Durban III is an informal name for a high-level United Nations General Assembly meeting marking the 10th anniversary of the adoption of The Durban Declaration and Programme of Action that was held in New York City on 22 September 2011. It was mandated by United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution 64/148 of 18 December 2009Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 18 December 2009 to commemorate the World Conference against Racism 2001 (also known as Durban I), and given additional form and visibility by a UNGA Third Committee draft resolution adopted on 24 November 2010.U.N. Seeks Obama’s Attendance at ‘Durban III’ on 10th Anniversary of 9/11, New York Sun 24 November 2010 It followed the Durban Review Conference, the official name of the 2009 United Nations World Conference Against Racism (WCAR), also known as Durban II.
The previous Durban conferences had been criticized by Western governments for allegedly promoting rather than combating racism. Fourteen countries boycotted Durban III. They charged that the Durban process has been used to promote racism, intolerance, antisemitism and Holocaust denial, and to erode freedom of speech and Israel's right to exist. The same countries, excluding Austria, Bulgaria, France and the United Kingdom, had also previously boycotted the Durban Review Conference in 2009.
A coalition of 25 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) critical of the conference, led by UN Watch, organized a parallel human rights summit with the stated aim of drawing attention to flaws in the UN system and promoting reform. A similar counter-conference organized by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Elie Wiesel and human rights scholar Anne Bayefsky featured scholars and public figures. Conversely, the Durban +10 Coalition, a group of NGOs which included the , National Lawyers Guild and the International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network, expressed its unequivocal support for the DDPA and criticized countries boycotting the conference.
Program
Durban III was a one-day conference that took place in New York City on 22 September 2011. Its theme was "victims of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance: recognition, justice and development." Its stated goal was to build upon the agenda outlined in The Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, or DDPA, described by the UN as "the international community's blueprint for action to fight racism." It consisted of a plenary session and a series of round table discussions at the level of heads of state and government.
The conference was attended by delegations from 179 countries,10th Anniversary of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action: General Assembly High-level meeting: 22 September 2011 while 14 countries boycotted the conference. The conference was addressed by Ban Ki-Moon and others,"Durban III opens amid boycott by major democracies" by Benjamin Wienthal, The Jerusalem Post 22 September 2011. including Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Simon Aban Deng, a former slave and Sudanese human rights activist living in the United States.
Countries boycotting Durban III was boycotted by 14 countries: Australia,Australia withdraws from Durban III over Israel-bashing fears Austria,Austria pulls out of 'anti-Israel' Durban III conference, Jerusalem Post 31 September 2011 Bulgaria,AJC Praises Bulgaria for Skipping "Durban 3", The Sacramento Bee 9 September 2011 Canada, the Czech Republic,ČR intends to ignore U.N. session on Durban Declaration , Prague Daily Monitor 22 July 2011 France, Germany Italy,Italy – Declaration by Minister Frattini, 22 July 2011, ISRIA 22 July 2011 Israel, the Netherlands,The Netherlands, Italy and the Czech Republic: no confidence in UN anti-racism meeting, Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 22 July 2011 New Zealand,New Zealand pulls out of Durban III over anti-Semitism Poland, the United KingdomReport: United Kingdom withdraws from Durban III Jerusalem Post 14-09-2011 and the United States.
The precise reasons varied from country to country, but included concerns that the Durban process has been used to promote racism, intolerance, antisemitism and Holocaust denial, and to erode freedom of speech and Israel's right to exist.
The countries are listed below in chronological order of their boycott declaration.
Canada
On 25 November 2010, shortly after the conference was declared, Canada announced that it would not be attending and that the country had lost faith in the United Nations' human rights process. Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said: "The original Durban Conference, and its declaration, as well as the non-governmental activities associated with it, proved to be a dangerous platform for racism, including antisemitism," also stating that "Canada is clearly committed to the fight against racism, but the Durban process commemorates an agenda that actually promotes racism rather than combats it," and "Canada will not participate in this charade. We will not lend our good name to this Durban hatefest." Canada pulls out of 'racist' UN conference, Toronto Sun 25 November 2010Canada boycotts UN racism conf. that targeted Israel, AP (reprinted in the Jerusalem Post) 25 November 2010Canada to boycott U.N. anti-racism meeting, Reuters 25 November 2010
The boycott declaration was supported by the opposition.Statement by Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff on Durban , Canada Views 28 November 2010 On 13 June 2011, Canada boycotted a General Assembly resolution setting out details for the conference.Canada Proudly Boycotts Resolution on Durban Commemorative Meeting, Canada News Centre 13 June 2011
Canada had also been the first country to announce that it would boycott the Durban II conference, over similar concerns. At the time, it was followed by nine other western countries. Kenney said that his country's decision to boycott the earlier event was vindicated when Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad used it as a vehicle for Holocaust denial, racism, xenophobia and the promotion of hatred, saying: "Despite the fact that the Durban declaration and its follow-up have served, frankly, to fuel bigotry, the General Assembly has chosen to repeat and even augment the mistakes of the past." Members of the Canadian delegation to the original Durban Conference stayed to the end but said they did so only to decry the attempts to de-legitimize Israel, and issued a statement dissociating Canada from the final agreement.Canada again boycotts UN ‘hate-fest’, The Globe and Mail 25 November 2010
Israel On 25 December 2010, a day after the UN approved a resolution firmly linking the event to the 2001 Durban Conference, Israel's Foreign Ministry announced that the Jewish state intended to boycott the event. "The Durban Conference of 2001, with its anti-Semitic undertones and displays of hatred for Israel and the Jewish World, left us with scars that will not heal quickly. As long as the meeting is defined as part of the infamous 'Durban process', Israel will not participate", the statement said.
