Jews in West Berlin Reassured After Left-wing Gains There

Prominent members of the new ruling coalition in West Berlin have assured Jewish leaders that the authorities’ support for the local Jewish community will remain as steady as ever, despite recent left-wing gains at the electoral polls.

But privately, some of these government members concede that ties with Israel could suffer as a result of ideological and political differences in the new left-wing coalition in West Berlin between the Social Democratic Party and the Alternative List, a branch of the national Green Party.

Both the leadership and the membership of the Greens frequently have shown hostility toward Israel. Critics, some even within the Green Party, have accused the ecologically-minded party of anti-Semitic tendencies.

The charges surfaced during the elections last week in Frankfurt and the federal state of Hesse, when the Greens accused the ruling Christian Democratic Party of trying to stir up anti-Semitism.

The Christian Democrats immediately retorted that the Greens, themselves, have been accused of anti-Semitism.

West Berlin has traditionally maintained very close ties with Israeli institutions and personalities. According to a leading Alternative List member, who asked not to be identified, present contacts between the Germans and Israelis will not suffer.

The immediate priority, he said, is to try to reach out to Arabs in the administered territories. He said that in this respect, the coalition will follow what he called a more “balanced” line than the previous coalition dominated by the Christian Democrats.

West Berlin’s new mayor, Walter Momper, is considered by Jewish activists to be a dedicated friend. He is likely to maintain the good working relationship between the authorities and the community’s center in Fasanen Street.

The so-called “Red-Green” coalition is also likely to emerge in Frankfurt, home of West Germany’s second-largest Jewish community.