November 2020 — Page 3 of 18 — Human Rights & Charity

FROM THE FIELD: Girl child soldier shunned at home in Uganda

Eunice’s parents were killed in the years long conflict in the north of the East African country, leaving her unable to protect herself from abduction and forced marriage. Now her community is unwilling to accept her back, branding her a “rebel.”

She is one of many women around the world who have suffered due to conflict and are keen for their stories to be heard and understood.

She was interviewed as part of an initiative focusing on international justice launched by the UN-backed International Criminal Court (ICC).

Global HIV toll likely to be far higher owing to COVID-19, warns UNAIDS

In its appeal, the specialised UN agency UNAIDS warned that the pandemic has pushed the world’s AIDS response even further off track, and that 2020 targets are being missed.

It urged countries to learn from the lessons of underinvesting in healthcare and to step up global action to end AIDS and other global health emergencies.

Human cost

Citing new data showing the pandemic’s long-term impact on global HIV response, UNAIDS said that there could be up to nearly 300,000 additional new HIV infections between now and 2022, and up to 148,000 more AIDS-related deaths.

The failure to invest in HIV responses has come at a terrible price Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of UNAIDS

“The collective failure to invest sufficiently in comprehensive, rights-based, people-centred HIV responses has come at a terrible price,” said Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “Implementing just the most politically palatable programmes will not turn the tide against COVID-19 or end AIDS. To get the global response back on track will require putting people first and tackling the inequalities on which epidemics thrive.”

Although countries in sub-Saharan Africa including Botswana and Eswatini have achieved or even exceeded targets set for 2020, “many more countries are falling way behind”, UNAIDS said in a new report, entitled Prevailing against pandemics by putting people at the centre.

Get on track to ending AIDS

The UNAIDS document contains a set of proposed targets for 2025 that are based on the actions of countries that been most successful in overcoming HIV.

Specifically, the goals focus on a high coverage of HIV and reproductive and sexual health services, together with the removal of punitive laws, policies, stigma and discrimination.

“Far greater investments” in pandemic response will be needed along with “bold, ambitious but achievable HIV targets”, UNAIDS said.

“They put people at the centre…the people most at risk and the marginalized,” it added. “Young women and girls, adolescents, sex workers, transgender people, people who inject drugs and gay men and other men who have sex with men.”

If these targets are met, the world will be back on track to ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030, the agency maintained.

Address water scarcity ‘immediately and boldly’, urges UN agriculture agency chief

The State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA) 2020, the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) flagship report, noted that available freshwater resources have declined globally by more than 20 per cent per person over the past two decades, underscoring the importance of producing more with less, especially in the agriculture sector – the world’s largest user of water.

“With this report, FAO is sending a strong message: Water shortages and scarcity in agriculture must be addressed immediately and boldly if our pledge to achieve the SDGs [Sustainable Development Goals] is to be taken seriously”, emphasized FAO Director-General QU Dongyu in the foreword of the report.

Paths for action

From investing in water-harvesting and conservation in rainfed areas to rehabilitating and modernizing sustainable irrigation systems in irrigated areas, actions must be combined with best agronomic practices, the report stressed.

These could involve adopting drought-tolerant crop varieties and improving water management tools – including effective water pricing and allocation, such as water rights and quotas – to ensure equitable and sustainable access.

However, effective management strategy must start with water accounting and auditing.

Mapping the SDG target

Achieving the internationally agreed SDG pledges, including the zero hunger, “is still achievable”, maintains the SOFA report, but only by ensuring more productive and sustainable use of freshwater and rainwater in agriculture, which accounts for more than 70 per cent of global water withdrawals.

Against the backdrop that FAO oversees the SDG indicator that measures human activities on natural freshwater resources, the report offers the first spatially disaggregated representation of how things stand today. Meshed with historical drought frequency data, this provides a more holistic assessment of water constraints in food production.

SOFA reveals that some 11 per cent of the world’s rainfed cropland faces frequent drought, as does about 14 per cent of pastureland.

Did you know?

