Statement by Ms. Meirav Eilon Shahar
Explanation of vote, A/C.3/62/L.66, “Report of the Human Rights Council on the preparations for the Durban Review Conference”
20 November 2007

Mr. Chairman, 

Israel strongly believes in and supports all efforts to eliminate racism and promote tolerance. Since 1979, Israel has been a signatory to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, committing itself to implement the provisions of the Convention and ensure the equality of each individual without prejudice to their race, gender, ethnicity, and religion. 

In some cases, however, the international community’s efforts have been undermined by those seeking to promote their own parochial political interests. As many delegations will recall, the Durban conference of 2001 was anything but a meeting to eliminate racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance. In fact, some delegations and NGO’s present manipulated the occasion to demonstrate their deep-seeded prejudice and hatred for one particular Member State and one particular people.   

My delegation, along with the United States, was compelled to withdraw from the conference, and continues – to this day – to vote against resolutions that herald Durban as a worthy display of international resolve to combat hatred and promote tolerance. The events during the Durban parley, and the subsequent follow up resolutions which ignored the fiasco at Durban, proved that the gathering was nothing of the sort. 

Mr. Chairman,

My delegation cannot support a resolution that calls for a review conference in follow up  to the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action. For however noble the values of Durban should have been, the reality was that some delegations were incapable of showing one particular state the same respect, tolerance, fairness and equal treatment they demanded for themselves.   

As the activities and resolutions since Durban continue to ignore the inherent problems of the conference, my delegation cannot consciously  support measures that attempt to build off its momentum. Israel will therefore vote against the resolution. 
 
My delegation hopes that with time the mistakes of Durban will be rectified, and that an honest consensus can be reached, in which support for the elimination of racism and intolerance is wholehearted and without exception. 

Thank you Mr. Chairman.