High Commissioner Volker Türk said, from the capital Ouagadougou, that his local office had been “engaging intensely with the authorities, civil society actors, human rights defenders, UN partners and others on many of the multifaceted human rights challenges” the country faces following a coup in January 2022 that saw Captain Ibrahim Traoré assume power. Solidarity…
UN rumour has it that the unofficial tradition began almost 40 years ago, when a delegate from the United Kingdom requested the floor to make a point of order at the end of an intense months-long session. The now annual tradition is flush with ribald diplomatic jocularity and acerbic wit. Watch the UK’s “poem lecture”…
The review follows serious allegations regarding the alleged involvement of UNRWA staff in the 7 October attack on Israel by Hamas, which are being investigated by the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS). The independent review group presented the interim report findings and recommendations to the Secretary-General on Tuesday. “It has found that UNRWA…
They live in the village of Ankilinanjosoa in Anosy, a region which has suffered a series of droughts leading to the failures of multiple harvests. Twenty-five women formed a grower’s association which has access to water as part of a project supported by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Tenefo Votsirasoa is a member of a…
“As we approach the one-year anniversary of the conflict, we cannot make clearer the desperation that civilians are facing in Sudan,” said Edem Wosornu of the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA – one of three senior officials who briefed ambassadors. The meeting was convened following OCHA’s submission of a white paper on food insecurity in…
In an oral update to the Human Rights Council – UN’s paramount human rights body – Deputy High Commissioner Nada Al-Nashif said that DPRK (more commonly known as North Korea) was showing no signs of compliance. “As there are no indications that the State will address impunity, it is imperative that accountability is pursued outside…
The international day on Thursday highlights that theme, as well as the importance of recognition, justice and development opportunities for those of African descent, said Secretary-General António Guterres. He said the results of entrenched racism continue to be devasting: “opportunities stolen; dignity denied; rights violated; lives taken and lives destroyed.” The African diaspora faces a…
When volunteer firefighter Marlizar noticed smoke billowing over a quarter-hectare of peatland while on a routine patrol in 2019, he dispatched his colleague to their base in Riau province’s Teluk Maranti village, seven kilometres away, and faced the fire alone. As Marlizar’s colleague sped off to retrieve a clunky hose unit, the 42-year-old attempted to beat back…
In its latest update, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said that the first two weeks of March saw just 11 out of 24 missions “facilitated” by Israeli authorities. “The rest were either denied or postponed,” OCHA continued, noting that five convoys were refused entry and eight were postponed. “Facilitated missions primarily…
Based on over 2,300 testimonies from victims and witnesses, the report details measures taken by Russia to impose Russian language, citizenship, laws, court system and education curricula in the occupied areas, while at the same time suppressing expressions of Ukrainian culture and identity, and dismantling its governance and administrative systems. “The actions of the Russian…