Total water withdrawals per capita are highest in Central Asia.
In least developed countries, 74 per cent of rural people do not have access to safe drinking water.
While 91 countries have national rural drinking water plans, only nine have implementation funds.
Around 41 per cent of global irrigation impacts the environmental flow requirements that are essential for life-supporting ecosystems.
Biofuels require 70 to 400 times more water than do the fossil fuels they replace.
As important sources of water vapor for downwind areas, forests such as in the Amazon, Congo and Yangtze river basins are crucial to rainfed agriculture.

Meanwhile, more than 60 per cent of irrigated cropland is water stressed and 11 countries, all in Northern Africa and Asia, need to urgently adopt sound water accounting, clear allocation, modern technologies and to shift to less thirsty crops.

Water math

Although “the inherent characteristics of water make it difficult to manage”, the SOFA report upholds that it “be recognized as an economic good that has a value and a price”.

“At the same time, policy and governance support to ensure efficient, equitable and sustainable access for all is essential”.

Noting that the rural poor can benefit substantially from irrigation, the report recommends that water management plans be “problem-focused and dynamic”.

Despite that water markets selling water rights are relatively rare, SOFA says that when water accounting is well performed, rights well established and beneficiaries and managing institutions participating, regulated water markets can provide equitable allotments while promoting conservation.

‘Incredibly hard’ winter beckons for Syrians, more assistance urgently needed

Against the backdrop that 6.7 million people in Syria are internally displaced – a third of whom lack proper shelter and live in damaged buildings, or public spaces like schools or tents – Ramesh Rajasingham, Acting Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs told ambassadors online that “winter weather is proving to be incredibly hard for those without adequate shelter” or “basics like fuel for heating, blankets, warm clothes and shoes”.

Hunger spiking

Turning to the economic crisis, Mr. Rajasingham noted that between the devaluation of the Syrian currency and increasing food prices, people are “increasingly unable to feed their families”.

“Today an estimated 9.3 million people in Syria are food insecure – that’s 1.4 million more people than a year ago and more than at any other time during the crisis”, he informed. “About one million of them are severely food insecure – twice as many as last year – and we expect this number to increase”.

Civilians under fire

On protecting civilians, the UN official noted that some areas of the country that had been temporarily spared fresh violence are now seeing its return, with significant consequences for their human rights and well-being.

At least eight civilians were reportedly killed and at least 15 others were injured because of shelling and airstrikes in the northwest this month, including two aid workers on their way to a UNICEF-supported child-friendly space, according to Mr. Rajasingham.

And over the past two months at least six humanitarian workers had been killed and others injured.

“The risks our humanitarian colleagues are taking every day are simply unacceptable”, he stressed. “Humanitarian workers must be able to deliver assistance without fear of attack”.

Spotty access

Citing “inconsistent” humanitarian access, the deputy relief chief maintained that already devastated health facilities, are being further impacted by gaps in medical assistance in northeast Syria.

Health services are…being stretched to new extremes – Ramesh Rajasingham

“Let me be clear: Health services are extremely weak across the country and are being stretched to new extremes under the public health impact of COVID-19”, he spelled out. “Gaps in assistance and shortages of medical supplies and personnel are prevalent everywhere”.

Mr. Rajasingham said that due to a lack of beds, women in Dar’a, in the south, were giving birth in rooms alongside other patients.

Safeguarding humanitarians

The UN official’s final point was on protecting those providing aid across Syria.

Humanitarian agencies throughout the country have collectively reached some 7.4 million people with assistance each month “to stave off an even worse situation”, he stated.

“This would be impossible without the extraordinary commitment and endurance of our front-line colleagues, who are overwhelmingly Syrian and are themselves directly affected by the crisis”, continued Mr. Rajasingham. “They are delivering aid under the most difficult of circumstances, at great personal risk. They must be protected”.

Political baby steps

Despite the “considerable” challenges posed by COVID, Khawla Matar, Deputy Special Envoy for Syria, said that moderate progress was being made by the Constitutional Committee, which is working on a new roadmap for the future of the country.

