MODERN ANTISEMITISM IN THE VISEGRÁD COUNTRIES Edited by: Ildikó Barna and Anikó Félix First published 2017 By the Tom Lantos Institute 1016 Budapest, Bérc utca 13-15. Supported by 2017 Tom Lantos Institute All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. ISBN 978-615-80159-4-3 Peer reviewed by Mark Weitzman Copy edited by Daniel Stephens Printed by Firefly Outdoor Media Kft. The text does not necessarily represent in every detail the collective view of the Tom Lantos Institute. CONTENTS 01 02 Ildikó Barna and Anikó Félix CONTRIBUTORS 6 INTRODUCTION 9 03 Veronika Šternová 04 Ildikó Barna THE CZECH REPUBLIC 19 HUNGARY 47 I. BACKGROUND 20 I. BACKGROUND 48 II. ANTISEMITISM: II. ANTISEMITISM: ACTORS AND MANIFESTATIONS 27 ACTORS AND MANIFESTATIONS 57 III. CONCLUSIONS 43 III. CONCLUSIONS 74 05 Rafal Pankowski 06 Grigorij Mesežnikov POLAND 79 SLOVAKIA 105 I. BACKGROUND 80 I. BACKGROUND 106 II. ANTISEMITISM: II. ANTISEMITISM: ACTORS AND MANIFESTATIONS 88 ACTORS AND MANIFESTATIONS 111 III. CONCLUSIONS 102 III. CONCLUSIONS 126 The Tom Lantos Institute (TLI) is its transmission to younger gener- an independent human and minori- ations. Working with local commu- ty rights organization with a par- nities to explore and educate Jewish ticular focus on Jewish and Roma histories contributes to countering communities, Hungarian minori- antisemitism. The research of con- ties, and other ethnic or national, temporary forms of antisemitism is linguistic and religious minori- a flagship project of the Institute. ties. It operates internationally in terms of staff, partners, scope, This publication summarizes our re- and funds. As a research and search on modern antisemitism in education platform, TLI aims to the Visegrád region conducted by bridge the gaps between research a team of researchers in all four and policy, norms and practice. countries. TLI locates itself at the intersec- tion of human rights and identi- ty politics. While appreciating the importance of legal perspectives and remedies to violations, it in- vestigates through multidisciplinary approaches the problem-solving capacity of existing national and international norms. TLI’s principal strategic goal is the socialization of human and minority rights through research, education, public debates, publishing, and memorialization. TLI’s Jewish Life and Antisemitism Programme focuses on the past, present and future of the Hungar- ian and European Jewry. It active- ly promotes this extremely diverse heritage and identity, supporting 01 CONTRIBUTORS Ildikó Barna is a sociologist and an University’s Faculty of Social Scienc- Associate Professor in the Depart- es, where she is currently pursuing ment of Social Research Methodol- a PhD in Sociology. Her research ogy at ELTE University’s Faculty of focuses on right-wing extremism Social Sciences in Budapest. She also from a gender perspective. She is serves as the Chair of the Depart- a member of the MTA-ELTE Peri- ment. Barna wrote her habilitation pato Comparative Social Dynamics thesis on the identity of Hungarian Research Group. In this framework, Jewry and has participated in many she has participated in various re- research projects on the Holocaust search projects, published articles and post-Holocaust period, Jewish and presented her findings at inter- identity and antisemitism, publish- national conferences and in media ing articles and books and present- interviews.1. ing her research at international conferences. In 2015, she was a Vis- iting Fellow at the Mandel Center for Grigorij Mesežnikov is a politi- Advanced Holocaust Studies at the cal scientist and President of the United States Holocaust Memorial Institute for Public Affairs (IVO) in Museum (USHMM), where she start- Bratislava. He has published expert ed a research project on Hungarian studies on the development of par- Jewish displaced persons. In 2013- ty systems and the political aspects 2016, she monitored antisemitic of transformation in post-Commu- hate crimes and incidents in Hun- nist societies, including the rise of gary on a monthly basis. radical nationalism and right-wing extremism, in various monographs, edited volumes and scholarly jour- Anikó Félix is a sociologist and nals in Slovakia and other countries. Programme Manager for Jewish Life He regularly comments on Slovaki- and Antisemitism at the Tom Lantos an politics in domestic and foreign Institute in Budapest. She holds an media. MA in Minority Politics from ELTE 1 https://tatk.academia.edu/Anik%C3%B3F%C3%A9lix (accessed June 19, 2017). 