Jews will run away from Norway, author says
That was a real height for the Jewish community. Early 2015, Muslim came to the synagogue in Oslo to demonstrate their solidarity with the Jewish community. But Jews are still complaining about antisemitism. Photo EPA, Hakon Mosvold Larsen
Northern Europe
The Jewish author in Norway, Monica Csango, holds Norwegian authorities responsible for Norwegian Jews feeling increasingly insecure. She expects that the Jewish community in the country will shrink in the coming years.
“I am upset that as a minority in a country like Norway, I should go around feeling a steady unrest,” Monica Csango told the newspaper Dagen. She is quoted by the Christian pro-Israel portal Ikaj.no.
At the moment, there are about 1,400 Jews on a total Norwegian population of 5.3 million. Strict religious Jewish life in Norway is challenging since un-stunned religious slaughter is forbidden in the country. That means that kosher meat must be imported.
In May 2012, the Norwegian Center for Studies of Holocaust and Religious Minorities published a report based on a survey on antisemitism in the Norwegian population. The report found that about 12.5 per cent of those surveyed had distinct antisemitic prejudices.
Monica Csango (52) is a writer, filmmaker and journalist. She wrote a book about her Jewish family history for the Norwegian publishing house Kagge. She has written quite a lot about the difficulties of Jewish life in Norway.
Incited on social media
She has been grossly incited on social media after commenting on the growing anti-Semitic Norwegian Jews’ experience.
“In a few decades, I think many Jews in Norway and Sweden will look at other solutions for where they can live. I hold the authorities responsible for that “, Csango says.
The newspaper asked the government to comment on Csango’s statements. “The government together will give high priority to work against conspiracy theories and extremism, and will focus on more knowledge in schools and strengthen the centres of peace and human rights,” said Labor and Inclusion Minister Hadia Tajik. But on the other hand, as Ikaj.no notes, the government defends support for controversial Palestinian textbooks with anti-Jewish content elements.
The minister of Local Government and District Bjørn Bjørn Arild Gram is responsible for fighting antisemitism. Gram defines antisemitism as “a societal problem.” “Unfortunately, antisemitism is a societal problem, both in Norway and in Europe. Norway must be a safe country to live in for everyone. It is important that Jews in Norway talk about their experiences, and I notice the worries and unrest that Csango describes… It is sad to hear… I am happy to receive more input on how the effort can be strengthened”, Gram says to Dagen.
Antisemitism very common
According to ikaj.no, anti-Semitic attitudes among Norwegians are “very common”, especially on the outer wings of the political spectre.
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