Fiamma Nirenstein MP “Belgian Government Should Act to Counter Rise of anti-Semitism”
PRESS RELEASE – NOVEMBER 30, 2011
Statement by International Council of Jewish Parliamentarians Chairperson Fiamma Nirenstein MP “Belgian Government Should Act to Counter Rise of anti-Semitism”
Rome ― “As chairperson of the International Council of Jewish Parliamentarians (ICJP), I would like to express the great concern of our organization for the recent violent attack on a 13-year-old Jewish girl by five Muslim teenagers of Moroccan descent.
The assault took place on November 18th at an athletics center in Brussels. The Muslim girls beat their Jewish classmate, calling her a "dirty Jew” and telling her "return to your country.” The victim was badly injured and continued to receive threats for days following the attack.
The aggression was publicized by our colleague, Belgian MP Viviane Teitelbaum, member of the ICJP Steering Committee, who denounced the indifference of political leaders and the majority of the media toward the heinous act.
Over the last few years, we have witnessed the worsening of anti-Semitism towards the Jewish community in Belgium, which has been suffering from the vertical growth of anti-Semitic episodes, including verbal attacks, physical violence, synagogues set on fire, etc. Sadly, this is a well-known worldwide trend that is particularly sharp in Europe, as indicated in various reports on the subject, including a recently released report by the Inquiry Committee on anti-Semitism held by the Italian Parliament.
The attack against the Jewish girl in Belgium is a violent and shocking episode that takes us back to Europe’s darkest days. The local Jewish community, counting 40,000, is angry and exasperated. As the International Council of Jewish Parliamentarians, we express our solidarity and support for the Belgian Jewish community.
It is time for Belgium to come to terms with the alarming rise in anti-Semitic incidents, a fact that can no longer be taken too lightly. We invite our colleagues from all political parties, Jewish and non-Jewish, to raise their voices and undertake relevant parliamentary action to urge the government of Belgium to counter this inconceivable form of hatred.”
Media contact:
Fiamma Nirenstein MP
Chairperson, International Council of Jewish Parliamentarians
Vice-president of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Italian Chamber of Deputies
Chair, Committee for the Inquiry into Anti-Semitism
Tel: +39 06 676 068 05
Cell: +39 393 805 89 06, +39 338 292 33 20
Email: nirenstein_f@camera.it
www.icjp.net