World Jewish Congress CEO says anti-Semitism growing

Sixty-nine years to the day after the Second World War ended in Europe, a dangerous wave of antiSemitism is slowly emerging on that continent, says a senior global Jewish leader.

The warning came Thursday from Robert Singer, the chief executive officer of the World Jewish Congress, an international umbrella organization that represents Jews from more than 100 countries.

Singer was in Ottawa, where he met with a range of MPs, including Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird. He paid tribute to Baird and to Prime Minister Stephen Harper for speaking out against anti-Semitism and protecting minorities around the world.

“We think that the Canadian government, specifically your prime minister and the foreign minister, are the leaders in human rights,” Singer said.

“In every place we go to, Canada is leading. And we would like to see more governments taking an example from this. If there were more governments like yours, I would be out of my job and this would probably be the happiest day in my life.”

Singer said that several decades after the Holocaust, he is “very sad” to see anti-Semitism reemerging, particularly in Europe. Under Nazi Germany, six million Jews were killed, many in death camps such as Auschwitz.

People remember May 8, 1945 as V-E Day (Victory in Europe Day), when the Allies accepted the unconditional surrender of Germany.

“Sixty-nine years after the Holocaust, after the Second World War, with everybody commemorating the death camps, we are facing a new phenomenon in Europe,” Singer said. “The new phenomenon we are seeing now is the rise of neo-Nazi parties and the rightwing parties. It’s not only antiSemitism. It’s moving to a political spectrum.”

Singer said there are several reasons: lack of credibility among existing parties; immigration to Europe; and economic instability with high unemployment in countries such as Greece.

Singer said that although the biggest problems with anti-Semitism are centred in Europe, countries such as Canada are not immune. “The new kind of phenomena of anti-Semitism is accusing Israel, or attacking Israel on different fronts. Attacking Zionism.”

He said “unfavourable” sentiments against Jews are sometimes found on university campuses, including in Canada.

JOHN MAHONEY/Postmedia News Canada is not immune to the rise in anti-Semitism being experienced in Europe, says a senior global Jewish leader. Above, a rabbi walks by anti-Semitic graffiti on a synagogue in Montreal.