The Foreign Ministry also said that it expected the UN and its member states "to deal appropriately with the serious manifestations of racism throughout the world, and to reject attempts to once again divert world attention from this dangerous phenomenon by means of cheap politicization. Israel is part of the international struggle against racism. The Jewish people was itself a victim of racism throughout history. Israel regrets that a resolution on an important subject- elimination of racism- has been diverted and politicized by the automatic majority at the UN, by linking it to the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action (2001) that many states would prefer to forget."Israel plans to boycott Durban III, Jerusalem Post 25 December 2010
United States
Opposing the 24 November 2010 resolution, United States representative John Sammis stated to the UN committee that the event "risks undermining the relationship we have worked hard to strengthen over the past few years between the United States and the UN."U.N. Pours Salt in America's Wounds, Fox News Channel 24 November 2010
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) said: "We all witnessed how extreme antisemitic and anti-American voices took over Durban I and Durban II, and we should expect the same thing to happen with Durban III... I appreciate the Obama Administration’s strong statement opposing yesterday’s resolution, and urge it to again withdraw from the event and encourage other nations to do the same."UN to Hold Another Durban Conference; Anti-Semitism Expected, Arutz Sheva 25 November 2010
On 23 November 2010, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the Ranking Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, called on the Obama administration to "announce publicly, right now, that we will stay away from Durban III, deny it US taxpayer dollars, and oppose all measures that seek to facilitate it. And we should encourage other responsible nations to do the same."
On 17 December 2010, Gillibrand led a group of 18 senators, consisting of 11 Democrats and 7 Republicans, who sent a letter to US Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice urging her to refrain from participating in the conference. The senators wrote: "It is important that the United States send a strong signal that another anti-Semitic and anti-American Durban Conference particularly held so close to the tenth anniversary and location of the worst terrorist attack in American history is unacceptable"., AFP 18 December 2010Gillibrand vs. Durban III Summit , Capital Tonight 17 December 2010
After the US opposed 24 December 2010 resolution, Rice issued a statement saying: "We voted 'no' because the Durban Declaration process has included ugly displays of intolerance and antisemitism, and we do not want to see that commemorated. The United States is fully committed to upholding the human rights of all individuals and to combating racial discrimination, intolerance and bigotry. We stand ready to work with all partners to uphold human rights and fight racism around the world."
On 1 June 2011, the Obama administration confirmed that it would boycott the conference. Joseph E. Macmanus, acting U.S. assistant secretary of state for legislative affairs, answered Senator Gillibrand's 17 December 2010 letter, saying the US would not participate because the Durban process "included ugly displays of intolerance and anti-Semitism."US to boycott world racism conference at UN, AP 1 June 2011 Later that month, New Jersey Senator Frank Lautenberg applauded the decision of the administration."N.J. lawmakers laud decision to boycott ‘Durban III’", Heather Robinson. Jewish Standard. 10 June 2011. Retrieved 11 June 2011
Other boycotting countries : On 21 July, the country announced that it would boycott the summit as well as informal talks associated with it. The country said that the Durban process is often abused to make "unacceptable statements with anti-Jewish connotations", and that it includes tendencies conflicting with existing standards of human rights protection, particularly freedom of speech. The decision was welcomed by UN Watch.Czech Republic announces intention to boycott Durban III, Jerusalem Post, 23 July 2011
: On 22 July, the country announced a boycott. Foreign Minister Franco Frattini explained that the country had had reservations about the Durban process for some time. He noted the Durban II address by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad which, he said, legitimized Holocaust denial. He also stated: "We feel that any axiomatic linkage between racism and Israel's defence of its right to exist as a state is unacceptable."
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