René Cassin, the UK Jewish human rights charity, has written to Michael Gove, Secretary of State at the Department for Levelling-up, Housing and Communities, expressing concern over the Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Bill.
Mia Hasenson-Gross, Executive Director of René Cassin, warned that the proposed legislation is an attack on fundamental civil and political rights, an anti-democratic over-reach of state power, risks hampering the charity’s work to support Uyghur Muslims facing genocide in China, and risks undermining community cohesion.
The Bill was introduced to the House of Commons on 19 June 2023, and will be debated in its Second Reading in the Commons on Monday 3 July.
In her letter to Gove, Hasenson-Gross said: “The Jewish community knows all too well of the consequences of silencing opposition and free speech and this bill runs contrary to our Jewish values and experience. We are encouraged that many communal organisations have already spoken out against the legislation, including the Union of Jewish Students and a range of Jewish youth movements. We encourage the rest of the British Jewish community to join us in rejecting this Bill, which is harmful for Jews in the UK and harmful for the fight for human rights for all”.
René Cassin has requested an opportunity to meet with the Secretary of State to discuss the charity’s concerns and how these might be mitigated.
Mia Hasenson-Gross, René Cassin’s Executive Director, said: “We take our name from the French-Jewish author of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). The Bill is an attack on fundamental civil and political rights, in particular the right to freedom of expression as outlined in the preamble and Article 19 of the UDHR, and as guaranteed under Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights. This sets a dangerous precedent, where the personal preferences of an individual minster can influence the extent to which local democratically elected bodies can exercise their rights”.
More information on the Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Bill is available on Parliament’s website at https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3475.
René Cassin, the UK Jewish human rights charity, has expressed concern over the proposed Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Bill, which is currently being debated in the House of Commons.
Mia Hasenson-Gross, Executive Director of René Cassin, has written to Michael Gove, Secretary of State at the Department for Levelling-up, Housing and Communities, warning that the Bill is an attack on fundamental civil and political rights, an anti-democratic over-reach of state power, and risks hampering the charity’s work to support Uyghur Muslims facing genocide in China, as well as undermining community cohesion.
Hasenson-Gross said: “The Jewish community knows all too well of the consequences of silencing opposition and free speech and this bill runs contrary to our Jewish values and experience. We are encouraged that many communal organisations have already spoken out against the legislation, including the Union of Jewish Students and a range of Jewish youth movements. We encourage the rest of the British Jewish community to join us in rejecting this Bill, which is harmful for Jews in the UK and harmful for the fight for human rights for all”.
In her letter to Gove, Hasenson-Gross outlined René Cassin’s concerns, which include the Bill violating the right to freedom of expression as outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and European Convention on Human Rights, as well as setting a dangerous precedent in terms of the personal preferences of an individual minister influencing the extent to which local democratically elected bodies can exercise their rights. She has requested an opportunity to meet with the Secretary of State to discuss the charity’s concerns and how these might be mitigated.
More information on the Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Bill is available on Parliament’s website at https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3475.
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