However, she reminded the virtual meeting, “the constitutional track alone cannot resolve the crisis”.

Noting that the current “relative calm” is still too fragile and too far removed from a lasting permanent ceasefire, she said that the “terrorist challenge” still confronts the country and insisted that genuine peace for Syria requires all violence to cease, including against women.

Additionally, Ms. Matar upheld that sanctions would “exacerbate” the already considerable misery of many ordinary Syrians and also stressed that “regardless of their choices”, refugees must be supported.

In closing, the Deputy Special Envoy affirmed that Security Council Resolution 2254, adopted in 2015, contains “all the elements” needed for a lasting peace in Syria and to help the country and its people move forward on multiple tracks.

UN report finds Gaza suffered $16.7 billion loss from siege and occupation

Gaza’s economy was on the verge of collapse, notes the report for the UN General Assembly, entitled “Economic costs of the Israeli occupation for the Palestinian people: The Gaza Strip under closure and restrictions”.

The damage from Israel’s military operations was equivalent to around six times the Palestinian enclave’s annual gross domestic product (GDP) in 2018, or 107 per cent of the total Palestinian GDP, the report said.

Driver of poverty

Gaza’s poverty rate stood at 40 per cent in 2007 but it would have fallen to 15 per cent in 2017 if not for the prolonged military operations, but instead, it has risen to 56 per cent, it said.

The depth of inequality was also far more severe than it could have been.

The “poverty gap”, a measure of how far from the poverty line households are on average, was 20 per cent in 2017, but would have been around 4.2 per cent if not for the impact of military operations, the report said.

Between 2007 and 2017, Gaza’s economy grew by 5 per cent, or less than half a percentage point per year, and its share in the overall Palestinian economy halved from 37 per cent to 18 per cent, UNCTAD’s Coordinator of the Assistance to the Palestinian People, Mahmoud Elkhafif, told a press conference.

Prolonged impact of military action

The report aimed to quantify the impact of three major rounds of Israeli military hostilities since 2008 and the prolonged economic and movement restrictions imposed since Hamas took control in the Gaza Strip.

“The result is the near collapse of the regional Gaza economy while trade is severely restricted from the rest of the Palestinian economy and the world”, the report said.

Blockade plea

“Lifting what amounts to the blockade of Gaza is essential for it to trade freely with the rest of the Occupied Palestinian Territory and the world and restore the right to free movement for business, medical care, education, recreation and family bonds. Only by fully lifting the debilitating closure, in line with Security Council resolution 1860 (2009), can we hope to sustainably resolve the humanitarian crisis.”

Most people in Gaza had no access to safe water, regular and reliable electricity supply or even a proper sewage system, the report said.

UNCTAD’s analysis of the potential economic upside of ending Israeli military operations and travel restrictions did not include wider benefits to the Palestinian people, such as the income from a natural gas field off the shores of Gaza.

More investment

The report recommended the Palestinian government should be allowed to develop those energy resources, and Gaza’s economic potential should be boosted with investments in seaports, airports and water and electricity projects.

Richard Kozul-Wright, Director of UNCTAD’s Division on Globalization and Development Strategies, said the 2 million Palestinians living in Gaza were now facing a health emergency because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But he added that there was “cautious optimism” that the incoming U.S. administration of President-elect Joe Biden could lead to a positive change of tone in Washington, DC.

“That obviously raises hopes that there may be changes in the relationship between Israel and Palestine,” he said.

Alert over growing use of cluster munitions, despite stockpile reductions

Over the last decade, the hair-trigger devices have caused more than 4,300 recorded casualties in 20 countries, according to the Cluster Munition Monitor 2020, although it said that the true number is likely much higher.

Between August 2010 and July 2020, cluster munitions were deployed in seven countries that have not signed the global disarmament treaty banning them: Cambodia, Libya, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, and Yemen.

While their use over the last decade in these countries has been largely “sporadic” or “isolated”, Syria has been the exception, given their “continual use since 2012”, said Monitor contributor Steve Goose, head of Human Rights Watch’s Arms Division.

