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Durban Review Conference 2009
The Durban Review Conference will be held in Geneva, Switzerland from April 20-24, 2009.
On May 26 the Preparatory Committee announced that the Durban Review Conference will be held in Geneva, Switzerland from April 20-24, 2009. The UN High Commission for Human Rights has also reported that the Latin American and Caribbean regional DRC meeting will be held in Brasilia, Brazil, from 17 to 19 June, 2008. Locations for the other regional meetings have not been selected.
Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) may participate in the Durban Review Conference as observers
NGOs and other members of civil society are able to participate in both the Durban Review Conference and the Preparatory Committee Meetings provided they receive accreditation or have ECOSOC status. Some NGOs are also promoting the inclusion of a parallel NGO forum (discussed below).
NGO statement opposing antisemitism at the Durban Review Conference 2009:
ICARE, in cooperation with the Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights, published a January 2008 " Statement of Core Principles for WCAR [UN World Conference against Racism] Follow up" expressing the need for a corrective movement to reverse the damage of Durban I and reassert the universality of human rights; signatories include Rabbis for Human Rights (RHR), Human Rights First, UN Watch, and even the New Israel Fund.
During the April 2008 Preparatory Committee Meetings, the only NGO active in the Israeli-Arab conflict to receive accreditation was the Palestinian Grassroots Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign (PGAAWC). PGAAWC is a network of NGOs focusing on separation barrier (“apartheid wall”) activities and the promotion of the BDS (boycotts, divestment and sanctions) campaign. The Canadian Council for Israel and Jewish Advocacy (CIJA) also submitted an application to attend the DRC. Despite support from the EU delegations and acceptance by the UN bureaucracy, Iran, Libya, Algeria, Egypt and the PA vetoed its application. CIJA subsequently withdrew its application after Iran made a “series of aggressive and seemingly endless objections” to the NGO's attempt to obtain accreditation for the conference. In total, forty-four NGOs were granted accreditation (7 accredited, 37 provisionally accepted, 1 withdrawal, 1 excluded) during the DRC’s first Preparatory Committee Meetings.
The following NGOs have responded to NGO Monitor's questions regarding funding for Durban 2009
Additional Articles:
- Catastrophic, but not apartheid, Benjamin Pogrund, Ha'aretz, May 2, 2008
- Human Rights First Calls on Governments to Prevent Repeat of Problems that Plagued 2001 [Durban] Conference, April 17, 2008
- Iran seeks to bar Jewish group from UN's Durban II racism conference, April 17, 2008
- NGO statement condemning antisemitism at Durban 2001 conference and pledging not to oppose use of UN fora for incitement and "any form of racism, including antisemitism"
- 'Amnesty Antisemitic?', by Paul Damen -- excerpt from an article in the NIW (Nieuw Israelitisch Weekblad), n. 19, February 1, 2008.
- Will the world repeat the tragedy of Durban?', Paul Gross, South African Jewish Report, 15 February 2008.
The UN Human Rights Council is the main body responsible for organizing the Durban Review Conference
The Durban Review Conference is mandated by a UN General Assembly resolution to convene a 2009 follow-up to the World Conference Against Racism. Accordingly, the UN selected the Human Rights Council to be the main body responsible for “monitoring the implementation of the Durban Declaration” and “to undertake preparations for this event.” In August 2007, Libya was elected chair of the preparatory committee. Cuba is the committee's rapporteur, and Iran is an executive member. Other members of the UN Human Rights Council can be found here.
- Nations Spar Over Host For U.N. Racism Parley, April 18, 2008
- Iran seeks to bar Jewish group from UN's Durban II racism conference, April 17, 2008
- Anti-semitism clouds 2009 summit on racism, April 14, 2008
- Will the world repeat the tragedy of Durban?', Paul Gross, South African Jewish Report, 15 February 2008.
- Voting Against Hate, A few nights before Christmas, at the U.N., Anne Bayefsky, National Review Online, December 27, 2007
The Durban Review Conference is open to all 192 member-states of the United Nations
However, various countries have indicated they may not participate should the 2009 Durban Review Conference fail to meet certain standards of conduct. Canada’s official policy is to boycott the Durban Review Conference. The United States, Israel, France and the UK have issued statements warning against a repetition of Durban 2001 and have raised the possibility of withdrawing.
