Australia votes against “Durban III”
AUSTRALIA has been praised for voting against a United Nations proposal to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Durban conference against racism.
AUSTRALIA has been praised for voting against a United Nations proposal to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Durban conference against racism.
The high-level commemoration, dubbed Durban III, was voted on in the UN General Assembly on December 24. It was overwhelmingly passed, with only 22 opponents.
The Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) welcomed Australia’s no vote.
While the ideals of the 2001 conference were bold, the event descended into a farce with a resolution equating Zionism with racism and many of the conference observers lashing out against Israel. Its follow-up in April 2009, known as Durban II, featured a controversial address by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in which he accused Israel of being a cruel, repressive and racist country and questioned the authenticity of the Holocaust. That conference was boycotted by a number of countries, including Australia.
“Both previous conferences have unfairly singled out Israel as a racist country,” AIJAC executive director Dr Colin Rubenstein said.
“AIJAC welcomes the December 24 vote by Australia at the UN against the ‘Durban III’ conference. The vote adds to Australia’s long and proud history of acting against racism.”
Australia joined others, including the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, to vote against Durban III. The vote passed with 104 votes in favour, plus 33 abstentions.
Hillel Neuer, executive director of the Geneva-based UN Watch said the 2001 Durban conference and its 2009 successor had “become staging grounds for contemporary bigots and bullies” such as Sudan and Iran to cover up their own racism and repression.
“We fear that the banner of human rights and anti-racism will be hijacked by Iranian President Ahmadinejad and other dictators to deflect attention from their crimes, and to incite anti-Western and anti-Semitic hatred,” he said.
Israel plans to boycott the conference.
GARETH NARUNSKY
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