Following the lead of Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and in response to a campaign by United States senators, the US State Department announced on June 1, 2011 that it will not participate in Durban III, a United Nation’s initiative planned for September 2011 in New York City.
According to the website for Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, "At Gillibrand's Urging, U.S. Announces Pull-Out from U.N. Durban III Summit" June 1, 2011 her bipartisan effort has been successful.
Record of Anti-Semitism
On November 23, 2010 the United Nations General Assembly had announced that it would hold the Durban III World Conference Against Racism on September 21, 2011, in New York City. The previous two conferences, Durban I and Durban II, raised charges from Canada, the United States, and Israel that the events emphasized criticism of Israel, at the expense of addressing racism.
Durban I was held in Durban, South Africa in 2001. During the conference, Canada, the United States, and Israel walked out citing undue criticism of Israel and the attempts to liken Zionism to racism. During this event, Israel was targeted while ongoing genocide and gross human rights abuses perpetrated by other states were given scant attention.
Durban II was held in Geneva, Switzerland in 2009. Canada, the US, and Israel, along with seven other UN member states would not participate. Prior to this conference, the Canadian government stated that while Canada looked forward to attending a different, more serious anti-racism conference, it would boycott Durban II. In "PM sends MP Pierre Poilievre to represent Canada at the Conference Against Racism, Discrimination and Persecution in Geneva" April 22, 2009, Poilievre states, "The Durban process ... has unfortunately degenerated into a soapbox for those who would demonize the democratic State of Israel and the Jewish people while ignoring racism and human rights abuses elsewhere. ”
Quick Response by Canada to Durban III
Unlike the US, which waited six months, Canada had a quick response to the announcement of Durban III. Two days after the UN released its plans for the new conference, on November 25, 2010 according to the Agence France-Presse article, "Canada to boycott UN Durban race declaration event" Immigration Minister Jason Kenney stated, "Our government has lost faith in the Durban process. We will not be part of this event, which commemorates an agenda that promotes racism rather than combats it." He added, "Canada will not participate in this charade any longer."
US Senator Gillibrand’s Campaign Applauded Canada
In December 2010, US Senator Kirsten Gillibrand led an 18-senator campaign urging US pull-out from Durban III. In a letter to the American Ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice, she stated that they appreciated the US opposition to the resolution of Durban III, but urged a boycott of the conference, since its display of anti-Semitism undermined the goals of fighting racism. She also applauded the Canadian government for its already-announced decision to boycott the event.
She further characterized Durban III as “a forum for anti-Semitic and anti-American demonstrations, which would again taint this opportunity to combat the abhorrent practices of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, and related forms of intolerance.”
US State Department Announces Boycott of Durban III
On June 1, 2011, the US announced that it too will boycott the upcoming Durban III conference. United Nations Watch, a Geneva based non-governmental organization whose mandate is to monitor the United Nations, published a copy of the letter which confirms this on its Facebook page "U.S. pulls out of U.N.'s controversial 'Durban III' Summit" June 1, 2011.
The letter is from Joseph E. Macmanus, Acting Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs, US State Department, to Senator Gillibrand in answer to her letter of last December. In announcing that the US will not take part in Durban III, he refers to the fact that in December 2010, the US had voted against the establishment of this event “because the Durban process included ugly displays of intolerance and anti-Semitism, and we did not want to see that commemorated.”
Macmanus goes on to state that the original Durban I Declaration unfairly singled out Israel for criticism and included language which was contrary to the strong US commitment to free speech.
The American Anti-Defamation League in its press release of June 2, 2011 "ADL Welcomes US Decision to Avoid 'Durban III'" approves the US move to boycott this event which it says illustrates anti-Semitism and anti-Israel extremism at the UN. It further states that there should be no commemoration of Durban I, an event which ushered in a new strategy for the vilification of Israel.
Jen L. Jones - Based in Canada, Jones writes on human rights, history,and the natural world. She focuses also on Turkish and Scottish travel and ...
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