Bill Puglianu

Jack Edelstein,
president, Michigan
Association for
Ethiopian Jews

An Ann Arbor-based organization
is aiding the Jews of Ethiopia

Ethiopian Pipeline

CAROLE GARVIN

Special to The Jewish News

hile
many Jews celebrated Passover in
the comfort of their homes last
spring, Jack Edelstein had the
unique experience of observing the
holiday in the Ethiopian village of
Wolleka, where eating homemade
matzah and observing complete rest .
on Pesach is the norm.
As president of the Michigan
Association for Ethiopian Jews
(MAEJ), this Ann Arbor resident's
main objective was to convey mes-
sages between Ethiopian Jews in
Ethiopia and Israel, provide finan-
cial assistance to the village and
meet with public officials in
Ethiopia's capital of Addis Ababa. "I
wanted to witness first-hand the
situation in Ethiopia and experience
it myself," he said.
Handsome and well-dressed,
Edelstein hardly looks like the type
to endure a trip to the poverty stric-
ken Third World nation, but appear-
ances can be deceiving.
As a guest of the United States
Embassy, Edelstein stayed at the
Ghion Hotel in Addis Ababa, where
he first experienced conditions he
had not known in the United States.
He described the hotel as being run
down. "The furnishings were old and
the water flow was inconsistent."
The Ghion was one of the many
government-registered hotels where
tourists are lodged in order to keep
track of their whereabouts.
Because of the tight regula-
tions,' Edelstein had to apply for
permission at the Ethiopian Na-
tional Tourist Office (NTO) before
traveling to Wolleka for a one day
visit. In the past, groups have been
denied access to the village due to
the high level of guerilla activity in
the area. He believes he was given
permission for the rare visit because
he applied alone. "There was no way
of knowing in advance whether I
would have been allowed to travel to
the village," he explained. "I was
taking a chance traveling to
Ethiopia, but that was the only way
I could do it."
Wolleka is located 600 miles
from Addis Ababa, but Edelstein did
not have any journey problems. The
NTO arranged for Edelstein to
travel with two other families in a
twin-engine plane to the city of
Gondar, ten miles from the 'village.
From Gondar they were driven in a
van owned by the tourist office.
When he arrived in Wolleka, he
was warmly greeted by young chil-
dren, women and elderly people.
They represented a small fraction of
the former population which has
migrated to Israel.
For that reason, traveling to Is-
rael both before and after his Ethio-