Historic Conference In Indonesia: Leaders From The Five Major Faiths Join Together To Condemn Terrorism

June 12, 2007

HISTORIC CONFERENCE IN INDONESIA: LEADERS FROM THE FIVE MAJOR FAITHS JOIN TOGETHER TO CONDEMN TERRORISM

Bali, Indonesia - In an historic first, Jewish leaders, including a Holocaust survivor, a rabbi from Israel and a survivor of a suicide bombing in Jerusalem addressed an interfaith conference in the world's most populous Muslim country. Tolerance Between Religions: A Blessing for All Creation was co-sponsored by the Wahid Institute, the Simon Wiesenthal Center's Museum of Tolerance, and LibForAll Foundation. An audience of 100 community activists, young Imams, Muslim and Hindu students heard from victims of suicide terror in Jakarta, Bali and Jerusalem as well as Holocaust survivor Sol Teichman. Teichman tearfully recalled his family's deportation to Auschwitz, but urged survivors of terrorism, including a young Muslim man disfigured in the bombing of Jakarta's Marriott hotel four years ago to “never to give up hope,” and instead “become the voice of those who can no longer be heard.” The emotion-filled session, which also heard from Tzippy Cohen, an Australian-American woman injured in the horrific Cafe Hillel suicide bombing, was carried live to the Middle East and Europe on the Arabic language Al Hurra satellite network.

At the opening plenary, conference Chairman Abdurrahman Wahid, former President of Indonesia and a leader of some 40 million Muslims, blasted Iranian President Ahmadinejad’s campaign of denying the Holocaust: “President Ahmedinejad is a friend but when he lies about the Holocaust - he is wrong and I say so publicly.”  In a related development, Wahid co-authored an editorial in today’s Wall Street Journal with former Israeli Chief Rabbi and Holocaust survivor, Rabbi Israel Lau, entitled “The Evils of Holocaust Denial” which stated, in part,
       
“By lying about the events of the past, the deniers are paving the way toward the crimes of the future...Let us be clear: The real purpose of Holocaust denial is to degrade and dehumanize the Jewish people. By denying or trivializing the murder of six million Jews by the Nazis and their allies, the deniers are seeking to advance their notion that the victims of the 20^th Century's greatest crime are, in fact, that century's greatest victimizers. By denying or trivializing the Holocaust, the deniers are seeking to rob Jews of their history and their memory -- and what is a people without history and memory?  Indeed,…the deniers are perpetrating what is, in effect, a second genocide. Extinguished as they were from the ranks of the living, Hitler's Jewish victims are now, in effect, to be extinguished from the ranks of the dead.” Wahid and Lau wrote.

Ironically, Rabbi Lau was refused a visa for the gathering because he carries an Israeli diplomatic passport. Indonesia does not recognize the Jewish State.

Rabbi Daniel Landes, of Jerusalem's Pardes Institute was permitted to attend and together with President Wahid and Hindu leader, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar were the first to sign a “call to action” condemning the linkage between religion and violence and to condemn the justification by religious leaders of violence.

“Some crucial milestones were reached today. First that Jews were invited to the table as equals in the world's largest Muslim nation,” said Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associate dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center. “Secondly we saw Muslim leaders explicitly and openly condemn suicide terror and Holocaust denial while publicly embracing victims of terror and a Holocaust survivor. We hope our collective call to action will awaken more voices across the Muslim world to join President Wahid's open condemnation of Ahmadinejad’s Holocaust denial and all those who invoke G-d's name spawn wanton violence,” the Wiesenthal Center official noted. Cooper, who moderated the day-long gathering, added that “the symbolism of convening this diverse group in Bali, the site of recent terrorism, we hope will also help the wonderful people of this region bring back their tourism to pre-terrorism levels.”

Pictured seating at front of room: India's Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Indonesia's President Wahid and Daniel Landes, Director, Pardes Institute, Jerusalem, Israel. Buddhist and Christian leaders also participated. Rabbi Cooper is at the podium(l). Among other presenters was President Wahid's daughter, Yenny, an influential Indonesian political leader. The conference also included, Dr. Fred Balitzer, renowned Political Scientist, and conference co-moderator, C. Holland Taylor, President of the US-based LibForAll Foundation.