Haiti: UN officials say ‘we are running out of time’ amid escalating crises

Haiti: UN officials say ‘we are running out of time’ amid escalating crises

Ahead of an expected closed-door Security Council meeting, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, called for the urgent deployment, with no further delay, of the Council-mandated multinational security support mission in Haiti. “The reality is that, in the current context, there is no realistic alternative available to protect lives,” the High Commissioner…

Read More
Zero Waste Day: UN calls for a war on garbage

Earth’s ‘life support system’ is being destroyed by global business paradigm, UN expert warns

In a hard-hitting report to the Human Rights Council, Special Rapporteur David Boyd underscored that current business practices, particularly large coporations, pose a severe threat to the planet’s ecological integrity. ‘Colossal impacts’ of the ultrarich Mr. Boyd emphasized the “colossal impacts” on natural resources, which are being consumed six times faster than the planet can…

Read More
Stories from the UN Archive: UN General Assembly’s first female president

Stories from the UN Archive: UN General Assembly’s first female president

Ms. Pandit was a veteran politician and leader in her own right but also came from a family background steeped in politics, including her brother, Jawaharlal Nehru, India’s first Prime Minister following the country’s hard-won independence from a near century of British rule. An active Indian nationalist, she was also the first Indian woman to…

Read More
South Sudan: Top UN official calls for greater political investment as polls loom

South Sudan: Top UN official calls for greater political investment as polls loom

Briefing ambassadors at the Security Council, Jean-Pierre Lacroix said that if the parties display greater political will and invest adequate resources, credible elections can still take place before the end of the transition period. “Despite the shortcomings in implementation, the peace agreement did instill a period of stability at the national level and brought opponents…

Read More
‘Widespread’ sexual abuse of children in entertainment business revealed

‘Widespread’ sexual abuse of children in entertainment business revealed

“The sexual abuse and the exploitation of children within the entertainment industry resulting from unethical systems, structures, practices or abuse of power and authority is widespread,” said Mama Fatima Singhateh, the UN Special Rapporteur on sale and sexual exploitation of children. Child performers in the entertainment industry are exposed to sexualized, violent and aggressive environments that…

Read More
UN rights expert condemns ‘systematic’ war-time mass destruction of homes

UN rights expert condemns ‘systematic’ war-time mass destruction of homes

Citing alarming examples in Aleppo, Grozny, Mariupol, Myanmar, Sudan and Gaza, Balakrishnan Rajagopal, the Special Rapporteur on adequate housing, said an “increasingly systematic, massive and arbitrary destruction of civilian housing and infrastructure” during too many conflicts around the world is in blatant violation of international human rights and humanitarian laws. “We have seen or are…

Read More
North Gaza aid mission reveals more infants may die from hunger

North Gaza aid mission reveals more infants may die from hunger

“WHO and partners managed to access (Al) Shifa (hospital) in the north and deliver fuel, some lifesaving supplies for 150 patients and treatment of 50 children suffering from severe acute malnutrition and also bring it vaccines,” said Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, UN World Health Organization (WHO) Representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory.  For the first time…

Read More
Drug control on the internet: UN-backed body offers solutions to counter narcotics surge

Drug control on the internet: UN-backed body offers solutions to counter narcotics surge

The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) study recommends responding with the same methods, running counter-narcotics campaigns offering advice that can be trusted on popular online platforms.  “We can see that drug trafficking is not just carried out on the dark web. Legitimate e-commerce platforms are being exploited by criminals too,” said Jallal Toufiq, INCB President. …

Read More