The Board of Deputies of British Jews (BOD) has suspended its membership with the European Jewish Congress (EJC).
“The Board of Deputies of British Jews has suspended all activities with the European Jewish Congress due to concerns about how the Congress is handling misconduct complaints,” the BOD said in a May 31 Facebook post.
According to the Jerusalem Post, the BOD suspended ties with the EJC because of sexual abuse allegations against one of its senior members, who was not asked to step down.
The BOD had for months requested that the employee in question be relieved of his duties. But no action was taken, even after he was allegedly named in sexual assault allegations involving several victims.
The EJC responded to the BOD’s suspension of its membership in a statement: “The European Jewish Congress deeply regrets the decision of the Board of Deputies of British Jews to suspend its activities as an affiliate and completely rejects claims that it has mishandled alleged complaints.”
“The EJC views very seriously any breaches of ethical conduct and will always act immediately to maintain the highest standards of any of its associates,” it said. “We will not be commenting further on this issue at the current time in order not to prejudice the outcome of any independent investigation.”