August 2019 — Page 3 of 13 — Human Rights & Charity

With ISIL down but not out, continued vigilance is key, UN Security Council told

“It capitalizes on its affiliates and inspired attacks and has an estimated residual wealth of up to three hundred million dollars at its disposal”, said Vladimir Voronkov Under-Secretary-General, Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT), in his briefing on the threat ISIL (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant) poses to international peace and security.

Moreover, “acute concerns” remain over foreign terrorist fighters, returnees and relocators, he continued, noting that from the “initial estimate” of 40,000, between 24,000 and 30,000 have survived.

And Member States also must contend with the threat posed by ‘frustrated travelers,’ or ISIL sympathizers – the number of whom is hard to estimate.

Global, regional overview

While acknowledging ISIL’s defeat in Syria as “a watershed” that ended the “dystopia of the so-called ‘caliphate’”, Mr. Voronkov said that the fall of Baghuz “was not a fatal blow” as the group “continues to evolve into a covert network.

“This follows the same pattern we have seen in Iraq since 2017, where ISIL insurgency activity reportedly designed to prevent normalization and reconstruction efforts continue”, maintained the counter-terrorism chief.

Turning to Africa, he noted “a striking increase in ISIL and Al-Qaida-linked recruitment and violence” in the continent’s West, pointing out that “the Islamic State’s West Africa Province is now one of the strongest ISIL affiliates” with some 4,000 fighters that also “calls for vigilance”.

In Europe radicalization in prisons and those released from prison “remain major concerns” that compound the risk of “homegrown terrorism” at time when ISIL is having trouble sending fighters to the continent, according to Mr. Voronkov.

And despite military pressure, hundreds of thousands of ISIL fighters in Asia continue to pose a threat.

He recounted two worrying developments in South-East Asia, namely women playing a more active role in attacks and the explicit targeting of places of worship, “which may indicate a new trend”.

Responding to the aftermath

The counter-terrorism chief drew the Council’s attention to the thousands of suspected ISIL fighters and their families currently detained in Iraq and Syria, many of whom are “stranded in overcrowded camps, in dire conditions, generating acute and humanitarian concerns”.

Noting that there are “as many as 70,000 people in Al-Hawl camp in Syria alone, including women and children” with potential links to UN-listed terrorist groups, he cited the report as saying that “Member States have the primary responsibility for their own nationals” and urged against Statelessness.

Mr. Voronkov said his Office would launch on 30 September, a handbook on “ensuring a child rights-based approach” for children affected by “the foreign fighter phenomenon”.

Looking ahead

The Under Secretary-General highlighted some of his Office’s initiatives, including law enforcement and border security, an upcoming four-year global programme on protecting vulnerable targets, an expansion of a global programme to stem terrorism financing.

Stating that “the current lull” in ISIL attacks “may only be temporary”, Mr. Voronkov upheld the importance of remaining vigilant “to mitigate the risk posed by the evolution of ISIL…deny it new recruits and prevent its resurgence’.

“It is essential that Member States keep a comprehensive and long-term perspective in this fight”, he spelled out, adding that “urgent political leadership and a principled approached, based on international law” is needed.

Prisoner challenges

While acknowledging ISIL’s military defeat in Syria as “welcome progress”, Michèle Coninsx, the Executive Director of the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee, pointed out that challenges in responding to the aftermath of that defeat and the threat posed by its affiliates globally “remain substantial”.

In parallel, repatriation efforts “should also prepare to deal with the post-repatriation phase, issues of accountability, and the challenges involved in rehabilitation and reintegration”, she detailed.

“Because of the short sentences given to many returnees…there may be limited opportunities to engage them in rehabilitation and reintegration programmes prior to their release,” continued Ms. Coninsx.

Moreover, she said that extended periods of pre-trial detentions without guarantees of due process can “undermine the effectiveness of rehabilitative measures and increase the potential risk” of radicalization within the prison systems.

Ms. Coninsx upheld as “essential” that post-repatriation strategies have “short, medium and long-term components” in relation to “prosecution, rehabilitation and reintegration”, aligned with human rights, gender sensitivity and the special needs of children.