According to the Monitor, Syria has consistently accounted for more than 80 per cent of all cluster munition casualties worldwide, with children making up around four in 10 of all victims.

‘Unacceptable’ use

Researchers also identified the lethal use of the weapons in Libya last year, and their use by both Armenia and Azerbaijan, in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

“The sustained use of banned cluster munitions in Syria and new use in Libya and Nagorno-Karabakh, is unacceptable”, said Marion Loddo, editorial manager of the Monitor.

It was imperative for the 110 States that have joined the global treaty banning cluster munitions to “speak out to condemn the civilian death toll and the threat to lives and livelihoods”, from areas that are still contaminated with the weapons, Ms. Loddo added.

Allegations of new cluster munition use in Yemen and in the contested region of Kashmir on the India-Pakistan border were also examined, but no “conclusive determination” was possible, the Monitor said.

Despite concerns that a total of 286 new cluster munition casualties were recorded in 2019 – a 92 per cent increase on 2018, linked mainly to attacks in Syria – it remains far below the annual total of 971 casualties recorded in 2016, the Monitor said.

Indiscriminate ‘bomblets’

Cluster munitions are released either from the air or launched from the ground in a canister containing hundreds of “bomblets” which scatter indiscriminately over wide areas. They are not aimed at a specific target and up to 40 per cent of the explosive devices fail to detonate initially, with devastating results for anyone who comes across them.

The release of the report comes as States Parties to the convention gather virtually to discuss further steps on bringing more States onboard with the treaty to ban cluster munitions, which entered into force in 2010.

Stockpiles wiped out

Highlighting the success of the Convention in “making a real difference in saving lives and limbs and livelihoods”, Monitor contributor Steve Goose reiterated that since States agreed to start destroying their stockpiles in line with the Convention, 36 of them have destroyed 1.5 million cluster munitions containing more than 178 million sub-munitions have been destroyed.

This represents the destruction of 99 per cent of the total global cluster munitions stocks declared by States, Mr. Goose said, noting that 18 countries have stopped producing them including the UK and France, but 16 others outside the convention continue to make them, including two that are actively “researching and developing “new types”.

Deadly harvest

In total, 26 countries and other areas have been contaminated by cluster munition remnants, including 10 States Parties to the Convention, which also prohibits the use, production and transfer of the weapons.

Over the past decade, six State Parties have completed clearance of areas contaminated by cluster munition remnants, the Monitor said, most recently Croatia and Montenegro in July 2020.

In 2019 alone, at least 82 square kilometres of contaminated land was cleared by States, resulting in the destruction of more than 96,500 cluster munition remnants, both increases from 2018.

UN officials denounce bombings in northern Syria

At least five people were killed and about 18 wounded in an explosion that occurred near a bus station in Al Bab city, in the Aleppo governorate. A few hours later, another blast took place on a busy street in Afrin, also in Aleppo governorate, killing two people and wounding 15 others, according to initial reports.

“After more than nine years of crisis, vulnerable civilians living in Syria have already endured immense suffering. They must no longer be impacted by such horrific attacks,” UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator for Syria Imran Riza and Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis Muhannad Hadi said in a statement.

The two UN officials also called on all parties to fully adhere to their obligations under International Humanitarian Law and International Human Rights Law to ensure the safety of civilians and civilian facilities.

Violence and COVID-19

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), more than 20 violent incidents, reportedly resulting in civilian casualties, have occurred in Al Bab this year alone. In early October, at least 18 civilians – including 5 children – were killed and more than 75 wounded in a horrific bombing in the city.

The violence comes as the region faces a worsening COVID-19 situation.

As of 18 November, over 5,600 coronavirus cases were identified in Aleppo governorate, and more than 7,500 in neighbouring Idlib. About 80 per cent of all confirmed cases were recorded in the previous one month, OCHA said.

Crisis ‘far from over’

Into its tenth year, the crisis in Syria remains one of the biggest and most complex situations globally, and it is far from over.

