Report on Anti-Semitism in Greece

Greek Helsinki Monitor
Press Release
January 6, 2005

Homepage: http://www.greekhelsinki.gr

Greek Helsinki Monitor (GHM) reprints below the chapter on Greece in the State Department report on anti-Semitism, released yesterday. Although rather extensive it has weaknesses -listed below- that do not make it comprehensive and always accurate.

1. In other country chapters the work of monitoring and reporting on anti-Semitism by national NGOs and Jewish groups is mentioned. In the Greece chapter it is not, even though the source of all the information used are, directly or indirectly, those groups: this unprofessional attitude has been publicly criticized in previous State Department human rights reports. Only the international NGOs Wiesenthal Center and ADL whose sources are also the Greek groups- are mentioned.

2. The report ignores the 2003 and 2004 references to anti-Semitism in Greece by the Council of Europe, ECRI and the European Unions Monitoring Center (EUMC), as well as the very critical ECRI reference to Greek judges who fail to prosecute blatant anti-Semitic and other racist texts, despite the existence of relevant legislation.

3. In two instances, the report claims that the Greek government condemned all acts of anti-Semitic vandalism: this is a well-known myth the government and its supporters propagate but, it is simply not true. For most acts of vandalism, the government has remained silent, and in most cases even local authorities have not reacted.

4. The report fails to mention the vandalism of Holocaust Memorials in 2004 (Drama and Komotini).

5. It is incorrectly claimed that the Protocolscan be found only in Northern Greece bookstores. They are available everywhere, and in many editions, including in at least one official Greek Orthodox Church bookstore. Moreover, they were published in 2004 by a mainstream publisher and then presented in a review in Greece's largest newspaper as a historically accurate book.

6. The report ignores Greece's Jewish community leaders protest against Theodorakis and their insistence on it even after the government and the composers ensuing statements. Likewise for their protest to the journalists union for the widespread anti-Semitic articles and cartoons following the killing of the Hamas leader: this protest was followed by a violent public attack against the Jewish leadership by a union board member, an action for which the community's head expressed his disgust.

7. The report also fails to mention the unveiling of several Holocaust memorials (Arta, Komotini, etc.), as well as the first ever public celebration of Hanukah during the reporting period, both very important and positive developments.

8. Finally, the managers of the State Department web page have omitted the Greece chapter from the related Europe and Eurasia country reports web page:

http://usinfo.state.gov/eur/Archive/2005/Jan/05-93928.html

Reprinted Below

Greece

Vandalism of Jewish monuments continued to be a problem during the reporting period; however, the Government condemned the acts. Jewish monuments in Ioannina were desecrated three times in 2003. The Holocaust memorial in Thessaloniki was desecrated in February 2003. Police have not found perpetrators. Anti-Semitic graffiti was painted, removed by authorities, and repainted in several places on the busy Athens-Corinth Highway. The extreme rightwing group "Golden Dawn" regularly paints anti-Semitic graffiti on bridges and other structures throughout Greece. Some schoolbooks still carry negative references to Roman Catholics, Jewish persons, and others. Bookstores in Northern Greece sold and displayed antiSemitic literature including "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion."

The Wiesenthal Center issued a travel advisory in November 2003 warning Jewish visitors about "the failure of Greece to curb growing anti-Semitism;" however, local Jewish community leaders do not support the advisory. The National Tourist Organization continued to promote on its website Easter traditions such as the burning of an effigy of Judas on some islands, sometimes known locally as the "burning of the Jew," which propagate hatred and fanaticism against Jews. The Wiesenthal Center protested the revival of this tradition.

Anti-Semitism continued to exist, both in the mainstream and extremist press. The Wiesenthal Center and the ADL denounced the press for anti-Semitic articles and cartoons on several occasions, particularly after Israeli forces killed Hamas leader Sheik Yassin. The line between opposition to Israeli policies and attitudes toward Jews in general is often blurred, giving rise to anti-Semitic sentiment in the media and among the public.

The mainstream media often use the terms "genocide" and "Holocaust" to describe the situation in Israel and the West Bank/Gaza, drawing a parallel with Nazi Germany. The press and public often do not clearly distinguish between Israeli policies and Jews. The Jewish community leaders have condemned anti-Semitic broadcasts on small private television stations, but no charges have been brought against these largely unlicensed operators.

The renowned composer Mikis Theodorakis called Jews "the root of evil" in November 2003, and made strong anti-Semitic remarks during the reporting period. Government officials stated that Theodorakis' statements were directed against Israel and not against the Jewish people.

Populist Orthodox Rally (LAOS), a small, extreme right-wing party, supports virulent nationalism, anti-Semitism, racism, and xenophobia. LAOS's leader, George Karatzaferis, won a seat in the European Parliament in June elections. Karatzaferis regularly attributes negative events involving Greece to international Jewish plots. He used the party-owned television station to denounce politicians with Jewish origins and to claim that Jews were behind the September 11 attacks.

The Government condemned all acts of vandalism. The Government provided 24-hour police protection to Jewish Community offices in Athens and other major cities. Negotiations between the Jewish Community of Thessaloniki and the Government to find acceptable recompense for the community's cemetery were ongoing.

The Constitution establishes the Eastern Orthodox Church of Christ (Greek Orthodoxy) as the prevailing religion, but also provides for the rights of all citizens to practice the religion of their choice. Jews freely practice their religion, and Jewish organizations have not complained or requested additional legal protection.

Judaism is one of the three religious groups (the others are Greek Orthodox and Islam) considered to be "legal persons of public law." In practice, this beneficial distinction primarily means that Jewish organizations can own property as religious entities rather than as legal entities.

On January 15, the Parliament unanimously approved the declaration of January 27, the day Auschwitz was liberated, as Holocaust Remembrance Day. The following week, the country commemorated Holocaust Remembrance Day with events in Athens and Thessaloniki and the participation of Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel. In April, a commemorative stone was placed at the railway station from which Jews were deported to concentration camps.

In October, the Government participated in the organization of a seminar on "Teaching the Holocaust." Held under the auspices of the Ministry of Education, it addressed 150 educators and Athens University education majors. This teacher-training seminar aimed to introduce Holocaust education in primary and secondary schools.

A memorial to Greek-Jewish veterans of World War II was unveiled in October 2003 in Thessaloniki.