(more on government statements) On January 23, 2008, the Canadian government announced that it would pull out of the conference and maintained that it will not fund NGO participation. Maxime Bernier, Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, stated that the 2001 “conference degenerated into open and divisive expressions of intolerance and anti-Semitism that undermined the principles of the United Nations.” Bernier went onto say that despite Canada’s hopes that “the preparatory process for the 2009 Durban Review Conference would remedy the mistakes of the past,” it had concluded that “despite [Canada’s] efforts, it will not.” As a result, Minister Bernier announced that “Canada will therefore not participate in the 2009 conference.”
On February 15, 2008, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said “France will not allow a repetition of the excesses and abuses of 2001…I say to you: if ever our legitimate demands are not taken into account, we will disengage from the [Durban Review Conference] process.”
On April 6, 2008, U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Zalmay Khalilzad, remarked that “[W]e will not participate [in Durban Review Conference] unless it is proven that the conference will not be used as a platform for anti-Semitic behavior.” He also noted that the U.S. voted against U.N. resolutions seeking to convene a Durban Review Conference in 2009 because “[the US government does] not believe there will be a meaningful review of any of the problematic aspects of the original Durban Conference.”
On May 14, U.K. Minister for Europe Jim Murphy said that the U.K. “will continue to work to make sure that the conference is a success, but we will play no part in an international conference that exhibits the degree of anti-Semitism that was disgracefully on view on the previous occasion.” (end more)
Other governments have also issued policy statements regarding the DRC in response to letters sent by NGO Monitor.
The following government aid agencies have responded to NGO Monitor's questions regarding government funding for the Palestinian Grassroots anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign
Additional Articles:
- National Post Editorial: 'Shun Durban II', January 25, 2008
- Durban 2009: Canada says it will not participate, January 23, 2008
- Israel wants US and EU to snub Durban II, Jerusalem Post, December 31, 2007
- Voting Against Hate, A few nights before Christmas, at the U.N., Anne Bayefsky, National Review Online, December 27, 2007
- Dollars for Durban II - Back to the U.N by Claudia Rosett, National Review Online, December 12, 2007
- Human Rights First Calls on Governments to Prevent Repeat of Problems that Plagued 2001 [Durban] Conference, April 17, 2008
- Statement by Zalmay Khalilzad, U.S. Permanent Representative, on the Durban II Conference and the Human Rights Council, to the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations, April 14, 2008
- Jerusalem & Babylon / Ignoring Durban summit not an option, Anshel Pfeffer, Haaretz, March 1, 2008.
- “World Jews, Israel, to Meet on Durban 2”, Jerusalem Post, Haviv Rettig, Feb. 25, 2008.
- "U.S. must stand strong against UN's anti-Semitic confab," Anne Bayefsky, NY Daily News, Feb. 21, 2008.
- 'Exposing the anti-Semitism of Durban II', By Paul Schneidereit, Jan. 29, 2008, The Chronicle Herald, Halifax (Canada)
| Preparatory Committee Meetings: Adjourned |
The second substantive session is scheduled for October 6-17 in Geneva.
The Preparatory Committee Meetings provide a forum for UN member states and members of civil society to discuss the modalities and objectives of the DRC. The first stage of the Preparatory Committee meetings was held between 21 April and 2 May 2008. The regional preparatory initiatives, date and venue are also decided at these meetings. The second substantive session is scheduled for October 6-17. The Preparatory Committee members, who are responsible for organizing these meetings, can be found here.
- The African regional prepatory meeting will be held in Abuja, Nigeria, between August 24-26, 2008
- Prepcom Double-Standards Point to Anti-Israel Agenda: Update on Durban Review Conference 2009, NGO Monitor Report, June 10, 2008
- Regional Conference for Latin America and Caribbean Preparatory to the Durban Review Conference - Brasilia, Brazil, 17 to 19 June, 2008.
- CIJA blocked from Durban II, Paul Lungen, Canadian Jewish News, May 8, 2008
- Documents from the First Substantive Durban Preparatory Committee Session, Eye on the UN
A decision has not been taken on whether the DRC will include a parallel NGO Forum
During the 2001 World Conference Against Racism (Durban 2001) over 3,000 NGOs participated in an NGO Forum, which produced what is known as “The NGO Declaration.” This document sought to demonize and undermine the legitimacy of Israel by accusing it of “apartheid,” “racism,” “ethnic cleansing” and “genocide.”
Durban II Update: UN Watch reports (Feb. 5, 2008) that inclusion of NGO Forum at 2009 Conference is being debated; location of 2009 Conference and preparatory meetings also unknown.
NGO Monitor Blog
I CARE - Durban Review Resource Page
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