Wiesenthal Centre to French Justice Minister: National Consultative Commission for Human Rights (CNCDH) Awardees Violate French Law

"The Centre called on the Minister to forestall what is an antisemitic travesty by withdrawing the prizes to Israeli boycott campaigner Betselem and alleged Palestinian terrorism linked AlHaq"

"This sullies an award to mark the 70th anniversary of the UN Declaration of Human Rights authored by Rene Cassin, a French Jew!"

In a letter to French Justice Minister, Nicole Belloubet, the Simon Wiesenthal Centre’s Director for International Relations, Dr. Shimon Samuels, expressed disgust that, “on International HumanRights Day, the French National Commission for Human Rights (CNCDH) awards its ‘French Republic, Liberty, Equality, Fraternity Prize’ to two recipients that represent the contrary of each ofthose values:

- The Israeli ‘B’Tselem’ B.D.S. (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) campaigner against its own country;
- The Palestinian ‘Al Haq’ (Justice), whose leaders, according to NGO Monitor, are active figures of the PFLP - an organization on the EU and US terrorism lists - responsible for the 1976 AirFrance hijack to Entebbe, among hundreds of attacks on French and other Jewish targets

The letter argued that, “As a state entity under the auspices of the Ministry of Interior, we consider CNCDH as violating French law in endorsing ‘B’Tselem’,a group that is a fervent boycottactivist - itself illegal under French law”...adding, “Likewise, in honouring Al Haq, an organization reportedly linked to PFLP terrorism, the CNCDH is violating French and European securitylaw.”

The Centre called on the Minister, “to forestall what is an antisemitic travesty by withdrawing these prizes, to publicly condemn those responsible and see that they are removed from theCNCDH.

Samuels described a personal experience with 'Al Haq'
"As the only Jew elected to the International Steering Committee of the Durban 2001 UN Conference Against Racism, I was approached by ‘Al Haq’ at one of the Preparatory Committees in Geneva.Their representative whispered in my ear: ‘Give us Palestine and we will give you the Holocaust!’ On arrival to Durban, I was told that ‘Al Haq’ was behind my expulsion from the Committee - apredominantly antisemitic cabal that had dubbed me ‘the world Jew’.”

“Does that make ‘Al Haq’ worthy of a French human rights award or does it sully an award to mark the 70th anniversary of the UN Declaration of Human Rights authored by Rene Cassin, a French Jew?Madam Minister, your silence will be construed as indifference,” concluded Samuels.

For further information, contact Shimon Samuels on +33 147 237 637, join the Center on Facebook, www.facebook.com/simonwiesenthalcenter, or follow @simonwiesenthal for news updates sent direct to your Twitter feed.

The Simon Wiesenthal Center is one of the largest international Jewish human rights organizations with over 400,000 member families in the UnitedStates. It is an NGO at international agencies including the United Nations, UNESCO, the OSCE, the OAS, the Council of Europe and the Latin American Parliament (Parlatino).