European Parliament calls on EU member states to adopt International Definition of Antisemitism and appoint politicians tasked with fighting antisemitism

The European Parliament has voted today to call on member states to adopt the International Definition of Antisemitism and to appoint politicians in each member state who are tasked with fighting antisemitism.

MEPs spoke to condemn rising antisemitism, demanding that member states cooperate to prosecute antisemitic hate crime, gather more accurate data on hate crime and its causes, “take expeditious action to prevent and combat antisemitic hate speech online” and “promote the teaching of the Holocaust”. The MEPs voted to ask the “[European] Commission and the Member States to increase financial support for targeted activities and educational projects against discrimination and hate crimes, to build up and strengthen partnerships with European Jewish communities, institutions and civil society organisations, and to encourage exchanges between children and young people of different faiths via joint activities, launching and supporting awareness-raising campaigns in that regard.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism strongly welcomes the European Parliament’s endorsement of the definition which is clear and detailed, leaving no doubt as to what antisemitism is. In particular, the definition tackles the full spectrum of antisemitism, from ancient slurs to conspiracy myths to antisemitism in discourse about Israel.

The International Definition of Antisemitism is already used around the world, but only recently have national governments begun to formally adopt it. Britain was the first country to adopt the definition, something for which Campaign Against Antisemitism, Sir Eric Pickles and others worked hard over many meetings. Austria became the next national government to adopt the definition, and now the Romanian government has followed.