DESIGNER FOOTWEAR YOU LOVE... LIZ CLAIBORNE... 39.90 mfg. suggest retail price $70 Our regular retail price....$44.99 • BLACK PATENT • BONE LEATHER • APRICOT LEATHER • PINK LEATHER BANDOLINO... 39.90 mfg. suggested retail price...$65 our regular retail price $44.99 NEWS Reich To Ask State To Reassess PLO Talks New York (JTA) — The Con- ference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organiza- tions will ask Secretary of State James Baker to "pro- mptly and thoroughly" reassess the U.S. policy of holding substantive talks with the Palestine Liberation Organization, it was an- nounced by Seymour Reich, chairman of the conference. In a statement from Jerusalem, where the con- ference concluded three days of meetings with Israeli leaders, Reich said the recent clash between a PLO member group and Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon has made "worthless Yassir Arafat's assurances that he has re- nounced terrorism." Reich said that unless the PLO chief "disavows, disowns and condemns this latest ter- rorist attempt," then the "American policy of holding substantive talks with the PLO should be promptly and thoroughly reassessed." He said the conference in- tends to "raise this matter" with Baker when its members return from Israel. The infiltration attempt in southern Lebanon has been linked to members of the Popular Front for the Libera- tion of Palestine. On Wednes- day, the United States said it had formally notified the PLO of its "serious concern" over the clash. Following Reich's an- nouncement, four groups within the Conference of Presidents claimed that Reich had failed to consult with them before releasing a state- ment on behalf of the consen- sual organization of 46 American Jewish groups. The four groups are the Labor Zionist Alliance, the Federation of Reconstruc- tionist Congregations — Havurot, Workmen's Circle and Women's American ORT. Speaking on behalf of the four groups was Menachem Rosensaft, president of the LZA. He said in New York that their objections were not over the substance of the statement, but that "we refuse to be bound by an ar- tificial consensus." - 4 Vatican Racism Report Well Received By Jews • WHITE LEATHER • EGGSHELL LEATHER • LIGHT PINK LEATHER Famous Brand Shoe Stores NUSRALAS WE PUT FASHION IN A BOX AND A LID ON PRICES HUNTERS SQUARE 31045 ORCHARD LAKE ROAD • FARMINGTON HILLS 855-2050 46 FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 1989 Rome (JTA) — The Vatican's blanket condemnation of anti-Semitism, in its docu- ment on racism issued last week, was well received by several Jewish organizations, though they found some flaws. While it is probably the strongest statement of its kind yet made in the name of a pope, the document stopped well short of examining the Church's historic role in the persecution of Jews. Furthermore, while it acknowledged that anti- Zionism "serves at times as a screen for anti-Semitism," it contains no reference to the infamous Zionism equals racism resolution adopted by the U.N. General Assembly Nov. 10, 1975. While it condemns racism in general as "blasphemy," the statement specifically calls attention to recent manifestations of anti- Semitism linked to protests against the political policy of Israel. According to Orazio Petrosillo, a journalist who closely monitors the Vatican, the statement "constitutes a significant Vatican signal toward the Jewish state." It also is "a testimonial of solidarity for the Jewish vic- tims of terrorist attacks, such as the attack on the Rome synagogue in 1982," Petrosil- lo wrote in Il Messaggero. The Vatican statement also recalled that "Never in history was there a form of racism more serious than Nazism, whose homicidal madness above all, and to an unheard of degree, struck the Jews, but also other peoples." The statement added, "Anti-Semitism has not com- pletely disappeared, despite the horrors of the Holocaust." Diamonds Set Export Record Aviv (JTA) — Diamonds are not only a girl's best friend. Israel's diamond exports grossed a record $2.3 billion in 1988, a 23 percent increase over the previous year. Net earnings amounted to $600 million, after deducting the high cost of importing rough stones and the 22 percent to 25 percent value-added tax. More than 13,000 workers are employed in diamond pro- cessing. 4