‘Every 2nd Jew in Germany Wishes to Leave’: Berlin to Seek EU-wide Criminalization of Holocaust Denial

German Foreign Minister on the Legacy of the Holocaust

"For A Long Time Now, Words Have Not Been Enough"

Speeches and warnings are insufficient when it comes to anti-Semitism in Germany and Europe. We need concrete programs to counter the hatred of Jews, including better education and harsher penalties.

An Op-Ed by Heiko Maas

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas REUTERS

"Halle was my home." This is one of the saddest sentences I have heard in a long time. Max Privorozki said it, the head of Halle’s Jewish community, which only barely escaped a massacre in October. His words express the utter despair at the fact that anti-Semitism has become a part of daily life for Jews in Germany once again. Every day, Jewish citizens are openly attacked on our streets or threatened and insulted online. There were over 400 such incidents in Berlin alone over a period of six months last year – more than two per day. In light of such figures, it does not surprise me that almost every second Jew in Germany has already thought about leaving the country. But it pains me even more. We urgently need to take action so that such thoughts do not become bitter reality and large numbers of Jews do not leave Germany. It is an absolute nightmare that people of the Jewish faith no longer feel at home here in Germany – and a terrible disgrace 75 years after the liberation of Auschwitz.

For a long time now, words have not been enough. The lives of dozens of people in Halle were saved by a mere wooden door. We need to do more to protect Jewish institutions and communities, not only in Germany, but all over Europe. For this purpose, we will provide the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe with 500,000 euros in 2020.

But more needs to be done. Perpetrators like the one in Halle have international contacts. They become radicalized online, across national borders. And regardless of whether the attacks are on a Jewish museum in Brussels, a kosher supermarket in Paris or a synagogue in Germany, each attack on Jewish life is an attack on Europe as a whole, our culture and our values. Anti-Semitism contradicts everything that Europe stands for: tolerance, freedom and human dignity.

It is not only because of our history that we Germans have a particular duty here. Our presidency of the Council of the European Union starts in the summer; in November we will take on the presidency of the Council of Europe; and in just a few weeks’ time, we will begin chairing the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance for the first time. The fight against anti-Semitism must be at the top of the agenda at all three of these institutions.

A bit over a year ago, all EU member states pledged to develop strategies to counter anti-Semitism. Germany must be a role model in that fight. Too few member states have national commissioners for the fight against anti-Semitism, and that needs to change. We need a European network of commissioners from all member states to consolidate the fight against anti-Semitism in a European action plan. This should include criminal prosecution and better protection for Jewish institutions, as well as measures to fight anti-Semitism through education and integration.

Even before the attack in Halle, we knew that at some point, harsh words would be followed by brutal acts. We need to take steps against hate speech, as it is becoming ever more blatant – on the internet and on social media platforms. During our EU presidency, we will intensify the fight against online hate crime and disinformation campaigns. Online abuse must be subject to the full force of the law everywhere in Europe.

Nobody can be allowed to deny or play down the worst crime in human history, the Holocaust. The European Court of Human Rights spelled that out once again just a few weeks ago. We are working to ensure that all EU member states finally make it a crime to deny the Holocaust, as they have pledged to do.

And we also want to counter the dangerous lies about the Holocaust and the twisting of facts around the world. To this end, we will set up an international network of experts this year, which will develop counter-strategies: a Global Task Force Against Holocaust Denial.

A third of young Europeans say they know little or nothing about the Holocaust. And this figure is even higher among young Germans. Memories of the murders of millions of people are at risk of fading, in part because, unfortunately, there are fewer and fewer survivors are among us to tell their stories. Education about the Holocaust is thus becoming increasingly important, through both non‑digital and digital means, and from primary school to university. In our German schools abroad we are making this a priority. The Federal Agency for Civic Education should also join forces with its European counterparts to develop joint guidelines for education and information about the Holocaust.

Policymakers need to take more resolute action in the fight against anti-Semitism. But there is one thing that their actions cannot do: replace the solidarity that arises when each of us takes a stand against anti-Semitism - on the street, in the schoolyard and on the internet. Only in this way will we convince people like Max Privorozki that Germany and Europe are and will remain their home, that Jews belong here as members of our society and that we are serious when we say now, 75 years after the liberation of Auschwitz: “Never Again!” 

All these things Herr Maas talks about are good things and will surely help. But they are treating the symptoms, not the illness. The basis of antisemitism is spiritual. Genuine Christians support Israel and the Jewish people wholeheartedly. Muslims, atheists, and pseudo-Christians tend to be antisemitic. For Muslims - the more devout they are, the more likely they will hate Jews. Atheists, especially those who are determined atheists, have a propensity to hate both Christians and Jews, but, interestingly, not Muslims. Pseudo-Christians, those who call themselves Christian but have no real relationship with Jesus Christ, can end up anywhere on the spectrum from hatred (like far-right extremists) to indifference, or even concern.

History is not likely to repeat itself in Germany because the anti-semitism is being driven from the people, not the government. But, as the population gets farther and farther from God, and as the Muslim population continues to grow in disproportion to the indigenous people, it may be just a matter of time before a Jew-hating government is elected in Berlin. What a terrifying thought.

What Germany needs is a revival of its Lutheran roots, without which it condemns its Jewish citizens to growing fear and hostility. Only this time, they have a place to go. Once they leave, Germany will be left without any protection from God, again.