Durban II Was Almost Funny

Serious defense of Israel shone alongside clever and zany protest at the United Nations Conference Against Racism in Geneva, Switzerland earlier this week.

For representatives of countries like China, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Cuba to sit on a Council that obsessively attacks Israel instead of focusing on widespread, egregious human rights abuses around the world--including abuses these governments themselves perpetrate routinely--would be funny if it were not nauseating. Similarly, for delegates to sit and lap up the racist tirade of Mahmoud "the-Holocaust-is-a-Myth" Ahmadinejad at a conference that purports to fight racism is comedy worthy of Mel Brooks, except it is not fiction.

But because alongside the viciousness of it, the absurdity is undeniable, it was somehow fitting that protestors included both Harvard law prof Alan Dershowitz, who made an eloquent defense of Israel, and a group of French Jewish students wearing rainbow wigs who tossed a red nose at the would-be-Hitler-of-today to highlight what a farce the conference was.

Dersh pointed out that nations like Israel, which have internal mechanisms for investigating human rights abuses and are open societies where people can criticize their governments without fear are not in need of monitoring and lectures from countries like China, Egypt, Cuba, and Saudi Arabia, where people can't speak out without fear and where human rights abuses are widespread and horrific.

The French Jewish students' humorous and bold act took guts. The fact it could be funny reflects the reality that enough people of good will have said "Never again" to true, institutionalized racism and dehumanization, and to tyrants who seek world domination. Heaven help us all if the enemies of freedom and democracy--who, not surprisingly, are Israel's enemies--were ever to be in a position of greater power. These countries already abuse the powerless, and those within their borders who seek intellectual, sexual, or spiritual freedom. For those who suffer their fascism, and for those of us who are sincere defenders of human rights, there is nothing funny about that.

Comments

[Lederman's Assistant]

Thanks for the article Heather! Keep them coming!

[Allen J]

What a charming little article you wrote, perfectly suited for a warm reception here in the United States, Israel's staunchest ally, complete with a press that enthusiastically jumps at any chance to turn a blind eye towards Israel's foreign policy.

You should know that time and time again whenever the UN has voted to pass measures working towards peace in that region, the US has unilaterally vetoed them from the security council. The US alone, on just Israel issues alone, has more vetoes than all other security council members combined on all issues combined.

That's the US unilaterally vetoing peace that the rest of the world (including Palestenians) are trying to push through. And you really wonder why this was a big issue at Durban II, right?

[lightningbolt]

The UN has written more resolutions against Israel than against any other country in the world, even though many other countries have carried out much worse and more numerous human rights abuses. The reason this happens is because the largest block of nations in the UN is the Muslim block, which will sponsor as many anti-Israel resolutions as they can. Most of these resolutions are intended to hurt Israel and nothing more, and that is why the U.S. has vetoed them. Those nations who condemn Israel are mostly human rights abusers themselves, and in many cases, much worse than Israel.

[forpeacealways]

There was also a resolution that said when Israel withdrew from Southern Lebanon in 2000 that Hezbollah would go to. Instead, Hezbollah has seats in their parlament and has thousands of rockets.

Was there a reason you forgot about that?

[Baghooli]

Wasn't a few months ago when there were a war in Middle-East and some are still surprise why Israel is in the center of attention in UN which incidentally is also investigating her for committing war crimes, but since Israel internal investigation just cleared IDF of any wrong doing during Gaza war against all the photos and international witnesses to the contrary, white European settler and colonizer states are going to walk out of that too!