Tuesday’s Daily Brief: UN envoy on Middle East peace process, child labour in Nepal, latest deadly Mediterranean shipwreck, DRC's Goma 21-days free of Ebola transmission, UN chief urges ban on nuclear testing

‘Complete political deadliock’ over Middle East peace risks more violence, warns UN envoy

Tangible steps “can, and must, be taken” to urgently reverse the “negative trajectory” of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and revive the peace process, a senior United Nations envoy warned the Security Council on Tuesday.

“Against the backdrop of the complete political deadlock of the Middle East peace process and the lack of any perspective to revive it,” Nickolay Mladenov, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, said that “the rising specter of violence in the West Bank and Gaza” threatens a regional escalation.

Mr. Mladenov elaborated on the need for leadership, and stressed that giving up on the goal of a peaceful resolution to the conflict would lead to an alternative “too horrible to fathom.”

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Child labour case highlights ‘widespread’ abuse in Nepal: rights experts

Torture and arbitrary detention in Nepal are “widespread and systematic”, UN-appointed independent experts said on Tuesday, highlighting the case of a boy who was allegedly forced to work for 18 hours a day, unpaid.

In a ruling, the Human Rights Committee said that the youngster – whose identity has not been disclosed – was sent to Kathmandu as a domestic worker at the age of nine.

At 14, he was subjected to “physical and psychological abuse” by an army officer’s family, according to the UN panel, which assesses implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights by its State parties.

One of the panel experts, Hélène Tigroudja said, “The life of someone is shattered after enduring torture and forced labour as a child. Access to justice and accountability are essential for victims to rebuild their lives and recover their dignity. It is our hope that Nepal will take all necessary measures to protect and help victims of such acts regain their lives.”

At least 40 feared dead off coast of Libya in lateset Mediterranean shipwreck

Some 40 people are believed to have drowned off the coast of Libya after a boat disaster on the Mediterranean. The tragedy comes just weeks after reports of another shipwreck that left as many as 150 refugees and migrants dead in the worst incident on the Mediterranean this year.

The disaster has prompted the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) to renew its urgent call for action to save lives. It is estimated that some 900 people have lost their lives attempting to make the journey across the Mediterranean this year alone.

UNHCR is calling for renewed efforts to reduce the loss of life at sea, including a return of EU State search and rescue vessels at a time when States have largely withdrawn. Leal and logistical restrictions impeding NGO search and rescue operations both at sea and in the air should be lifted, the agency added.

DR Congo’s Goma passes key 21-day period without Ebola transmission: WHO

On Tuesday the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that Goma city in north-eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo has seen no new cases of Ebola virus infection and no new transmissions in 21 days, which is the incubation period of the disease.

Earlier this month, the UN health agency confirmed that four people were infected with Ebola in Goma, a large city bordering Rwanda.

Speaking in Geneva, WHO spokesperson Christian Lindmeier said that to be declared officially Ebola-free, the people of Goma would have to wait another 21 days, in line with health protocols.

We must bring era of nuclear tests to an end, urges Guterres

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has made an appeal for more global support to end nuclear weapons testing.

In a statement ahead of the International Day against Nuclear Tests on Thursday 29 August, Mr. Guterres said that the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty was a “central pillar” of international efforts to end nuclear testing for good.

But it has still not yet entered into force, more than 20 years after its adoption, the UN chief explained.

Repeating his call for all States that have not yet done so, to sign and ratify the Treaty so that it can enter into force, Mr. Guterres said that “in a world of rising tensions and divisions, our collective security depends on it”.

The International Day against Nuclear Tests marks the closing in 1991 of the test site in Semipalatinsk, Kazakhastan, the largest in the former Soviet Union.

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‘Complete political deadlock’ over Middle East peace risks more violence, regional escalation, warns UN envoy

Warning again of repercussions over the lack of a political horizon towards resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on the basis of the two-state solution, he said that unilateral moves on the ground, terror attacks and a multitude of other factors risk are creating “an explosive mix” that can only be resolved through strong leadership returning to the table for “meaningful negotiations towards a sustainable and just peace”.

Mr. Mladenov, who briefed the Council via videconference from Jerusalem, elaborated on the need for “a leadership that can stand up to extremists and radicals and uphold what the international community, the Security Council and the region have said so many times – that lasting peace can only be based on the idea that Israelis and Palestinians live side-by-side in peace, security and mutual recognition, as both peoples have a legitimate and historic right to their own statehood”.

