New York—The World Jewish Congress reports that Ambassador Ronald Lauder was re-elected president of the  World Jewish Restitution Organization (WJRO)  in early October, and Abraham Biderman was elected co-chairman, joining Natan Sharansky as co-chair. Biderman brings several decades’ experience as a Jewish communal leader and a deep involvement in Holocaust-related restitution issues to his new position. He replaces Steven Schwager, who is stepping down following his retirement as Executive Vice President and CEO of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee.

Mr. Biderman has been involved in Jewish and Shoah-related issues his whole life. His parents were Holocaust survivors from Poland and he was born in the Templehof Displaced Persons camp in Germany. He is a trustee of Agudath Israel of America; Chairman of the Hebrew Free Loan Society’s Investment Committee and a member of its board; past President of the World Jewish Congress Foundation, and has played a leadership role in many other Jewish organizations and institutions. He was appointed by Secretary of State Clinton as a member of the U.S. government delegation to the 2009 Prague Conference on Holocaust Era Assets. Mr. Biderman is the Chairman of Eagle Advisers, LLC, a diversified financial advisory and financial services firm, and worked in a number of positions for the State and City of New York for 15 years.

Going forward, the WJRO is focusing its efforts on Poland, the only major country in Central or Eastern Europe that has not passed legislation for the restitution of private property stolen during the Holocaust. The WJRO will continue to advocate for the return of communal and private property in other countries, including Croatia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania and Romania.