opinion
Antisemitism Is on the Rise, Even Though
Governments Have Pledged to Fight it
Leon Saltiel
he Organization for Security
and Cooperation in Europe,
which became the first inter-
governmental organization to
recognize the development of
“contemporary antisemitism” in
1990, opened its annual conference on antisemitism
on Feb. 6 in Skopje, North Macedonia.

The OSCE and its 57 member states are to be
praised both for their perspicacity and commitment
to combating the scourge of Jew hatred.

However, they are not alone. An increasing number
of governments take this fight seriously. Many have
appointed national coordinators, developed strat-
egies, revamped educational efforts, promoted
Holocaust memory and taken action to curb hate
speech online.

Several international organizations, including the
United Nations, have also recognized this critical
challenge. At the U.N. Human Rights Council in
Geneva, where I serve as the World Jewish Congress
representative, we have seen cross-regional coali-
tions of more than 50 countries demanding — for
two consecutive years — international action against
antisemitism. Despite these honest efforts, the OSCE delegates
gathered today must still grapple with antisemitism
and other forms of hate surging around the globe.

Why does this contradiction between government
programs and reality exist? Why does it seem so
difficult to turn intention into action?
In connection with the OSCE meeting, two relevant
reports just released by the World Jewish Congress
may help provide an answer. The first draws on the
Universal Periodic Review, a rigorous self-evaluation
mechanism used by the U.N. Human Rights Council.

The tool allows for the review of the state of human
rights in every U.N. member country and empow-
ers other nations to make recommendations where
needed. We studied the 90,938 recommendations made
during the UPR process between April 2008 and
July 2021, looking for those that directly referred
to the fight against antisemitism and safeguarding
the memory of the Holocaust. To our surprise, there
were only 70 such recommendations — less than
0.08% of the total.

U.N. member states, despite other attempts to
address antisemitism, have unfortunately failed to use
the UPR process to raise concerns about Jew hatred
14 FEBRUARY 9, 2023 | JEWISH EXPONENT
and have not prioritized those concerns in the vast
majority of cases. The report showed, for example,
that Iran, which promotes antisemitic propaganda
around the world, received only two recommenda-
tions on this topic — from the Netherlands and Israel.

Likewise, no country has made even one recom-
mendation regarding restrictions on “ritual slaugh-
ter,” an important religious ritual in both Judaism and
Islam. These are missed opportunities that demon-
strate the sad fact that governments have tools at
their disposal for the fight against antisemitism, but
are not using them.

The second report is a compilation of international
commitments to the global fight against antisemi-
tism adopted by the U.N., the Council of Europe, the
OSCE, the International Holocaust Remembrance
Alliance (IHRA) and the European Union.

We grouped these recommendations into 12
categories that included condemning all manifesta-
tions of antisemitism, appointing an envoy, adopting
a national strategy, promoting interfaith dialogue,
collecting data and regulating online hatred. These
are public commitments. Parliaments, civil society,
Jewish communities, academics and the media
ought to hold governments accountable for acting
on them or failing to do so.

Commitments are not the same as implementation.

The report consolidated a variety of tools that govern-
ments have at their disposal, such as endorsing and
using the IHRA’s Working Definition of Antisemitism,
which supports efforts to raise awareness, monitor
warning signs and educate. Countries should also
regulate internet companies to establish effective
systems to monitor and stop antisemitic hate speech
and Holocaust denial or distortion online.

The standalone national action plans against
antisemitism already adopted by Austria, Denmark,
Estonia, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands,
Norway and Romania are a solid start. Consistent
and effective implementation remains key, as does
expanding the group of countries that will mobilize
all branches of government against the scourge of
Jew hatred.

As Αlbert Einstein said in 1930, “The position of
our scattered Jewish community is a moral barom-
eter for the political world. For what surer index of
political morality and respect for justice can there be
than the attitude of the nations toward a defenseless
minority, whose peculiarity lies in their preservation
of an ancient cultural tradition?”
The fight against antisemitism is a fight for the
future of open and democratic societies, a struggle
against one of the most persistent, corrosive and
intrusive forms of hatred. Governments must show
through their actions that they fully understand its
significance. For our efforts to be successful, we
must be decisive. Failure is not an option. ■
Leon Saltiel is the representative of the World Jewish
Congress to the United Nations in Geneva and
UNESCO in Paris, as well as the WJC’s coordinator
for countering antisemitism.

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