Straying from a framework based on UN resolutions and mutual agreements will lead to “inevitable radicalization”, stressed Mr. Mladenov.

Giving up on the goal of a peaceful resolution to the conflict would lead to an alternative “too horrible to fathom.”

A sobering recap

In the past month, there has been an increase of violent incidents, including settler-related offenses in the West Bank and continuing tensions in and around Gaza, including in Jerusalem’s Old City, a settlement south of Bethlehem and one northwest of Ramallah, the Special Coordinated flagged.

“I unequivocally condemn all attacks on Palestinian and Israeli civilians”, he asserted, calling the attacks “cowardly and dangerous” and saying that they “serve only those who want escalation”.

“Violence and terrorism must be condemned by all,” he stated.

He also spoke of Israel’s policy of destroying Palestinian property, which is incompatible “with its obligations under international humanitarian law.”

He said the expansion of settlements not only “has no legal effect and constitutes a flagrant violation of international law” but “by advancing the effective annexation of the West Bank, it undermines the chances for establishing a Palestinian state”.

Gaza tensions

Despite the relative calm over the past two months, Gaza remains “very fragile as violent incidents continue”, the UN envoy indicated.

He updated the Council that during the reporting period, among other things, “some eleven rockets and mortars were launched from Gaza towards Israel”, two of which caused material damage. And in retaliation, Israel temporarily reduced a fuel transfer to Gaza by half, reducing the Strips’ energy supply.

Meanwhile, weekly protests at the perimeter fence continued with some violent activities. Although fewer incendiary kites, balloons and other devices were launched from Gaza compared to the last reporting period, at least eleven fires were reported.

“Israel must calibrate its use of force and use lethal force only as a last resort, and only in response to imminent threats of death or serious injury”, said Mr. Mladenov. “Hamas must prevent the indiscriminate launching of rockets and mortars towards Israel”, and ensure that “protests at the fence remain peaceful and prevent provocations”.

Raising the alarm on health

A lack of medical resources has prompted the UN envoy to also “raise the alarm on the deteriorating situation in the health sector in Gaza”.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in July, 49 per cent of essential medications and 26 per cent of medical disposables were reported to be at less than one-month supply at Gaza’s Central Drug Store.

And during Deputy Special Coordinator Jamie McGoldrick’s visit to a Gaza hospital over the winter, he had heard about the large number of health issues that Palestinian women are facing as a result of the humanitarian crisis.

“Doctors highlighted the scarcity of cancer drugs in Gaza and the unpredictable referral system for treatment outside Gaza as serious challenges” detailed Mr. Mladenov, adding that the UN is committed “to working with all parties, including donors, to prevent a health crisis in the Gaza Strip”.

Over the past month Israel continued to impose movement and access constraints on UN national staff and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Gaza rendering them unable to leave the Strip.

“Israel must significantly improve the movement and access of goods and people to and from Gaza as a step towards the lifting of the closures, in line with Security Council resolution 1860 (2009)”, he stated.

Technology brings positive change, but ‘collateral damage’ must be minimized: senior UN official

Speaking to UN News, Mr. Avan stressed the importance of acknowledging the negative aspects of new technology – which could include job losses and a drastic shift away from traditional ways of working – and finding ways to achieve a successful transition to the so-called ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution’, which involves the mass adoption of artificial intelligence, robotics, ‘big data’ processing, the Internet of Things, autonomous vehicles and blockchain technologies.

Mr. Avan, the Director of the Strategy, Policy & Governance Division of the UN’s Office of Information and Communication Technology (OICT), took part in a discussion on the impact of emerging technologies and innovation on society, held on Tuesday during the 2019 UN Civil Society Conference, taking place in Salt Lake City, USA, between 26 -28 August.

The UN, he says, has a strong focus on so-called “smart cities”, which make full use of inter-connected technology to empower disadvantaged residents and tackle challenges in housing, transport, employment and education in urban areas.

At UN Technology Innovation Lab (UNTIL), a newly-established initiative in Malaysia, researchers and scientists are looking into ways of understanding and expanding the benefits of smart cities, promoting sustainable living, and helping to make inclusive growth possible in the country and region. Mr. Avan noted that, in many parts of the world, positive change is already taking place: “technologies are being implemented to improve the overall communal and individual lives of residents”.

