THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS Reagan Pledges to Aid Soviet Jewry Boris Smolar's `Between You . and Me' Editor-in-Chief Emeritus, JTA (Copyright 1983, JTA, Inc.) THE JEWISH BOUQUET: Jewish communal organ- izations in this country are like a colorful bouquet of flow- ers. One also finds straw added to the variety of colors. The national Jewish communal organizations are solid bodies cementing Jewish life. Some overlap, but as a sys- tem they all provide an impressive service to American Jewry in various fields. Some, however, have lost much of their usefulness but are not eager to consider merging with other groups in similar fields of activity. This brings out even more the diversity within the unity prevailing in the American Jewish community. It contributes to strengthen- ing Jewish continuity. The more Jewish groups, the more Jewish consciousness. The Council of Jewish Federations is watching de- velopments in each of the Jewish organizations. The Large City Budgeting Conference (LCBC), a body composed of 29 largest Jewish federations in the United States and Canada, each year evaluates the activities of the national organizations receiving financial aid from federations. Each of them must submit its annual budget to the LCBC for review. _ BUDGETS AND ALLOCATIONS: The American Jewish Committee emerges as one of the most important national organizations in activity on the American Jewish scene. Its total budget for 1983 reaches about $14,800,000. Towards this total it requested $1,390,000 from the federa- tions. The remainder is being raised by the organization from other sources, including private contributions. The Anti-Defamation League of Bnai Brith will re- ceive from the federations in 1983 an even higher sum than To, IT Litn3C- a-pproved $49,000 less than requested. It noted that this action should not be interpreted as a negative position toward the ADL but rather a realistic appraisal of what is attainable from the federations in 1983. Among the largest allocations is $4,550,000 to the Bnai Brith Hillel Foimdations at colleges and universities. The Hillel budget this year calls for income and expen- ditures of $9,900,000. In addition to . the part to be contrib- uted by the federations, Bnai Brith sources will contribute $2,690,000. The remainder is expected to be covered from student income, support from parents, alumni and other sources. - j‘.1,77, VI:YU . Reagan M.E. Plan Complies With Camp David: Carter JERUSALEM (JTA) — Former President Jimmy Carter disclosed here that President Reagan had con- sulted him in advance• on the Middle East peace in- itiative Reagan announced last Sept. 1 and that he found it entirely compatible with the Camp David ac- cords. As one who "knows every word of Camp David by heart," there is "no dispar- ity" between them and the agreement reached between Israel, Egypt and the U.S. at Camp David in September 1978, Carter declared at a press conference ending his week-long visit to Israel. Carter is in Jordan to _meet with King Hussein. The former President's remarks underscored the deep differences between himself and Premier Menahem Begin over in- terpretation of the Camp David agreements and the Reagan plan. Israel flatly rejected the Reagan initiative, maintaining that the call for Palestinian self- government on the West Bank and Gaza Strip in association with Jordan and a "freeze of settle- ment activity in those ter- ritories are "a departure from the conceptual . Friday, March 18, 1983 11 framework of Camp David." Carter said the state of the Camp David process with respect to the Palesti- nians is "dismal now" and had retrogressed in the last two years. He maintained, however, that there were signs of a gradual shift in the Arab world "towards moderation" and suggested that statements by Arab leaders that were "despised in Israel" were nevertheless significantly more moder- ate than statements made by the same Arab leaders three years earlier. Asked why the Camp David autonomy framework had failed so far to produce an agreement, Carter gave two reasons: "the reluctance of the Jor- danians and the Palesti- nians to come forward and negotiate" and "the sharp disparity between the con- cept of full autonomy as of- fered by Premier Begin and his government as con- trasted with President (Anwar) Sadat's and my concept at the conclusion of Camp David." Deny yourself not the good which the day brings you, and let not your part in joy overpass you. —Apocrypha: Ben Sira, 14.14 JERUSALEM (JTA) — President Reagan pledged in a personal message to the Third World Conference on Soviet Jewry that ' the United States "will lead" ef- forts by the Free World "to stem and reverse the trends of plummeting emigration and increasing harassment which plague Soviet Jews." His message was deliv- ered by Jeane Kirkpatrick, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, at the opening of the conference Tuesday night, attended by .3,000 Jewish and non- Jewish delegates from 31 countries. Reagan stated in his mes- sage that "durable progress in East-West relations can- not be achieved without concurrent progress in human rights." Speaking of Jews in the Soviet Union, the President declared, "Know that we will not forget them. We will firmly support their just cause." The opening session was presided over by Simone Veil of France, former president of the Parliament of Europe and a former member of the French Cabinet. e^cl. _ in Soviet Jewish emigra- tion, which is one of the main concerns of the confer- ence. Only 206 Jews left the USSR in January and Feb- ruary, the lowest number ever recorded, she said. "Soviet Jews are caught in a trap," Veil stated. "They have no place in the Soviet Union but as a result of their desire to go to Israel they are labelled traitors." vlo - - Mayor Teddy Kollek of Jerusalem called the gathering an indication of Jewish unity and stressed the importance of holding the conference in Jerusalem. