“Jewish Community Council of Victoria”的意思、由来-开放百科全书

The Jewish Community Council of Victoria Inc (JCCV) is the peak representative body for Victorian Jewry, representing about 55 Jewish community organisations and over 52,000 Victorian Jews. The JCCV’s mission is to represent the Victorian Jewish community, the largest Jewish community in Australia, on all matters that affect its status, welfare and interests. The JCCV was established in 1938 as the Victorian Jewish Advisory Board. It has been known as the Jewish Community Council of Victoria since 1989 and became an incorporated entity in 2000.

The Australian Context

Jews have lived in what was to become Australia from the beginning of European settlement (1788)^[2] but the Jewish population only grew significantly after World War II, largely due to migration from Europe. The last Australian Census (2006) put the Jewish population of Melbourne (Victoria’s capital) at 40,547 of a national Jewish population of 88,834.^[3] It is estimated, however, that there may well be under-counting of up to 30% for a range of reasons. One reputable analysis of the Census figures estimates that 60,080 Jews live in Victoria, constituting 1.2% of the total Victorian population.^[4] Other estimates, based on the numbers of the various Jewish funeral houses, put the number possibly as high as 100,000 in the early 2000s.

These community has a high concentration around the South Eastern Melbourne suburbs of Caulfield, East St Kilda and Elsternwick, and there are a large number of communal organisations situated in those suburbs, including schools, synagogues and cultural centres. There are also significant pockets of Jews in other areas of Melbourne, including Malvern and Hawthorn East, Bentleigh, Brunswick and Docaster, although those locations do not have the same communal structure and are not served well by communal organisations..

The Victorian Jewish community comprises a range of sub-groups including strong Progressive, Yiddishist, Modern Orthodox, secular, Conservative, and ultra-Orthodox communities. It is a commonly held belief that most of the community can be described as strongly Zionist.

Victoria’s Jewish population has continued to grow due to immigration from the former Soviet Union, South Africa, Israel and New Zealand.

History

The Jewish Community Council of Victoria was established 10 October 1989. It was the successor of a series of communal peak bodies that claimed to be the official voice of Victorian Jewry. The previous versions were the Melbourne Jewish Advisory Board (est. 1921), the Victorian Jewish Advisory Board (est. 1938) and the Victorian Jewish Board of Deputies (est. 1948).

There was a desire for a unified representative voice for the community since the 1880s, but it was a visit from Chief Rabbi Hertz in 1921 that was the trigger for the formation of the organization, where he convinced a number of prominent Melbourne Jews of its need. The membership of the resulting Melbourne Jewish Advisory Board (MJAB), was drawn from the three major synagogue congregations.

In 1936, the secular Judean League, the Yiddishist Kadimah and the Victorian Zionist Organisation pushed MJAB to form a new constitution which would allow input from the non-Orthodox communities. The MJAB renamed itself the Victorian Jewish Advisory Board (VJAB).

During World War II the representational base of the VJAB was further expanded to include 18 constituents by 1947. At a meeting on May 7, 1948, delegates to the VJAB agreed formally to rename and reconstitute themselves as the Victorian Jewish Board of Deputies (VJBD).

In 1988 delegates approved a name change and the VJBD became the Jewish Community Council of Victoria on 10 October 1989. The new name was promoted as having greater meaning for a cosmopolitan Jewry entering the 1990s. The JCCV became an incorporated entity in 2000.

The new organization continued to grow, and today the JCCV has over 50 affiliates.

Affiliation

The JCCV’s affiliation is drawn from various organisations that constitute the Victorian Jewish community. Their affiliates represent a range of religious, political, cultural, welfare, educational and social associations. Affiliates are able to share views through the JCCV’s Plenum, which meets seven times per calendar year.

Affiliates as of December 2017

Activities

Advocacy

The JCCV devotes much of its resources to advocating for the Jewish community with the State Government and other politicians, NGOs, the media and other shapers of public opinion. The JCCV is regularly asked to provide submissions to Government on a wide range of issues on behalf of Victorian Jewry. In the past these have included reforms into the Sentencing Act, Racial Vilification legislation, Child Protection and Equal Opportunity legislation.

The JCCV also coordinates with local Government on issues such as the operation of traffic lights on the Jewish Sabbath.

In partnership with Zionism Victoria, the JCCV promotes a more sophisticated public understanding of Israel's efforts to achieve peace and security, and counteracts misinformation on Israel, the Middle East and in the Arab/Israel conflict.

The JCCV has, however, come in for considerable criticism for a number of public relations failures. Arguably the greatest of these was the JCCV's inability to accommodate the community's LGBTQI community until 2015.^[5]^[6] The JCCV has also been heavily criticised for its failure to tackle key communal issues, such as drug and alcohol abuse,^[7] the rise of the far right, soaring costs of Jewish living, and the refusal to engage in meaningful public advocacy to extradite accused paedophile, former [Addas] Principal, Malka Leifer.^[8]^[9]

Interfaith and intercultural activities

In addition to advocacy, the JCCV is heavily involved in inter/multifaith and inter/multicultural activities and dialogue. This includes establishing bilateral ties and hosting functions with other faiths and communities, and by participating in various multicultural and multifaith organisations, including the Victorian Office of Multiculturalism & Citizenship's Multifaith Advisory Group (MAG), the Faith Communities Council of Victoria, Spiritual Health Victoria, Victoria Police Multicultural Portfolio Reference Group, the Victoria Police Interfaith Council and the Jewish Christian Muslim Association of Australia.

The JCCV did significantly strain their relations with the Islamic Council of Victoria (ICV) due to its invitation of anti-Islam academic Daniel Pipes to address the community. Pipes is noted by the Southern Poverty Law Center as an "anti-Muslim extremist"^[10] and his presence caused the ICV to cancel their official partnership in the annual Jewish Muslim Comedy Debate, and they temporarily broke off all contact with the JCCV.^[11]

Public ceremonies

The JCCV also hosts a variety of public ceremonial events that commemorate or celebrate aspects of communal life, including:

General activities

Another major area of activity is the provision of services to JCCV affiliates and the Jewish community in general. These include:

Community Security Group (CSG)

The Community Security Group (CSG) is a team of volunteers who assist professional security in the community. It exists to ensure the safety and security of the Jewish community in Victoria.

Jewish Emergency Management Plan (JEMP)

Jewish Emergency Management Plan (JEMP) is a coordinated plan to deal with any major emergency, either locally or overseas, which may affect members of the Jewish community.

JEMP provides support to Emergency Service Organisations (ESOs) and communal organisations in event of a major emergency.

The JEMP Recovery Committee plans and manages the recovery of the Jewish communal way of life following a major disaster.