28 Friday, July 29, 1983 THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS Report Israeli Efforts Resulting in Stepped-Up Falasah Exodus NEW YORK (JTA) — The plight of Ethiopian Jewry appears to have demonstrated some im- provement in recent months as an "unprecedented number" of Falashas have succeeded in illegally leav- ing Ethiopia to go to Israel, according to an activist familiar with Ethiopian Jewry. But at the same time, while there has been an im- provement as a result of the efforts of the Israeli gov- ernment, the severe drought in North Africa, LOOKING FOR A QUALITY JEWISH EDUCATION? BAIS CHABAD AFTERNOON SCHOOL 28555 Middlebelt Road Farmington Hills, Mi. • Superb, Dedicated Teachers • Flexible Placement • Small Classes • Enrichment Programs • Individualized Attention • High School Program For More Information Call Rabbi Silverberg 855-1025 or 626-1807 said to be the worst in more ply criticized by many than a decade, has created groups working with new hardships. The drought Falashas for failing to take has triggered a famine appropriate action to secure which the activist said is re- the release of the Falashas. sulting in the deaths of But as Rep. Green noted, some 50-100 children each the efforts by Israel and the day in the northern Ethio- United States are hindered pian province of Tigray, a because the Reagan Ad- heavily populated Falasha ministration has little region. capacity to influence the ac- The activist, Barbara tions of the Ethiopian gov- Ribakove, president of the ernment. Since the over- North Aemrican Confer- throw of Emperor Haile ence on Ethiopian Jewry Salassie in 1972, the (NACAEJ), provided this Falashas, who reside in the assessment to the more northwest of Ethiopia, have than 300 persons who been geographically located gathered Monday at the in the center of a civil war. Lincoln Square Synagogue The Falashas number here. Ms. Ribakove, who about 20,000 today and last visited Ethiopia in have reportedly been sub- 1981, was one of several jected to cruel and harsh speakers addressing the treatment, such as torture issue of Ethiopian Jewry. and slavery, by the present When asked specifi- Communist government. In cally for the number of 1972, Israel's two chief rab- Falashas who have suc- bis recognized the Falashas cessfully made it to Is- as Jews. But today, rela- rael, Ms. Ribakove de- clined, saying that the figures were provided in confidence. But her claims were supported by Rep. Bill Green (D-NY) GENEVA (JTA) — Reli- who also said there ap- able Swiss sources said this peared to have been some week that Swiss authorities success by the Israelis to have decided to bar entry to make it easier for certain Switzerland to any Palesti- groups to leave Ethiopia. nian terrorist, or other ter- The tone of the meeting, rorists sought by police, who despite the information of seeks to attend the Confer- the drought and its hard- ence on Palestinian Rights ships, was markedly differ- in Geneva. ent than past rallies for Muammar Qaddafi, the Ethiopian Jews. The Israeli Libyan head of state, has government has been shar- said he would issue dip- lomatic passports to all Palestinian terrorists who want to come to Geneva to participate in the conclave scheduled for the end of August. Officials of Vienna SYNAGOGUE OPEN HOUSE Sun., Aug. 7th, 2-5 p.m. Congregation Beth Achim is a traditionally conservative syna- gogue. Our full family service includes active programs in the Men's Club, Sisterhood, U.S.Y. Affiliated Youth Groups, Mr. & Mrs. Club, Havurot and a branch of the United Hebrew Schools located in our building. JOIN CONG. BETH ACHIM WHERE FAMILY IS FOREMOST. WHERE TRADITION IS OUR GOAL. 21100 W. 12 Mile Rd. 352-8670 Rabbi Milton Arm Rabbi Emeritus Benjamin Gorrelick Cantor Max Shimansky Reverend Joseph Baras Gerald Lasher, President Nevertheless, the Ethiopian government has just recently opened its doors to visitors to view first-hand the status of the Falashas. Dr. Jay Luger, a member of the steering committee of the NACAEJ presented a brief slide presentation of his trip to three Falasha villages last May. He, along with 11 others, made a 12-day visit to Ethiopia. Dr. Luger's slides pre- sented a view of the hard- ships and primitive life- style of the Falashas. One slide, showing the Falashas in prayer in the synagogue in the village of Walleca, outside the city of Gondar in Swiss Plan to Bar Terrorists from Palestinian Conference CONGREGATION BETH ACHIM cordially invites you and your family to join us for the community-wide tively little is known about how the Falashas reach Is- rael. For practical and polit- ical reasons, it is not a widely publicized subject. Student Political Leaders Embark on Israel Tour NEW YORK (JTA) — A bi-partisan group of student political leaders from across the country left last Thurs- day on a two-week tour to learn first-hand about Is- rael. The five Democrats and five Republicans were "drawn specifically from areas where there are no large Jewish constituen- cies," said Shabsa Lis, coor- dinator of the tour and a representative of the North American Jewish Students' Network, which is sponsor- ing it for the second year in a row. The students, all of whom are visiting Israel for the first time, expressed sup- port for Israel and for the continuation of a strong al- liance between it and the United States. While in Israel, the stu- dents are scheduled to meet with President Chaim Her- zog, Labor Party leader Shimon Peres, several members of the Knesset, Director General of the Jus- tice Department Simha Dinitz, Bethlehem Mayor Elias Freij and Israeli stu- dent leaders. Milton Berlinger is the real name of comedian Mil- ton Berle. and Paris refused to allow the conference in their cities, citing security prob- lems. Concern reportedly had been expressed by official sources in Geneva over the prospect of terrorists wanted by Interpol, moving about freely in Geneva under diplomatic immun- ity. Such fears, according to the report, led Swiss offi- cials to decide that even if a terrorist had a diplomatic passport, he would not be admitted. Some Swiss authorities indicated they thought PLO chief Yasir Arafat plans to come to Geneva to attend the conference, asserting Arafat would be "almost ob- liged" to be present, unless the current fighting within the PLO makes that im- possible. the province of Gondar, indicated the Western influence on the Falashas in the past years. The huts in the town of Wolleca are constructed of wood and mud. But the Western influence was demonstrated according to Dr. Luger, by the Western- style prayer-shawls which the Falashas wore in the synagogue and by the mezuza on the entrance to some homes. In Ambober, the village referred to as the "showcase village," the slides depicted some of the structures re- maining from the combined ORT-American Jewish Joint Distribution Commit- tee relief program which began in 1976. In 1981, the governor of the Gondar province, Maj. Malaku, re- voked the permission for the operation of the program. In the third village vis- ited, Abas Antonias, the small synagogue used by the Falashas did not have a Torah. Dr. Luger said the visit was sponsored by the NACAEJ and was primarily a fact finding mission. Rep. Ted Weiss (D-NY), who also addressed the meeting, said that the Sub- committee on Africa, of which he is a member, has urged the Reagan Adminis- tration to help provide aid to Ethopia. He said mem- bers of the subcommittee will be going to several Af- rica nations in August and will, during the course of a stopover in Ethiopia, un- derscore the concern for the fate and future of the Falashas. LARRY FREEDMAN Orchestra and Entertainment 647-2367 "A Tradition For Bar Mitzva Suits" THE IN ) SHOP Apparel for Men & Boys Service, Selection and Expert Alterations TEL-12 PLAZA 28616 TELEGRAPH AT 12 MILE Southfield 354-6504 JEWELRY . 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