Positive mood among Jewish guests in Davos GR despite incident
Published: Tuesday, Aug 27th 2024, 09:50
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A new anti-Semitic incident has cast a shadow over the vacation destination of Davos GR. A 19-year-old Jewish guest has filed a complaint after apparently being beaten and insulted by two men. According to the Secretary General of the Swiss Federation of Jewish Communities (SIG), Jonathan Kreutner, the security situation for Jewish people everywhere is currently critical.
According to the victim, the incident took place on Friday night. Kreutner met the young man on Monday, as he said in an interview with the Keystone-SDA news agency in Davos. Such assaults against Jews have increased tenfold in the last year.
The cantonal police of Graubünden confirmed the reported incident on request. However, such incidents often occur "especially when going out", a spokeswoman told Keystone-SDA. The only difference here was that the alleged victim was Jewish. However, investigations are ongoing.
For the SIG Secretary General, such incidents are warning calls and should influence security measures. This is already the case in large cities. The SIG is in constant contact with representatives of the authorities.
Davos again
The fact that another incident had occurred in Davos was a fact, Kreutner continued. But this time it was probably in a different context. The Middle East conflict seems to have been the trigger.
In the past, however, there have been repeated conflicts between Jewish guests and the Davos population. Most recently, there was a sensational scandal last winter when a mountain restaurant no longer wanted to rent sledges to Jewish guests. The tenant of the restaurant was finally sentenced to a conditional fine for racial discrimination at the end of July. He also had to pay a fine.
Kreutner's visit to Davos on Monday was therefore also dedicated to a dialog project. Since 2019, SIG employees have been actively approaching Jewish guests at the vacation destination in order to sensitize them to local customs.
The mediators of this Likrat Public team distribute leaflets and flyers. They state, for example, that Swiss people also say "Grüezi" to strangers and that taking food on public transport is not appreciated.
On-site visit
Kreutner visited a member of the Likrat Public team at work on Monday to see for himself. The mediator was stationed at the Schatzalp mountain station. Numerous Jewish guests in traditional dress were interested in a toboggan run there.
One guest told of an incident at Zurich airport where he had been told to "burn all the Jews". Kreutner was thoughtful, as he had never heard of this incident. Apparently, there are also numerous unreported anti-Semitic incidents in Switzerland, especially when they happen to foreign Jews.
But the mood on the mountain was good. It was as positive as the Secretary General himself had not expected. The Jewish guests were open, friendly and courteous. Some guests from Israel recognized Kreutner and asked for tips for hikes in the "beautiful mountains". "Both sides are sensitized and make a recognizable effort," said Kreutner after the visit. "It's really good to see."
A conversation with a tourism employee also made the Secretary General optimistic. Things are much better this year and the mood is good, the woman reported. This is also due to the lower occupancy rate, explained Kreutner. Due to the Middle East conflict and the late date of a Jewish fasting day, there were obviously fewer Jewish guests in Davos this summer than last year.
Ten agents on duty every day
Nevertheless, he hopes that the positive mood can also be attributed to the Likrat team. During the summer season, ten mediators are on duty every day at highly frequented locations.
In July, ten measures from an externally led task force, consisting of local tourism representatives and the SIG, were also implemented to improve cooperation in Davos. Among other things, a contact point has been set up for guests.
"The feeling that you can only reach your goal together has matured on both sides," said Kreutner. However, he was also aware that things could quickly change again. After all, even a hundred mediators could not prevent an incident like the one last Friday. Global politics cannot be influenced by such prevention projects.
©Keystone/SDA
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