Europe Performs According to a Well Worn Script…writes Michael Kuttner.

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Anyone familiar with the Continent of Europe’s relationships with Jews will know only too well that it is an almost unending litany of hate, delegitimisation, expulsions and murderous mayhem.

Michael Kuttner

For the last 2,000 years there has hardly been a sustained period when Jewish communities could feel safe and secure in the knowledge that their contributions to respective countries would be rewarded with tolerance and full civil rights. Even after the French Revolution when they could have expected an era of respect, the poisonous seeds of anti Jewish hatred, planted so well in the fertile soil of France, sprouted forth in ever increasing potency. These germs incubated by the Church and nurtured over centuries, spread pandemic like to all corners of the Continent, so that by the time the German people democratically elected the National Socialist Party to power in 1933, the inevitable catastrophe of the Holocaust was an unstoppable outcome.

However, we know now in retrospect, that had the Democracies taken early and energetic action, the scourge of the Swastika could have been snuffed out and the looming catastrophe averted. Had the Democracies been really serious they could have stopped the well published plans for genocide in its tracks. If the rest of the world had shown even an ounce of compassion, Jews fleeing Europe could have found safe havens, even on a temporary basis, in host countries far distant from the impending explosion. Moreover if more Jews would have learnt from their past history and taken earlier heed of the writing on the wall, the number who might have escaped from the blighted Continent of Europe may well have been greater. All this is in the past but the lessons for Jews today is as relevant as it ever was back then.

Surveying the European landscape today one is struck by the eerie similarity of events unfolding according to a well worn script with the main characters performing as though nothing is amiss and the consequences can be safely ignored. It is a tragedy of Jewish history that many never seem to learn and are therefore doomed to repeat the same tragedies. It is also a sad fact that most of the countries of Europe have still not been able to shake off the longest running virus of Jew hatred which today has mutated into hatred for the Jewish State. It takes just a moment to survey what is happening today and the echoes of the recent and distant past come crashing to the fore.

The rise of openly anti Jewish political parties in Greece, Hungary and other European countries is accompanied by parliamentary success, demonstrations and marches with distinctly Jew hatred themes and an outpouring of venom in the media not seen since the demise of Nazi Germany and their willing partners. Where once this hatred was directed against Jewish communities & their Faith, today it also embraces an irrational, yet deeply imbedded hatred of Israel. Even in Germany which almost alone amongst European nations has made the most comprehensive effort to atone for its past crimes, the specter of this irrational prejudice looms ever larger. It is true that some Governments are making efforts to combat xenophobic behaviour but in most cases it is too feeble and too late. As far as the anti Israel tsunami is concerned the wave of delegitimisation has reached dangerous proportions. In the face of clear evidence that Hezbollah is a terrorist organisation and was responsible for the terror attack against Israelis in Bulgaria and elsewhere, the European Union refuses to designate this group as a terror entity. Voices can be heard declaring that Hezbollah (and Hamas) are really benevolent welfare associations bringing hope and comfort to their respective oppressed peoples. This transparent charade is supported by the EU and as a result the war against terrorists suffers a fatal blow. We all know that in the recent past Europe closed its eyes to the spread of Nazism and despite proof to the contrary carried on business as usual with those whose declared aim was the annihilation of the Jewish people. Today, Europe follows a similar path in the vain hope that appeasement of terrorists bent on a Crusade to eliminate the Jewish State, will buy them immunity from future outrages on their soil.

Another example of see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil, is revealed in the news that EU courts have overturned sanctions on Iranian banks. This effectively means that the campaign to thwart the Iranian march to nuclear bombs is sabotaged and just as in the 1930’s it is business as usual. If ever there needed to be a clearer example of mendacious intentions against Jews, this is it. More of the same script it seems.

What about Jews themselves in this scenario? In the past they were expelled from one region or country and somehow ended up in another part of Europe. After a while when conditions seemed to improve they lo and behold returned to the scene of their persecution time after time. At least their excuse could be that there was nowhere else to run to and therefore that was the only course they could follow. Today, however, there is the Jewish State. Despite this obvious reality, millions of dollars are being poured into places where Jews have returned are trying to re-establish viable communities. Some will say that the new Holocaust museums and memorials combined with new Synagogues, schools and community centres, will guarantee not only needed facilities but also inoculate them against the forces of hate. Unfortunately this is a fallacy. The illusion that it can never happen again is a hallucination which continues to afflict too many.

As the dark clouds gather, the thunder of hate becomes louder, the noxious weeds of anti Israel rhetoric spread and the boycotters become bolder, the need to find a safe haven is ever more urgent. There are those who claim that emptying Europe of its Jewish citizens is merely giving the Nazis a victory. I disagree. Boycotting Europe and returning to the resurrected Jewish homeland is the perfect answer. Unless and until Jews realise that there can never be any sort of future for them in this cursed continent they will suffer the inevitable consequences.

Michael Kuttner is a Jewish New Zealander who for many years was actively involved with various communal organisations connected to Judaism and Israel. He now lives in Israel and works for The Israel Resource News Agency in Jerusalem.