exist.” He attributed Soviet policy toward Jews chiefly to a “potent residue of traditional anti-Semitism.” He added, however, that the “worst phase” ended with Stalin’s death in 1953.

Abraham Bayer, coordinator of the American Jewish Conference on Soviet Jewry, told the hearing that “silence and diplomatic good will” are not enough to deal with the problem. Mr. Bayer disclosed that Vice President Agnew had written on April 8 to Rabbi Herschel Schacter, chairman of the American Jewish Conference on Soviet Jewry, expressing his “concern” over the plight of Soviet Jewry Albert I. Chernin, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Philadelphia, said that what may be most important “is for U.S. Government officials to hold Soviet officials to the promise of (Premier Alexei N.) Kosygin to permit emigration and to press them to enable Soviet Jews to have the cultural and religious institutions that are available to other national religious groups and that are consistent with Soviet law and official ideology.” Jerry Goodman, director of European affairs of the American Jewish Committee, said the Kremlin’s anti-Israel campaign has become “Increasingly shrill” in the past three months and has “surpassed in hysteria” Russia’s campaign against Red China, Czechoslovakian liberals and Marshal Tito of Yugoslavia. He said Moscow’s policy was designed to “appease” its Arab allies.