Zionist Congress Appeals to Moscow to Restore Rights to Soviet Jewry

Resolutions calling upon the Soviet Union to restore to its Jews their full right to live a normal Jewish life, urging the freeing of all Zionist prisoners and their immigration to Israel, and condemning the Arab states for their worldwide anti-Israel anti-Jewish propaganda were adopted here tonight by the 24th World Zionist Congress.

The Soviet Government was also asked to restore to Jews: the right to re-open Jewish schools, yeshivoth and seminaries for training rabbis and teachers as well as other institutions of Jewish culture and art; the right to re-establish in the USSR a Jewish press and literature and to use the Hebrew language; the right to establish contact with Jewish communities in other countries and with Israel.

The resolution further expressed concern about the fate of thousands of Zionists still in Soviet prisons for the “crime of yearning” for the creation of a Jewish State which, it was pointed out, now maintains diplomatic relations with the USSR. The resolution asked the release of all such prisoners and the right for them to come to Israel. It also expressed the hope that the present “trickle” of Jewish emigration from the USSR to Israel is just “the beginning” and that increasingly large numbers of Jews would be permitted to quit the USSR for Israel.

In a resolution on Rumania, the Zionist Congress expressed satisfaction that the majority of Zionist leaders imprisoned in that country had been released, and called for the freeing of the remainder. It noted that only one such leader had been allowed to come to Israel and demanded that all be permitted to come to Israel. It also asked for the liberation of Morde cai/ Oren, Israeli Mapam leader, implicated in the Rudolf Slansky “plot” in Czechoslovakia and sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment.

The Congress underlined the plight of thousands of Jewish families some of whose members had gone ahead to Israel and others of whom were trapped when bucharest halted Israel-bound emigration several years ago. The reunification of such families was characterized as a “supreme humanitarian obligation” of the Rumanian Government.

HITS ARAB BLACKMAIL AGAINST JEWS THROUGHOUT WORLD

The Congress emphasized the economic war carried out by the Arab states not only against Israel but against Jews in all countries through a complicated system of boycott, blockade and “blackmail” of transportation and other companies and governments. This the delegates labelled Nazi-like and also pointed out the parallel between the Arab states methods today and the Nazis of 1933-45 in their worldwide propaganda against Jews, a development which the Congress pointed out violated fundamental human rights and the principles of the United Nations.

The resolution hit governments, airlines and shipping companies that give into Arab “blackmail” and permit discrimination against their Jewish citizens or customers. Finally, it drew the attention of all governments to the propaganda campaign of Arab “information centers” and Arab diplomats who attempt to discredit Jews in all countries.

In another resolution, the delegates hit Jordan’s refusal to permit the Jews access to the Holy Places in the Old City of Jerusalem, despite the Israel-Jordan armistice agreement which specifically-granted Jews this right. It called on the Security Council to force Jordan to live up to this pledge.