[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 37 (Thursday, March 2, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Page S1572]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
THE CHABAD ORGANIZATION
Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, with all the division and conflict in
politics today, it would take something truly compelling to unite all
100 Senators, including Republicans and Democrats, conservatives and
liberals. Well, it has happened. This week I sent to Secretary of State
Rex Tillerson a letter, signed by all 100 Senators, asking that it be
conveyed to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The letter supports the
decades-long quest by Agudas Chasidei Chabad of the United States to
recover from Russia its collection of sacred religious texts and
manuscripts.
Chabad was established in the 18th century in Russia and is today the
largest Hasidic Jewish organization in the world. The organization's
past leaders, or rebbes, accumulated this collection of sacred texts,
which includes a library and an archive and is central to Chabad's
religious life. The Soviets took control of the library in 1920 and in
1927 arrested the sixth rebbe and sentenced him to death. He was
allowed to leave Russia later that year but had to leave the library
behind. In 1933, the sixth rebbe and the archive moved to Poland.
In 1940, after both Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union invaded Poland,
the sixth rebbe fled to the United States without the archive. It was
confiscated, first by the Nazis and then by the Soviets. Chabad has
since worked to reclaim both the library and the archive.
It is important to place the letter we sent this week in its full
context because this is only the latest in a long series of actions by
all three branches of the U.S. Government to support Chabad's quest.
Members of Congress, for example, began calling for the return of these
works in the 1930s. Just weeks before the Soviet Union dissolved on
Christmas Day 1991, both President Mikhail Gorbachev and a state
arbitration panel ordered that the library be returned to Chabad. On
January 24, 1992, the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe
wrote President Boris Yeltsin, urging him to carry out the court's
order and return the collection.
Unfortunately, both President Gorbachev's directive and the court's
order were effectively nullified when the Russian Federation replaced
the Soviet Union. Within a few months, however, the U.S. State
Department expressed ``strong support'' for returning the full
collection to Chabad. On May 31, 1992, all 100 Senators signed a letter
to President Boris Yeltsin urging the collection's ``quick release.''
On February 20, 2005, all 100 Senators signed a letter to President
Putin, again urging that the collection be returned to Chabad. The
letter said this: ``The religious texts that Chabad seeks to retrieve
consist of rare and irreplaceable books, archives and manuscripts on
Chabad philosophy, Jewish religious law, prayer and tradition. . . . We
urge you to return these sacred religious texts, archives, and
manuscripts to Chabad, which would be a significant example of your
government's commitment to justice, human rights, and religious
freedom.''
Chabad filed suit against Russia in Federal court. During this
litigation, the United States filed statements of interest reiterating
its ``strong support'' for returning the collection to Chabad. On July
30, 2010, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ordered
Russia to return both the library and the archive to Chabad.
I am truly grateful to all of my colleagues for your support of
Chabad and their effort to recover this important component of their
religious life. As striking as this unity is, I hope my colleagues also
see it as part of a much longer story of extraordinary faith and
commitment in the face of loss and persecution. I hope and pray that
such efforts will be successful and that Russia will respond favorably
to Chabad's request. It would indeed be a demonstration of their
commitment to justice, human rights, and religious freedom.
I ask unanimous consent that the text of the 1992, 2005, and 2017
Senate letters to which I referred be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
U.S. Senate,
Washington, DC, May 31, 1992.
Hon. Boris Yeltsin,
President of the Russian Republic,
Moscow, Russia.
Dear Mr. President: We understand that you have personally
committed yourself to secure the return of the Lubavitch
texts, and we appreciate your having taken a stand on behalf
of an act of justice.
When the Senate was in recess, the U.S. State Department
issued a statement (copy attached), with which we now wish to
associate ourselves. In particular, it is our hope and
expectation that you will fulfill your commitment decisively
through the quick release of the Schneerson-Agudas Chabad
collection.
Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
____
U.S. Senate,
Washington, DC, February 24, 2005.
Hon. Vladimir Putin,
President, Russian Federation.
Dear Mr. President: We, the undersigned members of the
United States Senate, respectfully request your assistance in
returning the Schneerson collection from the Russian State
Library and the Russian State Military Archive, to its
rightful owners in the United States: Agudas Chasidei Chabad
of United States (hereafter referred to as ``Chabad'').
The religious texts that Chabad seeks to retrieve consist
of rare and irreplaceable books, archives and manuscripts on
Chabad philosophy, Jewish religious law, prayer and
tradition. The first portion of the Schneerson collection was
seized by the former USSR around the time of the Bolshevik
revolution and placed in the Russian State Library, where it
remains to this day.
The second portion of the Schneerson collection is in
storage at the Russian State Military Archive. It had been
assumed that this portion of the collection had been
destroyed or captured by Nazi Germany during the holocaust
and Nazi occupation of Warsaw, Poland in World War II. Chabad
recently learned that the Soviet Army captured this portion
of the Schneerson collection from the Nazis and transferred
it to the Russian State Military Archive.
Chabad has worked tirelessly to secure the release of these
texts, archives, and manuscripts that comprise the sacred
heritage of an entire community. On May 31, 1992, the entire
United States Senate collectively appealed to then-President
Boris Yeltsin to honor his own commitment to return the
Schneerson collection. A copy of this appeal is enclosed.
Since 1992, however, a mere eight volumes have been released.
We urge you to return these sacred religious texts,
archives, and manuscripts to Chabad, which would be a
significant example of your government's commitment to
justice, human rights, and religious freedom.
____
U.S. Senate,
Washington, DC, February 27, 2017.
President, Vladimir Putin,
Russian Federation,
Moscow, Russia.
Dear Mr. President: We are writing respectfully to reaffirm
our support and request for the return of the Schneerson
collection of sacred texts from the Russian State Library and
the Russian State Military Archive to its rightful owners,
Agudas Chasidei Chabad of United States (``Chabad'').
On May 31, 1992, all one hundred members of the United
States Senate appealed to then-President Boris Yeltsin to
honor Russia's commitment to return the collection to Chabad.
On February 24, 2005, all one hundred members of the United
States Senate again signed an appeal for your assistance in
returning the collection. Copies of these letters are
attached hereto. Since 1992, eight volumes of the collection
have been returned to Chabad. We hereby respectfully request
your assistance in seeing the return of the entire
collection.
Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
____________________