Media Release & Letter to Mahuta: NZ Must Say No To Durban Conference
MEDIA RELEASE 2 September 2021
Less than a month out from the infamous Durban conference, former National Party MP, Hon Alfred Ngaro has spoken out on the government’s equivocation over whether NZ will attend the 20th anniversary of a conference that purported to address racism and tolerance, but quickly descended into an antisemitic hate-fest.
“There’s nothing to discuss. Durban has become associated with racism, intolerance, antisemitism and Holocaust denial. Previous governments have been clear that NZ does not support this kind of racism and have stayed away. Most of our traditional allies have likewise chosen to boycott this conference because of its toxic atmosphere”, said Ngaro.
Former cabinet minister Ngaro, along with academic Dr Sheree Trotter have this week launched the Indigenous Coalition for Israel, an international initiative partnering with the European Coalition For Israel. Since 2003 the European Coalition For Israel has been active at the EU and since 2011 at the UN. It has initiated events such as the first Holocaust Remembrance Day at the European Parliament in 2005 and in 2011 it established the Forum for Cultural Diplomacy at the UN.
According to Trotter the Indigenous Coalition For Israel will provide a platform for indigenous voices to speak up for Israel. It will provide research based educational resources and stage cultural events. ICFI will seek to raise awareness and understanding of the some of the complex issues Israel faces, to cultivate collaboration and foster relationships with between the respective communities.
“We are greatly concerned by rising levels of antisemitism, often connected to misinformation about Israel and fear-based propagation of conspiracy theories. The eve of Rosh HaShana (Jewish New Year) is a great time to launch this initiative. It’s a festival that has been celebrated in Jewish communities for around 2,000 years and one which signals new beginnings.”
On 5 September (CET) the Indigenous Coalition for Israel will participate in a six hour online event organised by the European Coalition for Israel.
Information:
https://www.indigenouscoalition.org
Contact:
Hon Alfred Ngaro
Dr Sheree Trotter
Letter to Hon Minister Nanaia Mahuta
6 September 2021
Tena koe Minister Mahuta,
We are greatly concerned at the possibility of Aotearoa New Zealand being represented at the upcoming UN General Assembly meeting in New York to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the adoption of the Durban Declaration. As an organisation that seeks to stand against antisemitism we strongly recommend that Aotearoa New Zealand continues the stand we’ve made in the past in not supporting Durban, whose inaugural conference unleashed a horrific display of antisemitic hatred and whose Declaration enshrined its opposition to the only Jewish state in the world.
The Durban Declaration is deeply flawed in that it singles out only one nation, Israel, continuing the obsessive discrimination perpetrated by many organs of the United Nations towards the Jewish state. Israel is vastly outnumbered in this forum by the Arab, Islamic and non-aligned blocs, and faces persistent discrimination and disproportionate opprobrium.
Israel has its problems, like all nations, and unique challenges, but it is a diverse, multicultural nation with a remarkable record of coexistence and tolerance. It is a country that offers freedom and human and democratic rights to all its citizens. The plight of the Palestinians in Gaza and the disputed territories is indeed a concern, but will not be solved by demonising and delegitimizing Israel. The Jewish state was born on the back of the genocide of six million Jews. Israel will not give up the task of defending itself against those who hate her and seek her destruction. Nor should she. The Durban Process has simply become another weapon in the hate-filled campaign against the world’s only Jewish state. This is not a fight against racism, but against the democratic state of Israel itself.
We would urge you to join with our traditional allies in making a strong stand against a forum that has vociferously attacked the only truly democratic state in the Middle East.
The inaugural conference was described as “the tipping point for the coalescence of a new, virulent, globalizing anti-Jewishness reminiscent of the atmosphere that pervaded Europe in the 1930s” by Canadian MP, Irwin Cotler.
Tom Lantos, a Holocaust survivor stated, “For me, having experienced the horrors of the Holocaust first hand, this was the most sickening and unabashed display of hate for Jews I had seen since the Nazi period.”
United States Secretary of State Colin Powell, stated, “I know that you do not combat racism by conferences that produce declarations containing hateful language, some of which is a throwback to the days of ‘Zionism equals racism;’ or supports the idea that we have made too much of the Holocaust; or suggests that apartheid exists in Israel; or that singles out only one country in the world – Israel – for censure and abuse.”
Past New Zealand leaders have spoken out on the conference. New Zealand’s Foreign Minister, Murray McCully, said, “When the World Conference Against Racism was held in Durban, South Africa, seven years ago it was extremely contentious. It gave rise to expressions of anti-Israeli views which undermined its focus on genuine anti-racism initiatives…”
Many of our allies are continuing to stand against Durban.
US Ambassador Kelly Craft stated
“Twenty years on, there remains nothing about the Durban Declaration to celebrate or to endorse… It is poisoned by antisemitism and anti-Israel bias. It encourages restrictions on the freedom of expression. It exists to divide and discriminate and runs contrary to the laudable goal of combating racism and racial discrimination.”
The State Department announced
“The Biden Administration has put racial justice at the top of its priorities, both in multilateral fora and at home… the United States stands with Israel and has always shared its concerns over the Durban process’s anti-Israel sentiment, use as a forum for antisemitism, and freedom of expression issues…’
The Canadian government spokesperson has stated,
“Canada remains committed, at home and abroad, including at the UN, to advancing human rights, inclusion and combatting antisemitism, islamophobia and systemic racism in all its forms. Canada opposes initiatives at the United Nations and in other multilateral forums that unfairly single out and target Israel for criticism.”
A number of countries have pulled out of Durban; Australia, Austria, Bulgaria, Canada, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States.
In addition, a coalition of more than 30 members of parliament from across Europe and the UK have launched a global appeal, urging countries to pull out of the UN’s upcoming commemoration of a 2001 conference on racism that was plagued by virulent displays of antisemitism.
As indigenous peoples, we know what it means to be marginalised and have our voices ignored. We would urge you to consider the views of the Jewish community, who have faced a worrying surge in antisemitic attacks around the world, much of it the result of the virulent anti-Israel campaign that has demonised the Jewish state.
We urge you to make a strong stand against Jew-hatred and to not support the Durban commemoration.
Hon Alfred Ngaro
Dr Sheree Trotter
Co-directors
Indigenous Coalition For Israel
