BRUSSELS: The European Union unveiled Tuesday a new strategy to combat growing antisemitism in Europe with plans to better tackle hate speech, raise awareness about Jewish life, protect places of worship and ensure that the Holocaust isn’t forgotten.
According to Europe’s Fundamental Rights Agency, nine out of 10 Jews consider that antisemitism has increased in their country and is a serious problem. More than one in three people have considered emigrating to escape the abuse.
The EU’s executive branch, the European Commission, said it was presenting what amounts to the first strategy of its kind given the “persistence and a significant increase of anti-Semitic incidents” around the 27-country bloc.
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that “the strategy we are presenting today is a step change in how we respond to antisemitism. Europe can only prosper when its Jewish communities feel safe and prosper.”
Under the plan, which will be rolled out over this decade, the commission will use EU funds to support member countries as they develop their own national strategies and complement their actions.
The aim is to set up a Europe-wide network of “trusted flaggers” along with Jewish organizations to help remove illegal online hate speech. Brussels will also work with industry and IT companies to prevent the illegal display and sale of Nazi-related symbols, memorabilia and literature online.
Funding will be provided to better protect public spaces and places of worship to help Jewish people feel safer, with 24 million euros ($28 million) available already next year. Other steps will be taken to safeguard Jewish heritage, and raise awareness about Jewish culture, life and traditions.
One in 20 Europeans has never heard of the Holocaust, so the commission also wants to try to keep memory of the genocide alive by creating a network of sites “where the Holocaust happened” in cooperation with local communities.
About 6 million European Jews and millions of other people were killed by the Nazis and their collaborators during World War II.
Another focus of the plan is to ensure that EU aid and development funds that go abroad cannot be used for activities that might incite hatred and violence against the Jewish people.
EU unveils strategy to tackle rising antisemitism in Europe
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EU unveils strategy to tackle rising antisemitism in Europe
- According to Europe’s Fundamental Rights Agency, 9 out of 10 Jews consider that antisemitism has increased in their country
- European Commission President said “the strategy we are presenting today is a step change in how we respond to antisemitism”
Modi ally proposes social media ban for India’s teens as global debate grows
- India is the world’s second-biggest smartphone market with 750 million devices and a billion Internet users
- South Asian nation is a key growth market for social media apps and does not set a minimum age for access
NEW DELHI: An ally of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has proposed a bill to ban social media for children, as the world’s biggest market for Meta and YouTube joins a global debate on the impact of social media on young people’s health and safety.
“Not only are our children becoming addicted to social media, but India is also one of the world’s largest producers of data for foreign platforms,” lawmaker L.S.K. Devarayalu said on Friday.
“Based on this data, these companies are creating advanced AI systems, effectively turning Indian users into unpaid data providers, while the strategic and economic benefits are reaped elsewhere,” he said.
Australia last month became the first country to ban social media for children under 16, blocking access in a move welcomed by many parents and child advocates but criticized by major technology companies and free-speech advocates. France’s National Assembly this week backed legislation to ban children under 15 from social media, while Britain, Denmark and Greece are studying the issue.
Facebook operator Meta, YouTube-parent Alphabet and X did not respond on Saturday to emails seeking comment on the Indian legislation. Meta has said it backs laws for parental oversight but that “governments considering bans should be careful not to push teens toward less safe, unregulated sites.”
India’s IT ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
India, the world’s second-biggest smartphone market with 750 million devices and a billion Internet users, is a key growth market for social media apps and does not set a minimum age for access.
Devarayalu’s 15-page Social Media (Age Restrictions and Online Safety) Bill, which is not public but was seen by Reuters, says no one under 16 “shall be permitted to create, maintain, or hold” a social media account and those found to have one should have them disabled.
“We are asking that the entire onus of ensuring users’ age be placed on the social media platforms,” Devarayalu said.
The government’s chief economic adviser attracted attention on Thursday by saying India should draft policies on age-based access limits to tackle “digital addiction.”
Devarayalu’s legislation is a private member’s bill — not proposed to parliament by a federal minister — but such bills often trigger debates in parliament and influence lawmaking.
He is from the Telugu Desam Party, which governs the southern state Andhra Pradesh and is vital to Modi’s coalition government.
