Category: Human Rights

The Special Rapporteurs raised the alarm on Monday that Navid Afkari’s execution marks the latest in a series of death penalty sentences handed down in relation to protests in 2018 and 2019. “Such flagrant disregard for the right to life through summary executions is not only a matter of domestic concern”, they said in a statement. “We call on the… Read More

Addressing the Council on the opening day of the session, Ms. Bachelet also appealed for global solidarity to confront COVID-19, just as the World Health Organization (WHO) announced more than half a million new cases of coronavirus infection, including more than 307,000 on Saturday alone, a record daily figure. No country spared pandemic “The world has rarely experienced a simultaneous,… Read More

In its new report, Safety of Journalists Covering Protests – Preserving Freedom of the Press During Times of Civil Unrest, the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural agency (UNESCO) said that between January and June this year, journalists have been increasingly attacked, arrested and even killed. Launching the report, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay underscored that the freedom to inform citizens on… Read More

In its new report, Safety of Journalists Covering Protests – Preserving Freedom of the Press During Times of Civil Unrest, the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural agency (UNESCO) said that between January and June this year, journalists have been increasingly attacked, arrested and even killed. Launching the report, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay underscored that the freedom to inform citizens on… Read More

Youth representatives are set to address the high-level meeting of the General Assembly on the UN 75 anniversary on 21 September 2020, sharing a summary and outcome of the discussions. Ahead of the event, UN News spoke to some prominent youth leaders, to find out what kind of world they want, how they see the UN’s role in the coming decades,… Read More

Investigate torture claims Secretary-General @antonioguterres concerned about Belarus situation and reports of intimidation tactics against civil society, media and opposition figures. He calls on authorities to refrain from use of force against those engaging in peaceful assembly. https://t.co/LcQceMzngU — UN Spokesperson (@UN_Spokesperson) September 11, 2020 In a statement, the UN chief also expressed concern over reports of intimidation against civil… Read More

“Yemen has been ravaged in ways that should shock the conscience of humanity,” said Melissa Parke, member of the Group of Eminent International and Regional Experts on Yemen (GEE).   “Yemen has now experienced some six years of unremitting armed conflict, with no end inside for the suffering of the millions of people caught in its grip.”  The collective failure… Read More

Citing German specialists who said they had “unequivocal proof” that Mr. Navalny was poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights also highlighted numerous cases of poisoning and “targeted assassination” of Russian citizens in the past 20 years.   This pattern was “profoundly disturbing”, Ms. Bachelet said in a statement, adding that it was “deeply regrettable” that in many cases, perpetrators had not been held to account, leaving victims… Read More

Looking back on the Fourth World Conference on Women in the Chinese capital, UN Women Executive Director, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, said in a statement that “we have seen the strength and impact of collective activism grow and have been reminded of the importance of multilateralism and partnership to find common solutions to shared problems.”  Defining framework for change The deliberations of… Read More

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused the ICC of “illegitimate attempts to subject Americans to its jurisdiction”, announcing sanctions against Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda and the Head of the Jurisdiction Complementarity and Cooperation Division, Phakiso Mochochoko, in accordance with a US executive order issued in early June by President Donald Trump involving “Blocking Property of Certain Persons Associated with the… Read More