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June 12, 1992 - Image 30

Resource type:
Text
Publication:
The Detroit Jewish News, 1992-06-12

Disclaimer: Computer generated plain text may have errors. Read more about this.

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French Jewish Leader
Faces Rifts, Le Pen

Paris (JTA) — Although
Jean Kahn's re-election to a
second term as president of
the Jewish umbrella body
CRIF was unopposed, he
faces serious political and
cultural divisions within the
French Jewish community,
the largest in Western
Europe.
He must also contend with
the continuing threat of
Jean-Marie Le Pen's far-
right, racist National Front,
which won 14 percent of the
vote in the last elections and
expects to do even better in
the next.
CRIF, the Representative
Council of French Jewish
Organizations, represents
some 60 major Jewish organ-
izations in France. But its
claim to speak for French
Jewry is being challenged.
Mr. Kahn, 63, sticks to his
guns. "My policy is based on
three principles: federate,
unite and open up," he told
the Jewish Telegraphic
Agency.
"Federate is the sense that
all the meaningful Jewish
organizations should feel
fully represented by CRIF,"
Mr. Kahn said.
By unite he means "that
we have to concentrate on
our basic values, the ones
shared not only among Jews,
but with the rest of the
French population."
He acknowledged that
Jews have their special con-
cerns. "But since our values
stand for democracy and
against bigotry, they extend
well beyond the Jewish
community," Mr. Kahn said.
"Open up means that at
present a very large number
of the 600,000 French Jews
do not belong to any Jewish
organization. I want them to
find a place within the very
wide range of organizations
comprising CRIF," he said.
"Whatever their basic in-
terests are, I am sure there
is a place where they can feel
at home within the organiz-
ed community," he added.
At the moment, Mr. Kahn
has still not succeeded in br-
inging the Consistoire back
under the CRIF umbrella,
which it left six years ago.
The Consistoire, a body
created by Napoleon, repre-
sents mainly religious in-
stitutions. It seceded from
CRIF in 1986 when the
CRIF president at the time,
Theo Klein, founded the Eu-
ropean Jewish Congress as
an independent affiliate of
the World Jewish Congress.
Consistoire President

Jean-Paul Elkann disap-
proved of CRIF becoming a
constituent of the EJC,
which he considered an
agency of the WJC.
Mr. Elkann, one of the
founders of CRIF, insisted
that it remain totally in-
dependent of U.S. institu-
tions, which he identified
the WJC as being.
Nevertheless, Mr. Kahn is
still hopeful the Consistoire
will re-unite with CRIF
"I'll keep on trying," he told
JTA. Finally, CRIF faces a
struggle for identity among
French Jews, brought on by
the expanding activity and
increased visibility of
Chasidic and other strictly
Orthodox forces within the
Jewish community.
Many members of secular L=-,
Jewish organizations resent
the increasing amount of at-
tention that the Jewish

CRIF's claim to
speak for French
Jewry is
challenged.

media give to the activities
of such groups as the Chabad --
movement of Lubavitch
Chasidim, which they con-
sider to be a distortion of the
.Jewish community's image.
"Most of us are non-
practicing Jews. The very
observant are a small
minority, but suddenly they
appear as the only true
Jews, and some of them even c->
try to deny us the name of
Jews," complained one
leader.
In addition, the apparent
eagerness of France's chief
rabbi, Joseph Sitruk, to
become the sole represent-
ative of the Jews of France
has brought him into conflict
with CRIF.
Meanwhile, CRIF must
prepare for a sudden surge
in the popularity and in-
fluence of Le Pen's neo-
fascist National Front. Kahn
and CRIF waged an all-out
battle against the possibility
of a political alliance bet-
ween any of the traditional
French parties and Mr. Le
Pen.
So far, they have been suc-
cessful. But Mr. Le Pen de-
rives his strength from econ-
omic hardship. Unemploy-
ment in France has soared to
over 10 percent.
If the economy continues to
deteriorate, the National
Front may do well in the
elections.

cD7

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