[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 77 (Thursday, May 22, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7068-S7069]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  PREVENTION OF ANTI-SEMITIC VIOLENCE

  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed 
to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 105, S. Con. Res. 7.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 7) expressing the 
     sense of Congress that the sharp escalation of anti-Semitic 
     violence within many participating States of the Organization 
     for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) is a profound 
     concern and effort that should be undertaken to prevent 
     future occurrences.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
concurrent resolution.
  Mr. CAMPBELL. Mr. President, I appreciate the broad bipartisan 
support given to Senate Concurrent Resolution 7, and the prompt action 
by the Committee on Foreign Relations, allowing for timely 
consideration of this resolution by the full Senate. Anti-Semitism is 
an evil that has bedeviled previous generations, formed a black spot on 
human history, and remains a problem to this day. As Co-Chairman of the 
Helsinki Commission, I have been particularly concerned over the 
disturbing rise

[[Page S7069]]

in anti-Semitism and related violence in many participating States of 
the 55-nation Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, 
OSCE, including the United States.
  The anti-Semitic violence we witnessed in 2002, which stretched the 
breadth of the OSCE region, is a wake-up call that this evil still 
lives today, often coupled with a resurgence of aggressive nationalism 
and an increase in neo-Nazi ``skin head'' activity. Together with 
colleagues on the Helsinki Commission, we have diligently urged the 
leaders of OSCE participating States to confront and combat the plague 
of anti-Semitism. Through concerted efforts by the State Department and 
the U.S. Mission to the OSCE, a conference focused on anti-Semitism--
called for in the pending resolution--will be convened in Vienna, 
Austria, June 19-20.
  Meanwhile, the Helsinki Commission has undertaken a number of 
initiatives aimed at further elevating the attention given to rising 
anti-Semitism. In the year since the Commission's hearing on this 
issue, Commissioners have pursued it within the OSCE Parliamentary 
Assembly as well as in contacts with officials from countries of 
particular concern. I would point to France as a country that has 
recognized the problem and acted to confront anti-Semitism and related 
violence with tougher laws and more vigorous law enforcement. I urge 
French officials to remain vigilant, while recognizing that none of our 
countries is immune.
  A recent opinion survey of adults in five European countries 
conducted by the Anti-Defamation League, ADL, found that 21 percent 
harbor ``strong anti-Semitic views.'' At the same time, the survey 
revealed that 61 percent of the individuals polled stated they are 
``very concerned'' or ``fairly concerned'' about violence directed 
against European Jews. An ADL national poll of 1000 American adults 
found that 17 percent of Americans holds views about Jews that are 
``unquestionably anti-Semitic,'' an increase of 5 percent from the 
previous survey conducted four years earlier. According to ADL there 
were 1,559 reported anti-Semitic incidents in the U.S. in 2002, with 
attacks on campuses rising by 24 percent over the previous year.
  Mr. President, if anti-Semitism is ignored and allowed to fester and 
grow, our societies and civilization will suffer. A particularly 
disturbing element we have observed is the growth of anti-Semitic acts 
and attitudes among young people ranging from a rise in incidents on 
U.S. college campuses to violent attacks perpetrated on Jews by young 
members of immigrant communities in Western Europe. Education is 
essential to reversing the rise in anti-Semitism. Our young people must 
be taught about the Holocaust and other acts of genocide. Institutions 
such as the Holocaust Memorial Museum are making valuable contributions 
to promote the sharing of this experience at home and abroad. Such 
activity should have our strong support as a vital tool in confronting 
and combating anti-Semitism.
  Mr. President, passage of the Senate Concurrent Resolution 7 will put 
the United States Senate on record and send an unequivocal message that 
anti-Semitism must be confronted, and it must be confronted now.
  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the concurrent 
resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motion to 
reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or 
debate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 7) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The concurrent resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                             S. Con. Res. 7

