New York, N.Y., October 8, 2002 ... The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today called on Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to denounce a Holocaust denial conference being planned for October 12-14 in Verona. Organizing the conference is the Nuovo Ordine Europeo (NOE), which describes its mission as opposing a worldwide "Jewish adversary."

In a letter to Prime Minister Berlusconi, Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director said:

The Nuovo Ordine Europeo (NOE), an organization dedicated to promulgating Holocaust denial and anti-Semitism, is planning a conference in Verona, Italy, on October 12-14. The group, which until recently was known as Nuovo Ordine Nazionale (NON), describes its mission as opposing a worldwide "Jewish adversary," and is headed by Angelo Cauter, an active member of the neo-Fascist, Movimiento Fascismo e Libertą.

This is the third such conference organized by this group in Italy. Two earlier conferences were held in Trieste, in October 2001 and May 2002.

Holocaust deniers allege that Jews fabricated the claim that they were singled out for persecution and genocide by the Nazi regime during World War II, in order to extract reparations and sympathy from the rest of the world. These allegations raise suspicion against Jewish people everywhere, and rehabilitate anti-Semitism by disassociating it from the genocide of the 1940s.

With the number of Holocaust survivors dwindling and anti-Semitic tensions in Europe higher than they have been in decades, we respectfully urge the Italian government to do all it can to prevent this conference from taking place through the implementation of appropriate laws against hatred. We also urge you to denounce this latest manifestation of anti-Semitism, to promote tolerance and ensure the security of Italian Jews.

The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.