Durban II Key Events Update - The Israel Project

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 21, 2009

Contact:
Laura Kam: +1 202-857-2761, laurak@theisraelproject.org
Christoph Heil : +1 202 203 9928, christophh@theisraelproject.org
www.theisraelproject.org

22 Countries Walk Out of Ahmadinejad's Hate Speech Joining US and Other Major Countries

Key events during Durban II Conference in Geneva
Durban Conference currently taking place until April 24, 2009

President Ahmadinejad's speech at the Durban Review Conference on racism
Experts list: All available in Geneva
Listen to the Conference Call about Durban II with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad delivered a hate speech at the U.N.'s week-long conference on racism yesterday (April 20), saying that Israel is the "most cruel and racist regime." His remarks prompted the walk out of 22 European countries who joined the United States, Israel, and other major nations in protesting Iran's harsh anti-Israel rhetoric.

Other key events before and during Durban II Conference in Geneva

Experts/Contact List (North America, Israel, Europe and South Africa)

On April 20, thousands of delegates from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are expected to gather in Geneva for the United Nation’s Durban Review Conference, a five-day follow-up to the 2001 World Conference on Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance in the developing world held in Durban, South Africa. [1]

Driven primarily by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in close cooperation with Iran and other Muslim regimes, the 2001 conference devolved into a platform for attacks against Israel and failed to address serious issues of intolerance in many parts of the developing world. [2] Now, with preparatory committee meetings almost complete many experts are predicting that the upcoming event – better known as Durban II – will be nothing more than a new opportunity to demonize Israel while ignoring racist and discriminatory acts by UN members such as Sudan, Iran and China. [3]

Date: Tuesday 21 April 2009

International humanist and Ethical Union Association for World Education- Simon Wiesenthal center-
cordially invite Representatives of Member States of the United Nations, UN bodies, Specialized Agencies, Intergovernmental Organizations and NGOs

Time: 1:00 p.m to 3:00 pm / 13h à 15h

Where: Palais des Nations: Gate 40 - Room XXVII

Contact: Shimon Samuels
Tel: +33 6 09 77 01 58

Date: Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Lessons of the Holocaust for Antisemitism and Intolerance in the 21st Century

Time: 1:00 - 3:00 p.m / 13h- 15h

Elie Wiesel, Actor Jon Voight, Professor Alan Dershowitz, Author Shelby Steele, and Father Patrick Desbois

Where: Palais des Nations, Room/ Salle IX

Event in Poland
March of the Living 2009 To Serve as World’s Largest Protest Against Durban 2

When: April 21, 2009, March from Auschwitz to Birkenau

Time: 1:00 p.m / 13h

Where: Auschwitz Concentration Camp, Oswciem, Poland

Contact: Jeremy Wimpfheimer
LoneStar Communications – Jerusalem
Tel: +972-54-659-7795
E-mail: jeremy@lonestar.co.il
Website: http://www.moltl.org

      Date: Wednesday, April 22

              Press Conference with Prof. Alan Dershowitz

     Time: 11 a.m / 11h

               Where: Library ACANU Office in the UN Compound

Contact: Christoph Heil
The Israel Project
E-mail: Christophh@theisraelproject.org
Tel:+1 202 203 99 28

Date: Wednesday morning, April 22, 2009

Conference Against Racism, Discrimination and Persecution

Time: 9 a.m / 9h

Major event to address compelling issues of discrimination, anti-Semitism, and persecution. Organized by an international coalition of distinguished human rights non-governmental organizations.

Contact: antiracismconf@gmail.com for venue information

Date: Wednesday afternoon, April 22^nd2009

Israel Wants Peace—Conference and Rally

Time: 2 p.m / 14h

Chaired by Dr. Richard Prasquier, President of the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France (CRIF)

Focal point for supporters of Israel responding to the Durban II conference’s anti-Zionist propaganda, with expected audience of 1,000 from around the world. Organized by 20 pro-Israel organizations, Jewish and non-Jewish, the event will explain the real meaning of Zionism, and present the democratic, multicultural and humanitarian face of Israeli society.

Alan Dershowitz, Natan Sharansky, and many more.

REGISTRATION/Contact: israelinspires2009@gmail.com for venue information

Experts/Contact List (All will be in Geneva)

Israel

Ambassador Aharon Leshno Yaar, Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations in Geneva
Permanent Mission of Israel to the United Nations and other International Organizations
Phone: +41 22 716 05 00
Fax: +41 22 716 05 55
E-mail: mission-israel@geneva.mfa.gov.il
Website: http://geneva.mfa.gov.il/mfm/web/main/missionhome.asp?MissionID=3&

Prof. Gerald M. Steinberg
Executive Director NGO Monitor
Political Science Department Chair, Bar Ilan University
Expert on Iran
Tel: +972 2 5661020
Cell: +972 54-489-0445
E-mail: Steinberg@ngo-monitor.org
Web: www.ngo-monitor.org

Ron Kehrmann
Victim of Hamas Terror whose 17-year-old daughter was killed by Iran-backed Hamas in a suicide bombing
Mobile +972 544 911 822
Work +972 4 85 20067
Web site: www.Tal-Smile.com

Eitan Levon
International Organizations Division
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Tel: +972-2-5303900
Cell: +972-52-4495599
E-mail: eitan.levon@mfa.gov.il
Web: http://www.mfa.gov.il

