World News in Brief: UN rights chief condemns attacks in Nigeria, WFP supplies looted in Sudan, non-discrimination protections in the US

PNP DeskDecember 28, 2023September 18, 202409 mins

Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights called on the authorities to conduct prompt, thorough and independent investigations into the attacks that took place on Christmas Eve and to hold those responsible to account in fair trials. The violence occurred in the Plateau state, an ethnically and religiously diverse region, where inter-communal conflict has…

Gaza crisis: Starvation must never be allowed to happen, says UN rights chief

PNP DeskDecember 22, 2023September 18, 202403 mins

“Starvation must never be a means or result of warfare,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Türk said, responding to an alarming food security report released on Thursday that confirmed repeated warnings of catastrophic hunger levels in the besieged enclave amid ongoing fighting. In a tweet, Mr. Türk urged Israel to act immediately to ensure that all…

Stories from the UN Archive: Audrey Hepburn on children’s rights

PNP DeskDecember 21, 2023September 18, 202402 mins

Soon after becoming a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in 1988, she went on a mission to Ethiopia, where years of drought and civil strife had caused terrible famine. After visiting UNICEF emergency operations, she talked about the projects to media in the United States, Canada and Europe over several weeks, giving as many as 15 interviews…

Draw inspiration from human rights advocates worldwide, urges Guterres

PNP DeskDecember 15, 2023September 17, 202403 mins

Speaking at the awards ceremony of the UN Prize in the Field of Human Rights for 2023, Mr. Guterres stressed that rights defenders themselves were in need of greater protection. “The world needs leaders of countries, corporations, political parties, religious and civil organizations and beyond, to speak out against antisemitism, anti-Muslim bigotry, attacks on minority…

Explainer: How Darfur became a ‘humanitarian calamity and catastrophic human rights crisis’

PNP DeskDecember 14, 2023September 17, 2024011 mins

Close to nine million people need humanitarian assistance and reports suggest that some 4000 people have been targeted and killed because of their ethnicity. There are now concerns that Darfur is returning to the years of brutal fighting and increasing atrocities last witnessed two decades ago that left some 300,000 people dead and millions of…

‘Rebuild a foundation of hope’ for global human rights: Türk

PNP DeskDecember 12, 2023September 17, 202408 mins

“This is a pivotal day. We are here to rebuild a foundation of hope – hope that we need now, perhaps more than ever, at this sombre moment in history,” Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said, addressing participants which included leaders from Poland, Slovenia, Estonia, Greece Senegal, Colombia and the Maldives, taking to…

Uphold freedoms, fulfill the promise of human rights, urges UN chief

PNP DeskDecember 11, 2023September 17, 202406 mins

In a video message to a high-level event marking the 75th anniversary of the Declaration, Mr. Guterres recalled that the landmark document presented a “beacon of hope” for humanity and a blueprint for fundamental freedoms. “As we celebrate this 75th anniversary, I call on every Member State to use this opportunity, and the Summit of…

Stories from the UN Archive: Human rights must come ‘in hearts of people’

PNP DeskDecember 9, 2023September 17, 202402 mins

Eleanor Roosevelt played a key role as a member of the US delegation to the United Nations in the two-year-long process that led to the adoption in 1948 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. She famously said that the “real change which must give to people throughout the world their human rights must come about…

New York City youth give a shout out to human rights worldwide

PNP DeskDecember 6, 2023September 17, 202405 mins

The event, organized by the UN human rights office (OHCHR) and the New York City Mayor’s Office, was a call to action to youth. “Positive change is possible when we unite in action. By being here, you’re responding to the call for action,” Ilze Brands Kehris, Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights, told more than 500…

World News in Brief: WFP ‘pauses’ north Yemen food aid, human rights and sport, Myanmar latest

PNP DeskDecember 5, 2023September 17, 202407 mins

The region has been under the control of opposition Houthi forces since the internationally recognized Government were driven out of the city in 2015. WFP said that despite negotiating with the authorities for nearly a year to provide a more limited aid programme that would reach around 6.5 million in need, versus the current 9.5…