7 Rafal Pankowski is an Associ- ate Professor at Collegium Civitas in Warsaw and heads the War- saw-based anti-racist East Europe Monitoring Centre2, which was es- tablished by the “Nigdy Wiecej” (“Never Again”) association. He has also served as deputy editor of the “Nigdy Wiecej” magazine since 1996. Pankowski holds an MA in Political Science from the University of Warsaw and a PhD and Habilita- tion in Sociology of Culture from the University of Warsaw’s Institute of Applied Social Sciences. Veroniká Šternová studied Jew- ish Studies and Hussite Theology at Charles University in Prague. During her studies, she focused on the top- ic of antisemitism. She subsequently went to work as an analyst for the Jewish Community of Prague and the Federation of Jewish Commu- nities in the Czech Republic (FZO), where she was responsible for the compilation of annual reports on antisemitism in the Czech Republic. 2 http://www.rafalpankowski.pl/ (accessed June 19, 2017). 8 02 INTRODUCTION lldikó Barna and Anikó Félix 9 The present report analyzes the cur- Unlike in the West, from Germa- rent state of modern antisemitism, ny to the United States, where new and especially new antisemitism, in antisemitism is generally associated the Visegrád countries: the Czech Re- with left-wing, pro-Palestinian ac- public, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia. tivists, the identity of those engag- Each of the four country reports in ing in it in the Visegrád countries is this volume examines the three main more diffuse. A further difference is manifestations of this phenomenon, that this phenomenon plays a much namely secondary, conspiratorial and smaller role in the public and aca- new antisemitism, with a particular demic discourse of these four coun- emphasis on the latter. Secondary an- tries. Although the intensity of new tisemitism pertains to the denial, rel- antisemitism is undeniably much ativization and/or trivialization of the weaker in this region, it is also not Shoah, while conspiratorial antisemi- entirely absent. In fact, the region tism covers conspiracy theories about has a strong history of anti-Zionism the Jews. In order to distinguish legit- due to its Communist past. The aim imate criticism of Israel from new an- of this report is to identify the actors tisemitism, we have applied the “3D” that engage in modern antisemitism test proposed by Natan Sharansky. in the Visegrád countries, with a par- The first “D” stands for the demoni- ticular emphasis on new antisemi- zation, which refers to cases in which tism, in order to identify and evaluate the Jewish state is portrayed as inher- their commonalities and differences. ently wicked or evil. The second “D” To this end, the authors of the coun- stands for double standards, which try reports map the main discourses, come into play when criticism of Israel topics and actors that feature in the is applied in an imbalanced or selec- modern antisemitic discourse in each tive manner. The third “D” stands for country. In the process, they also dis- delegitimization, which applies when cuss the historical, legislative and at- such criticism turns into a denial of titudinal background that has given Israel’s fundamental right to exist.3 rise to this phenomenon.4 3 Natan Sharansky, “3D Test of Anti-Semitism: Demonization, Double Standards, Delegitimization,” Jewish Political Studies Review 16, nos. 3-4 (2004). 4 We would like to take this opportunity to extend our thanks to the authors of this volume for their contributions, to Grigorij Mesežnikov in particular, whose thoughts informed this summary report. 10 The main research questions Analytical framework addressed by the four country For the purposes of this project, we reports are as follows: have employed the working definition (i) Is new antisemitism present in of antisemitism adopted by the In- the country in question? If so, ternational Holocaust Remembrance what forms does it take? Alliance (IHRA).5 As regards the defi- (ii) What is the connection between nition of modern antisemitism, we new and other forms of an- have distinguished three subtypes, tisemitism? namely secondary, conspiratorial and new antisemitism. Regarding the (iii) What are its historical, legisla- third subtype of modern antisem- tive and political aspects? itism, new antisemitism, we are (iv) What are its main topics aware that criticism of Israel does and discourses? not necessarily equate to antisemi- tism or anti-Zionism6 and that there (v) Who are the main actors that is sometimes a fine line separating are responsible for producing them. One of the main dangers of these discourses and determin- new antisemitism is that it is often ing these topics? regarded as part of legitimate or ac- (vi) What events have triggered ceptable discourse,7 thus preventing these topics and discourses the international community from during the past six years? seeing the Jewish-Arab conflict in all its complexity. This distorts the debate on the human and minority rights issues that have emerged on both sides, ultimately undermining efforts to resolve the conflict. In -or der to distinguish legitimate criticism 5 For more information on the working definition of antisemitism adopted by the IHRA Plenary in Budapest in May 2016, see https://www.holocaustremembrance.com/sites/default/files/press_release_ document_antisemitism.pdf (accessed January 25, 2017).