Behind the Humanitarian Mask: The Nordic Countries, Israel and the Jews

No. 1, December
Symposium

Behind the Humanitarian Mask: The Nordic Countries, Israel and the Jews
Speakers: Amb. Zvi Mazel, Dr. Efraim Zuroff, Dr. Manfred Gerstenfeld

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Behind the Humanitarian Mask: The Nordic Countries, Israel and the Jews, edited by Dr. Gerstenfeld, analyzes the attitude of the Nordic countries toward Israel and the Jews. Behind the Nordic countries' appearance and oft-proclaimed concern for human rights lurk darker attitudes. Our speakers lift this humanitarian mask and expose many of the characteristics behind it.

Gert Weisskirchen, Member of the German Parliament and Personal Representative of the Chairman-in-Office of the OSCE on Combating Anti-Semitism, says that it is the merit of this volume to put the spotlight on such an underreported phenomena that cannot be ignored or trivialized.

Annelie Enochson, Member of the Swedish Parliament, called the book an impressive and serious survey of different forms of anti-Semitism in the Nordic countries.

Hannu Takkula, Member of the European Parliament from Finnland, says that Dr. Manfred Gerstenfeld's research offers a pioneering and thought-provoking analysis and that the book is of interest to anyone concerned with modern history and its implications evident in current relations between the Nordic Countries and Israel.

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ISBN 978-965-218-066-7, 276 pp.Book price: 80NIS / $29
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The symposium led to around 40 articles in the Norwegian press. Some harsh reactions and the often onesided debate proved the book's premises.

Not related to the book, Aftenposten, the leading conservative daily, published four anti-Israeli articles on consecutive days without any counter arguments presented.
On November 27, comedian Otto Jespersen said the following on TV2, Norway's largest commercial TV station:
"I would also like to take the opportunity to remember all the billions of fleas and lice that lost their lives in German gas chambers, without having done anything wrong other than settling on persons of Jewish background."
A week later he went even further. He decided to end his 'satyric' monologue full of anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli tirades with this:
"Finally, I would like to wish all Norwegian Jews a Merry Christmas. no, what am I saying! You don't celebrate Christmas, do you!? It was even you who crucified Jesus."
Two years ago Jespersen burnt pages from the Hebrew Bible on television.

Even more scandalous is that the TV2 management backs Jespersen up. This reflects the perverted atmosphere among part of the Norwegian elite as detailed in the book Behind the Humanitarian Mask: The Nordic countries, Israel and the Jews.

About the book: From the Israeli press (all articles in English):

Nordic exposure - Jerusalem Post, Book Review by Isi Leibler (November 6, 2008)
Right to Reply: Denmark's merit in rescuing its Jews cannot be denied - Liselotte Plesner,Ambassador of Denmark in Israel (November 24,2008)
Israeli academics to accuse Scandinavian countries of anti-Semitism - Ha'aretz (November 25, 2008)
Norwegian ex-premier counters anti-Semitism accusations, slams Israel- Ha'aretz (November 28, 2008)

Antisemitic cartoons have been published in Norway's leading papers as well as in others.
Three examples:



The first cartoon from Dagbladet depicts Prime Minsiter Ehud Olmert as a Nazi commander of a death camp, randomly shooting Palestinians to death. The second cartoon from Verdens Gang portrays the Jews of Israel as parasites who stole land from the Arabs. Written on the top is "Land-Robbers" and on the bottom, "Grab Every Little Bit" with playing with the word Semite. According to the third cartoon from Dagsavisen "murder, kill, liquidate, execute" and so on are, according to the Labor movement's newspaper, a modern version of the Ten Commandments.

For Erez Uriely's article on Jew-Hatred in Contemporary Norwegian Caricatures click here!

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http://www.jcpa.org/indexph.asp

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