Brussels, 24/03/2003 (Agence Europe) - The third and last round table in the series organised by Commissioner Anna Diamantopoulou and the European Monitoring Centre for Racism and Xenophobia in Vienna, which took place in Brussels on 20 March, was on the theme of "Dialogue and co-operation between ethnic and religious groups". Present were experts on Islam and Judaism, and representatives from the EU Member States and accession countries, notably in the fields of law, education and media. After the round table, Anna Diamantopoulou said that the work had shown that "we can address these problems if we have the good-will we need. Political, religious and community leaders must face up to their responsibilities, and act to foster co-operation and understanding between different groups of society". Stating that the round table's conclusion was that a "culture of reconciliation" must be promoted, Ms Diamantopoulou said: "a culture which is the sum total of many small actions, which appear insignificant when isolated, but are powerful when taken together".
Commissioner Diamantopoulou also drew her audience's attention to the risks that war in the Gulf may entail for Muslim communities in Europe, pointing out: "during the last Gulf War, we saw a dramatic increase in attacks on Muslims and people of Arab origin. More recently, we have witnessed a violent surge in anti-Semitism, as a reaction to tension in Israel and Palestine. We must do all in our power to avoid a repeat performance as a reaction to this new conflict in the Gulf".
The first round table in December 2002 tackled the subject of anti-Semitism, and the second, in February 2003, focussed on the fight against Islamophobia (see, among others, EUROPE of 6 February, p.13).