Category: Pacific

“Nuclear weapons are nonsense. Three-quarters of a century later, we must ask what we’ve learned from the mushroom cloud that swelled above this city in 1945”, he urged during the solemn event at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park attended by dozens of people, including hibakusha, young peace activists, Japan’s Prime Minister and other local authorities. The UN Secretary-General warned that a… Read More

All of the 65 journalists interviewed in the State of Press Freedom in Cambodia said they had faced some form of interference in the course of their work – and more than 80 per cent described being put under surveillance, facing disproportionate or unnecessary restrictions, including access to information. “The findings in this report are very concerning, and I urge… Read More

“We deplore the hanging today of two men in Singapore and are deeply troubled by the planned execution of two others on 5 August,” OHCHR Spokesman Liz Throssell said in a statement. Drug crimes The two prisoners, a Malaysian and a Singaporean, were hanged at after being convicted in May 2015 of drug trafficking and their appeals rejected. Meanwhile, Abdul… Read More

“When my parents passed away, I followed their wish for me to take care of our family home in Sudaji Village. At that time, the village was already known as a tourism destination thanks to its cultural traditions and scenery and, in 2014 I started to realise my dream to develop homestays, where tourists stay with local families, in my… Read More

Nazeri Bin Lajim, a Malay Singaporean national, was arrested in April 2012 for trafficking more than 33 grammes of diamorphine. He was executed last Friday.   “Under international law, States that have not yet abolished the death penalty may only impose it for the ‘most serious crimes’, involving intentional killing,” the experts said. “Drug offences clearly do not meet this… Read More

Setting up a camera trap to monitor wildlife and encroachment in Malaysia., by UNDP But a fight to save the tigers is underway: in the last two years, more than 1,000 tiger traps have been destroyed, and a team supported by the UN Development Programme (UNDP) conducts patrols in illegal hunting hotspots. Rangers are involved in monitoring, intelligence gathering, and… Read More

Chinese and Hong Kong officials have said the law, imposed “overnight” by Beijing in June 2020, was necessary to restore and safeguard stability after anti-government and anti-China demonstrations erupted in 2019. Definition unclear The UN Human Rights Committee underscored the shortcomings of the National Security Law (NSL), including its lack of clarity on “national security” and the possibility of transferring cases from… Read More

Thomas Andrews said he was “outraged and devastated” following what’s believed to be the first use of capital punishment in the Southeast Asian nation in decades. I’m devastated by news that former parliamentarian Zeyar Thaw and longtime activist Ko Jimmy were executed with two others today. UN Member States must honor their lives by making this depraved act a turning… Read More

The UN Country Team called for an “immediate cessation” to the election-related violence amidst a deteriorating security situation in the Highlands region of the southwest Pacific island, with Government sources confirming “deaths, assaults, rape, and the extensive destruction of property and infrastructure”. Investigation and prosecution call The UN in PNG is calling for a “swift investigation of alleged crimes and the prosecution… Read More

The UNAMA findings, confirm many of the concerns voiced over the direction of human rights under the Taliban 11 months ago, after foreign forces pulled-out and the elected government collapsed. While the de facto authorities have taken some steps aimed at improving the human rights situation, the report documents a range of human rights violations — arbitrary arrests, detentions, torture,… Read More