Farming with no pesticides, and no soil

For example, a Malaysia-based company, Vfarm, is pioneering a technology which has the potential to have a transformative effect on the citizens of Kuala Lumpur: vertical farms.

According to Rahman Roslan, the brand director of Vfarm, it is far easier and cheaper to buy a bag of candy in Kuala Lumpur than fresh fruit or vegetables. Vertical farms could change this harmful situation, and make nutritious food available to all city dwellers.

The company’s vertical farms in Kuala Lumpur look like laboratories, in which plants are grown in environments where heat and light are precisely controlled to ensure optimal growing conditions, and all without the use of herbicides and pesticides.

Even soil is unnecessary, and a tiny amount of water is used, compared to that needed in traditional agriculture. These factors, says Mr. Roslan, coupled with the fact that transport costs are drastically reduced, mean that the crops produced in vertical farms are healthier and have a far smaller carbon footprint.

Speaking to UN News during the Conference, Mr. Roslan explained that, whilst his company’s vertical farms are currently only producing around one per cent of Kuala Lumpur’s food, he can foresee a future in which the majority of crops in cities around the world are grown in a similar way.

Bridging the digital divide

All elements of society must, said Salem Avan, actively assist lesser-developed cities to integrate advanced technologies, and reduce the stark disparity in the digital divide that exists between richer and poorer parts of the world, as well as within cities:

“While it is inarguable that technology is beneficial to improving the daily lives of many, it also runs the risk of excluding certain urban inhabitants who either lack the resources or the capabilities to adapt to the rapid changes that digitization entails”.

One of the solutions he proposes, is to build partnerships across different sectors, including local and national authorities, civil society and others, to ensure that sustainability, and making sure that no one is left behind, are key goals when new technology is introduced.

‘There has never been a more urgent time,’ to safeguard children’s right to safe water and sanitation, says UNICEF

In the first volume of a new report, Water under Fire, the agency outlines how water, sanitation and hygiene services can be planned, financed and executed to safeguard healthy livelihoods for children in fragile and conflict-affected areas.

From Cox’s Bazar to Ukraine to Yemen and similar places of extreme vulnerability, as seen, “the situation is dire for children,” UNICEF Associate Director for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), Kelly Ann Naylor said, acknowledging that conflict-related crises are increasing in frequency, are more prolonged, and maiming the lives of more people.

“Humanitarian assistance alone will not resolve these issues, but through cross-sector partnerships we can build sustainable and resilient water, sanitation and hygiene services that can create a more stable and peaceful future for children and their families.”

Deadly as bullets

In fragile contexts, lacking safe water and sanitation further restricts the right to health; shutting down hospitals, increasing exposure to preventable diseases, and exacerbates existing conflicts.

Data published by UNICEF in March revealed that scarce clean water supply could be as deadly as bullets, where children under the age of 15 are nearly three times more likely to die from diseases linked to poor sanitation conditions than from violence.

Fragility and armed conflict have increased worldwide over the last decade, the report notes, displacing millions of people globally and straining host communities that must deliver basic services, including water and sanitation to growing populations.

Water is at risk of becoming a “threat multiplier” for war-torn countries from Africa’s Sahel region, to the Middle East., with climate change impacts compounding the effects of a growing water crisis and indirectly accelerating hunger and health crises for entire populations.

Peacebuilding through ‘WASH’

Turning to implementable solutions under way in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Lebanon, Nigeria, Somalia, the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Yemen and beyond, the report aims to replicate and scale up these efforts into a framework for ensuring resilient water and sanitation services for children globally.

In South Sudan, a result of improved sanitation education has aided households in addressing malnutrition and reducing incidents of gender-based violence, while a joint effort by Tripoli and Lebanon to close water service gaps paved the way for social cohesion between the previously divided groups.

In tandem with the Water Under Fire Campaign launched on 22 March, the report seeks to ensure the rights to water and sanitation for all, while moving toward sustainable development and peace.

Nearing 30 years since the adoption the UN child rights treaty, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Ms. Naylor stressed, “there has never been a more urgent time to safeguard the right to water and sanitation for every child.”

Football is ‘refuge for those who have left everything’; UN initiative aims to bolster well-being of refugee, migrant children in Peru

The UN International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)’s ‘The Ball Has No Flags’ aims to harness Latin America’s most popular sport to strengthen values, such as resilience, integration and community cohesion through.

