Category: Human Rights

The UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Nikolay Mladenov, welcomed the truce between Hamas and Israel, announced on Monday, which aims to end weeks of cross-border bombardment.  I welcome the agreement to de-escalate tensions in and around #Gaza. Ending the launching of incendiary devices and projectiles, restoring electricity will allow #UN to focus on dealing with the… Read More

Speaking at an event in support of press freedom in Geneva, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights noted that around 1,000 journalists have been killed in the last decade – and that nine in 10 cases “are unresolved”. Her comments, on the eve of the trial of alleged accomplices of extremists who killed 12 people at the French satirical weekly magazine,… Read More

“The crime of enforced disappearance is rife across the world”, Secretary-General António Guterres said in his message commemorating the day. “We see new cases almost daily, including the disappearance of defenders of the environment, who are often indigenous peoples”.  “Meanwhile”, he continued, “the excruciating pain of old cases is still acute, as the fate of thousands of disappeared people remains… Read More

According to reports, a 17-year-old male youth has been arrested and charged with killing two people and injuring others in the city of Kenosha, Wisconsin, earlier this week. US authorities said that the father of five was shot seven times in the back, sparking a public outcry and boycotts of major sporting events by athletes. Not the first time Briefing… Read More

The document will help countries dismantle the barriers that block people with disabilities from being able to use justice systems worldwide.   “The guidelines respond to the challenges that people with disabilities face in accessing justice on an equal basis with others,” said Catalina Devandas, UN special rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities.    “Many barriers prevent that access.… Read More

“This report sheds light on the suffering and provides concrete recommendations to help rebuild public trust”, said UN Special Representative for Iraq Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert. Rising unemployment, years of corruption and failing public services had sparked massive protests last October. Despite promising steps by the current Government, the report, Human Rights Violations and Abuses in the Context of Demonstrations in Iraq,… Read More

Briefing correspondents based in New York, Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said that according to the UN peacekeeping mission in the country, MINUSMA, there was relative calm on the streets, with no major incidents reported. “While banks and large businesses have remained closed, most local shops and markets have reopened”, he said, calling for the basic rights of all Malians to be preserved,… Read More

The Government closed the Jordanian Teachers’ Syndicate last month, reportedly in retaliation for criticizing the authorities for not honouring a 2019 pledge for better pay and conditions.    The deal ended a month-long strike that shut down schools nationwide.  ‘Serious’ rights violations   “The actions of the Jordanian government against the Teachers Syndicate are a serious violation of the rights to… Read More

Gordon Brown, the UN Special Envoy for Global Education who also served as UK Prime Minister, was one of the signatories asking G20 heads, national Governments and global financial institutions to urgently ramp up funding to “rebuild education better”. “We cannot stand by and allow these young people to be robbed of their education and a fair chance in life”,… Read More

While serving in the role he’s helped strengthen the rule of law, fight impunity, and built up the capacity of judicial and democratic institutions around the globe.  Sounding the alarm  The mandate of the Special Adviser on Prevention of Genocide was established in 2004 to not only sound the alarm over situations that might lead to genocide but also leverage… Read More