Didier Burkhalter emphasises the importance of combating anti-Semitism
Bern, 01.12.2015 - A conference on the situation of the Jewish minority in Switzerland was organised in Bern on 1 December 2015 by the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs FDFA (Directorate of International Law DIL) and the Federal Department of Home Affairs (Service for Combating Racism). Federal Councillor Didier Burkhalter, Head of the FDFA, opened the event with a speech in which he drew attention to the need for the authorities and civil society to join forces and enhance their efforts to combat anti-Semitism.
In his opening address to the conference, Mr Burkhalter recalled that Switzerland has had a Jewish community since the Middle Ages, and that those of the Jewish faith are an integral part of Swiss society. He continued that the Federal Council is aware of the rise in the number of anti-Semitic incidents in Europe over the past year, and of the threat that these pose to Jewish people and their institutions in Switzerland. The Swiss authorities are monitoring the situation closely and taking the necessary action to protect the Jewish minority against attacks, he said. Mr Burkhalter also spoke about Switzerland's commitment during its 2014 chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) to strengthen efforts to combat anti-Semitism.
The conference also featured an address from Herbert Winter, President of the Swiss Federation of Jewish Communities (SIG). He highlighted the situation of Jews in Switzerland, 150 years after gaining the same rights as their fellow citizens, and also outlined the current challenges they encounter.
The conference was supported by the Council of Europe, which was represented by two experts who spoke of the rights of the Jewish minority and the corresponding obligations of states which have ratified the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. They also presented the Council of Europe's activities to combat anti-Semitism and hate speech.
Finally, two round-table discussions addressed the specific challenges currently facing the Jewish community in Switzerland, and what the authorities and civil society can or must do in response. One discussion concerned the position of the Jewish faith in an increasingly secularised Swiss society, with a particular emphasis on schools. The topics covered included requests for special time off to celebrate Jewish festivals, the wearing of distinctive religious symbols such as the kippah, and state control over private faith schools. The second round-table discussed the duties and action that may be expected from the federal government and the cantons in the face of acts of anti-Semitic hostility and the growing terrorist threat.
In his concluding remarks, Head of the Service for Combating Racism Michele Galizia called for vigilance. New forms of racism and anti-Semitism are emerging all the time, he said, and must therefore be monitored continuously so that effective action can be taken on awareness-raising and prevention.
The Jewish community is recognised by Switzerland as a national minority in the sense of the Council of Europe Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. The Swiss authorities must therefore foster an environment which allows those belonging to the Jewish minority to uphold their religion and their traditions. The authorities are also committed to taking all appropriate action to protect the Jewish community from anti-Semitic threats or acts of hostility. Today's conference is one of a cycle of follow-up events that the FDFA's Directorate of International Law and the Federal Department of Home Affairs' Service for Combating Racism have organised in recent years on the situation of other recognised national minorities.
Address for enquiries
FDFA Communication
Federal Palace West Wing
CH-3003 Bern, Switzerland
Tel. Press service: +41 58 460 55 55
E-mail: kommunikation@eda.admin.ch
Twitter: @SwissMFA
Publisher
Federal Department of Foreign Affairs
https://www.eda.admin.ch/eda/en/home.html
General Secretariat FDHA
http://www.edi.admin.ch
Federal Department of Home Affairs
http://www.edi.admin.ch
