Durban Watch

EYEontheUN ALERT - December 19, 2008

Durban "anti-racism" revisionism & enabling anti-semitism
from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

Will President-elect Obama become an enabler too?

Stay away from Durban II

By Anne Bayefsky
Haaretz, December 18, 2008

Navanethem Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, is secretary-general of the UN's World Conference Against Racism, scheduled for April, in Geneva. Referred to as "Durban II," the meeting is meant as a follow-up to the infamous 2001 "Durban I" UN racism conference in South Africa. After her appointment, Pillay, a Durban native, was asked by the city's mayor "to rescue" the town's name. Aware that her human-rights credentials are tied to the success of the conference, Pillay has made it a top priority. She used her maiden speech at September's session of the Human Rights Council to champion a revisionist history of Durban I, and her latest effort to promote the upcoming event appeared in Haaretz this week ("The Anti-Racism Debate," December 16).

Although Pillay was writing ostensibly for Israelis, she knows their foreign minister has already declared that Israel will not attend the conference; her real target was thus President-elect Barack Obama. The outgoing administration has not made a decision regarding U.S. participation, which means Obama and Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clinton have it in their power to discredit the meeting by staying away. But pressure to attend, from Pillay and others, is mounting.

Pillay argues that attendance is appropriate because of what occurred at Durban I. She is right to focus on this. After all, the first objective of Durban II, as organizers determined last year, is "to foster the implementation of the Durban Declaration and Program of Action." That declaration, adopted by governmental delegates at the end of Durban I, asserts that Palestinians are victims of Israeli racism. This is the only country-specific accusation in a document purporting to address international racism and xenophobia. Regardless of the quantity of new vitriol in Durban II's final product, therefore, participation would necessarily legitimize a global event dedicated to "implementing" the mantra of Israeli racism.

Pillay attempts to allay fears with a revisionist account of Durban I, writing that, "the controversy that tainted the 2001 Durban Conference ... was caused by the anti-Semitic behavior of some non-governmental organizations at the sidelines of the conference." She says she is committed to the proposition that "the concerns ... that the review conference will become a platform for denigrating Israel must be assuaged." She then adds: "Seven years ago, states did so by elevating the conference's outcome above the hatred and hostility that took place on its periphery."

Pillay's tale is patently false. At meetings of the governmental drafting committee at Durban I, I watched as virtually every clause on anti-Semitism was deleted. And how did participating states "elevate" the outcome, after the U.S. and Israel made their opposition plain? The European Union and the Organization of the Islamic Conference cut a deal: Mention of anti-Semitism and the Holocaust could stay in - but with a condemnation of Israeli racism.

For decades, the UN has tried to label Israel as racist, to tie it to the mast of apartheid South Africa, and to sink it with the same moral indignation, and economic and political isolation. In 1975, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution equating Zionism with racism. When the resolution was rescinded in 1991, a plan to resurrect it began almost immediately. Act II culminated in Durban I; Act III is upon us. The so-called draft outcome document for Durban II accuses Israel of committing "a new kind of apartheid, a crime against humanity, [and] a form of genocide."

Pillay's op-ed provides a clear window onto the Durban tactic. She fawns over the Durban declaration's statement that, "the Holocaust must never be forgotten," and its expression of "deep concern about the rise in anti-Semitism." Then she proceeds to ignore the demonization of racist Israel and its connection to anti-Semitism and the murdering of Jews here and now.

Two weeks ago, General Assembly president Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann made a similar pitch for rupturing the bond between Jews and Israel, declaring, "I have a great love for the Jewish people and this has been true all my life. I have never hesitated to condemn the crimes of the Holocaust ...." He then accused Israel of "apartheid," which "must be outlawed," advocating a "campaign of boycott, divestment and sanctions to pressure Israel."

By contrast, the Durban II draft doesn't mention Sudan, and the final version will be no different. On December 9, Pillay reminded a reporter that the High Commissioner's office had "set up [a] commission of inquiry, but did not find a Sudanese genocidal policy, but rather 'genocidal intent' committed by a few individuals." That commission maintained that the past decade's atrocities in Darfur did not constitute an ethnic or racially driven conflict, even though it was perpetrated by Arab militias against African tribal victims. Hundreds of thousands raped and murdered, 2.5 million displaced. But no genocide.

