Current challenges and issues to be raised with your candidates
As we now go into the final weeks of the European Parliament election campaign these are some of the questions which can be raised with the candidates
- The Iranian leader Ahmadinejad has repeatedly pledged to “wipe Israel off the map.” How will your candidate stop him from repeating what Hitler once tried to do?
Several options have been suggested: he could be brought in front of the International Court of Justice in Hague for incitement to genocide
Iran as a country could be placed under an international trade embargo which would close down the economy and mount pressure on their leader to be removed from inside Iran.
Their leader could also be defined as an “international person-non-grata” by the EU by which he could not enter any EU member states before he denounces his statements concerning Israel.
At the end, when all other options are considered, a military strike will need to be considered. What options, if any of these, will your candidates chose?
- How should the EU deal with terrorist organizations, such as Hamas and Hezbollah, which have the destruction of the Jewish state on their agenda?
Hamas is currently placed on the EU terrorist list but Hezbollah is not. Though Hamas is currently banned there are those who would want to start negotiating directly with them even before they have met the criteria set up by the world community, namely; denouncing the armed struggle, recognizing the right of Israel to exist and respecting all previous agreements made by the Palestinian Authority.
- The EU is Israel’s most important trading partner. The planned upgrade of EU-Israeli trade relations has been put on hold by the EU until the new government commits to a two state solution. What will your candidate do to promote free trade between EU and Israel?
The new Israeli government states that it remains committed to peace with its neighbors though it may choose another strategy to achieve this goal than in the past. Though the current Czech EU-presidency has been heavily in favor of supporting an upgrade of EU-Israeli trade relations many other member states, including the European Commission, want to freeze the negotiations.
- Anti-Semitism is on the rise in Europe and in several countries civil society groups are supporting a boycott of Israeli goods. In some countries criminal gangs are looting supermarkets which carry Israeli products. Also in academic circles Israeli teachers and researchers have been boycotted in recent years. What can the EU do to stop this new form of anti-Semitism in Europe?
Several independent reports, such as the Pew Research Centre, Community Security Trust as well as recent reports of the European Commission confirm that anti-Semitism violence has become a real problem and a threat to the security of Jews living in Europe. The month of February of this year (2009) measured the highest level of anti-Semitic incidents since the end of Second World War.
- Several independent reports have shown that Arab and Palestinian media and school books foster a culture of hatred of the Jewish people and are demonizing the Jewish state. What actions should the EU take to make sure that peace education is introduced in the Middle East and that no EU- tax money is allocated to schools or media which incite to hatred?
JFK Kennedy once made the famous remark that peace does not start with a signature on a paper but in the hearts of people. If we wish to see peace in the Middle East we must promote true peace and respect for each other and not hatred and martyrdom.