Across the war-torn country, more than 11 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance, according to OCHA. Years of conflict, destruction of civilian infrastructure, limited economic opportunities and depleted savings have forced many to resort to harmful coping strategies, such as child labour, forced and early marriage, and other exploitative practices.

The result is extreme vulnerability. Those particularly at risk are children, pregnant and lactating women, people with disabilities, the elderly and other groups or individuals with specific needs or diminished coping mechanisms, said OCHA.

UN experts decry Iran’s reported plan to execute Iranian-Swedish academic

Javaid Rehman, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Agnes Callamard, Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, said in a statement they were alarmed by the reports that Mr. Djalali had been transferred to solitary confinement in preparation for his execution.

“We are horrified by the reports that Mr. Djalali is soon to be executed by the Islamic Republic of Iran. His torture, arbitrary detention, death sentence and now reported imminent execution are unconscionable acts that should be condemned by the international community in the strongest terms”, the experts said.

Iran should take ‘immediate action’

“We urge the Iranian authorities to take immediate action to reverse this decision before it is too late.”

Mr. Djalali telephoned his wife on 24 November in what he said would be his last farewell, to say he was being sent to solitary confinement in Raja’i Shahr prison in Karaj, which is understood to be routine before the implementation of death sentences, the statement said.

During a visit to the prosecutor’s office at Evin Prison, Mr. Djalali’s lawyer saw the order to carry out the death sentence, but there had been no official information provided to the lawyer or to Mr. Djalali’s family, the statement said.

“The decision of the Iranian Government and judiciary to execute Mr. Djalali is completely reprehensible. On several counts, this would be a clear and serious violation of Iran’s obligations under international human rights law, especially the right to life. We urge the Islamic Republic of Iran to stop this execution immediately,” said the experts.

Spurious charges

The statement said Mr. Djalali, a medical doctor and researcher into disaster medicine who was resident in Sweden, was sentenced to death on spurious espionage charges in October 2017, a verdict that came with credible evidence of a forced confession, torture and a grossly unfair trial.

After his trial, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention called on Iran to immediately release and compensate Mr. Djalali, having found his deprivation of liberty to be arbitrary and in breach of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, including his rights to effectively challenge the legality of detention, to a fair trial and to an effective defence.

During his detention, he has been repeatedly denied medical treatment, despite the strong likelihood that he has leukaemia, Wednesday’s statement said.

The Special Rapporteurs, Independent Experts and Working Groups are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. The experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity.

Build on momentum to end violence against women and girls: Secretary-General

The UN chief issued the call for action during an online event held on Wednesday to commemorate the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and to launch the annual 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence campaign, headed up by UN Women.

“Millions of women are being pushed further into poverty by the COVID-19 crisis, and all forms of violence against them are rising”, he said. “In this context, the global community must continue to build on the momentum we have created to prioritize the voices, experiences and needs of women and girls.”

Appeal to nations

Back in April, the Secretary-General urged governments to make prevention and redress of violence a key part of their national responses to the pandemic. More than 140 countries have responded.

Mr. Guterres relaunched the appeal on Thursday to show how greater efforts are needed, for example, for funding and ensuring access to essential services, but also to reduce the risk of violence occurring in the first place.

“This includes providing financial and material support to women and households; encouraging positive messaging around gender equality, stereotypes and norms; supporting access to mental health services; and engaging key stakeholders, including women and girls, men and boys, and traditional and faith-based leaders”, he said.

The ‘shadow pandemic’

Prior to COVID-19, violence against women was already one of the most widespread violations of human rights, according to UN Women, which supports countries in achieving gender equality.

It can take many forms: from rape and domestic violence, to sexual harassment and cyber bullying, but also harmful practices such as female genital mutilation and child marriage. One in three women worldwide has been affected.

UN Women said there has been an alarming upsurge in incidents during COVID-19, a veritable “shadow pandemic”, with some countries reporting a five-fold rise in calls to helplines in the first weeks of coronavirus outbreak.

Projections further show that for every three months of lockdown, an additional 15 million women are expected to be affected.

