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After the Pittsburgh Synagogue Massacre: It's Time to Adopt an International Convention on the Crime of Anti-Semitism
(Institute for Contemporary Affairs-Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs) Amb. Alan Baker - The recent spate of violent acts of anti-Semitism in the U.S., together with the alarming renaissance of anti-Semitism in Europe and elsewhere, should be seen as a rude wake-up call. Anti-Semitism has existed for thousands of years, reappearing in many and varied forms, adapting itself to whatever circumstances exist at any given time and utilizing the available cultural, social, and technological means to propagate itself among the public. Aside from political statements of sympathy, shock, and disgust by international leaders, what, practically, can and should be done to deal with anti-Semitism worldwide? Perhaps one of the major lessons to be learned from this recent outbreak of violent anti-Semitism is the need for consolidated action - a "united front" by the international community against anti-Semitism. In today's world, any consolidated, international action to counter violence and terror requires a solid legal basis and sanction for action. In 2015, the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs published a draft International Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Anti-Semitism - a document intended to universally criminalize anti-Semitism within the world community. This draft convention follows the accepted format of other UN international conventions condemning and criminalizing genocide, racial discrimination, terror, and other most serious international criminal phenomena. This proposal should be brought before the appropriate UN legal bodies for consideration, with a view to its being studied and accepted as an international treaty, criminalizing and punishing anti-Semitism.