“The proper integration of girls, boys and adolescents always contributes to the future of a country”, IOM Perú Programme Coordinator, Rogelio Quintero explained. “For this reason, ‘The Ball Has No Flags’ will support the integration and development of strengths and abilities”.

The first stage of the project is being developed in the districts of San Juan de Lurigancho and San Juan de Miraflores, both located in the country’s capital.

Participating in the activities on Saturday were Itzel Delgado, medal winner in paddle surf at the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, and medaling in judo, Yuliana Bolívar, who was born in Venezuela but became a Peruvian citizen.

Through sport, Mr. Quintero added, about 200 mostly Peruvian or Venezuelan children and adolescents between six and 18 years old learn leadership and cooperation through the prism of equality and inclusion.

“Football is the same anywhere in the world”, said Federico Agusti, UNHCR Representative in Perú. “It has the same rules, the same language and the same joys”.

The UNHCR official called it “a refuge for those who have had to leave everything and a meeting point to celebrate something we all understand, a goal”.

He pointed out that there are more than 30 Peruvians playing abroad, including Paolo Guerrero, and “when he scores for Perú or Brazil, there are no differences, we celebrate the same”.

“This project allows Peruvians and Venezuelans to start from a common point to learn to take advantage of their differences”, asserted Mr. Agusti.

The activity is supported by the Fútbol Más Foundation, an organization that promotes community cohesion through play and sport as well as the well-being of children and youth.

“The ball invites us to share, meet and celebrate”, according to Jimena Chavez, Social Director of Fundación Fútbol Más Perú. “We celebrate this initiative, where Peruvian and Venezuelan families will gather to start the sports partner program and demonstrate together that the ball has no flags.”

Regardless of their nationality, the initiative invites all to feel part of the cultural life in their community.

‘The Ball Has No Flags’ is part of the integration and solidarity campaign between Peruvians and Venezuelans known as Tu Causa Es Mi Causa (or your cause is my cause). That campaign has been implemented by the UN System in Perú, with the leadership of IOM and UNHCR.

UN civil society conference to focus on sustainable solutions for challenges of urban life

The conference, described by the UN as the Organization’s “premier event in the civil society calendar”, opened today and will run through 28 August. It brings together representatives of civil society from around the world, and senior UN officials, to discuss a wide range of solutions to the challenges of urban life and the modern world.

The UN chief welcomed the decision to make inclusive and sustainable cities and communities the focus of this year’s conference, noting that cities are well placed to help combat the global climate emergency and point the way towards sustainable, low-emission development.

At a time when civic space is shrinking worldwide and intolerance is on the rise, Mr. Guterres said civil society plays a vital role in solving all global challenges.

A global coalition to transform cities and communities

“We are here to learn from each other, to share ideas and to strengthen a global coalition to transform our cities and communities to be more inclusive and sustainable,” said Alison Smale, the head UN global communications, whose department co-organizes the event.

Ms. Smale, speaking at the opening session of the conference, underscored the critical importance of making cities inclusive, sustainable, resilient and safe, if the 2030 Agenda – the UN’s roadmap for tackling global challenges, including how to deal with the complexities of rapid urbanization – is to be achieved by its target date.

The 2019 conference is chaired by Maruxa Cardama, Secretary General of the Partnership for Sustainable, Low Carbon Transport (SLoCaT), who described cities and communities as “living laboratories” where “the challenges and opportunities that are central to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change become tangible”.

Ms. Cardama said that cities and communities can provide opportunities to translate major global issues – from climate change, to human rights, education and jobs for youth – into positive local action for improving livelihoods and protecting the planet.

Voice of youth

The 2019 conference has been set up to ensure that young people have a large say in the proceedings, holding a co-chair on nearly all planning sub-committees, and developing a separate outcome document for adoption on the final day of the event.

Young people have, said Ms. Smale, “pioneered global movement on the most pressing challenges of our time such as climate change”, and the conference will be an occasion to build momentum for climate action ahead of the UN Secretary-General’s Climate Action Summit, taking place in New York in September.

‘The world can’t wait, and neither will we’

Salt Lake City has been preparing for the conference for over a year, led by Mayor Jackie Biskupski, who declared that cities and local communities have never before played such an important role in the health and well-being of the world.