       Whereas the expressions of anti-Semitism experienced 
     throughout the region encompassing the participating States 
     of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe 
     (OSCE) have included physical assaults, with some instances 
     involving weapons or stones, arson of synagogues, and 
     desecration of Jewish cultural sites, such as cemeteries and 
     statues;
       Whereas vicious propaganda and violence in many OSCE States 
     against Jews, foreigners, and others portrayed as alien have 
     reached alarming levels, in part due to the dangerous 
     promotion of aggressive nationalism by political figures and 
     others;
       Whereas violence and other manifestations of xenophobia and 
     discrimination can never be justified by political issues or 
     international developments;
       Whereas the Copenhagen Concluding Document adopted by the 
     OSCE in 1990 was the first international agreement to condemn 
     anti-Semitic acts, and the OSCE participating States pledged 
     to ``clearly and unequivocally condemn totalitarianism, 
     racial and ethnic hatred, anti-Semitism, xenophobia, and 
     discrimination against anyone as well as persecution on 
     religious and ideological grounds'';
       Whereas the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly at its meeting in 
     Berlin in July 2002, unanimously adopted a resolution that, 
     among other things, called upon participating States to 
     ensure aggressive law enforcement by local and national 
     authorities, including thorough investigation of anti-Semitic 
     criminal acts, apprehension of perpetrators, initiation of 
     appropriate criminal prosecutions, and judicial proceedings;
       Whereas Decision No. 6 adopted by the OSCE Ministerial 
     Council at its Tenth Meeting held in Porto, Portugal in 
     December 2002 (the ``Porto Ministerial Declaration'') 
     condemned ``the recent increase in anti-Semitic incidents in 
     the OSCE area, recognizing the role that the existence of 
     anti-Semitism has played throughout history as a major threat 
     to freedom'';
       Whereas the Porto Ministerial Declaration also urged ``the 
     convening of separately designated human dimension events on 
     issues addressed in this decision, including on the topics of 
     anti-Semitism, discrimination and racism, and xenophobia''; 
     and
       Whereas on December 10, 2002, at the Washington 
     Parliamentary Forum on Confronting and Combating anti-
     Semitism in the OSCE Region, representatives of the United 
     States Congress and the German Parliament agreed to denounce 
     all forms of anti-Semitism and agreed that ``anti-Semitic 
     bigotry must have no place in our democratic societies'': 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That it is the sense of Congress that--
       (1) officials of the executive branch and Members of 
     Congress should raise the issue of anti-Semitism in their 
     bilateral contacts with other countries and at multilateral 
     fora, including meetings of the Permanent Council of the 
     Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) 
     and the Twelfth Annual Session of the OSCE Parliamentary 
     Assembly to be convened in July 2003;
       (2) participating States of the OSCE should unequivocally 
     condemn anti-Semitism (including violence against Jews and 
     Jewish cultural sites), racial and ethnic hatred, xenophobia, 
     and discrimination, as well as persecution on religious 
     grounds whenever it occurs;
       (3) participating States of the OSCE should ensure 
     effective law enforcement by local and national authorities 
     to prevent and counter criminal acts stemming from anti-
     Semitism, xenophobia, or racial or ethnic hatred, whether 
     directed at individuals, communities, or property, including 
     maintaining mechanisms for the thorough investigation and 
     prosecution of such acts;
       (4) participating States of the OSCE should promote the 
     creation of educational efforts throughout the region 
     encompassing the participating States of the OSCE to counter 
     anti-Semitic stereotypes and attitudes among younger people, 
     increase Holocaust awareness programs, and help identify the 
     necessary resources to accomplish this goal;
       (5) legislators in all OSCE participating States should 
     play a leading role in combating anti-Semitism and ensure 
     that the resolution adopted at the 2002 meeting of the OSCE 
     Parliamentary Assembly in Berlin is followed up by a series 
     of concrete actions at the national level; and
       (6) the OSCE should organize a separately designated human 
     dimension event on anti-Semitism as early as possible in 
     2003, consistent with the Porto Ministerial Declaration 
     adopted by the OSCE at the Tenth Meeting of the OSCE 
     Ministerial Council in December 2002.

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