“Our collective and accelerated response to the Secretary-General’s call to make prevention and redress of violence against women a key part of national responses to COVID-19 will lead us to a safer, more equal and violence-free world for all women and girls,” said Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, UN Women’s Executive Director.

“Together, we must uphold our commitment to: fund women’s rights organizations; respond by strengthening and adapting services to survivors and integrating responses to violence against women into COVID-19 response and recovery plans; prevent violence against women and girls through social mobilization and social protection measures; and collect data to inform policies and programmes.”

‘We must do better’

For the Executive Director of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), Dr. Natalia Kanem, there is only one word for these violations: Enough.

“We must do better,” she said. “It is time to stand up and say enough to violence not just on one day, but 365 days a year. We must prevent violence. And until we end it, we must provide everything women and girls need to survive and recover, from physical and mental health care to legal aid and support for regaining livelihoods.”

Support can also come from ordinary citizens working to raise awareness around violence against women and girls, Academy Award-winning actress Nicole Kidman told the virtual gathering.

As a Goodwill Ambassador for UN Women, she has travelled the world to meet with survivors and hear their stories, which are sometimes heartbreaking and horrifying.

Everyone has a role

“The women themselves would remind us, and me, that this is a problem with a solution. But the solution can only exist if we provide help,” she said in a video message.

“To play your role in ending violence against women, we need you to learn about the issue, make your friends and your community aware of services and resources, ensure that you know who to call if someone was is in danger, volunteer your time if you can, or if you have the means, donate.”

In the lead-up to the Gender Equality Forum next year, UN Women has launched its 16 Days of Activism global mobilization campaign to demand that the post-pandemic reset leads to a “new normal”, where violence against women and girls is relegated to history.

Governments, civil society, young people, influencers and others will be raising their voices during the campaign, which runs through 10 December.

UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed is also turning over her Twitter account during this period to feature advocates, activists and everyday citizens working on the issue.

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Commemoration of international day video

End gender-based violence, ‘once and for all’, UN urges on International Day

In his message for the day, Secretary-General António Guterres underlined the need to prioritize women’s leadership in finding solutions and to engage more men in the struggle.

“The global community needs to hear the voices and experiences of women and girls and take into account their needs, especially survivors and those who face multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination”, he said.

Mr. Guterres reiterated his call from April this year, when he urged the international community to work to end the “shadow pandemic” of gender-based violence.

“I reiterate and relaunch that appeal today”, he said.

Supporting ‘first responders’

The UN chief highlighted that action to stop violence against women, needed predictable and flexible funding for women’s rights organizations, which so often act as first responders in countries across the world.

“It is critical that services for survivors of violence remain open, with adequate resources and measures in place to support health, social and justice responses”, he added.

He went on to note that such measures should not only focus on interventions once violence against women has occurred, but that they should work to “prevent violence occurring in the first place”, including through addressing cultural forces and societal norms, that create power imbalances.

Police and judicial systems also need to become more accountable, to make sure perpetrators don’t act with impunity.

“On this international day, let us redouble our efforts to eradicate gender-based violence forever,” declared Mr. Guterres.

COVID-19 and violence against women

While violence against women and girls has been a persisting and pervasive problem, it has only worsened with the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Domestic violence, in particular, has escalated dramatically, according to UN-Women.

Women and girls are also disproportionately affected by the pandemic’s socio-economic impact, increasing the risk of violence.

Against this background, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director of UN-Women, wrote to political leaders across the world and urged them to take tangible action and express their commitments to end violence against women.

“As the world prepares to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women”, she said, “I would like to call on your Government to make visible at the highest level your commitment to addressing violence against women and girls in the context of COVID-19” she said.

Ms. Mlambo-Ngcuka suggested that leaders highlight such commitments through statements on social media, a video message or text.

The International Day

In December 1999, the UN General Assembly designated 25 November as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, inviting governments, international organizations and non-governmental organizations to hold activities designed to raise public awareness on the issue.

The Day also commemorates the brutal assassination in 1960, of the three Mirabal sisters, political activists in the Dominican Republic, on orders of former ruler Rafael Trujillo.

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Commemoration of international day video