EAJC: Distortion of Ideas About Judaism is Unacceptable

On October 26, the Russian edition ‘Argumenty i Fakty’ published an article by Lieutenant General Alexei Pavlov, Assistant Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation. The author of the article under the heading “What is cooked in the “witch’s cauldron”” calls the supporters of Lubavitcher Hasidism (Chabad) a “cult” and calls for the “desatanization” of Ukraine. According to Pavlov, “the main life principle of the Lubavitcher Hasidim is the superiority of the supporters of the sect over all nations and peoples.” Such formulations caused a storm of indignation in the Jewish community of Russia and the Israeli media.

The Euro-Asian Jewish Congress considers these assessments absolutely unacceptable. Such views, expressed in the pages of one of the most popular printed publications in Russia, can have dangerous consequences and lead to a surge in anti-Semitism. Especially given the position of the article’s author. We are convinced that a person related to the national security issues of any state has no right to express such provocative ideas. We urge the Russian authorities to pay attention to this problem.

Commenting on the publication, EAJC President Dr. Michael Mirilashvili noted: “The ideas, that the author of the article allowed himself to express, in the last century led to the most terrible crimes against the Jewish people, the consequences of which we still feel. People who hold such views should not be allowed to spread them freely in the media.”

“Attempts to distort ideas about Judaism in the public consciousness are absolutely unacceptable and have no place in the modern world. As we remember from history, it was the spread of such ideas that led to the most terrible events of the past. People spouting hateful ideas, usually are not particularly interested in historical truth. They do not think about the consequences of their words, because their main driver is cheap popularity among radical groups. Such manipulations are unacceptable, since their destructive side effect is the incitement of anti-Semitic sentiments in society,” said EAJC President Michael Mirilashvili.