Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev participates in the Annual Conference of the European Jewish Association, which is being held in Budapest, Hungary. The forum is entitled: "Freedom to live. Freedom from hate, freedom to thrive".
Representatives of European and international organizations, institutions from the EU Member States and the scientific community discuss ways to counter the growing levels of anti-Semitism and the increasing attempts to impose hate speech, which put at risk the guarantee of citizens' rights with regard to their ethnic and religious affiliation. The participants in the conference agreed on the common commitment of every European state to oppose manifestations of anti-Semitism that are incompatible with the EU's fundamental values.
Rabbi Rabbi Margolin, President of the European Jewish Association, thanked the representatives of the EU Member States for their joint efforts to guarantee the rights and freedoms of Jewish communities on the Old Continent. Hungary's Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjén stressed his country's commitment to ensuring an environment that guarantees the rights of citizens of Jewish origin, as well as the actions of the authorities to deter manifestations of anti-Semitism.
The discussions focused on the need for joint action at supranational level. In his speech Michael Freilich, Member of the Parliament of the Kingdom of Belgium, noted the importance of regulating the fight against anti-Semitism in national legislations. Europe must prosecute acts of aggression against Jewish communities, not just as an ideology, but as a criminal offence based on ethnic and religious grounds.
Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev briefed the President of the European Jewish Association Rabi Margolin on the position of the Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Bulgaria on zero tolerance towards anti-Semitism and hate speech, as well as on the expert proposals for amendments to the Criminal Code in the part on crimes against the person. In this context, the two also discussed the possibility of jointly organizing an International Conference on combating hate speech to be held in Bulgaria.
During his working visit to Budapest, Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev will meet with his Hungarian counterpart Peter Polt.