Although Egypt's Minister of Culture, Farouk Hosni, expressed 'regret' over a May 2008 pledge to burn Israeli books in Egyptian libraries, the Central Council of Jews in Germany 'insisted on rejecting' his nomination for the post of the UNESCO Director-General. In his speech to the Deutschlandradio Kultur yesterday, the council's vice-president Salomon Korn said, "Even after his apology for his anti-Semitism statements, we reject his nomination."
If Hosni can think morally he should feel ashamed of his remarks. He should not nominate himself for this position. Anyway, he has to bear the consequences of his actions, Korn added.
For its part, New York Times said, "Egypt's culture minister, a painter named Farouk Hosni, has tried to save his candidacy to be the next Director-General of the United Nations cultural agency, UNESCO, making a public apology for suggesting last year that Israeli books in Egyptian libraries should be burned." In a report yesterday titled "Candidacy for UNESCO by Egyptian Is Faltering", New York Times added, "But in the complicated international politics of United Nations agencies, Mr. Hosni's chances appeared to be slipping, with new candidates appearing just before the May 31 deadline." The report, written by Steven Erlanger, quoted a UNESCO official as saying Mr. Hosni receives shaky support. He, who has been Egypt's culture minister for more than twenty years, has banned numerous Jewish books and films. In the last few days before the May 31 deadline for nominations, the diplomats said some other strong candidates have emerged to replace the current director general, Koichiro Matsuura of Japan, when a choice is finally made in October. The former Austrian Foreign Minister and current European Union Commissioner for External Relations, Benita Ferraro-Waldner, has just become a candidate, New York Times added. Hosni is backed by the Arab League, the African Union and other countries such as Brazil and Chile.