Ultimately, Pillay asks readers precisely the right question: "States have a responsibility to show leadership against racial discrimination and intolerance. What message does a state boycott send to those who are suffering from racism ... [and] to those who perpetuate racism?"

The answer: A boycott of Durban II sends a message that the real victims of racism are not alone. A boycott denies legitimacy to a platform for hatemongers and a cover for human-rights abusers. For states to show leadership against racism and intolerance, they must join Canada and Israel and stay away.

Anne Bayefsky teaches at Touro College, is a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, and edits www.EYEontheUN.org.

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The anti-racism debate

By Navanethem Pillay
Haaretz, December 16, 2008

I grew up in Durban, South Africa, under a system of apartheid that institutionalized racial discrimination, denying equal rights of citizenship to all those who were not white. I later sat as a judge on the Rwanda Tribunal, where I came to know in painful detail, killing by killing, the unimaginable destruction of humanity when ethnic hatred explodes into genocide. I know that the consequences of allowing discrimination, inequality and intolerance to fester and spiral out of control can be genocidal. But South Africa's experience shows that with political will and a commitment to act, discrimination, inequality and intolerance can be overcome. We have just witnessed the election of the first African-American president of the United States, a country where racial segregation is as vivid a memory for some as it is for me.

States will have an opportunity to demonstrate their determination to fight intolerance by moving the anti-racism agenda forward when, in April 2009, an international review conference meets in Geneva. The conference will evaluate the implementation of government commitments to eradicate racial hatred and discrimination, made seven years ago in Durban. It is imperative that all states participate and contribute to this crucial process in order to consolidate and improve the common ground on those fundamental human rights issues we all agree on.

Regrettably, last January, Canada announced its intention to withdraw from the Durban review conference. And this month, so did Israel.

Behind these decisions stands the controversy that tainted the 2001 Durban Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, and that was caused by the anti-Semitic behavior of some non-governmental organizations at the sidelines of the conference. Yet the document that emerged from the conference itself, the Durban Declaration and Program of Action (DDPA), transcended divisive and intolerant approaches.

The DDPA offers a comprehensive global framework that calls for the adoption of more effective anti-discrimination laws and policies. It highlights discrimination against minorities, migrants and indigenous people, and it empowers civil society to demand accountability for actions committed or omitted by strengthening victims' grounds for recourse.

The DDPA clearly states that: "The Holocaust must never be forgotten." It calls for an end to violence in the Middle East and recognizes Israel's right to security. It urges Israelis and Palestinians to resume the peace process and expresses deep concern about the rise in anti-Semitism around the world, as well as alarm over mounting prejudice related to religious beliefs, including Islamophobia.

In April 2009, at the Durban review conference, states are expected to provide an assessment of achievements and gaps in the implementation of the commitments made in 2001, as well as identify concrete ways to improve performance and impact on the ground. The review is also meant to share and take ownership of good practices in the fight against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance. It is an important opportunity to renew global commitment to our common goals and revitalize efforts to move toward these goals. All too often national policies and practices lag behind states' pledges. Yet progress in combating racism and intolerance is sorely needed in every region of the world.

The Durban review conference is a timely opportunity to reaffirm the principles of non-discrimination and to build on the Durban Declaration and Program of Action. It is for states to ensure that this objective is met and implementation gaps are closed. If all states are not engaged in the process, this goal may remain elusive. Thus, the concerns expressed by Canada and Israel that the review conference will become a platform for denigrating Israel must be assuaged. Seven years ago, states did so by elevating the conference's outcome above the hatred and hostility that took place on its periphery, and by reaching a broad agreement on the necessary measures to combat racism and intolerance. They must achieve that commonality of purpose again through active engagement rather than withdrawal.

We owe a frank debate and concrete action to the victims of discrimination, intolerance and racism. We can avoid or overcome friction by focusing on how to give new momentum to the struggle against these unconscionable practices. States have a responsibility to show leadership against racial discrimination and intolerance. What message does a state boycott send to those who are suffering from racism? What message does it send to those who perpetuate racism? This struggle concerns all of us in our increasingly multi-cultural and multi-ethnic societies.

Navanethem Pillay is the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.