Amos Hermon
Chairman, Jewish Agency for Israel Education Committee
Tel: +972.52.777 7003

United States

Professor Alan Dershowitz
Harvard Law School
Tel: +1 617 495 617
E-mail: dersh@law.harvard.edu

Laura Kam
Senior Advisor
The Israel Project
Tel: +1 202 857 2761
Cell:+ 1 202 374 9717
E-mail: laurak@theisraelproject.org
Website: www.theisraelproject.org

Dr. Charles Small
Director of the Yale Initiative for the Interdisciplinary Study of Antisemitism-
Available to comment and to be interviewed on the Durban II (Geneva)
Tel: 001 203 606 5252
Email: charles.small@yale.edu

or via Lauren Clark
Tel:001 203-432-5239
E-mail: lauren.clark@yale.edu

Anne Bayefsky
Director, Touro College Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust
Cell: +1-917-488-1558
Alternate Cell: +41 77 470 5689
E-mail: anne@hudsonny.org
Web: www.EYEontheUN.org

Richard D. Heideman
Honorary President of B'nai B'rith International
Tel:+1 (202) 463-1818
E-mail: rdheideman@HLNKlaw.com

Daniel S. Mariaschin
Executive Vice President of B'nai B'rith International
Tel: +1 202-857-6600
Toll-free Phone: +1 (888) 388-4224
Email: evp@bnaibrith.org

Ronald Lauder
World Jewish Congress
Tel: +1 212 755 5770
Cell: +1 914-309-7647

Michael Schneider
The Secretary General of the World Jewish Congress
Cell: +1 914-309-7647

Betty Ehrenberg (English and Hebrew)
Executive Director of World Jewish Congress, North America,
Tel: +1 917-514-1102
E-mail: behrenberg@wjcmail.org

Roz Rothstein
CEO, StandWithUs
E-mail: Roz@standwithus.com

Michael Dickson
Israel Office Director, StandWithUs
E-mail: MDickson@StandWithUs.com

Roberta Seid, PhD
Education Director, StandWithUs
E-mail: rseid@earthlink.net

David A. Harris
Executive Director
American Jewish Committee
Reachable via Doug Lieb at liebd@ajc.org
Tel: +1 914 588 361
E-mail: harrisd@ajc.org

Switzerland

Hillel Neuer
Executive Director, UN Watch Geneva
Tel: +41-22-734-1472
E-mail: hcneuer@unwatch.org
Web: www.unwatch.org

U.K.

Jeremy Newmark
Chief Executive, The Jewish Leadership Council
Tel: +44 20 72429734
E-mail: jn@thejlc.org
Press office: +44 845 658 3534
Other spokespeople contactable via Jeremy Newmark
Henry Grunwald QC, President Board of Deputies
Rosalind Preston OBE Joint Chair of JHRC-UK

France

Dr. Richard Prasquier
President of CRIF (Conseil Représentatif des Institutions Juives de France; English: Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France )
Tel.: +33 1 42 17 11 11
E-mail : infocrif@crif.org

CRIF Spokespeople

Edith Lenczner
E-mail: edith_crif@yahoo.fr
Tel:+33 6 11 56 24 23

Nathalie Chiche
E-mail: nathalie.chiche@crif.org
Tel:+33 6 78 99 44 93
Website: www.crif.org

Germany

Klaus Faber
Secretary of State ret., Lawyer
Member of the board of directors in the Coordination Council of German NGO’s against Antisemitism
Tel.: +49 (0) 331 - 624551
Fax: +49 (0) 331 - 6004035
E-mail: Klaus_Faber@t-online.de

Canada

Irwin Cotler
Canadian Member of Parliament, former Minister of Justice
House of Commons
Reachable via his assistant David Grossman,
E-mail david.grossman@mail.mcgill.ca
Cell: +41-79-884-6036

South Africa

Chaya Singer
Chairperson, World Union of Jewish Students
E-mail: chaya@wujs.org.il
Mobile in Geneva: +972-52-4760392

Footnotes:

[1] Durban Review Conference 2009, Web site of the Office of the Untied Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, accessed on Nov. 10, 2008, http://www2.ohchr.org/english/issues/racism/DurbanReview/;
World Conference Against Racism Web site, accessed Nov. 10, 2008, http://www.unhchr.ch/html/racism/02-documents-cnt.html

[2] "NGO Forum at Durban Conference 2001," NGO Monitor, http://www.ngo-monitor.org/article/ngo_forum_at_durban_conference_

Excerpts from the WCAR NGO FORUM DECLARATION on Palestinians and Palestinian Refugees, Sept. 3, 2001, http://www.badil.org/e-library/NGO-excerpts.htm and http://www.palestina-balsam.it/b76.html

[3] Bruckner, Pascal, "Boykottiert Durban 2!" Perlentaucher.de, July 31, 2008, http://www.perlentaucher.de/artikel/4698.html;

The Israel Project is an international non-profit organization devoted to educating the press and the public about Israel while promoting security, freedom and peace. The Israel Project provides journalists, leaders and opinion-makers accurate information about Israel. The Israel Project is not related to any government or government agency.

The Israel Project authorizes and welcomes use of any part or all of this release/statement free of charge and without attribution.

Latest videos and podcasts from TIP