Debate: Fighting against antisemitism, racism and hatred across Europe
Date: TUESDAY, 11 FEBRUARY 2020
Speaker: Věra Jourová
Language: EN

I say to the House: I would like to react on several comments. Indeed, you quoted here the survey of Fundamental Rights Agency and Eurobarometer, which really show alarming and shocking figures. When you ask the Jewish citizen in the EU what is his or her main concern, the answer is security. When you ask the European people who are not of Jewish origin, they will say ‘we have concerns about our health, our jobs, our family’. And this is really very alarming that the Jewish people have such an elementary fear and that they plan to leave Europe. Jewish people leaving Europe has never been a good sign, and this is not a Europe we want. And I think it was Ms Ries, who left already, she asked whether we are doing enough. I regret to say ‘no, we are not doing enough yet’, and we have all of us the obligation to do much more. The Commission worked hard to deliver or achieve some tangible results in the fight against anti-Semitism. We decided to promote the adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of anti-Semitism, which now is used also by the majority of the Member States. We are openly speaking and addressing the sources of anti-Semitism and it was also mentioned here: it is far-right, far-left, it is Islamist radicalism and also old conspiracy theories. That’s why we urged the Member States, the ministers of home affairs, to adopt the decision to create the strategies on a Member States level. The anti-Semitism strategies, which will bring very concrete plans especially into areas, in the security area and in education. The strategies are now in the in the process of creation and under the German Presidency, we will look at these strategies and will decide on how to continue further. We want to see concrete measures accompanied with money. On security, I think it is absolutely intolerable that the Jewish communities have to finance their own security and the protection of Jewish premises, such as schools and synagogues. We have to do much more on education. It should also be reflected in the national strategies and accompanied by money, and here comes also European money because we have in the values programme a dedicated amount for education in this field. I was also in Auschwitz two weeks ago, commemorating the 75 years after liberation of the camp and I was listening to authentic testimonies of the survivors. We will not be able to hear these testimonies from authentic people very soon. We have to find a way how to explain to the younger generation what the Holocaust was, and to change the narrative, because we keep discussing about the results of the Holocaust, the horrifying statistical figures. But we have to start speaking seriously about the sources of the Holocaust. How it started, because this is exactly what Marian Turski spoke about in Auschwitz-Birkenau, at that commemoration event. He didn’t speak about the past, he spoke about the present. How it can happen again. That it will be innocent at the beginning, slow and it will be driven by our passivity and our being indifferent. He warned very strongly against being indifferent. The last comment on your contributions on online hate speech. We have an agreement with the big players in the tech industry to remove hate speech, but it cannot be enough. There must be a ‘crime and punishment’ principle also online. That’s why I urged very strongly the law enforcement authorities in all the Member States to go after these cases and to show that it is not possible just to rely on the fact that, or the impression that, online has no law. We have to do much more. Law enforcement authorities have started to be more active. But what they keep telling me is that in Europe, in the 21st century, crime has no boarders, the digital area has no more borders and that law enforcement authorities are trapped by the national borders. And they cannot reach for the evidence of crime in another Member State. That’s why I wanted to ask you to look at again at the regulation on evidence which the Commission developed because if this is adopted, it will help a lot to go after crime wherever it happens in the EU.