French President Emmanuel Macron. Reuters/Pascal Rossignol/Pool
- The Durban meeting will be held during the United Nations General Assembly in New York in September.
- Canada, Israel, the United Kingdom, the United States and many European countries have announced their boycotts of this year’s meeting.
- President Emmanuel Macron said Will not attend the meeting because he is worried about anti-Semitic remarks in the Durban meeting.
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday that French President Emmanuel Macron will boycott previous “anti-Semitism speeches”. The United Nations Conference on Combating Racism held last month.
The follow-up meeting of the Durban Conference is named after the South African city where the first meeting was held in 2001, and is scheduled to convene world leaders during the United Nations General Assembly in New York in September.
But this format has been controversial since its inception, with critics headed by Israel accusing Durban’s first edition of being tainted by vicious and undisguised anti-Semitism.
Several countries, including France, also boycotted follow-up meetings in 2009 and 2011.
Canada, Israel, the United Kingdom, the United States and many European countries have announced their boycotts of this year’s meeting.
The French president said in a statement that Macron “has decided that France will not participate in the follow-up meeting scheduled for this year because he is concerned about the anti-Semitic remarks made during the Durban meeting.”
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The first Durban Conference held from August 31 to September 8, 2001 was characterized by deep differences on issues of anti-Semitism, colonialism, and slavery.
Western countries believe that criticism of Israel and its occupied Palestinian territories often turns to overt anti-Semitism.
The United States and Israel withdrew from the meeting to protest the tone of the meeting, including a plan to condemn Zionism in the final text.
At the 2009 conference, Iran’s then President Ahmadinejad’s attack on Israel’s speech triggered a temporary strike by many European representatives.
The French President said:
France will continue to fight against all racist forces and will pay close attention to ensure that Durban follow-up meetings are held in accordance with the founding principles of the United Nations.
Macron vowed to fight all forms of anti-Semitism, and last year warned that “anti-Semitism in our Europe is resurgent.”
In recent days, the government has expressed concern about anti-Semitic slogans in protests against Covid-19 restrictions.
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