Archive for December, 2010

Today on Russian TV: “Hillel Neuer Slams U.N.’s Obsession with Israel”

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- at December 30, 2010 in Human Rights Council (UNHRC). 0 Comments

 russia today

“UN obsessively condemns Israel, encouraging Palestinians’ most extreme forces” – UN Watch

Published: 30 December, 2010, 11:26

Palestinian officials say they will ask the UN Security Council to approve a resolution condemning Israeli settlements in the West Bank. Meanwhile, human rights group UN Watch is concerned that the world body is not playing fair with Israel.

UN Watch executive director Hillel Neuer says UN’s condemnation of Israel does not help Palestinians.

“The UN’s obsession with Israel does not only harm Israel, does not only harm the peace process, but it harms the UN as a whole. It prevents the UN from being effective for human rights victims who never get their day of international attention,” he says. “An enormous amount of the UN’s attention is ostensibly devoted to helping the Palestinians.”

“The Palestinians have not been helped. Kofi Annan himself – the Secretary General of the UN – in his parting speech to the Security Council said, ‘What have all the special agenda items and special reports and special sessions on the Palestinian situation ever done to help the Palestinians?’ The reality is, very little.”

“If you look at the past 30 years of all the resolutions at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, it’s something like 75 per cent of all the resolutions condemning Israel and ostensibly helping the Palestinians. The reality is, the only thing they’ve done for the Palestinians is encourage a sense that, no matter what happens, whatever mistakes they make, whatever terrorism they may support, the UN will always be there to encourage them, that no matter what, they will prevail. It’s only encouraged the most extreme forces in a Palestinian camp,” Neuer says.

Hillel Neuer says the UN should be closer to reality and to real problems that Israelis and Palestinians face.

“You have a real situation with real problems. What happens at the UN too often is something on a level that is almost metalogical, that is entirely divorced from reality,” he says. “The UN is sort of locked into an automatic mode where all it’s doing is condemning Israel obsessively.”

Full text of U.N.’s Durban 3 resolution

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UN Watch provides the text of the “Durban 3″ resolution, adopted early Friday morning, here. For voting sheet and analysis, see our prior posts here.

Analysis: Who voted for and against “Durban 3″ resolution

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UN Watch salutes the countries that voted on Friday against Durban 3: United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Canada, Netherlands, Australia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Palau, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

There were 22 No votes, up from 19 in the earlier committee vote. (Micronesia and Palau moved from absent to No; Slovakia and The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia moved from Abstain to No. San Marino move from No to absent, presumably due to the late night voting.)

The following is from the U.N. summary of the Dec. 23 GA meeting (voting on Durban occurred in early hours of Dec. 24)

Vote on Durban Follow-Up

Turning to the work of the Third Committee, the Assembly took up a report on elimination of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance (document A/65/659), and a related Fifth Committee report containing programme budgetary implications. The reports concerned a draft resolution titled “Global efforts for the total elimination of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance and the comprehensive implementation of and follow-up to the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action”.

The draft resolution on follow-up to the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action (document A/65/454) [Durban 3] was adopted by a recorded vote of 104 in favour to 22 against, with 33 abstentions, as follows:

In favour:  Afghanistan, Algeria, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Chile, China, Colombia, Congo, Costa Rica, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Mongolia, Morocco, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Qatar, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Singapore, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Swaziland, Syria, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Republic of Tanzania, Uruguay, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
Against:  Australia, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Marshall Islands, Micronesia (Federated States of), Netherlands, Palau, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Sweden, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, United Kingdom, United States.

Abstain:  Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Cyprus, Finland, France, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Montenegro, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Samoa, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Tonga, Ukraine.

Absent:  Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Kiribati, Kyrgyzstan, Mozambique, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Suriname, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu.

Israel to skip 2011 Durban commemoration so long as it’s linked to Durban

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Israel’s response to UN resolution on “Combating racism and follow-up of the Durban Programme of Action”
Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Jerusalem, December 24th, 2010

The UN General Assembly has adopted on December 24th a resolution on “Combating racism and follow-up of the Durban Programme of Action”.

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.

The Durban Conference of 2001, with its antisemitic undertones and displays of hatred for Israel and the Jewish World, left us with scars that will not heal quickly.

In the coming months, Israel will follow closely the preparations for the upcoming September 2011 meeting. Israel expects the participants 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.

Under the present circumstances, as long as the meeting is defined as part of the infamous “Durban process”, Israel will not participate in the meeting scheduled to take place in UN Headquarters in New York in September 2011.

Rights Group Raps U.N. Vote for 2011 ‘Durban 3′ Summit

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U.S. opposes holding event in New York
days after 10th anniversary of 9/11 attacks

GENEVA, December 24, 2010 – During a late-night session that went to 4:00 a.m. this morning, the U.N. General Assembly voted 104 to 22, with 33 abstaining, to hold a “Durban 3″ racism summit in New York, on September 21, 2011. (Click here for resolution text.) 

