China synagogue has been restoredJewish Telegraphic Agency
As President Clinton seeks a high profile for religious freedom issues during his trip to China, the anticipation of his arrival has already yielded one small, but meaningful achievement. Just weeks ago, the Chinese government completed long-sought restoration work on a synagogue located in the heart of Shanghai. The synagogue, occupied for nearly 50 years by the state Education Commission, was built by Sephardic Jews in 1929 and used during World War II by about 25,000 Jewish refugees who fled to Shanghai.For the past 17 years, Rabbi Arthur Schneier, president of the New York-based Appeal of Conscience Foundation, has been pressing Chinese officials to vacate the synagogue, restore it and declare it a historic landmark. In February, the mayor of Shanghai finally agreed after meeting with Schneier and two other clerics whom Clinton dispatched to China to help open a dialogue on religion. 
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