14 Members of Soviet Circus Apply for Asylum in U.S.

Fourteen members of a Soviet circus that collapsed in debt during a U.S. tour applied for political asylum here Wednesday.

The members of the Great Circus Bim Bom--nine adults and five children--make up the largest single asylum application in the Atlanta office’s history, according to immigration officials. The application process could take up to 90 days, but work permits were issued to the Soviets on Wednesday.

Dale Schwartz, an attorney representing the group, alleged that other members of the circus who have returned to the Soviet Union have been persecuted because of the failure of the tour. “Many of the members of this troupe are among the best circus performers in the world. They feel if they return to the Soviet Union, they will never be allowed to work in any meaningful positions again.” said Schwartz.

The Great Circus Bim Bom arrived in New York on March 31 with a troupe of 118 internationally acclaimed stars. Within a few weeks of its arrival, checks started to bounce and its Kuwaiti investors disappeared, leaving the troupe stranded just outside Atlanta. The circus animals were impounded and the props held in storage.

Local churches and civic organizations came to the performers’ rescue and provided them with shelter, food and clothing.

Most of the performers have returned to the Soviet Union. But Yuri Turkin, former managing director of the circus, and his wife, Rita, are among the group applying for asylum. “I cannot go back to Moscow now, after this situation,” Turkin said.