Day Four and Five of the Durban Review Conference

I filled my last two days of the Conference with several informal meetings with Missions of countries at the UN in Geneva that were foreign to me. These conversations are polite and off the record. I personally visited with Israel, Lithuanian, and Finland. Others in my delegation sat with Switzerland, Turkey, Denmark, Argentina, and France.

As if it wasn’t fascinating and unique enough to be casually chatting with an Ambassador from a foreign country, but to be chewing on important topics uninterrupted for over an hour each time is something I shall never be able to duplicate.

Tension here is still very high. Anti-Israel attendees are still active. Rumors of diplomats’ intents to re-open the Document are a long shot but seem more plausible than the rumors of a return address by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Real work is performed even thought the Document is pressed into history. The wait in security lines is shorter and the halls seem grander with less traffic. The main Assembly Hall remains full with countries and NGO’s entering into the record their interests, each three minutes at a time.

I begin to realize this experience is about to be over. My last security check into the UN complex with my impressive NGO credentials, my last pulse of panic in front of a map while looking for the proper directions, and my last view of the Serpentine Lounge, a hub of delegate, diplomat, friend, and foe activity. My last tram ride and last random, impromptu conversation on same with a “Citoyen de Genève.”