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher of Great Britain sent a message to the con- ference pledging that Brit- ain, together with other Western governments, will "continue resolutely to press the Russians for an improvement in -their * * * `11/latza of Hope' for Soviet Jews The. Detroit Soviet Jewry Committee of the Jewish Community Council, is dis- tributing the "Matza of Hope" statement to 1,200 leaders in the Jewish com- munity, including rabbis and presidentS of Council's 300 member organizations. The statement, which is distributed annually, is in- tended to be used during the Passover Seder, to call at- tention to the desperate plight of Soviet Jews. Those receiving the statement are encouraged to protest the plight of Soviet Jewry by writing to American and Soviet officials whose names and addresses are listed on the back. Additional copies are available at no charge from the Council, 962-1880. human rights record and to subject that record to the most demanding public scrutiny." Ambassador Kirkpatrick observed the symbolic sig- nificance of the conference held "on the eve of Passover, the commemoration of the first exodus." She pro- claimed that "the struggle of Soviet Jews to liberate themselves from bondage burns with special bright- ness that cannot be extin- guished as long as there are people with courage and dignity and a desire for freedom that cannot be de- nied." Kirkpatrick denied that the "noshrim," drop-outs who elect to go to the West instead of to Israel, are the cause of the decline in immigra- tion from the Soviet Union. "The reasons change with the sea- sons," she said. Last week, Dr. William Korey of Bnai Brith Inter- national said he hoped the Jerusalem conference will "re-invigorate" the Soviet Jewry movement. He said the Jerusalem conference should once again move the conscience of the world., An American Jewish Committee delegation which flew to Jerusalem for the conference after a visit to the Soviet Union, re- ported that Jews "who had never sought to immigrate" are now being set upon by roving gangs and being be- aten. AJCommittee President Maynard Wishner said this was a tactic which had been reserved in the past for Jews who had asked to immig- rate. He said that high school students in Lenin- grad are now playing a game they call "Concentra- tion Camp." For days or weeks on end they refer to Jewish acquaintances by a number rather than by name. In New York, Avital Shcharansky, wife of Soviet Jewish Prisoner of Con- science Anatoly Shcharansky, said rumors of her husband's impending release from a Soviet prison were probably inspired by the Soviet secret police. She said her husband is still in prison "and in very bad con- dition." Israel's Shamir Says U.S. Visit Achieved More Understanding TEL AVIV (JTA) — Foreign Minister–Yitzhak Shamir said Wednesday he was bringing back with him from Washington new American ideas on advanc- ing the__Lebanon talk*„. ta ils. arcrmect dfsalose de The main issue was the question of the withdrawal of all foreign forces from Lebanon. The discussions were concentrated around two groups of problems — security problems and the framework of mutual rela- tions between Lebanon and Israel. "On both subjects, more understanding between Is- rael and the United States was achieved," he said. Shamir said he was not disturbed by the fact that the U.S. had invited the Lebanese Foreign Minis- ter to Washington at the same time as he was there. He said his extensive talks with American lead- ers had been with them alone. He had had no con- tact with his Lebanese counterpart. He said he had stressed to the Americans that Israel was already carrying out di- rect talks with the Lebanese. Shamir admitted that some differences in view- point and policy still re- mained with the American Administration. "The dif- ferences on some issues are now narrower. But we still have to make an effort to overcome the remaining dif- ferences," he said. In Washington, an official of the Reagan Administra- tion announced that U.S. special envoys Philip Habib and Morris Draper would return to the Middle East this weekend "to a negotiat- ing environment that is . . . postivelyaltered" as a result of the talks in Wash- ington. At the same time, U.S. Ambassador Samuel Lewis acknowledged that relations between Israel and the U.S. "have soured in the past year" and expressed hope that they will improve this spring. He said the talks between Secretary of State George Shultz and Shamir in Washington this week augured well return to normal rela- tions. Lewis addressed the American delegation to the Third World Conference on Soviet Jewry which opened in Jerusalem Tuesday. He said the distrust and es- trangement that developed during the year between the leaders of the U.S. and Is- rael were tragic to their "special relationship." He said the U.S. was par- ticularly disappointed with Israel's "inflexibility" over the West Bank. But Lewis thought the war in Lebanon last sum- mer was necessary and ob- served that few countries understood its importance. He noted, however, that it triggered a bitter int.,1 debate in Israel and was the nest war that generated so much antagonism, not only among civilians but within the Israeli army. "History will judge whether the sac- rifices made by Israel in that war were worth it," he said. But the American envoy cautioned that the reality of the situation in Lebanon does not justify' the hopes the Israelis pinned on the war. He said that although relations between Israel and Lebanon will not be full , peace relations, south Lebanon will no longer be a threat to Israel's security.