Russia calls for banning Judaism

Indian Express ^ | 27 june 2005 | Indian Express

[voletti]

Russia has ordered an inquiry into a 16th century Jewish religious law to ascertain whether it constitutes racist incitement and anti-Russian material, a media report said. Russia’s state prosecutor has ordered an examination into ‘shulhan arukh’, a code of Jewish Halakhic law compiled in the 16th century, and a probe against a Jewish umbrella outfit in Russia for distributing a Russian translation of an abbreviation of the religious law.

The probe was launched after some 500 public figures, including members of the Nationalist Rodina Party, in a letter to the prosecutor’s office urged to outlaw the Jewish religion and all its organisations operating in Russia, daily Ha'aretz reported.

The affair being closely watched in Israel has raised concerns for the Jews of Russia, who have come under increased anti-semitic attacks recently, the report said.

[Destro]

I am not a Russia - I don't speak or read it nor do I know any Russians nor am I Russian Orthodox.

When I was involved in posting against Clinton's war in Yugoslavia I saw first hand the way news was distorted. This is what I am seeing done to news out of Russia. Distorted to make it more ominous than it is. Sometimes it is subtle - other times heavy handed - this article is a heavy handed distortion. For example of this - where in the article does it say 'Russia' calls for a ban on Judaism as the headline says it does? You can see the slight of hand distortion involved as you think about it.

[dervish]

Yes, the headline is inflammatory.

[MarMema]

State Duma to Spurn Down Anti-Semitic Move by Group of Deputies

By Itar-Tass

MOSCOW, Russia - The State Duma will give on Thursday an appraisal to the anti-Semitic motion by a group of legislators from the factions of Rodina and the Russian Communist Party. The agenda of the chamber’s meeting includes an item on debating a draft statement by the State Duma, assessing an address by 19 deputies to the Russian Prosecutor- General’s Office, demanding that “ a case on prohibition in our country of all religious and nationalist Jewish associations as extremist should be officially instituted”.

The address was published in the newspaper Rus Pravoslavnaya (Orthodox Russia) last January. It was signed by 13 members of the Rodina faction, including Alexander Krutov, Sergei Glotov, Nikolai Pavlov, Igor Rodionov, Andrei Savelyev and six members of the Communist Party faction, including Nikolai Kondratenko and Albert Makashov. The letter claimed, inter alia, that “the Jewish religion is anti-Christian, misanthropic, going to an extent of ritual murders”.

They withdrew their address some time later. However, it provoked a broad response both in Russia and the world over. The Israeli embassy addressed a statement to Russian authorities on this occasion.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, speaking at the forum “Let My People Live” on January 27, devoted to the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, admitted that he was ashamed of manifestations of anti-Semitism and xenophobia in Russia.

“The German chancellor said quite recently that he is ashamed of the past, but it was the past, while we should be ashamed of nowadays, since we now often see manifestations of this ailment, even in Russia which had done more than others for the victory over fascism and for the liberation of Jews,” the Russian leader said.

Chief Russian rabbi Berl Lazar thanked the president for these words which, in his opinion, “were the response to the events of the past month, including the latest absurd statement by some deputies”. ( the Chief Rabbi also sent strong letters of condemnation to the Speaker of the Duma and the heads of the Communist and Rodina parties)

The Russian Foreign Ministry made a statement where it called the address by deputy “blatant anti-Semitism” and emphasized that it has nothing to do with the general position of the Russian leadership.

Most State Duma deputies also opposed the motion by the 19 legislators. Speaker of the State Duma Boris Gryzlov called the address to the Prosecutor-General’s Office “outrageous”. Chairman of the Duma International Affairs Committee Konstantin Kosachev stressed in an interview with Tass that deputies intend to give a political appraisal to this “vicious anti-Semitic statement, subject to articles of the Criminal code."

[MarMema]

ping to above.

[TheOtherOne]

"The prosecutor has no flexibility in the matter - his office has to investigate."


Your argument falls flat when read with all the details of the story:

"The prosecutor had earlier rejected requests of Jewish organisations to open an investigation into those who were behind the letter asking for outlawing the religion and its organisations."

[anticommunist8]

"Official Russia, that is, not the people."

You think that the Russian people are less anti-Semitic than their government?

Russians have a long history of anti-Semitism. What kept the Tsars in power so long was distracting the massively undereducated peasant population with pogroms.

[TheOtherOne]

You could answer your own question - where in the article does it say 'Russia' calls for a ban on Judaism? You can see the slight of hand involved as you think about it.

Like the headlines today about the Sumpreme Court banning the 10 Commandments.

[Destro]

Not really - this time an object to investigate was provided - just like the FCC won't investigate without an example being provided. Sorry, I looked this up several months ago (this is a several month old article rehashed) when it first happened - now the group that presented the object also came under investigation for anti-semetisim. It withdrew the request and made a public statement against its own claim. Next time do a little deeper digging.

[Alouette]

Can you explain why this old, obsolete story keeps making the rounds?

[Destro]

Disinfo anti-Russian campaign. Same thing was done to the Serbs during their war with the Muslims. Same thing is done to the Israelis in the news as well.

[TheOtherOne]

Not really - this time an object to investigate was provided - just like the FCC won't investigate without an example being provided. Sorry, I looked this up several months ago (this is a several month old article rehashed) when it first happened - now the group that presented the object also came under investigation for anti-semetisim. It withdrew the request and made a public statement against its own claim. Next time do a little deeper digging.

Deeper digging? I read the article. Your statement was contridicted by the article. Sorry I did not do independant research, if your additional information is accurate it makes much more sense.

That being said, there is ground between the believing all of the article or none of it.

[MarMema]

Can you explain why this old, obsolete story keeps making the rounds?

Perhaps it is more comforting to stay focused on hating an old enemy than it is to face the destruction of our constitution right in front of us.

[Alouette]

I think there is a very specific reason this story keeps circulating other than "anti-Russian" sentiment.

There is a religious revival taking place right now in the former Soviet Union that is making the leftists very uncomfortable. We have to realize that anti-Semitism has existed in Russia for more than a thousand years and it is not going to disappear overnight. In spite of that, Judaism is experiencing a tremendous revival and is flourishing as never before.

I suspect that because Orthodox Judaism is enjoying the greatest growth, the liberal sects, which never had much influence on Russian Jewry, keep hammering about residual anti-Semitism as the reason for their lack of success.

FRmail me to be added or removed from this Judaic/pro-Israel/Russian Jewry ping list.

WARNING: This is a high volume ping list

[Destro]

Wow - you might be right since Ha'aretz is the Western paper that regurgitated this old-as-new news. From my conversations with Orthodox Jews on here I was told they are one of the most anti-Orthodox Jewish Israeli papers in favor of the Likuds.

[M. Espinola]

With the clear hand writing on the wall, Russian Jews, those which remain, should serious consider aliyah, prior to get caught behind the lines as a number of German Jews did in 1938.

[Destro]

More like aliyah back into Russia.

[M. Espinola]

"More like aliyah back into Russia."

It's true some have made that mistake however in the long run they will wish they had not. History repeats itself.

[Alouette]

With the clear hand writing on the wall, Russian Jews, those which remain, should serious consider aliyah

How are Russian Jews so much worse off now than they were 20 years ago?

Let's see:

• They have economic freedom.
• They have religious freedom.
• Every where you look there is a new Chabad house.

[Destro]

How long a run? I guess even in America in the long run...

[jb6]

Yup, why the PM is half jewish (second one too), the mayor of Moscow is also Jewish. How many half jewish VPs have we had? How many none protestant presidents have we had? One, a catholic, and yet catholics are 20% of the population. Hmmm.