'No more inhibitions'
צילום: איי אף פי
Germany's Jews say gov't fails to fight anti-Semitism
Berlin Jews still shaken by recent neo-Nazi attack on community's kindergarten, claim government underestimates anti-Semitics threats. Violent attacks against Jews have more than doubled over past year, community official says
Dusseldorf – The Jewish community in Germany is concerned about the apparent rise in anti-Semitic incidents in the country, and the government's failure to address them.
Community leaders were alarmed, for instance, by the local press' failure to report the defacement of a Jewish kindergarten in Berlin on the weekend with swastikas and other Nazi symbols and slogans.
"I'm very disappointed by the lack of responses," said Stefan Kramer, the secretary-general of the Zentralrat, the Central Council of Jews in Germany. Kramer told Ynet that the incident represented a dangerous escalation in anti-Semitism in the country.
"Over the past years the extreme Right has lost all its inhibitions" he added.
Neo-Nazi slogans on Jewish kindergarten's walls (Photo: AFP)
What concerns Kramer and other leaders most is the fact that the phenomenon seems to be widening. "In 2005 we registered 52 violent attacks by extreme rightists. In 2006, the number rose to more than 100," Berlin police spokesman Bernhard Schodrowski told Ynet.
According to Schodrowski, the increase was linked to the state's failure to outlaw radical Right party NPD last year. "This boosted their confidence," he explained.
Kramer, on his part, does not hesitate to point the finger at the entire German society. "The assumption that anti-Semitism had disappeared from Germany was wrong. The Ministry for Family Affairs, which is responsible for coordinating operations against the extremists, simply does not do enough. They do more harm than good," he claimed.
Children as a target
The Berlin police still have no leads regarding the attack on the Chabad kindergarten this weekend. "This has been a shock for me," said Rabbi Yehuda Teichtel, who founded the kindergarten and adjacent school. In his eyes, this is one of the most severe incidents against a Jewish target in recent years, specifically because the institute in question was a kindergarten."This time they didn't spray swastikas on headstones in a cemetery like they used to in the past. This time they attacked our kindergarten. The children are the future of this community," he said.
Following the attack, the German police boosted security around Jewish institutions in Berlin and in other cities. The kindergarten itself is being guarded 24 hours a day.
"But this is too little too late. Throughout the years that government has failed to provide the communities with the necessary protection, because their interest was to not make a big deal out of this threat. This is irresponsible behavior," Kramer said.
However, despite the hard feelings among the Berlin community, the local Jews have no plans of leaving. "We are a community with problems, but also with a perspective," Kramer stated, saying that the decision to leave the country is a personal one. "The community stays," he declared.