Cities, she said, are becoming denser, and more diverse in terms of ethnicity, religion, physical ability, sexual orientation, nd economic status, which presents great challenges and tremendous opportunities. Salt Lake City, she added, is innovating and building sustainable solutions to meet the challenges of our time.

“We are creating coalitions with other local communities, NGOs, and businesses, to maximize our impact. There is a phrase my fellow US mayors have begun using regularly. ‘The world can’t wait, and neither will we’”.

Sudan: New political transition, bolstered by peacebuilding, could bring long-term stability to Darfur, Security Council told

Mr. Lacroix, speaking by video teleconference from Paris, said these improvements could bring long-term stability to Darfur and other marginalized areas.

He reported that on 17 August, the Transitional Military Council and the country’s main opposition alliance, Forces for Freedom and Change, entered into a new power-sharing deal for a three-year period of transitional government leading up to democratic elections.

On 21 August, the swearing in of a Sovereignty Council took place; comprised of five military personnel and six civilians, two of whom are women. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, a Sudanese Army lieutenant general assumed the Council’s presidency, the Transitional Military Council was dissolved, and Dr. Abdallah Hamdouk, economist and UN veteran, will serve as Prime Minister, leading the cabinet expected to be sworn in by 1 September.

The agreement comes following a stall in negotiations set for early April, after the end of a three-decade autocratic rule under President Omar al-Bashir, which sparked mass public strikes and protests over food and basic necessities.

The security situation in the western Sudanese region of Darfur remains largely unchanged, Mr. LaCroix said, adding that sporadic clashes between Sudanese Armed Forces/Rapid Support Forces and the Sudan Liberation Army/Abdul Wahid (SLA/AW) faction are ongoing in Jebel Marra mountains.

Talks are expected to take place between the new Government and various armed groups, he added.

He stressed that the UN-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) and the UN Country Team continue to provide transition support through state liaison functions, namely in the areas of rule of law, livelihoods, immediate service delivery, and human rights.

The Mission’s interim transition team, which relocated from Khartoum to Darfur following the change of Government in April, is expected to become a fully functional joint transition cell in September, he explained.

As far as next steps, Mr. Lacroix reported the UN Department of Peace Operations has initiated discussions with the African Union to develop a joint political strategy for post-UNAMID engagement. Discussions on peacebuilding and the future of the Darfur peace process will take place once the new cabinet is established.

“This is an opportunity to put a definitive end to the conflict in Darfur,” Mr. Lacroix stressed, calling on engagements by groups that have not been part of the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur, and highlighting the importance of donor support in facilitating transitions across the country.

Seeing and end to the conflict, however, will require an irreversible transition from peacekeeping to peacebuilding,” he concluded.

Also briefing the Council, Smail Chergiu, African Union Commissioner for Peace and Security, said that at this critical juncture, the international community must come up with a coordinated approach to see how best to support the peace process and ensure inclusivity and a successful outcome.

It is also imperative that those parties remaining outside the peace process are persuaded to join it, he added.

“The current political environment and the changes taking place in Sudan provide a unique opportunity for ending the armed conflicts and for achieving comprehensive and lasting peace in Darfur and Sudan as a whole,” he said, echoing Mr. Lacroix, and adding: “The international community should seize this opportunity to demand a constructive engagement of all concerned actors.”

Marginalized groups hit hardest by inequality and stigma in cities

According to Ms, Otieno, policies to tackle these problems include the provision of decent, affordable housing, quality education, and equal job opportunities for all, irrespective of race, religious belief, tribe or political affiliation.

Ms. Otieno travelled to Salt Lake City, Utah, to speak at the UN Civil Society Conference – an annual event which brings together representatives of NGOs and senior UN officials – on Monday. Delegates heard that inequality in cities, and other human settlements, is growing, with marginalized members of society being hit hardest.

Making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable is one of the Goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the UN’s blueprint to preserve the planet, and raise quality of life for all.

The conference session featuring Ms. Otieno, ‘Inclusive Cities and Communities – Leaving No One Behind’ – was an opportunity to discuss the fact that certain groups, such as women, young people, the poor, stigmatized ethnic groups, and the LGBTQI community, often do not benefit from urbanization.

Making cities and communities safe for persons with albinism

In some countries, such as Uganda, some of the most marginalized groups are people with albinism, who often also encounter discrimination. Peter Ogik, who lives with the condition, is the co-founder and Executive Director of SNUPA, the Source of the Nile Union of Persons with Albinism, which raises awareness about and advocates for their rights of such persons.

