Norway’s turn to set things straight

"There is a need for an international research institution to undertake an in-depth study of what this Norwegian government has said and done concerning murderous behavior, calls for mass murder of Jews, war crimes, major human rights offenses, restriction of civil liberties and political rights and so on in the Muslim world, including the Palestinian territories. Such a study should also stress on what issues the Norwegian government remained silent. When one will compare this with its behavior toward Israel a clear picture will emerge of its false humanitarianism." (Manfred Gerstenfeld)

Background:
- And so the plot thickens…
- God’s chosen people…

Source: piece in Norway, Israel and the Jews

On March 1st the Israeli political scientist Manfred Gerstenfeld from the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs was misquoted by 20 Norwegian newspapers for saying that "Norway is the most anti-Semitic country in Europe" and "Norwegians are unintelligent and barbaric". These misquotes still circulate in the Norwegian media. You can find more about these misquotes here.

Yesterday on April 5th, in the wake of the media circus regarding the phony source David Weiss, Dagbladet.no runs a op-ed by Gerstenfeld in which he states "There is a need for an international research institution to undertake an in-depth study of what this Norwegian government has said and done…". Read the full text below, or read it in Norwegian here. The heading above and the translation below is from Tundra Tabloids.

Anti-Semitism and anti-Israelism in Norway
Manfred Gerstenfeld

In an article in Dagbladet of 30 March titled "Israelsk avis: Kristin Halvorsen sa "Død over jødene!"" the authors are quoting a text on the TV2 website. It alleges that – in an interview on that station – I said that "The Norwegians are a Jew hating nation," and "The Norwegians are a barbarian and unintellectual people." As I write this, that interview is still on the internet.
(http://www.tv2nyhetene.no/utenriks/article2599956.ece).

Had the authors watched it as they should, instead of reading about it, they could not have heard me say these words.

Normally an interviewer asks questions and the interviewee answers them. I take responsibility for what I say on TV2 in English. However the interviewer also inserts various statements in Norwegian in my name which I did not say, but are his manipulations. Had the TV2 correspondent recorded such statements by me on camera he would have certainly shown them. I am still waiting for an answer from TV2 on my request for an additional interview, in view of these manipulations. I intend now to bring a complaint to Pressens Faglige Utvalg (PFU). In the meantime the same TV2 interviewer has also radically distorted some of my words in a telephone conversation he had with the daily Dagen which was published. (on April 2).

Dagbladet has asked me whether I told the journalist of the Jerusalem Post that Kristin Halvorsen [photo above] shouted "death to the Jews" in a pro-Palestinian rally. I did not. What I told her is that Halvorsen is an extreme anti-Israeli. I also referred her to the largest Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronot as a source which mentions that Halvorsen was present when there were such shouts by others. Since then the Finnish blog Tundra Tabloids and afterwards Dagens Naeringsliv have published a picture of Halvorsen smiling in an anti-Israeli demonstration in 2009. Very close to her another demonstrator holds a sign: "The greatest axis of evil: USA and Israel."

One can find my detailed views on Anti-Semitism and anti-Israelism in Norway in my book in English Behind the Humanitarian Mask, The Nordic countries, Israel and the Jews, which was published last year. Due to the great international interest in the book, only a few printed copies remain. The Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs therefore recently made the book available at no cost on the internet. Many thousands have entered that website since.

Norway is a country where the political leadership in power is very critical of the Israeli democracy. This government is also relatively soft on Israel’s dictatorial opponents, some of which declare that they want to murder all Jews. This supports a state of mind in Norway which can only lead to more hatred of Israel and Jews.

There is a need for an international research institution to undertake an in-depth study of what this Norwegian government has said and done concerning murderous behavior, calls for mass murder of Jews, war crimes, major human rights offenses, restriction of civil liberties and political rights and so on in the Muslim world, including the Palestinian territories. Such a study should also stress on what issues the Norwegian government remained silent. When one will compare this with its behavior toward Israel a clear picture will emerge of its false humanitarianism.

Furthermore several Norwegian Jews have made public statements concerning anti-Semitism they have encountered over recent years. Some are mentioned in my book. Others were made in private because people are afraid. In many countries there are studies on local anti-Semitism.

Such a study on Norway is necessary. The media attacks on those who expose anti-Israelism and anti-Semitism will not make the problems go away.

Dr. Manfred Gerstenfeld is chairman of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs