Aussies quit WJC over Leibler suit

The Executive Council of Australian Jewry quits the World Jewish Congress over its refusal to withdraw a USD 7.5 million libel suit against Australian Jewish community icon Isi Leibler

Peter Kohn|Published: 07.27.06 , 18:13

The Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) has formally quit the World Jewish Congress (WJC) over its refusal to withdraw a USD 7.5 million libel suit against Australian Jewish community icon Isi Leibler.

An ECAJ ultimatum to the WJC to drop its legal action, the largest of its kind in Israeli history, expired on Tuesday, with the US-based world body refusing to drop its lawsuit against Leibler, a former senior vice-president of the WJC and three-time ECAJ president.

Leibler allegedly libelled the WJC with criticism he made of its governance procedures in a leaked 2004 memo.

'Display the greatest degree of unity'

In a letter to his WJC counterpart Edgar Bronfman, ECAJ president Grahame Leonard slammed the WJC for not dropping the NIS 26.5 million defamation action despite the severity of the current Middle East crisis.

"World Jewry, in particular at this time, needs to display the greatest degree of unity that it can muster and put behind it personal animosity and past acrimony in order to serve the interests of both the State of Israel and the Jewish community throughout the world," Leonard wrote. "If we ever could, we cannot now afford the luxury of the damaging and counterproductive lawsuit between the WJC and Isi Leibler."

In the letter dated July 25, Leonard formally withdrew the ECAJ's "membership of and disaffiliates from the WJC and all its activities, including the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress. It is extremely regrettable that this separation must occur and that, as a consequence, the WJC will not be able to speak, during these times, for the whole Jewish world."

However, Leonard stated that should the WJC improve its governance procedures and restructured, the ECAJ could consider rejoining at a later date.

'The lawsuit is dividing the Jewish world'

In a separate statement, WJC secretary-general Stephen Herbits did not refer to the libel action directly, but said: "Jewish communities around the world are united by their support for Israel, the commitment to seeing the safe return of their soldiers, and the fight against terrorism. That is our united focus, anything else is secondary."

Asked whether the ECAJ should have reconsidered its ultimatum in light of the Middle East crisis, Leonard told the AJN: "No, simply because the lawsuit is dividing the Jewish world ... it is something we deeply regret and feel quite saddened by, but we felt it was a matter of principle.

"We want a WJC that's properly structured, properly governed and focused on the issues that affect the Jewish people. The Australian Jewish community is totally united on this issue, as we are united in our support for Israel."

Leonard said Leibler was deliberately excluded from the final decision to quit the WJC, in accordance with the ECAJ's principles of governance, as he was from a May 25 decision to set the ultimatum.

The ECAJ has been affiliated with the 70-year-old WJC since its own inception in 1944. It is believed to be the first time an affiliated national communal roof body has severed its ties with the WJC.