The American Jewish Committee lauded the Obama administration for its decision not to take part in the upcoming United Nations’ Commemoration of the Durban World Conference Against Racism, set to take place in September in New York.
The conference, referred to as “Durban 3″, is to mark the 10-year anniversary of the contentious 2001 conference in the South African city of Durban which was dominated by clashes over the Middle East and the legacy of slavery. The U.S. and Israel walked out midway through the eight-day meeting over a draft resolution that singled out Israel for criticism and likened Zionism – the movement to establish and maintain a Jewish state – to racism.
The second Durban Conference took place in 2009, also singling Israel out and condemning it for alleged human rights violations and racist policies. The United States did not take part in the conference.
“The U.S. announcement is the clearest indication that this gathering will be just as bad for Israel — and for those truly dedicated to the fight against racism — as were the previous two international conferences in 2001 and 2009,” said AJC Executive Director David Harris. “To acknowledge the current reality is a sad day for the UN and the struggle against racism.”
Harris lamented that the fight against racism has been “repeatedly hijacked by countries with little actual regard for human rights and whose primary goal is to advance highly politicized, anti-Israel agendas.”
The AJC director called on other democratic countries to follow the United States’ and Canada’s (who has also said it will not participate in the UN sponsored conference) example and refuse to attend.
The Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations echoed the AJC’s sentiments, calling on democratic countries to boycott the conference.
“The global campaign of delegitimization against Israel was launched at Durban I,” the Conference of Presidents leaders said it a statement, adding that “it has remained a lasting scar on the reputation of the UN and ought not to be commemorated or celebrated.”
The Jewish leaders said that they would fully support the conference if it “truly addressed bigotry and xenophobia”, claiming that Durban 3 is little more than a “sham”.
The U.S. announcement that it would not be participating in Durban 3 came in a letter to Congress from Joseph E. Macmanus, acting U.S. assistant secretary of state for legislative affairs. The letter stated that the U.S. will not participate because the Durban process “included ugly displays of intolerance and anti-Semitism,” Macmanus wrote.
