WJC Regional Reports 2011 - World Jewish Congress

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World Jewish Congress United States, North America 2011 The Assault on Israel’s Legitimacy, the United Nations, the Iranian Threat, Israel and International Affairs, Community Outreach- Latino American/ Jewish Relations, Interfaith Efforts, Anti-Semitism, Outreach to Young Leadership, Restitution, Governance The Assault on Israel’s Legitimacy Since the beginning of 2011, World Jewish Congress, United States and North America (WJC-US, NA, aka “American Section”) witnessed increased efforts on the part of anti-Israel elements in the United Nations to strengthen the international campaign to de-legitimize Israel. Despite the backtracking of Judge Goldstone who said that “unlike Hamas, Israel did not intentionally, as a matter of policy, target civilians in its 2008-2009 war to stop indiscriminate rocket attacks from Gaza,” the United Nations continues to let the Report stand. The Palestinian Authority made good on the announcement made approximately two years ago that it would go to the United Nations to unilaterally declare a Palestinian State, outside of the peace talks. As well, at the beginning of this year, we were deeply concerned by increased “BDS” measures on campus, including discrimination against Jewish students in such traditionally “Jewish” campuses such as New York University, Brooklyn College, Rutgers, and others. WJC-US Acting Chair Joel Meyers assumed the co-chairmanship of the Conference of Presidents Task Force on the De- Legitimization of Israel, together with past CoP chair Mort Zuckerman. WJC- US,NA efforts to combat the assault on Israel’s legitimacy at the UN entailed a systematic roster of meetings with UN representatives, which we began at the beginning of the year. Meetings with officials included Ambassador Kiyo Akasaka, the Under-Secretary General of Communication and Public Information at the UN; Ambassador Ragaglini of Italy to the UN; Ambassador Araud of France to the UN; Ambassador Meron Reuben of Israel to the UN; Ambassador Haim Waxman, Deputy Ambassador of Israel to the UN, and Legal Advisor Ady Schonmann of the Mission of Israel to the UN, and head of the Security Council Counter-Terrorism committee Amb. Hardeep Singh Puri. Deeply disturbed by the move of UNESCO to designate the Tomb of Rachel and the Cave of the Patriarchs as mosques, we met with UNESCO head Irina Bukova and Bulgarian UN ambassador Rayko Raytchev, and in Paris, together with EJC, with Francesco Bandarin, Director of UNESCO World Heritage Center, to express WJC opposition, and consulted in Paris with Israeli envoy to UNESCO Nimrod Barkan on this matter. Leading up to the UNGA this year, most of our activities dealt with the Palestinian efforts to unilaterally declare an independent state at the UN, and “Durban 3” conference or the High Level meeting to Commemorate the UN World Conference Against Racism at Durban of 2001. Consultations were held with the American Association of International Lawyers and Jurists, WJC NORTH AMERICA REPORT: PAGE 1 OF 12
Deputy Consul General of Israel Shlomi Kofman, the Conference of Presidents United Nations Task Force headed by WJC North America Chair Evelyn Sommer and ADL president Robert Sugarman, and with Ambassador Danny Carmon, the point person of the MFA of Israel on Durban 3. We met with new Israeli ambassador to the UN Ron Prosor as soon as he arrived in New York this past summer. Meetings were held in July and August with UN ambassadors and continued in September with visits with Heads of Delegations to the UNGA. We were privileged to be accompanied by the leadership delegation of the International Council of Jewish Parliamentarians, chaired by MP Fiamma Nirenstein. We were hosted by WJC president Ronald Lauder at a dinner together with the United Nations ambassadors of France, the EU, Russia, Poland, Germany, and the DPR of Italy. Nirenstein, WJC Secretary General Dan Diker and other MP’s addressed a press