Posted on 09 July 2008
Ottawa, July 9, 2008 - Astana, the capital city of Kazakhstan, the fourth largest country in the world, adjacent to Russia and China, with neighbours including Pakistan, Iraq and Iran, last week hosted the Organization for Security and Co-Operation in Europe Parliamentary Assembly, the largest parliamentary association in the world. Kazakhstan is a developing democracy and could be considered as a secular Muslim state.
The OSCE PA, representing 56 states from Vancouver to Vladivostok, held its annual meeting of Parliamentarians in Astana, Kazakhstan.
As Vice-President of the Parliamentary Assembly and Leader of the Liberal Democratic Reform Group, I co-sponsored the following far-reaching Resolution condemning Anti-Semitism after a fulsome debate in Committee and the Plenary.
This Resolution which combats anti-semitism manifestations in the media, academia double standards of media coverage of Israel, anti-semitic materials on the internet and urges participating states in the upcoming Durban Review Conference to make sure that that Conference will not be misused as a platform for promoting anti-semitism.
This Resolution was sponsored by Germans, Americans and myself as a member of the Canadian delegation.
I intend to table this Resolution in the Senate of Canada in Ottawa when we meet in the fall and refer this Resolution to the Senate Committee on Human Rights for study and recommendations.