Category: Pacific

The supplies were transported on behalf of the Pacific Islands Forum, the region’s premier political and economic policy organization. With commercial air services greatly reduced due to airport closures, and other measures to prevent further spread of the disease, the 18-member bloc has established a platform to facilitate the timely and rapid movement of medical and humanitarian assistance, known as… Read More

“Seventy-five years ago, a single nuclear weapon visited unspeakable death and destruction upon this city”, he said in his address. “The effects linger to this day”.  However, he noted that Hiroshima and its people have chosen not to be characterized by calamity, but instead by “resilience, reconciliation and hope”.  On this 75th anniversary of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings, let us… Read More

Thailand’s overall response, and ability to curb infections, has led the World Health Organization (WHO) to identify Thailand, alongside New Zealand, as a success story in dealing with the pandemic. Of course, that success entirely depends on continued vigilance, a whole-of-society approach, and ramped up testing to prevent a second wave as borders open and full economic activities are resumed. … Read More

UN, humanitarian partners launch largest COVID-19 response plan to aid 5.4M poorest Filipinos The UN and humanitarian partners in the Philippines launched today the largest international humanitarian response plan in the country since Typhoon Haiyan.https://t.co/7JCvER5E5e pic.twitter.com/3Lh0d41stz — UN Philippines (@UNPhilippines) August 4, 2020 According to the UN, the Humanitarian Country Team, the COVID-19 Response Plan aims to provide “critical health… Read More

António Guterres has released his latest policy brief on the crisis, which examines impacts on the 11 countries in the subregion and recommendations for the way forward that put gender equality at the centre of response efforts. “As in other parts of the world, the health, economic and political impact of COVID-19 has been significant across Southeast Asia – hitting… Read More

Creating greater understanding of the importance of these workers in ensuring regional food security is the goal of a new FAO-backed campaign launched on Wednesday. Described as “a call to action that everyone needs to hear”, it also aims to give voice to family farmers’ organizations and reach out to rural communities through the use of community radio across 15… Read More

The study is based on 100 first-hand accounts by North Korean women who said they were beaten or suffered other individual or collective punishment while in detention between 2009 and 2019. The women eventually managed to escape the DPRK, more commonly known as North Korea, and gave detailed interviews to staff from the UN rights office, OHCHR. Heartbreaking stories “It is… Read More

Tapan Mishra (centre), UN Resident Coordinator in Mongolia (file), by UN RCO Mongolia The general picture of the COVID-19 situation in Mongolia is very positive. The Government of Mongolia closed all educational institutions including kindergartens, schools and universities at the beginning of the year. It also introduced strict measures on social distancing, such as a ban on public gatherings, limiting… Read More

They said Narges Mohammadi appears to have contracted the virus in Zanjan Prison, located in the capital, Tehran, where she is serving a 16-year sentence stemming from her work on human rights. She has been in detention since 2015 and was sentenced in May 2016. ‘Life-or-death consequences’ “We are extremely concerned for Ms. Mohammadi’s well-being. We previously raised concerns that… Read More

When the first case of COVID-19 was discovered in Myanmar in late March, quarantine centres were set up in sites around the country. People arriving in a town—such as migrant workers returning home—had to quarantine at their local centre for 21 days.  One of the first people to work as a volunteer at the quarantine centre in the town of… Read More