Durban Conference has no credibility
Dear Editor:
Every Canadian should join B’nai Brith Canada and the Canadian Jewish Congress in thanking our government for the courage to once again take a principled stand in refusing to attend the farcical Durban II UN racism conference in South Africa in 2009. The 2001 conference did little more than provide a platform for the promotion of bigotry and hatred towards Israel.
In 1974 the conference passed a resolution condemning Zionism as a form of racism. Yet in August 2007 in the first planning session for Durban II Pakistan’s representative called the defamation of Islam and descrimination against Muslims racism in an attempt to make the UN bureaucracy an international enforcer of Islamic definitions of blasphemy. Where is the consistency? Still fresh in our minds is the Danish cartoon controversy of 2005 when the Organization of Islamic Countries demanded the UN condemn the cartoons as racism.
The organizing committee for Durban II is chaired by Libya with seats offered to Iran and Cuba. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has repeatedly called for the destruction of Israel and has denied there was a Holocaust. And should we believe it is only a conicidence preparatory meetings have been scheduled on Jewish holidays or could it be pro-Israel groups are not welcome to participate?
Anti-semetism is on the rise througout the world and Canada does well in distancing our country from forums that are clearly contrary to established Canadian values.
Gerald Hall
Nanoose Bay, B.C.
