The piece below, by Jeremy Newmark, appears in the Jewish News:

On arrival at the Palais des Nations in Geneva for the Durban Review Conference (Durban II), colleagues from Jewish groups around the globe were rightly proud of the fact that, whatever the coming days would bring, the lessons of the original Durban debacle had been learnt.

This time we were prepared. The international Jewish caucus had held countless meetings and conference calls. The infrastructure was in place. Organisations had spent months -in the case of the UK, years - ensuring that their respective Governments understood that a repeat of the original ‘hate-fest’ would both bury the entire Durban process and serve as an indictment that they had failed to stem the growth of a culture of hate and antisemitism within the United Nations.

Importantly, we had made significant progress in developing alliances with NGOs. Unlike the first Durban summit, the NGO component of this conference would not be the sole preserve of Israel-bashers and hatemongers.

Early on, it was apparent that the advance preparation was starting to pay off. A number of Governments had already withdrawn from the process. Others had set out clear red lines governing their participation or downgraded their delegations. The NGO Forum had been cancelled. The draft text of the Geneva declaration, whilst still problematic, was a significant evolution from the original Durban declaration, and UN officials highlighted the need for “contextualising” the reaffirmation of that document - diplomatic code for downgrading its significance.

The moment at which the Jewish presence was felt most forcibly came during the speech of the Iranian President. Hours of discussions and late-night lobbying paid off at the critical moment when the European delegations stormed out of the General Assembly chamber at the first sign that this speech was in fact a sermon of hate. Nor did it end there. For the two hours he remained in the UN Complex, Ahmadinejad was trailed by protests held in a forceful, vocal and dignified manner by Jewish students and accompanied by Holocaust survivor and Nobel Laureate Elie Weisel.

These students, led by World Union of Jewish Students chair Chaya Singer and British UJS Campaigns Director Yair Zivan, were without a doubt the heroes of the hour. Despite provocation from hostile NGOs and ill-prepared UN security officials, they demonstrated real leadership when it mattered most. Equally important was the demonstration they led outside the UN, highlighting the situation in Darfur. We should be proud of them.

We have publicly lead in a positive way. UK Jewish groups organised a fringe meeting attended by more than 200 diplomats and NGO delegates, at which a Muslim leader and the President of NUS called for greater cooperation between communities in tackling racism. The Swiss Jewish community hosted a historic Yom Hashoah ceremony at the UN. Jewish political activism surrounding Durban II was proudly and historically rooted in the Jewish values of the likes of the late René Cassin (1887-1976), who drafted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Raphael Lemkin (1900-1959), who authored the UN’s Genocide Convention.

Two days into the summit, despite Ahmadinejad’s now-notorious intervention (perhaps partly because of it), it is clear that this careful, brick-by-brick approach has made tangible progress in rolling back the cover of using the UN’s anti-racism infrastructure to attack Israel. Writing this piece at the halfway point of the conference, there is still a great deal at stake. The improved text of the declaration has yet to be finally locked down and there is every danger that it will deteriorate once again.

Some people hoped that Durban II would signify a new beginning after the original Durban debacle of 2001. That was always misplaced optimism. Durban I was the tipping point that unleashed a worldwide increase in antisemitism and normalised the global campaign of anti-Israel boycotts. No “review conference” could ever rectify that travesty. Whilst Durban I is characterised by the way that Governments subcontracted the hate to the NGO world, Durban 2 will be remembered for the way that Governments allowed that same hate to be preached from the podium in the General Assembly hall itself - as well the significant reactions to it.

Nevertheless, judging events so far in the parallel universe that is the politics of the United Nations, we have witnessed a watershed. Just a few months ago the Iranian President spoke at the General Assembly. Then, Western Governments failed to respond, speak out or condemn. The NGO community was muted. There were no significant protests. On this occasion, Jewish groups working in concert with non-Jewish partners contributed to scenes never witnessed before in the UN. At last it was made clear that antisemitism will not pass through its corridors or be aired in its halls without response, and neither will Jewish voices be silenced in the name of anti-racism. Jewish institutions around the world will continue to promote the fundamental principles of human dignity and equality that underpin our faith and inspire us to fight for human rights.

The real question is whether or not the UN can ever be a genuine partner in that struggle.

Jeremy Newmark is Chief Executive of the Jewish Leadership Council and member of JHRC-UK.