“We support developing countries seeking to commemorate the terrible crime of slavery and the abuses of European colonialism,” said Hillel Neuer, an international lawyer and the executive director of the Geneva-based UN Watch. “However, the 2001 Durban conference and its progeny have become staging grounds for contemporary bigots and bullies — like the regimes of Sudan and Iran — to cover up their own racism and repression, and to scapegoat the U.S., the West, and Israel.”

Neuer urged all democracies to follow Canada’s lead in announcing that they will not legitimize the event with their participation.

“Based on past experience, 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,” said Neuer. 

Neuer praised the U.N. for “itself now recognizing the dangers in such gatherings.” In an interview last week with AP, U.N. rights chief Navi Pillay, who oversaw the 2009 Durban Review Conference and was its leading defender, admitted that the criticism was justified.

Referring to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s speech at the 2009 event in Geneva, Pillay acknowledged: “I was a bit naive. I wondered why people were so afraid that he would use it as a political platform, but I see that they were right,” she said. “I think that it was pretty evident to everyone that it is an inappropriate speech to make at that venue.”

Ahmadinejad used his speech to deliver an angry diatribe against Israel, calling it the most “cruel and repressive racist regime” and prompting a walkout by European delegates.

Today’s Durban 3 resolution calls for a summit of world leaders on September 21, 2011, “to commemorate the Tenth Anniversary of the adoption of the Durban Declaration.” The event will include an opening plenary, “consecutive round tables,” “thematic panels,” a “closing plenary meeting,” culminating in a “political declaration” – all in celebration of the highly controversial 2001 World Conference of Racism held in Durban, South Africa.

In the committee stage, the U.S. said it was “deeply troubled by the choice of time and venue for the 10th anniversary commemorative event. Just days earlier, we will have honored the victims of 9/11, whose loved ones will be marking a solemn 10-year anniversary for them and the entire nation. It will be an especially sensitive time for the people of New York and a repeat of the vitriol sadly experienced at past Durban-related events risks undermining the relationship we have worked hard to strengthen over the past few years between the United States and the UN.” 

UN Watch welcomed changes from the earlier vote in the committee stage, which was 121 to 19, with 35 abstaining. “Three more countries today moved to a ‘No’ vote, which is significant. The 17 less countries voting in favor is also weclome, though that may be partly due to delegates unwilling to staying for the late-night vote,” said Neuer.

Text of U.N.’s Durban 3 resolution adopted today

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Following are sections from the UNGA resolution adopted today on “Durban 3″ 

[The U.N. General Assembly...]

50. Decides to hold a one-day High-Level meeting of the General Assembly to commemorate the Tenth Anniversary of the Adoption of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, at the level of Heads of States and Governments, on the second day of the General Debate of the 66th Session of the General Assembly, under the theme “Victims of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerances: Recognition, Justice and Development”, consisting of an opening plenary, consecutive round tables/ thematic panels and a closing plenary meeting; and calls on the President of the General Assembly to appoint co-facilitators to conduct consultations on the scope, modalities, format and organization of the High Level meeting,

51. Decides also that the meeting will adopt a short and concise political declaration aimed at mobilizing political will at the national, regional and international levels for the full and effective implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action and its follow-up processes;

52. Invites Member States, international and regional organizations, civil society, including non-governmental organizations, and other stakeholders to organize and support various high visibility initiatives, aimed at effectively increasing awareness at all levels, to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the adoption of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action;

53. Requests the Secretary-General to establish a programme of outreach, with the involvement of Member States, United Nations funds and programmes as well as civil society, including non-governmental organizations, to appropriately commemorate the tenth anniversary of the adoption of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action;

U.S. Senators Urge Obama to Follow Canadian Lead on Durban 3

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UN Watch welcomes the 18-senator appeal led by Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand for the U.S. to follow the lead of Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Following is her press release.

Gillibrand Leads Bipartisan Effort Urging U.S. To Pull Out Of U.N. Durban III Summit Gillibrand Leads Bipartisan Effort Urging U.S. To Pull Out Of U.N. Durban III Summit

Like Previous Summits, Durban III Will Likely Serve As A Forum For Anti-Semitic And Anti-American Demonstrations

December 17, 2010

Washington, DC – A bipartisan coalition of 18 U.S. Senators, led by U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, today urged United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations Susan Rice to refrain from participating in the United Nation’s Durban III World Conference Against Racism, citing concerns that the conference will once again serve as a forum for anti-Semitic and anti-American demonstrations. The Senators also expressed disappointment with the United Nation’s decision to hold the conference in New York City on September 21st, 2011, just days after the tenth anniversary of the September 11th attacks.  Continue reading ‘U.S. Senators Urge Obama to Follow Canadian Lead on Durban 3′

U.N. rights chief admits being wrong on Durban 2, “naive” about Ahmadinejad

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In her AP interview today, U.N. rights chief Navi Pillay admits that those of us who warned her on Durban 2 “were right,” and that she was “naive” about Ahmadinejad:

Referring to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s speech before a 2009 global anti-racism conference in Geneva, Pillay acknowledged: “I was a bit naive.”

