On March 6 last we posted on the file in Articles entitled "Transnational Bankruptcy" the news that - after the US, Israel and Canada - Italy has announced it too is pulling out of the racist hate-fest commonly referred to as Durban II.
At this moment the UK, France and the Netherlands are sitting on the fence, hoping against hope that antisemitism and Anti-Zionism will be struck from the final declaration.
From the shameful spectacle of the first Durban instalment, we know this is just not going to happen. The UN is increasingly a soapbox for entities actively combating universal values.
One group of Irish have had it. Tom Carew, Chairman of the Ireland-Israel Friendship League, has just submitted an open letter to the Irish Government.
We suggest that sympathetic readers whose governments belong to the fence dwelling nations, draft and send similar pamphlets to their leaders:
Canada, Israel, Italy, and USA [under President Obama] have already refused to
attend the UN "Durban II" Conference on Racism in Geneva in April, which is a follow-up to "Durban I" in 2001, which, on Arab and Muslim insistence, condemned only Israel, and, on African insistence, demanded huge Western reparations for slavery. As a result, USA and Israel walked out of "Durban I".
The current text of the Draft Outcome Document, for signature by all attending states, is "not salvageable", said the US State Dept. It:
[a] introduces the dubious, newly-invented notion of "defamation of religion", on Muslim insistence, which assaults freedom of speech, but does not endorse freedom to leave, practice or propagate any religion of your choice;
[b] again singles out only one State - Israel, for condemnation, as happened in 2001 at "Durban I";
[c] demands huge Western reparation for slavery;
[d] has a planning body chaired by Libya, that also includes Iran, Pakistan and Cuba on it; and
[e] includes attempts to counter Western efforts to combat terrorism.
The Canadian Immigration Minister, Jason Kenney, in a recent speech in UK, declared that the conference platform "runs counter to Canada's tradition as an international champion of tolerance". Canada, last year, was the first State to declare it would boycott "Durban II".
It seems worthwhile for all of us to urgently ensure that no EU state, nor the EU as such, takes any part in this hypocritical and sinister charade. Specifically, we urge the European Presidency to act according to its own guidelines and therefore boycott Durban II, and encourage European nations to follow suit. The chief planners for Durban II are a 20-strong panel, chaired by Libya and comprise a diverse group that includes countries ranked among the worst offenders of human rights, among them Iran, Pakistan and Cuba.
As such, one example of what may be expected at the upcoming Durban II conference can be seen through the results of a recent committee tasked with drafting for Durban II, whereby Iran and Syria asked that provisions against Holocaust-denial be deleted. Syria also requested that mention of the Holocaust should be minimized as the Syrians claimed that there is "no agreement on the consensus on the percentage of those who perished in the Holocaust."
The fact that Holocaust denial is gaining a prominent place at a United Nations-sponsored conference ostensibly devoted to combating racism is troubling and beyond hypocritical. It is nothing short of a Kafka-esque scenario when some of the world’s worst human rights abusers are not only let off the hook, but chair an international conference on the issue.
For over a year, European leaders have made important statements that they will not tolerate the virulent Anti-Semitism that was on display at the first Durban conference in 2001. The Durban II committees have had ample time to prevent a repeat of the debacle from the first Durban conference.
However, with only a few weeks left before the UN conference convenes, and no wholesale improvements on the draft language expected, Europeans are waiting for their elected officials to show their leadership on human rights and Anti-Semitism by announcing that they will not take part in Durban II.
Tom Carew
Chair
Ireland-Israel Friendship League
Dublin
Posts
3 comments:
Have you sent this to Pamela at Atlas Shrugs? JD.
No, JD, I haven't. I consider this my scoop ;P
DurbanII, is indeed, a joke if they are doing as you say. Must admit I was familiar with the conference and I generally keep up with news items. The points on reparations and Israel are disturbing, but would generally be expected from that group. First on reparations---that is really joke, slavery was practiced all over the Africian continent before the advent of the white man. The only slavery that was unacceptable was when a white man made a slave of a black, which was an exception since most sold into slavery were already slaves when they were sold---a common practice. On Israel--as long as the state of Israel exist the roar against that state will continue. Even if it were moved from the middle east the uproar would continue. The state of Israel is viewed as an extension of 19th century colonialism and will never be accepted in an age of rampant nationalism. Such is the state of things.
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