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THE JEWISH CHRONICLE
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•
Restrictive Laws Against Jews Erased
From Russian Legal System
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Jewish Lawyers Searched Statute Books for Obnoxious Acts- -
Equal Rights for All Basis of Government.
The announcement of the provi-
sional government of new Russia re-
pealing all restrictive laws against the
Jews means an end of centuries of
oppression and suffering.
It means an end to the horrors of
the pale. It means an end to religi-
ous, political, educational, and social
discrimination. It means, finally, an
open door to freedom and oppor-
tunity- on a plane of equality with
their fellow-men.
To accomplish this revolution in
the status of Russian Jewry, the min-
istry of justice, in co-operation with
a committee of prominent Russian
Jewish lawyers, made a thorough
search of the statute books of the
land and eliminated therefrom every
law, every provision, every clause,
that might directly or indirectly re-
sult in some form of discrimination
against the Jew. It was a stupendous
task, involving the abolition of hun-
dreds of laws which through ages of
oppression had accumulated in Rus-
sia against the Jews as a race.
Baron Fedor Gunzburg,' attached
to the Russian commission, brought
with him for the perusal of Jews in
this country a copy of the official
proclamation of the provisional gov-
ernment repealing the anti-Jewish
laws of Russia. The proclamation
was originally printed in the official
organ of the government, Viestnik
Vremmiennavo Pravitelstvo.
Under the heading, "Decision of the
Provisional Government. Repeal of
Religious and National Restrictions,"
the proclamation reads as follows:
"Being conclusively convinced that
in a free country all citizens should
be equal before the law, and that the
conscience of the people cannot be
reconciled with limitations on the
rights of citizens based on their re-
ligion and origin.
"The provisional government de-
crees:
"All existing legal restrictions up-
on the rights of Russian citizens in
connection with this or that faith, re-
ligious teaching, or nationality are re-
voked.
"In accordance with this:
"I. Repealed arc all the laws exist-
ing for Russia as a whole, as well as
those of separate localities, the limita-
tions concerning:
"1. Selection of place of residence
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and change of residence or movement.
"2. Acquiring rights of ownership
and other material rights in all kinds
of movable and immovable property,
mid likewise in the possession of, the
use and the managing of, all prop-
erty, or receiving such for security.
"3. Engaging in all kinds of
trades, commerce, and industry, not
excepting mining; also equal partici-
pation in the bidding for government
contracts, deliveries, and in public
auctions.
"4. Participation in joint stock and
other commercial or industrial com-
panies and partnerships, and also
employment in these companies and
partnerships in all kinds of positions,
either by election or by hiring.
"5. Employment of servants, sales-
men, foremen, laborers, and trade ap-
prentices.
"6. Entering the government serv-
ice, civil as well as military, and the
grade or condition of such service;
participation in the elections for the
institutions of local self-government
and all kinds of public institutions;
serving in all kinds of positions of
government and public establish-
ments, as well as the prosecution of
the duties connected with such posi-
tions.
"7. Admission to all kinds of in-
stitutions of learning, whether private,
government, or public, and the pur-
suing of the courses of instruction of
institutions and receiving
these
scholarships. Also the pursuance of
teaching and other educational pro-
fessions.
"8. Per forming the duties of guar-
dians, trustees, or jurors.
"9. The use of languages and dia-
lects other than Russian in the pro-
ceedings of private societies, or in
teaching in all kinds of private edu-
cational institutions and in commer-
cial bookkeeping."
Paragraphs II., III., IV., V., VI.,
VII., and VIII. proceed to enumerate
and cite, section by section, paragraph
by paragraph, each and every law
that was in existence coming within
the broad terms of the repeal enumer-
ated above. The enormous number
of the citations and the minuteness of
their character testify in themselves
to the thoroughness with which the
Jewish restrictions were carefully
searched out, so as not to leave the
slightest question as to the exact laws
which were abolished. Paragraph IX.
of the repeal states the following:
"The force of this decree is extend-
ed to embrace the corresponding re-
strictions which have been enacted in
relation to foreigners, not belonging
to the citizenship of the countries
with which Russia is at war, in con-
nection with their faith, religious
teaching, or nationality."
In other words, • all restrictions
against Jews in Russia from non-
enemy countries, though they may
not be Russian citizens, arc likewise
abolished.
With reference to the extensive
ground covered by the repeal Baron
Gunzburg said:
"The repeal made by the provision-
al government represents a repeal of
every law in existence which it was
possible to find discriminating against
the Jews. Naturally, since the con-
stituent assembly which will soon
convene will enact all the permanent
laws, this provisional government is
technically not permanent and re-
mains in force only until the constitu-
ent assembly officially enacts its laws.
"But since the greatest particular-
ity was resorted to in the repeal of
these laws against the Jews, it is en-
tirely probable that the constituent
assembly will simply re-enact the re-
peal of the provisional government.
At any rate, there need not be the
slightest fear that there will now be
the smallest political discrimination
left on the law books of Russia. The
repeal announcement of the provi-
sional government represents in any
event only the non-reducible guaran-
tee of Jewish rights."
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