Human rights through the eyes of Andy Vermaut

Trust built on decades of respect for religion has fertilized the seeds of success for two communities, one Muslim the other Christian, which have joined together to build a successful rice growing cooperative in the Philippines. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151646?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The UN Secretary-General on Saturday praised the adoption of a “strong outcome document” at the end of a conference dedicated to combatting illicit small arms and light weapons worldwide, saying it was an important sign of progress. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151641?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Two women from the troubled Carrefour-Feuilles neighborhood in Haiti's capital Port-au-Prince have shared their traumatic experiences of rape, contracting HIV, and despairing thoughts of suicide, after multiple forced displacements amid widespread gang violence.  https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151626?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Any relationship that any country has with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), including Russia, “must entirely abide” by Security Council sanctions, Izumi Nakamitsu, UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs said on Friday, as she briefed ambassadors. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151631?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

On Friday, at the UN Human Rights Council's (OHCHR) first panel for the annual full-day discussion on women's rights, The UN human rights chief Volker Türk on Friday told a Human Rights Council panel that it’s time to eliminate laws and practices that contribute to “economic violence” against women and girls. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151616?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

With just six years remaining to reach the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), global progress is alarmingly insufficient, with a mere 17 per cent of the targets currently on track, according to a new UN report released on Friday. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151606?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Over and above the difficulty of actually getting into Gaza, aid teams now face the crushing realization that with a shortage of fuel and dwindling supplies, there is a limit to what they can do to help all those in need, UN aid worker Louise Wateridge told UN News on Friday. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151596?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The UN Security Council on Thursday demanded that Houthi rebels in Yemen immediately cease all attacks against merchant and commercial vessels in the Red Sea. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151586?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

In a landmark art project for the Austrian capital Vienna, the UN building there has become a giant canvas representing the challenges of forging peace in a world that is still all too prone to conflict. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151571?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Have you ever been driving in your car and pressed the accelerator instead of the brake? It happens more than you might think and it’s a cause of serious accidents that UN road safety experts have found a fix to, they announced on Thursday. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151551?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The risk of widespread famine in Sudan caused by war there was confirmed on Thursday by leading hunger experts who warned that the country faces “the worst levels of acute food insecurity ever recorded”, with no less than 14 areas at the highest level of risk. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151546?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Foreign banks are allegedly helping Myanmar’s military junta acquire weapons and military supplies, facilitating a “campaign of violence and brutality” as the civil war there grinds on, according to an independent UN human rights expert on Wednesday. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151541?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The UN Security Council on Wednesday heard powerful and personal testimony from a former child soldier who recounted harrowing experiences of being abducted and forced to join an armed group in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151516?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Human suffering continues to worsen against a backdrop of conflict and runaway climate change the UN chief said on Tuesday, calling on countries to step up support for those in need and protect the humanitarians who aid them. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151481?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

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The UN agency tackling crime and drug abuse (UNODC) released its annual World Drug Report on Wednesday warning that the number of users is ticking up alongside a rise in trafficking. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151446?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

While the situation in Gaza remains catastrophic, ongoing Israeli settlement expansion and escalating violence in the occupied West Bank is ratcheting up tension across the whole region, the UN’s Middle East envoy said on Tuesday. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151441?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The release of Julian Assange “is a very good outcome” to the long-running case, the UN independent expert on torture said on Tuesday after reports that the WikiLeaks founder had struck a plea deal with the United States.   https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151436?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The UN Secretary-General has condemned Sunday’s terror attacks against several churches and synagogues in Russia’s mainly-Muslim Dagestan region, with the death toll now rising to at least 20, according to latest reports. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151391?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

A total of 53 countries had best practice policies in place for tackling industrial trans fats in food as of last year, vastly improving the food environment for 3.7 billion people, or 46 per cent of the world’s population, according to a milestone report published by the UN World Health Organization on Monday. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151386?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The United Nations launched new Global Principles for Information Integrity on Monday, emphasizing the need for immediate action to address the harms caused by misinformation, disinformation and hate speech. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151376?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Heavy fighting in Sudan hit a new low over the weekend when a maternity hospital in besieged El Fasher city came under attack, killing a pharmacy worker and prompting new calls on Monday from the head of the UN health agency for the violence to stop. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151371?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

