The President of the Federation of Jewish Communities in Romania (FCER), MP Silviu Vexler, said on Monday that he had recently witnessed a public antisemitic lynching inside the Romanian Parliament and stressed that the law he initiated represents "a major step forward, not only for Romania, but also for Europe".
"Eighty-five years have recently passed since the Legionary antisemitic pogrom in Bucharest, one of whose main targets was the Coral Temple where we are gathered today. After all this time, which may seem long, I am still asked why another commemoration is needed, given the many held over the years and the belief that everything that could be said has already been said and known. Yet over time, I have come to see, and perhaps to understand, that among the very few constants of the world are, in a deeply ironic way, both evil and hope," Silviu Vexler said at the ceremony marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day and the memory of the victims of the Iron Guard antisemitic Pogrom in Bucharest, organised by the FCER.
According to the FCER President, the most important question that must be asked at such a moment is whether anything has truly changed for the better since the previous commemoration.
"At least that is what we would hope. What have we seen? We have seen an explosion of antisemitism at international level and, unfortunately, also at national level. We have seen efforts - with all due quotation marks - to normalise hatred in public discourse and in society. We have even seen what a public antisemitic lynching looks like, painfully reminiscent of the early years of the Holocaust, which took place relatively recently inside the Romanian Parliament itself, instigated by forces and individuals who insistently claim to be defenders of democracy. But at the same time, we have also seen that positive change is possible, albeit requiring even greater effort," Silviu Vexler said.
In this context, the MP argued that the entry into force of the law on combating extremism, "which has apparently become publicly known as the 'Vexler Law', represents a major step forward, not only for Romania, but also for Europe".
"This law, I dare say, represents a decisive legal and moral reaffirmation of responsibility, both for what happened in the past and for what is happening in the present, and especially for what will happen in the future. This is both because it provides state authorities with the much-needed legal instruments to combat these scourges that have nearly destroyed Romania several times, and because it corrects legal flaws that for decades allowed Holocaust deniers, those who promote the cult of war criminals, and those who glorify the image and cult of precisely those who played a decisive role in carrying out the Holocaust in Romania to escape punishment. At least as far as I am concerned, I have seen and continue to see this legislative initiative as a shield protecting democratic society, but also as a form of moral justice, across years and generations, for the victims of the Holocaust. Such a moment would not have been possible without the fundamental support of the PSD, PNL, USR, UDMR and, evidently, the parliamentary group of national minorities. Above all, it was made possible thanks to the support of the leadership of the Romanian Parliament and the Government of Romania," the MP argued.
Silviu Vexler stressed that the most important responsibility of the Federation of Jewish Communities in Romania is the preservation of memory and thanked state institutions for their support.
"I have been informed that, through a collaboration between the National Council for the Study of the Securitate Archives, the Romanian Television and the Centre for the Study of the History of Romanian Jews, within the Federation of Jewish Communities, a unique historical document has been rediscovered and brought to light," the FCER President added.
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