Parcels From Kin in U.S.
Held in Soviet Customs
NEW YORK (JTA) — The Synagogue Council of
America, which has sent to the Soviet Union 2,000 pack-
ages of matzoh, of 10 pounds each, reported that it has
been informed by reliable sources from abroad that the
matzo parcels sent from the United States were being
held in the Soviet customs houses and are not being
distributed to the people to whom they were addressed.
(In London, it was learned`'
that local authorities port to Sen. Kenneth B. Keat-
throughout the Soviet Union ing, New York Republican,
is interested in helping
have ordered Jews to re- who
the Soviet Jews secure mat-
fuse to accept parcels con- zoth for Passover.
taining matzoth sent by rel-
Dutton indicated that there
atives abroad.)
appears to be no useful action
These steps are being taken
in spite of the fact that an
announcement by a Soviet of-
ficial in the Washington Em-
bassy stated a month ago that
matzo shipments addressed to
individual recipients in the
USSR would be permitted.
The Soviet official went so
far as to list five firms in
the United States specifical-
ly licensed by the Soviet au-
thorities to accept such ship-
ments.
An article in an issue of
Pravda Vostoka, of Tashkent,
Uzbekistan. confirms the fact
that pressures are being applied
against local Jews in regard to
matzo acceptance.
The article, in the issue of
March 17, stated: "Receipt of
parcels of matzo constitutes
ideological sabotage against the
Russian people."
Pravda Vostoka, which is the
organ of the local Communist
party in Uzbekistan, reports that
"protest meetings" against the
import of matzoth were being
organized "all over the coun-
try." It is emphasized that no
"protest meetings" can be held
anywhere in the Soviet Union
without official government
permission and perhaps encour-
agement.
"Individuals in the Soviet
Union should have received pos-
tal notices to pick up their par-
cels, but no such notifications
have been sent," Rabbi Uri Mil-
ler, president of the Synagogue
Council of America, said. "With
the exception of the parcels to
Chief Rabbi Yehuda Leib Levin
of Moscow, no other parcels
have been delivered.
"The action of the Soviet
authorities in backtracking
on their original agreement
in allowing parcels to be
shipped to individuals in the
Soviet Union is clearly mani-
fested in their holding up
these parcels in customs," the
Synagogue Council president
declared.
"The Jewish community of
the United States took the word
of the Soviet authorities in good
faith when they informed them
that matzoth could be sent to
individuals in the Soviet Union.
The information received clear-
ly indicates another change in
Soviet policy and the double
standards being set by the
Soviet government."
Earlier, in Washington, the
State Department was informed
by the American Embassy in
Moscow that no matzoth at all
have so far been baked on the
premises which the Soviet auth-
orities had said are being used
for the baking of matzoth. The
announcement was made by
Asst. Secretary of State Fred-
eric Dutton.
The American Embassy also
reported that, although the Sov-
iet authorities said that the
sending of matzoth from abroad
to Jews in the Soviet Union
would he allowed, this would
not by far solve the problem.
At the same time, the Embassy
emphasized that the matzoth
issue is "a Soviet domestic pol-
icy" problem.
Dutton transmitted the con-
tents of the U. S. Embassy re-
which the State Department
could take to remedy the situa-
tion. The senator urged that a
"direct appeal" by the U.S. gov-
ernment leaders be made to the
Soviet Union, and that action
also be taken through the
United Nations.
Urgent parliamentary efforts
were undertaken in Congress in
a two-pronged strategy to gain
speedy approval of a joint reso-
lution authorizing and request-
ing the President to use the
full facilities of the U. S. to
supply matzoth to Soviet Jews
in time.
Sen. Eugene McCarthy,
Minnesota Democrat, Tuesday
introduced a joint resolution
on the Senate floor calling
"upon the President to use
full facilities of our govern-
ment to make arrangements
on an emergency basis for the
delivery of an adequate sup-
ply of matzo to the key cen-
ters of Jewish life in the
Union of Soviet Socialist Re-
publics so the feast of the
Passover may be observed in
keeping with over 5,000 years
of Jewish tradition."
The joint resolution, a com-
panion to the one introduced in
the House last week by Ohio
Democratic Congressman Mich-
ael Feighan, remained at the
desk until the close of the Sen-
ate session Wednesday so other
senators could have an oppoi-
tunity to sponsor it.
While Sen. James Eastland,
Mississippi Democrat, said that
he was in favor of the resolu-
tion—as were other Southern
senators who are trying to block
civil rights action at the mom-
ent — informed Capitol Hill
sources made it known that the
State Department would be
working hard to block action
on the present resolution.
State Department efforts are
concerned with the section of
the resolution which refers to
the March issue of the Soviet
cultural exchange magazine,
"USSR," which featured an ar-
ticle showing that Soviet Jews
have full freedom of religious
practices. The State Department
contention is that in U.S.-USSR
cultural exchange programs,
either side can propagandize.
Canadian Jewish Congress Leaders
Offer Ontario Anti-Semite Names
(Direct JTA Teletype Wire
to The Jewish News)
TORONTO—Leaders of the
Canadian Jewish Congress met
with top officials of the Prov-
ince of Ontario, including the
provincial prime minister John
Robards, and passed on to the
authorities information pointing
to persons responsible for the
recent widespread dissemina
tion of anti-Semitic materials in
this city, Montreal and else-
where throughout Canada.
