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FRIDAY, JANUARY 12, 1990
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State's Upcoming Rights Report
Could Prove Hurtful To Israel
JAMES D. BESSER
Washington Correspondent
p
ro-Israel groups here
have shifted into
overdrive in an at-
tempt to soften the expected
blow of the State Depart-
ment's annual human rights
report, due at the end of the
month.
According to administra-
tion sources, the report will
be even more damning of
Israel than last year's
assessment, which criticized
Israel for a "substantial in-
crease in human rights
violations" in response to
the Palestinian uprising.
Pro-Israel groups here are
working on several fronts. In
meetings with top State
Department human rights
officials and its chief,
Richard Schifter, activists
are attempting to have the
language of the report
softened.
But some observers sug-
gest that any alteration in
the report's wording is
unlikely.
"If Schifter does cooperate
in this, it could come back to
haunt him," said one top
pro-Israel activist here.
"Realistically, if he
cansoften the language, so-
meone is bound to leak the
original document, which
will make it look like the
department bowed to pro-
Israel pressure."
At the same time, pro-
Israel groups are attempting
to have some input in how
the report is released.
Last year, there was con-
cern that the press focused
almost exclusively on the 12-
page section of the 1,500
page report that dealt with
Israel. This year, Israel's
supporters here are urging
the State Department to
summarize the report in a
press release rather than at
a press conference —a tactic
that would give Jewish
groups a better chance to
control the report's "spin."
Another Jewish Vet
Fights For Medal
In the wake of the strange
case of David Rubitsky, the
Jewish war veteran osten-
sibly denied a Congressional
Medal of Honor because of
anti-Semitism in the
military establishment, an-
other case involving a
Jewish veteran is starting to
attract some attention in
Congress.
But the case of Tibor
Rubin, a Hungarian
Holocaust survivor who
served in the American
military before his citizen-
ship was finalized, may be
complicated by the arcane
rules in the House for
"private" legislation.
Rubin's case is unique, ac-
cording to his chief congres-
sional supporter, Rep.
Robert K. Dornan, R-Calif.
Rubin's heroism did not
occur during combat; in fact,
Rubin saw little combat dur-
ing the Korean conflict.
But as a prisoner of war,
Rubin marshalled survival
skills learned in the har-
shest school of all — a Ger-
man concentration camp —
to help his fellow POWs en-
dure tremendous hardships.
According to witnesses,
Rubin obtained contraband
food and shared it with his
fellow prisoners. He also
helped sabotage North
Korean facilities at the
prison camp, and when he
was released, he smuggled
out the names of his fellow
POWs — a crucial bit of in-
formation for American au-
thorities trying to account
for missing servicemen.
Dornan, as Rubin's con-
gressional representative,
plans to introduce a resolu-
tion waiving the require-
ment that the medal of
honor process begin within
Robert K. Dornan:
Plans resolution.
three years of the heroic ac-
tion.
But such a bill would fall
into the category of private
legislation, and House rules
prohibit putting together a
list of co-sponsors for such
bills, a key strategy in the
legislative process.
As a result, Dornan is at-
tempting to convince col-
leagues to introduce their
own bills on Rubin's behalf.
Legislators are generally
reluctant to introduce
private bills for non-
constituents.
Dornan also hopes to in-
troduce a concurrent resolu-
tion with general language
praising Rubin's actions, an
attempt to nudge the Army
to begin a more vigorous in-
vestigation.
"The Army has been the
sticking point," said a
spokesman for Dornan
"They've never been willing
to take a close look at the
case. But we think it is im-
portant that this man's con-
tributions be recognized."
Schlussel Among Five
AIPACers Seeking Office
One of the strengths of the
American-Israel Public Af-
fairs Committee (AIPAC)
has always been its network
of former employees and
volunteers in key positions
throughout the political hi-
erarchy.
There are signs that this
active pro-Israel network is
about to get significantly
stronger.
At least five people associ-
ated with the powerful pro-
Israel lobby are involved in
political campaigns.
Scott Shore, a former
AIPAC employee who work-
ed with the group's energetic
student outreach effort, is a
candidate for Congress in
Florida. Steve Gutow, a
former AIPAC regional di-
rector, is running for state
office in Texas.
In Maryland, John Cohen,
once an intern at Near East
Report, the official AIPAC
publication, is running for
the state assembly, and
Steve Silverfarb, currently a
legislative specialist for the
group, is making the race for
the State Senate.
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