“I wondered why people were so afraid that he would use it as a political platform, but I see that they were right,” she said. “I think that it was pretty evident to everyone that it is an inappropriate speech to make at that venue.”

Ahmadinejad used his speech to deliver an angry diatribe against Israel, calling it the most “cruel and repressive racist regime” and prompting a walkout by European delegates. U.S. and Israeli diplomats had boycotted the conference from the start.

UN Watch welcomes Pillay’s statement. At the same time, it would have been better had the High Commissioner made clear that Ahmadinejad’s speech was simply hateful and wrong, and not merely “inappropriate” at that particular venue.

NGO Meets Red Cross to Petition for Release of Shalit, Hold Hamas Accountable for Violating International Law

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 GENEVA, December 10, 2010 – As demonstrators worldwide today called for the release of captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer visited with the International Committee of the Red Cross headquarters in Geneva to present a petition urging that Hamas abide by the minimal obligations of international humanitarian law.

The Geneva-based human rights group urged the Red Cross to speak out against the assault on international humanitarian law by Hamas and Hezbollah, noting their acts of terrorism, incitement to genocide, and embedding of rockets in civilian areas in order to maximize casualties.

UN Watch also urged the Red Cross to take action on the Wikileaks revelation that Iranian Red Crescent ambulances were used in Lebanon to smuggle weapons.

The petition was signed by 175 delegates from 26 nations who gathered at the 4th B’nai B’rith Europe Young Jewish Adult Forum in Zurich in mid-November.

Click for high resolution photo

24 NGOs Urge U.N. Rights Chief to Attend Oslo Nobel Ceremony and Show Support for Chinese Dissident

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GENEVA, December 9, 2010 – An international coalition of 24 human rights and non-governmental organizations appealed today to U.N. rights chief Navi Pillay to reverse her decision to skip Friday’s Nobel award ceremony for imprisoned Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo.

“We urge the High Commissioner to go to Oslo, attend the award ceremony, and convene a press conference that will spotlight the plight of the 1.3 billion Chinese citizens who are systematically denied the basic guarantees of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” said the statement.

Led by the Geneva-based rights group UN Watch, the signatories include the World Movement for Democracy from the U.S., SOS Racisme of France, and activist organizations from India, Venezuela and Liberia.

“The world spotlight in Oslo tomorrow will be exceptional — it’s a golden opportunity that the U.N. should not squander,” said UN Watch executive director Hillel Neuer. Continue reading ’24 NGOs Urge U.N. Rights Chief to Attend Oslo Nobel Ceremony and Show Support for Chinese Dissident’

Joint NGO Appeal for UN Solidarity With Chinese Dissident Liu Xiaobo, Nobel Laureate

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- at December 9, 2010 in China and High Commissioner of Human Rights. 0 Comments

The undersigned human rights and non-governmental organizations pay tribute to jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo on his being selected to receive the Nobel Peace Prize award.

We regret that, as claimed by China, 18 nations are supporting its boycott of the award ceremony tomorrow in Oslo.  We fully reject China’s attempt to describe this courageous champion of human rights as “subversive and criminal,” and its denunciation of the award as an “obscenity”. On the contrary, no award could be more fitting on international Human Rights Day.

We further regret to learn that the Norwegian Nobel Committee confirmed that U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay has also declined to attend, as reported by Radio Australia.

We urge the High Commissioner to go to Oslo, attend the award ceremony, and convene a press conference that will spotlight the plight of the 1.3 billion Chinese citizens who are systematically denied the basic guarantees of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

NGO Urges U.N. Rights Chief to Attend Nobel Ceremony & Not “Kowtow” to China

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- at December 6, 2010 in China and High Commissioner of Human Rights. 0 Comments

GENEVA, December 6, 2010 – A Geneva-based human rights group urged U.N. rights chief Navi Pillay to “do the right thing” and reverse her decision to skip Friday’s Nobel award ceremony for imprisoned Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo, saying that the Oslo event took “clear precedence” over a minor Geneva ceremony that her office claims requires her presence.

“Because High Commissioner Pillay is the U.N.’s highest authority on human rights, her presence in Oslo would send a powerful signal that the systematic violation of basic rights suffered by 1.3 billion citizens of China-one sixth of the world’s population-is not forgotten by the world. Beijing’s powerful U.N. influence should never justify silence or reticence by the world body’s highest officials,” said Hillel Neuer, an international lawyer and executive director of UN Watch, a non-governmental organization in Geneva that monitors the world body’s human rights system.

Continue reading ‘NGO Urges U.N. Rights Chief to Attend Nobel Ceremony & Not “Kowtow” to China’