From April 29 to May 1, 2019, Doris Bures, the Second President of the Austrian National Council (i.e. the Deputy Speaker of the Austrian House of Representatives), visited New York City to meet with representatives of the American Jewish community including American Jewish Committee (AJC) Board of Governors Chair Harriet Schleifer as well as Viennese-born Rabbi Arthur Schneier. After a visit to the Park East Synagogue, Doris Bures attended a reception for Austrian Jewish Holocaust survivors and their descendants held at the Austrian Consulate General in New York. In her opening remarks, she stressed “Austria’s historical responsibility to lead the fight against anti-Semitism.”

Furthermore, Doris Bures met with María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés, President of the 73rd session of the General Assembly at the United Nations. They discussed the essential roles parliamentarians play in bringing the people they represent closer to the United Nations, especially on issues of gender equality as well as countering hate speech and violence. She also held a bilateral with Åsa Regnér, who serves as Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director at UN Women.

All photos (except the last one) (c) Austrian Parliament, Anton Brookes