Mr. Javor further underscored the necessity to refrain from allowing people to believe that simplified answers exist for the problems of today’ s society. He added that the future of Europe cannot be a culture of isolation from refugees, Roma, non-Christians and those who migrate from one EU country to another in search for a better life or decent work. Europe has been a melting pot of different cultures and different habits since the very beginning of its history. Diversity was always the driving force that served as the engine of its development.
Mr. Javor added that solidarity between people facing different forms of exclusion was essential. Roma, asylum seekers, members of different religions, workers and the unemployed must act together. According to the MEP, any type of discrimination aims to find tiny disparities between these groups to create misunderstanding, jealousy and even hate. He concluded by stating that what really threatened the European culture were not these marginalized communities but exactly the kind of thinking that focuses on these disparities. He concluded by stating that we all need to work together in order to secure peace and prosperity.
Katharina Von Schnurbein( European Commission Coordinator on anti-Semitism) congratulated ODIHR on the Project, expressed gratitude for co-operation with the European Commission and thanked the German Government for providing funding for the project. She stressed that having visited many Jewish and Muslim communities, she came across many good coalition building initiatives but was of the view that more synergy was needed to bring these initiatives closer together. The Coordinator underlined that the EC high level working group on racism and xenophobia held on 14 June 2016 was a good starting point for working together. She also highlighted that the Commission together with Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Microsoft passed a code of conduct that includes a series of commitments to combat the spread of illegal hate speech online in Europe and allows reviewing the majority of valid notifications for removal of illegal hate speech in less than 24 hours. She noted that it was a step forward to use the internet for free speech and not hate speech.
The Coordinator further highlighted that the Framework Decision on combating racism and xenophobia was correctly transposed by only 13 EU Member States. She expressed readiness to work with ODIHR on the educational component of the project. She noted the preference for a holistic approach to education on the Jewish culture and heritage( i. e. through teaching of Thomas Mann, Franz Kafka and Gustav Mahler and not just through education on Judaism or the Holocaust). She noted that there was political will on the EU level to work on issues of a“ multicultural classroom” with various Ministries of Education. She also welcomed IHRA’ s adoption of the working definition of anti-Semitism, as it provided good guidance on what anti-Semitism entails. She also highlighted that the OSCE German Chairmanship aims at adopting the definition at the Ministerial Council in Hamburg in December 2016. She concluded by quoting Frans Timmermans who said that“ we must stand together and join our efforts when working against any form of violence, racism and discrimination. I am deeply convinced that fighting anti-Semitism is a responsibility for society at large.”
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