Speaking with UN News, Mr. Ogik underlined the extreme dangers faced by Ugandans living with albinism, which include kidnap, due to the false belief that their body parts have special powers, and rape, because some think that unprotected sex with a person who has albinism can cure HIV/AIDS.

“Urgent action is needed to make our cities and communities safer for persons with albinism”, he said. “This includes reviewing legal and regulatory frameworks; facilitating access to justice for persons with albinism to ensure that attacks are prosecuted; and taking basic protective measures such as strengthening the police and making homes more secure.”

Mr. Ogik stated that all stakeholders have a part to play in making cities and communities more inclusive for persons with albinism, including development partners, international agencies, and other civil society organisations.

‘make the invisible visible’

“We must make the invisible visible” Mariarosa Cutillo, Chief of Strategic Partnerships at the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), declared during the session, referring to marginalized groups in cities whose needs often go unmet because of a lack of reliable data.

This, she noted, is why the 2020 census in the US is so important, because good data, having a better understanding of the diversity of the population, helps the UNFPA and other organizations to better target their efforts.

Without this information, she warned, we will not achieve the goals of the 2030 Agenda, and win the fight against stigma and discrimination.

Monday’s Daily Brief: UN chief talks climate action at G7, WFP official visits camp in Central African Republic, Deadly violence at Lesvos migrant centre, Security Council meets on AU-UN Darfur mission

UN chief calls for more concrete action in response to ‘climate emergency’

People all over the world are calling for a shift towards a greener, cleaner future, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Monday, stressing that “we have the tools to address the climate emergency, but we need more political will.”

This was the urgent message delivered on Twitter from Biarritz, France, where the UN chief has been meeting for the past two days with G7 leaders to mobilize action ahead of his Climate Action Summit next month in New York.

Find out more here.

UN food relief agency calls for additional funding in Central African Republic

World Food Programme (WFP) Spokesperson Herve Verhoosel, visited a food distribution site in the Elevages internally displaced refugee camp in Bambari, Central African Republic (CAR).

During his visit to the camp, Mr. Verhoosel said that “multiple generations in each family now share a small “habitation” and that without the agency’s support, they would not know where their next meal would come from”.

Looking at the bigger picture in the country, almost three million people in CAR require humanitarian assistance – nearly two in every three people – ranking it the third largest humanitarian crisis in the world, after Yemen and Syria, to the proportion of the total population in need of humanitarian assistance. The agency warned that a further $35.5 million is needed by end of the year, to achieve its target of more than doubling its support across CAR by December 2020.

Young migrant’s death should prompt Athens to move other youngsters to safety: UNHCR

The UN has appealed to the authorities in Greece to do more to keep young migrants safe, after a 15-year-old Afghan boy died from knife wounds at an overcrowded shelter on Sunday evening.

In a statement, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said that two other boys were also injured in a fight at Moria reception centre on Lesvos island.

In an appeal to the Greek authorities for urgent measures, the agency’s Representative in Greece, Philippe Leclerc, called for refugee and migrant children to be moved “to a safe place”, and to end the overcrowding in Lesvos and on other Greek islands. “Frustration and tensions can easily boil over in Moria”, the agency warned, noting that the centre hosts over 8,500 refugees and migrants – four times its capacity.

Fresh political developments in Sudan could boslter stability in Darfur region

The establishment of a new transitional Government in Khartoum on 17 August creates an opportunity to restore long-term stability to Darfur, senior United Nations and the African Union officials told the Security Council today, as the two organizations considered the future of their joint mission in that western region of Sudan.

With the security situation in Darfur still largely unchanged, intermittent clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces/Rapid Support Forces and the Sudan Liberation Army/Abdul Wahid faction continue in Jebel Marra, the Under‑Secretary‑General for Peace Operations told members.

However, the positive developments in Khartoum could mean revisiting the timeline for resuming the drawdown of the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID), he added.

Both the African Union and Sudanese interlocutors, he continued, have proposed convening a meeting of the Tripartite Mechanism on the margins of the upcoming General Assembly to further discuss future African Union-United Nations engagement in Darfur. “This is an opportunity to put a definitive end to the conflict in Darfur,” he declared.

Month: August 2019