January 2021 — Page 2 of 16 — Human Rights & Charity

Syria floods: Humanitarians working ‘round the clock’ to provide urgent relief

Providing shelter, food, clean water and other relief supplies is “a massive undertaking…[that] will continue for months”, Mark Cutts told a press briefing in Geneva.

“The reality is that people in this area are facing a catastrophic situation. People in these camps are desperate, and humanitarians are overwhelmed by a crisis that the United Nations warned was coming”, he spelled out.

A dire situation

Against the backdrop of torrential rains and strong winds in northwest Syria as humanitarian workers try desperately to reach affected communities, latest reports indicate that one child was killed and at least three people injured.

Some 121,000 people in 304 sites were badly affected and more than 21,700 tents damaged or destroyed, according to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

“I am deeply concerned about the devastating impact that the recent floods have had on displaced people living in camps in northwest Syria”, said Mr. Cutts.

He pointed out that people who were already struggling to survive had many of their food stocks, household goods and other meagre possessions, washed away.

The UN official painted a picture of contaminated water; below-freezing temperatures; children, elderly and pregnant mothers stranded in muddy remote areas; and thousands cut off from all services and support for days.

Staggering numbers

Overall, there are around 2.7 million displaced in the last rebel-held region of Idleb and other parts of northwest Syria – including 1.6 million spread out in over 1,300 camps and informal sites – and there are not nearly enough health facilities, schools or other essential services for everyone, according to the OCHA official.

“Just last year, one million people in this area were displaced by fighting. Many of them are still living under olive trees on roadsides, as there are simply not enough camps for all these people”, he elaborated, noting that “the international response has not matched the scale of the crisis”.

‘Worse and worse’

And between the ongoing fighting, displacement, worsening economic crisis, COVID-19, freezing temperatures and now floods, “it is a crisis that is getting worse and worse”, Mr. Cutts told the journalists.

Apart from the flooding, as of 26 January, some 21,000 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in northwest Syria.

What is needed above all else is an end to the conflict — UN deputy humanitarian coordinator

“Despite a reduction in new cases, the number of deaths…increased by some 46 per cent to 380 since mid-December”, he updated.

Ceasefire breaches

As Syria approaches its 10th year of conflict, 12 million people have been forced from their homes, making it the biggest displacement crisis of this century, the UN official said.

And although shelling and other open hostilities remain significantly lower compared to this time last year – before the ceasefire – artillery and similar bombardments have continued to impact communities, causing casualties across the northwest throughout January, including in the Idleb area.

“What is needed above all else is an end to the conflict”, stressed Mr. Cutts. “But in the absence of a political solution, we must ensure the necessary access and funding for the ongoing humanitarian response”.

“However big the humanitarian crisis may be, everyone agrees that the solutions are ultimately political, not humanitarian”, he concluded.

EU must place social justice ‘at its core’ to lift people out of poverty

Speaking at the end of an official visit to assess how EU institutions are operating, Olivier De Schutter, Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, warned the States that make up the 27-member bloc “should not fall into complacency”.

“Since the EU has experienced steady economic and employment growth until very recently, the only explanation for this failure is that the benefits have not been evenly distributed”, he said.

Living on the fringe

In 2019, one-in-five people risked poverty or social exclusion, according to the UN’s human rights agency, OHCHR.

Across Europe, some 19.4 million children live in poverty while 20.4 million workers are in effect, living on the edge of falling into poverty. And women, who lead 95 per cent of single-parent families, are disproportionately represented among the poor.

Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected many Europeans who had never confronted poverty before.

“I have spoken with people who have experienced hunger for the first time, who have been exposed because they are homeless, and who are maltreated and abused because of poverty”, Mr. De Schutter said, warning of a second wave as companies declare bankruptcy, “with higher unemployment as a result”.

Prioritize anti-poverty

The UN expert upheld that “the EU can play an important role in galvanizing member States’ anti-poverty efforts”, notably through its yearly recommendations.

But instead of prioritizing investments in healthcare, education and social protection, he attested that their recommendations have “often imposed budgetary cuts in the name of cost-efficiency”.