conference in the United Nations and a visit was made to Washington DC to meet with Ambassador Michael Oren. Other meetings were held with leaders such as Prime Minister George Papandreou of Greece, Foreign Minister Franco Frattini of Italy, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov of Russia, Foreign Minister Janos Martonyi of Hungary, Foreign Minister of Spain Trinidad Jimenez, Foreign Minister Mladenov of Bulgaria, Foreign Minister Timmerman of Argentina, Foreign Minister Stavros Lambridinis of Greece, among many others (full list below). Special recognition during this UNGA period was awarded to Canada for its staunch support for Israel by the WJC at a reception organized by WJC-US, NA at the home of WJC president Ronald Lauder in honor of Prime Minister Stephen Harper of Canada. Guests included members of World Jewish Congress, Jewish community leaders of the umbrella organizations, and members of the diplomatic corps, including Deputy Foreign Minister of Israel Danny Ayalon, Ambassador Michael Oren, Israeli ambassador to the United States, Foreign Minister Baird of Canada, and others. Ronald Lauder also honored Israel by giving a dinner in honor of Foreign Minister of Israel Avigdor Lieberman in the company of dignitaries and Jewish community leaders. Since the issues of the Palestinian quest for statehood outside of the peace process at the UN continues, follow up to all this activity is being continued with UN representatives into November and December. WJC-US, NA thanked the delegations that opposed the Durban 3 conference and refused to attend, and also those who refused to be present in the UN hall during the hate-filled speech of Iranian president Ahmadinejad. The United States Congress passed resolutions opposing the unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state (UDI) and WJC-US thanked the legislators who supported those initiatives in the House and Senate. While legislation was introduced to withhold UN funding since the Palestinian gambit, it may not be carried through, according to reports at press time. “Lawfare” is the term coined to denote the abuse of international law in the effort to de-legitimize Israel. WJC-US and NA representatives attended panels recently sponsored by the Consulate General of Israel in New York in order to be updated on this issue. Evelyn Sommer, Rabbi Joel Meyers and Betty Ehrenberg attended briefings with Ambassador of Israekl to the UN Ron Prosor and Ambassador Ido Aharoni, Consul General of Israel in New York, and former Ambassador of Israel to the United Nations Dan Gillerman on the issue of UNESCO and its acceptance of the Palestinian Authority as a member. Ehrenberg and Michael Schneider, WJC NORTH AMERICA REPORT: PAGE 2 OF 12
Page 1: 2011 REGIONAL REPORTS EuroAsian Jew
Page 4 and 5: This year, the EAJC was one of the
Page 6 and 7: 04.04.2011 Meeting of EAJC and ECRI
Page 8 and 9: Russia, the creation of harmonious
Page 10 and 11: European Jewish Congress 2011 JANUA
Page 12 and 13: A number of resolutions were also d
Page 14 and 15: Austria April 2011: Cwajgenbaum in
Page 16 and 17: Mondial du Judaïsme Nord Africain
Page 18 and 19: WJC-ISRAEL REPORT 2011 January-Febr
Page 20 and 21: Other Diker, Grundwerg and Weinstoc
Page 22 and 23: November The Assault on Israel’s
Page 24 and 25: WJC Latin America 2011 JANUARY Buen
Page 26 and 27: MARCH Sao Paulo Jack Terpins and Cl
Page 28 and 29: Brasilia Terpins participated in th
Page 30 and 31: Buenos Aires LAJC executive directo
Page 32 and 33: Sao Paulo Valeria Grimberg, Directo
Page 34 and 35: Claudio Epelman, Verónica Machtey
Page 36 and 37: Doha, Qatar LAJC director Claudio E
Page 38 and 39: DECEMBER Buenos Aires Ariel Seidler
Page 42 and 43: Secretary General Emeritus, met wit
Page 44 and 45: Community Outreach - Latino America
Page 46 and 47: comprised of 25 young Catholic lead
Page 48 and 49: Meetings and Briefings, WJC-US, 201
Page 50 and 51: Special Events May 10: September 6:

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