After much criticism, the organizer IFLA asked its members what they think about the decision to arrange next year's library congress in Dubai.
Although 68 percent voted against, they now announce that they stand by the choice of Dubai.
The vote was purely advisory and the organization writes in a press release that they looked in particular at which regions voted for and against.
The criticism of the choice of Dubai has mainly come from Europe and North America, and as part of the work for diversity and better global spread, they have chosen to listen to members in Asia, the Middle East and Africa instead.
LGBTQ issues banned at Congress
The criticism has been that LGBTQ issues may not be discussed in the program due to the United Arab Emirates' strict laws. IFLA's own LGBTQ committee is instead encouraged to hold its own congress, at another time, in another location.
IFLA writes that they understand that LGBTQ people may feel excluded, but that many who otherwise did not have the opportunity to participate due to difficulties with visas or finances, will now have the opportunity.
In the past, the congress has mostly been held in Europe.
Swedes boycott: "Disappointed"
Several Swedish organizations have previously announced that they intend to boycott the congress.
In an email to Kulturnyheter, the Swedish Library Association writes that they stand by their decision after today's announcement:
"We are disappointed and stick to what we said when we voted. We stand by the criticism of organising a conference of this kind in a country with such great shortcomings in terms of human rights. The fact that IFLA has agreed to exclude LGBTQ+ issues from the conference's agenda makes it impossible for us to participate", writes Björn Orring, acting Secretary General.
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Several libraries are critical of the choice of Dubai and wonder how they could have agreed to exclude LGBTQ issues from the program. Photo: Kamran Jebreili/AP, SVT