On Migrants Day, UN remembers thousands who lost their lives this year trying to reach safe harbour
Dec 19, 2015, at 03:29 pm
New York, Dec 19 (Just Earth News/IBNS) Global candlelight vigils marked the International Day of Migrants on Friday to remember that the more than 5,000 women, men and children who lost their lives in arduous journeys in search of protection and a better life as, United NationsSecretary-General Ban Ki-moon said 2015 will be remembered as a year of human suffering and migrant tragedies.
Liberia: UN report calls for ending sometimes deadly cultural practices that violate human rights
Dec 19, 2015, at 03:26 pm
New York, Dec 19 (Just Earth News/IBNS) Senior United Nations officials on Friday called on Liberia to root out sometimes deadly human rights violations masquerading as cultural practices, citing female genital mutilation, forced initiation into secret societies, witchcraft accusations, trials by ordeal and ritualistic killings.
Security Council hears briefing on Turkish troop deployment in northern Iraq
Dec 19, 2015, at 03:24 pm
New York, Dec 19 (Just Earth News/IBNS) United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has expressed the hope that the governments of Iraq and Turkey will exercise restraint, including in their public statements, and intensify their bilateral discussions to diffuse tensions after Turkish troop deployment in northern Iraq earlier this month to combat the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Security Council was told in a briefing this evening.
Ban hails commitment by Costa Rica, Nicaragua to abide by UN court's ruling on border dispute
Dec 18, 2015, at 03:35 pm
New York, Dec 18 (Just Earth News/IBNS) United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday welcomed the commitment by Costa Rica and Nicaragua to abide by the United Nations International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling on their border dispute.
Dec 18, 2015, at 03:20 pm
New York, Dec 18 (Just Earth News/IBNS) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday pledged to urgently review the recommendations made by an independent panel that found that the United Nations did not act with the “speed, care or sensitivity required,†when it uncovered information about crimes committed against children by soldiers – not under UN command – sent to the Central African Republic (CAR) to protect civilians.
New bill in Finland threatens Sami peoples' right to traditional lands, livelihoods, UN expert warns
Dec 18, 2015, at 03:12 pm
New York, Dec 18 (Just Earth News/IBNS) A United Nations human rights expert expressed deep concern on Thursday at the lack of consultation and the reduced protections to the Sami indigenous people in the current draft law on the Finnish Forest and Parks Service (Metsähallitus) to regulate the management of State-owned lands.
Some 150 million migrants now participating in global workforce - new UN labour agency report
Dec 17, 2015, at 02:31 pm
New York, Dec 17 (Just Earth News/IBNS) A new statistical study conducted by the United Nations International Labour Organization (ILO) has revealed that migrant workers account for 150.3 million of the world’s approximately 232 million international migrants, which amounts to a total of 72.7 per cent of working age migrant population.
Opium production in Myanmar and Laos are stable at high levels, new UN report shows
Dec 17, 2015, at 02:31 pm
New York, Dec 17 (Just Earth News/IBNS) Opium poppy cultivation has stabilized at high levels in Myanmar and Lao People's Democratic Republic, but "the region’s demand for heroin remains at unacceptably high levels and transnational organized crime groups are making huge profits," according to a new survey released by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
Despite progressive laws, gender-based violence ‘pervasive’ in South Africa, UN expert warns
Dec 16, 2015, at 04:00 pm
New York, Dec 16 (Just Earth News/IBNS) Warning that deeply entrenched patriarchal attitudes make violence against women “an almost acceptable phenomenon†in South Africa, a United Nations human rights expert on Tuesday urged the Government to strengthen its fight against gender-based violence through awareness and education at all levels of society.
Two-year conflict has led to ‘unrelenting crisis’ for South Sudan’s children, UN agencies warn
Dec 16, 2015, at 03:37 pm
New York, Dec 16 (Just Earth News/IBNS) The children of South Sudan are among the most vulnerable on the planet, two leading United Nations humanitarian agencies said on Tuesday, with a senior UN refugee official warning that the world’s newest nation cannot afford to lose a generation of children, “as in them lies the future and hope of the young nation.â€
Dec 16, 2015, at 03:23 pm
New York, Dec 16 (Just Earth News/IBNS) The Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Tuesday chided the United Nations Security Council for its “empty promises†to bring Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir to trial for atrocities in Darfur, even as his victims cry out for justice amid indiscriminate killings and mass rape.
UN rights chief urges Cuba to halt harassment of activists and respect human rights
Dec 16, 2015, at 03:20 pm
New York, Dec 16 (Just Earth News/IBNS) The top United Nations human rights official expressed concern today over the extremely high number of arbitrary arrests and short-term detentions of individuals, including human rights defenders and dissidents, in Cuba in recent weeks.
Dec 16, 2015, at 03:18 pm
New York, Dec 16 (Just Earth News/IBNS) The United Nations nuclear watchdog on Tuesday closed the book on the possible military aspects of Iran’s nuclear programme, finding that they were limited to feasibility and scientific studies and did not proceed beyond 2009, bringing an international nuclear accord with Iran a step closer to implementation.
Yemen: UN-sponsored peace talks kick off as ceasefire goes into effect
Dec 16, 2015, at 03:16 pm
New York, Dec 16 (Just Earth News/IBNS) After months of relentless violence in Yemen, consultations facilitated by the United Nations began on Tuesday in Switzerland aimed at finding a durable settlement to the crisis, including establishing a permanent ceasefire, securing improvements to the humanitarian situation and a returning to a peaceful and orderly political transition.
Dec 16, 2015, at 03:13 pm
New York, Dec 16 (Just Earth News/IBNS) Although international attention has waned regarding the crisis in Israel and the Occupied Palestine Territory, the United Nations human rights office on Tuesday warned that the region is still rife with violence and the recent escalation in the fighting has claimed 117 Palestinian lives, along with two foreign nationals and injured thousands more.
Burundi: UN urges immediate action to stop 'senseless' violence
Dec 16, 2015, at 02:18 pm
New York, Dec 16 (Just Earth News/IBNS): Amid the “deadly escalation†of violence in Burundi, the United Nations human rights chief on Tuesday sounded the alarm at the unfolding crisis in the country and urged all actors in the current crisis to take every step possible to stop the growing violence and engage in a meaningful and inclusive dialogue.
Dec 15, 2015, at 03:20 pm
New York, Dec 15 (Just Earth News/IBNS): Ten years after the United Nations World Summit on the Information Society, delegates from Member States and observer entities are meeting at UN Headquarters starting on Mondayto identify emerging trends, fresh priorities and innovations for advancing information and communications technologies.
Two billion move out of extreme poverty over 25 years – UN flagship development report
Dec 15, 2015, at 03:15 pm
New York, Dec 15 (Just Earth News/IBNS): Some two billion people have moved out of low human development levels in the last 25 years but in order to secure these gains and galvanize progress, a stronger focus to “act now†to provide decent work is needed, according to the new United Nations Human Development Report released on Monday.
Dec 15, 2015, at 03:13 pm
New York, Dec 15 (Just Earth News/IBNS): Speaking from Damascus today, the top United Nations relief official said the situation in Syria is "unacceptable," with nearly 13.5 million Syrians in need of some form of assistance, and he urged the international community to generously support the UN's $3.2 billion humanitarian operations plan for the war-torn country.
In Kabul, UN political chief pledges continued support for Afghanistan
Dec 15, 2015, at 03:12 pm
New York, Dec 15 (Just Earth News/IBNS): During a trip to Kabul, the top United Nations political official pledged continued support to the Government and people of Afghanistan as they face several challenges, especially in the economy and in security.
UN agencies relaunch winter aid programme to support vulnerable Syrian children in Jordan
Dec 15, 2015, at 02:42 pm
New York, Dec 15 (Just Earth News/IBNS): As the harsh winter approaches Jordan, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the UN World Food Programme (WFP) launched the winter cash assistance programme again, that will allow vulnerable Syrian families in Za'atari and Azraq camps to buy warm winter clothing for all their children.
Viet Nam: UN rights office alarmed at series of attacks against human rights defenders
Dec 12, 2015, at 03:23 pm
New York, Dec 12 (Just Earth News/IBNS): Alarmed by the recent spate of violent attacks on human rights defenders in Viet Nam, the United Nations rights agency on Friday expressed concern at the "apparent failure" of the Vietnamese authorities to investigate and prosecute the perpetrators and urged the Government to take measures to ensure security of all human rights defenders.
Border blockade on imports sends food and fuel prices skyrocketing in Nepal: UN
Dec 12, 2015, at 03:14 pm
New York, Dec 12 (Just earth News/IBNS): Warning of severe shortages of food and fuel now plaguing Nepal caused by the ongoing major disruptions in imports across its southern border with India, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) on Friday predicted extreme hardship for the land-locked country if prices of basic food staples continue to soar.
Burundi: Ban condemns attacks on military camps
Dec 12, 2015, at 03:03 pm
New York, Dec 12 (Just Earth News/IBNS): United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon on Friday condemned the attacks by groups of unidentified assailants on military camps in Bujumbura early this morning and said that such acts of violence can lead to a further destabilization of the situation in crisis-torn Burundi.
Yemen: UN delivers life-saving food aid to nearly 150,000 besieged residents in Taiz
Dec 11, 2015, at 03:07 pm
New York, Dec 11 (Just Earth News/IBNS): Braving fighting, airstrikes and checkpoints to bring life-saving aid to Yemenis living in dire conditions under a virtual state of siege, United Nations convoys have reached the central city of Taiz with enough food for nearly 145,000 people for a month, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) reported on Thursday.
World economic growth falls below last forecast, only modest improvement foreseen: UN
Dec 11, 2015, at 03:03 pm
New York, Dec 11 (Just Earth News/IBNS): The world economy has fallen below forecasts of even six months ago and will grow only modestly over the next two years due to “cyclical and structural headwinds,†including low commodity prices and stagnant investment, the United Nations reported on Thursday, urging steps to ensure stronger growth.
Powerful El Niño intensifying in Asia and the Pacific region: UN
Dec 11, 2015, at 03:01 pm
New York, Dec 11 (Just Earth News/IBNS): The ongoing El Niño weather pattern in the Asia and Pacific is likely to be one of the strongest since 1998 and will continue into early 2016, according to a new United Nations advisory, which urges regional cooperation for early warning, in-season mitigation, and long-term adaptation strategies to curb climate risk.
Anti-Corruption Day: UN says ending corrosive crime can boost sustainable development
Dec 10, 2015, at 03:00 pm
New York, Dec 10 (Just Earth News/IBNS): To mark International Anti-Corruption Day, the United Nations is calling for people to join a worldwide campaign to raise awareness about what Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called a "corrosive" scourge, and encouraging people from all walks of life to take action against this crime.
Civil Aviation Day: UN agency calls for safer skies, more efficient procedures
Dec 08, 2015, at 04:08 pm
New York, Dec 8 (Just Earth News/IBNS): With global air transport doubling in flight and passenger volumes every 15 years, the United Nations aviation agency on Monday called for enhanced safety and efficiency to rule the world's skies.
Reports of abuses by Iraqi, Kurdish forces against Sunni Arabs increasing: UN
Dec 05, 2015, at 02:28 pm
New York, Dec 5 (Just Earth News/IBNS): Reports of human rights abuses against Sunni Arabs by Iraqi and Kurdish security forces in parts of Iraq reclaimed from the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) are increasing, ranging from looting to extra-judicial killings, senior United Nations officials said on Friday.