| The President of the European Commission speaks to the President of the European Jewish Congress |
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The seriousness of the situation following the recent repeated acts of violence against the Jewish community in France, Belgium and England was discussed during a phone call between the President of the European Commission (EC), Romano Prodi, and the European Jewish Congress (EJC) President, Cobi Benatoff.
President Benatoff informed President Prodi about the latest meeting of the EJC Executive Committee, which had discussed the recent increase in anti?Semitic incidents in Milan last Wednesday, and the meetings of the joint working party of representatives from the Commission, the EJC and the Congress of European Rabbis that was set up after the Brussels seminar. He also called for urgent measures to counter current trends.
President Benatoff told President Prodi of the alarm voiced by the heads of the various Jewish communities at the fact that, in some European countries, to wear the kipa was effectively to put one’s life in danger and passed on their calls for urgent measures at both European and national levels.
In Milan the Executive Committee had asked that the next Council of Education and/or Justice Ministers of the European Union set aside an hour to discuss the problem of anti?Semitism with representatives from the EJC.
President Prodi shared the concern at the recurrent anti?Semitic attacks and reiterated the Commission’s and his own personal commitment to combating these intolerable acts. He expressed his confidence in the work of the European Commission, the European Jewish Congress and the Congress of European Rabbis that began with the seminar on anti?Semitism held in February and recalled that a formal meeting of the joint working party would be held on 13 July.
President Benatoff expressed his and the EJC’s appreciation of President Prodi’s efforts and hoped that the next President of the European Commission would treat the question with the same care and sensitivity by to ensure the continuity of the joint working party’s activities.