In addition to meeting with
Premier Robards, the CJC lead-
ers conferred also with Fred
Cass, attorney general of On-
tario, and Allan Grossman, pro-
vincial minister for reform in-
stitutions. The same informa-
tion was sent to Guy Favreau,
dominion minister of justice at
Ottawa.
Leaders of the delegation in-
cluded M. W. Gasner, chairman
of the CJC central region, and
Sydney M. Harris, national
chairman of the joint public re-
lations committee of the Can-
adian Jewish Congress and
Bnai Brith.
They told all the officials that
the CJC considers it of public
interest "to inform the com-
munity at large of the identity
and connections of persons"
connected with the spread of
hate propaganda.
They said they would make
the names of the persons con-
cerned public next month when
a memorial meeting honoring
the martyrs of the Warsaw
Ghetto rebellion is to be held
here at Beth Izedec Synagogue.
* * *
TORONTO, (JTA) — Efforts
to obtain laws to ban the distri-
bution of hate literature, sparked
by a recent wave of mailings of
anti-Semitic material to sev-
eral major Canadian cities, were
endorsed by the Canadian Bap-
tist Federation.
In a telegram to Justice Min-
ister Guy Favreau, the Rev. R. F.
Bullen of Brantford, general
secretary of the Baptist Federa-
ttion, declared that "our press-
ing concern is for our Jewish
brethren against whom vilifica-
tion and threats are directed."
The telegram indicated that
the Baptists were "deeply dis-
tressed that despite the lessons
of history, this generation of
Canadians is being subjected to
an insidious penetration by the
purveyors of hate." Rev. Bullen
commended the Justice Minister
and his colleagues for their ef-
forts to find effective ways to
safeguard the rights of all citi-
zens. He also disclosed that hate
leaflets had been received in
Brantford by some individuals
and one service club.
* * *
Australian Publisher Accused
of Anti-Semitism in Canada
TORONTO (JTA) —Eric D.
Butler of the Australian League
of Rights, now touring Canada,
called off a meeting in a hotel
in Edmonton, Alta., after it
was visited by about 40 persons
who were "uninvited."
Butler denied producing an
edition of the "Protocols of the
Elders of Zion" but stated that
it was issued by the Heritage
Press, an institution which he
admitted being associated with.
A. Miller, of Calgary, speak-
ing for the Jewish Community
Relations Committee, denounced
Butler for his tactic of posing
as an anti-Communist but "us-
ing this as a mask for anti-
Jewish incitement."
In New York, the Amer--
ean Jewish Conference on
Soviet Jewry charged that the
Soviet government's continu-
ing ban on the public baking
and sale of matzoth would
make it virtually impossible
for Soviet Jews to observe
Passover.
The Conference was created
earlier this month by 24 major
national Jewish organizations.
It will meet at the Hotel Wil-
lard in Washington on April 5
and 6 to adopt a long-range pro-
gram, of national and inter-
national scope, to deal with
what American Jewish leaders
have termed the "deteriorating
status of Jews and Judaism in
the USSR."
The two-day meeting in Wash-
ington will hear from U.S. Sup-
reme Court Justice Arthur J.
Goldberg; U.S. Sen. Jacob K
Javits of New York and Abra-
ham Ribicoff of Connecticut,
and other prominent figures.
Walter Klein, executive direc-
tor, and Joseph Edelman, pro-
gram director of the Jewish
Community Council of Detroit,
will participate in the Confer-
ence.
World Council of Churches
Concerned Over Fate of Jews
(Direct JTA Teletype Wire
to The Jewish News)
GENEVA—The World Coun-
cil of Church currently in ses-
sion here expressed concern in
its information bulletin about
the fate of the Jews in Russia.
The Council voted on the
memorandum submitted recent-
ly to the Soviet Embassy in
Rome by the European Confer-
ence of Rabbis on the problem.
The bulletin also noted the 70th
birthday of Moscow Chief Rab-
bi Yehuda Leib Levine and his
40 years of service.
(Related Stories Pages 6, 9)
1964
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Another USSR Jew
Sentenced to Death
LONDON, (JTA) — A Jew
named Gelb was sentenced to
death during a mass trial for
alleged "economic crimes" in
the Carpatho-Ukrainian region
of the Soviet Union, informa-
tion reaching here from the
USSR revealed. Gelb, whose
first name was not given, was
identified in the report as a
resident of Mumkachevo, in the
Western Ukraine.
Gelb, the report indicated,
had beeen one of 13 Jews in the
mass trial held last December
at Uzgorod. Twelve of the Jews
convicted in that proceeding
had previously been named by
the organ of the local Commun-
ist Party, Zakarpatskaya Pravda.
The 12 had been given sent-
ences ranging from 10 years'
imprisonment t o 15 years.
Gelb's name, however, had been
omitted by the Communist
newspaper.
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S — THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS Friday, M arch 27 ,
Russian Jews Ordered Not to Accept Matzo