(Brussels, 24 July 2015) The European Jewish Congress (EJC), as member of the Advisory Board for the European Parliament Working Group on Antisemitism, took part in an official meeting held in the European Parliament to discuss the establishment of a Special EU envoy on Anti-Semitism and an EU Task-force on Antisemitism.
The objective of the meeting was to provide a platform for input about how an EU-Envoy and Task-Force on Anti-Semitism could be framed, what the exact role of those responsible would be and who should take on these roles.
The meeting was lead by Chairman MEP Juan Fernando Lopez Aguilar, Vice-Chair MEP Cecilia Wikström and Working Group Member MEP Soraya Post. Around 15 MEP’s were present from across the political groups and over 50 participants attended the meeting.
MEP Juan Fernando Lopez Aguilar opened the session by defining the threat, explaining that anti-Semitism is on the rise and that we are all faced with increasing radicalization of Islam which is constituting a major threat within the social fabrics of the European member states. He further emphasized that there is a new wave of nationalism, xenophobia and populism that is linked in history to specific expressions of anti-Semitism.
Special guest speakers included: Mr. Gilles Clavreul the Interministerial Delegate on Racism and Anti-Semitism for the French Government and Ms. Sally Sealey, the Senior Policy Advisor Tackling Hate Crime and Extremism in the UK who are currently working in this capacity and were able to offer their expert insight.
MEP Soraya Post followed by saying that combatting anti-Semitism, a phenomena so unique and different to all other phenomena, is a fight that is very dear to her. She recommended that each Member State appoint their own Special Envoy and work closely together to form a so-called “EU Task Force on anti-Semitism”.
MEP Cecilia Wikström reinforced the idea that in view of the worrisome situation faced by the Jewish communities today, a specialized dedicated person that could address these issues and tackle Anti-Semitism on the horizontal transnational European scale is fundamental.
The meeting was concluded with the intervention from the Head of the Fundamental Rights Unit from European Commission, Ms. Chiara Adamo, who stated that the input from the meeting would be taken on board and that the items raised would be explored further at the first “Colloquium on Fundamental Rights” that will be held on the 1st and 2nd October 2015 in Brussels.