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World Jewish News
Russia Has No Doubts that Durban-2 Conference Will Take Place
29.03.2009
Yuri Boychenko, a Russian diplomat in charge of drafting the text of the Declaration of the Conference Against Racism, said that a consensus will be reached.
"I am optimistic about the recognition of the Declaration," - he stressed during a meeting with reporters in Brussels.
According to the Russian diplomat, now all the phrases, which caused criticism, and threatened to derail the conference, have been deleted from the text.
"Many delegations have already officially stated that they are willing to accept the current version of the text," said Boychenko. "And they even offered to endorse it before the conference opens (presumably on April 20-24)."
The draft resolution, published a few days ago, does not mention Israel and the Middle East, does not include statements about the defamation of religion, and there are no demands on reparations for slavery. These were the items considered unacceptable by the Western countries.
The references to discrimination against homosexuals have also been removed. They had been suggested by western leaders, but the Muslim countries and the Vatican opposed their introduction into the Declaration. The diplomat, however, noted that "some countries are still suspicious" about the conference on combating racism. The United States stated that it will take time for a final decision to be made.
Earlier the EU threatened to boycott the conference if the text is not adjusted, so that a forum on combating racism is not turned into an anti-Semitic meeting.
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