New York, New York, April 29, 1999…The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today said that the resolution passed in Geneva by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights calling for Palestinian self-determination on the basis of the 1947 United Nations partition Resolution 181 is "anachronistic" and "negates the very principle of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process – bilateral negotiations."

Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director, issued the following statement:

It is astounding that the Human Rights Commission is recycling a dated and irrelevant resolution (UN Resolution 181) which set out a partition plan dividing the land between Israel and the Palestinians. In 1947 this resolution was rejected by the Arabs and Palestinians. Since then the resolution has been superseded by history.

The passage of this one-sided resolution negates the very principle of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process – bilateral negotiations. Under the Oslo framework, the issues of Palestinian borders and refugees are to be handled in the final status negotiations.

It is shocking that the resolution, supported by many European nations, reportedly does not mention the peace process or UN Security Council resolutions dealing with Israel-Palestinian negotiations. Indeed, the strong support for this resolution by member nations of the European Union calls into question EU support for the negotiations and the ongoing peace process.

At a time when energies should be focused on pushing the sensitive peace process forward, it is disturbing that the UN Human Rights Commission has chosen to pass this resolution which omits certain critical principles of the peace process.

The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.