Berlin Online - 02.23.2004

 

PRESS RELEASE

(Also read coverage in Washington Jewish Week.)


NCSJ Launches Berlin2004.org to Prepare for International Anti-Semitism Conference

February 23, 2004 – NCSJ has launched a new Web page, Berlin2004.org, featuring background and hyperlinks in preparation for the OSCE Conference on Anti-Semitism, planned for April 28-29 in Berlin. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), with 55 member states in Europe, the former Soviet Union and North America, was founded as a result of the historic 1975 Helsinki Final Act.

“NCSJ and other major American Jewish organizations played a major role in using the Helsinki process to open up the Soviet bloc countries and focus U.S. efforts,” NCSJ Chairman Robert J. Meth said. “Now we are using our experience, and our working relationship with the governments of Europe and the United States, to turn the speeches from last year’s unprecedented Vienna conference into real action steps coming out of Berlin.”

According to Joel M. Schindler, NCSJ President, “One unique factor behind the success of the Helsinki process was the full participation of non-governmental organizations alongside government representatives. By coordinating with other organizations and government agencies, Berlin2004.org will help prepare those diplomats and community leaders who will attend Berlin, and update communities across the United States before, during, and after. Together with our governmental and NGO partners, NCSJ has been working to ensure an effective Berlin conference, and we see the Web as a key ingredient.”

“This new Web page allows us to profile the key personalities behind the Vienna and Berlin conferences, share critical background materials, provide hyperlinks to OSCE, government and NGO Web sites, and chart the progress in combating anti-Semitism in Europe and the Soviet successor states,” NCSJ Executive Director Mark B. Levin explained. “Through Berlin2004.org, we are also seeking input from Americans and Europeans – suggestions for the conference, examples of best practices, reports on anti-Semitism and successful tolerance and training programs, and ideas for follow-up and implementation. We want to maximize the involvement of those who are making a difference on the ground.”

Berlin2004.org is an independent project of NCSJ, and has not been endorsed by the OSCE or the United States Government.

NCSJ: Advocates on behalf of Jews in Russia, Ukraine, the Baltic States & Eurasia – a voluntary, not-for-profit agency created in 1971, is the mandated central coordinating agency of the organized American Jewish community for policy and activities on behalf of the estimated 1.5 million Jews in the former Soviet Union. NCSJ comprises nearly 50 national organizations and over 300 local federations, community councils and committees across the United States. Through this extensive network, NCSJ mobilizes the resources, energies and talents of millions of U.S. citizens, and also represents the American Jewish community in dealings with similar national groups abroad, and at international fora.

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