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The head of the main UN agency responsible for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, issued a stark warning on Monday that it “will crumble” unless funding is found quickly, with an “entire generation” of children at risk of being condemned to “poverty…hatred, resentment and future conflict”.  https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151366?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Law enforcement officers in the Philippines are being informally supported by the United Nations as they deal with the emotional stress of chasing online child abusers. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151326?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Deadly monsoon landslides in southern Bangladesh have destroyed over 1,200 shelters and displaced around 2,000 ethnic Rohingya from neighbouring Myanmar who need urgent assistance, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, has said. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151351?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The humanitarian needs in Afghanistan are “alarmingly high” and the international community is in “crisis management mode”, the UN Security Council heard on Friday. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151346?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Like many expecting parents, Oleksandra and Oleksandr Chebotar were eagerly awaiting the birth of their daughter. The way it happened, however, was unlike anything they had ever imagined. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151286?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Escalating gang violence and political instability in Haiti have forced a record 578,074 people from their homes this year, making it the country with the largest number of displacements due to crime-related violence, UN independent human rights experts said on Thursday. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151306?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The UN World Health Organization (WHO) has announced a spike in cholera in several regions of the world, with almost 195,000 cases and over 1,900 deaths reported in 24 countries since the start of this year.  https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151296?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Foreign direct investment (FDI) fell by two per cent to $1.3 trillion in 2023 amid global economic slowdown and rising geopolitical tensions, according to a report released on Thursday by the UN trade and development body, UNCTAD.  https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151276?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The overwhelming majority of people around the world want an end to geopolitical differences when it comes to fighting climate change, the results of a landmark public opinion poll conducted by the UN Development Programme (UNDP) has shown. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151271?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Tuesday highlighted the dual-edged nature of cyberspace, stressing its potential for both immense benefits and significant risks when misused. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151266?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

UN aid coordination office (OCHA) said on Wednesday that Gazans continue to be displaced due to active fighting and bombardment. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151236?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Libyans overwhelmingly desire a political consensus so that credible national elections can be held that will restore legitimacy to national institutions, the deputy head of the UN Support Mission in the country (UNSMIL) said on Wednesday. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151246?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

“Conflict, climate chaos and upheaval” have forced more than 120 million people from their homes including 43.5 million who have fled across national borders said the UN Secretary-General in his message for World Refugee Day, marked on Thursday. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151216?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The United Nations on Wednesday commemorated the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict, highlighting the vital role hospital’s play in helping survivors heal. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151206?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

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A conference focused on small arms and light weapons is taking place at a “difficult and dangerous moment for humanity,” according to the UN Chief António Guterres.  https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151171?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

On World Refugee Day, marked annually on 20 June, meet some of the multi-talented teachers and principals of migrant learning centres in Thailand along the border with Myanmar, who, with UN support, are doing all they can to keep up with the influx of children seeking sanctuary. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151156?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The UN Security Council in New York on Tuesday focused on the worsening crisis in Sudan as civilians continue to suffer amidst the brutal fighting between rival militaries, while the Geneva-based Human Rights Council heard independent investigators describe combatants’ “blatant disregard” for fundamental human rights and international law. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151151?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The systemic oppression against Afghan women and girls is “so severe and extensive that they appear to form a widespread and systematic attack” which could amount to crimes against humanity said Richard Bennett, the independent rights expert monitoring Afghanistan, addressing the UN Human Rights Council on Tuesday.  https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151146?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

As the war drags on in Gaza, UN human rights chief Volker Türk on Tuesday condemned Israel’s “relentless” attacks across the war-shattered enclave, while repeating longstanding calls for the release of all remaining hostages. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151136?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Sustainable sources of energy, including solar and wind power, can help communities across the world to reverse desertification and land loss, according to Ibrahim Thiaw, the Executive Secretary of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification.  https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151066?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

As nearly 40 per cent of land across the planet is degraded with more acres lost every second, governments, businesses and communities must galvanize action to reverse the damage and protect Earth, the UN chief said in a strong message for the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought, marked annually on 17 June. https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151121?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The head of the UN human rights office (OHCHR) Volker Türk on Friday called for serious measures to be taken to end human rights violations that are jeopardizing reconciliation and peace efforts in Ethiopia.  https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151096?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

A surge of attacks by Russian forces on the Kharkiv area of Ukraine is causing significant civilian casualties, as well as the destruction of homes and crucial infrastructure, the top UN official in Ukraine said today, in a plea not to “normalize” the dire conditions for Ukrainian civilians.   https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151086?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Escalating fighting in the south and centre of Gaza makes it near-impossible for humanitarians to deliver desperately needed food aid, the Deputy Executive Director of the World Food Programme (WFP), Carl Skau, said on Friday at the end of a two-day mission to the enclave.  https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151071?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The global fight to tackle female genital mutilation (FGM) is being undermined by the movement of some girls across national borders and beyond to undergo the procedure, the UN human rights office (OHCHR) warned in a new report published on Friday.  https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151056?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The UN humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine Denise Brown on Thursday said she was ‘appalled’ by the scale of Russia’s overnight attack on Kryviy Rih City in the Dnipro Region.  https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/06/1151036?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger