Category: Human Rights

In a message to mark International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. The UN chief warned that persistent violations of the rights of Palestinians, along with the expansion of Israeli settlements, risk eroding the prospect of a two-State solution.  Despite being ‘encouraged’ by recent engagements between senior Israeli and Palestinian officials, the UN chief said that “containing the situation is not sufficient”.  The situation in the Occupied… Read More

Children are already interacting with AI technologies in many different ways: they are embedded in toys, virtual assistants, video games, and adaptive learning software. Their impact on children’s lives is profound, yet UNICEF found that, when it comes to AI policies and practices, children’s rights are an afterthought, at best. In response, the UN children’s agency has developed draft Policy… Read More

In a statement released this Friday, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food, Michael Fakhri, also urged the Government to ensure accountability for the casualties.  “To truly turn the page on this painful chapter, it is incumbent on the authorities to heed calls for accountability concerning the casualties reported during the protests, and guarantee measures to prevent any repetition of such events”, he argued.  Contentious laws  The three agricultural laws which had the goal of deregulating the… Read More

Artificial intelligence is present in everyday life, from booking flights and applying for loans to steering driverless cars. It is also used in specialized fields such as cancer screening or to help create inclusive environments for the disabled. According to UNESCO, AI is also supporting the decision-making of governments and the private sector, as well as helping combat global problems… Read More

This is just one of the achievements detailed in the Spotlight Initiative’s impact report for 2020-21, launched in New York on Friday.  Rising to the challenge details how the partners rapidly adjusted programmes during the global crisis to address the shadow pandemic of violence against women and girls.  “COVID-19 continues to exacerbate violence against women and girls in a context… Read More

On Thursday, Michelle Bachelet condemned the killings, saying it is “utterly shameful” that live ammunition keeps being used against protesters.   “Shooting into large crowds of unarmed demonstrators, leaving dozens dead and many more injured, is deplorable, clearly aimed at stifling the expression of public dissent, and amounts to gross violations of international human rights law”, she said.   Violence against protesters  According to reliable medical sources, more than 100… Read More

In a statement released on Tuesday, the experts called on the Iranian authorities to repeal the ‘Youthful Population and Protection of the Family’ law, which was ratified by Iran’s Guardian Council on the first of November. The law, said the experts, severely restricts access to abortion, contraception, voluntary sterilization services and related information, in direct violation of women’s human rights… Read More

In a statement released on Friday, the agency’s Executive Director, Henrietta Fore, said that she was “deeply concerned” over reports that child marriage is on the rise.   Even before the latest political instability, UNICEF’s partners registered 183 child marriages and 10 cases of selling of children in Herat and Baghdis provinces between the ages of six months and 17 years from 2018 to 2019.   The agency estimates that 28 per cent of Afghan women between the ages 15 and 49 were married before they reached their 18th birthday. … Read More

Rights chief Michelle Bachelet said the conviction and harsh sentencing of American journalist Danny Fenster that day was emblematic of the wider plight of journalists in the country, who have faced constant repression in the wake of the military coup in February.  Reverting to censorship  “Journalists have been under attack since 1 February, with the military leadership clearly attempting to… Read More

The agency’s Executive Director, Henrietta Fore, said the new research confirms what she already knew: children with disabilities face multiple and often compounding challenges, in simply realizing their rights.   “From access to education, to being read to at home; children with disabilities are less likely to be included or heard on almost every measure. All too often, children with disabilities are simply being left behind”, Mrs. Fore said.   Main findings  … Read More