OSCE human rights body launches teaching material on anti-Semitism for German schools

BERLIN, 3 June 2008 - A German version of new innovative teaching materials on anti-Semitism was launched yesterday in Berlin by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), the German Foreign Ministry and the Federal Agency for Civic Education.

The material was developed by the ODIHR together with the Anne Frank House (Amsterdam), the Centre for Research on Anti-Semitism (Berlin) and the Fritz Bauer Institute (Frankfurt).

"This teaching material helps to raise public awareness of the dangers and consequences of anti-Semitism - in past and presence. It gives teachers a tool to educate youth and contributes to more tolerant attitudes among students," said Gert Weisskirchen, the OSCE Chairman-in-Office's Personal Representative on anti-Semitism.

Despite continued efforts of OSCE participating states to condemn all manifestations of anti-Semitism, violent and verbal manifestations of anti-Semitism still exist throughout the OSCE region. The ODIHR provides expertise and assistance to support OSCE States in developing educational tools and curricula to address anti-Semitism and to promote remembrance of the Holocaust.

The German teaching materials will be used by educators throughout Germany to address issues related to historical and contemporary anti-Semitism. The material is accompanied by a guide for teachers as well as training sessions to increase their capacity to use the materials.

ODIHR is developing similar teaching materials for nine other OSCE countries in their respective national languages, including Croatia, Denmark, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Spain, Poland, the Russian Federation and Ukraine.