“Since 2009, Member States have only decreased their investments in these areas critical for poverty reduction”, said Mr. De Schutter.

Furthermore, he highlighted how the bloc’s members compete in a “race to the bottom” by lowering taxes, wages, and worker protections to attract investors and improve external cost competitiveness.

‘The missing piece’

Turning to the European Green Deal, which attempts to combine environmental and social objectives, the independent expert called the fight against poverty “the missing piece”.

“As long as this good intention is not translated into concrete actions, millions will continue to struggle for a decent standard of living in a society that leaves them behind”, he said.

Mr. De Schutter saw the current crisis as a chance for Europe to reinvent itself by placing social justice “at its core”, with adequate minimum income schemes and greater protections for every child at risk of poverty.

“A child born in poverty has imposed upon them a sentence for a crime that she or he has not committed, and it is a life-long sentence”, he said.

The UN expert said it was important to realize the European Commission’s Action Plan to implement the European Pillar of Social Rights, which should be unveiled in the coming weeks, to set poverty reduction targets across the whole bloc.

Special Rapporteurs are appointed by the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council to examine and report back on a specific human rights theme or a country situation. The experts are not UN staff, nor are they paid for their work.

‘Imminent’ Iran execution must be halted, urges UN human rights office

The appeal, which came a day before Javid Dehghan was due to be put to death, follows a series of “at least 28” executions in December, including people from ethnic minorities, such as the Baluchi minority, to which Mr. Dehghan belongs. OHCHR strongly-condemned the spate of State-sanctioned killings.

OHCHR urged the Iranian authorities to review Mr. Dehghan’s case in line with human rights law, citing “serious fair trial violations”.

It noted that he had been arrested in May 2017 and sentenced to death for “taking up arms to take lives or property and to create fear”.

Solitary confinement, torture

After being held in solitary confinement for 15 months and tortured, the UN rights office said that Mr. Dehghan confessed – and later retracted – being a member of a jihadist group and that he had fatally shot two Revolutionary Guards officials.

Despite requests for appeal, his case was not subject to review, said OHCHR. In December 2020, Mr. Dehghan’s lawyer submitted a request for a review based on flaws during the process leading up to Dehghan’s conviction.

The appeal was rejected by Iran’s Supreme Court and the lawyer was notified four days ago. While preparing a new request for retrial, the lawyer was informed that the authorities had scheduled the execution for 30 January, and had informed the family to make their last visit.

Crackdown on minorities

The development follows what OHCHR has described as a crackdown on religious minorities in Iran since mid-December 2020.

This has included a series of executions of members of ethnic and religious minority groups – in particular Kurdish, Ahwazi Arab and Baluch communities, said OHCHR spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani.

Highlighting the disproportionate nature of the punishments, Ms. Shamdasani noted that “a large number of the executions are based on charges that do not amount to ‘most serious crimes’, including drug and national security charges, and following serious shortcomings of fair trial and due process rights”.

Guterres welcomes US decision to restore funding to UNFPA

“The decision will transform and save women’s and girls’ lives across the world, from the most pressing humanitarian emergencies to the most remote and hard-to-reach communities, and everywhere in between”, Secretary-General António Guterres said in a statement.

The move was also hailed by the wider international community, including governments, civil society, NGOs, and the private sector.

Former president Donald Trump, in 2017, stopped US funding for UNFPA, alleging, without evidence, that the agency supported coercive abortions and forced sterilization programmes in China.

UNFPA refuted the “erroneous” claim, stressing that “all of its work promotes the human rights of individuals and couples to make their own decisions, free of coercion or discrimination.”

The US is one of the founding members of UNFPA. In 2016, it provided approximately $69 million to the UN agency, supporting critical response in crisis-affected communities, as well as programmes to improve the lives of women and young people in developing countries.

‘A powerful message’

In the statement, Secretary-General Guterres also welcomed President Biden’s announcement rescinding the Mexico City Policy.

First enacted in 1984, the Mexico City Policy barred US funds from going to organizations that provide abortions, abortion counselling or advocate for the legal right to abortion. The programme was expanded under former president Trump who banned funds from going to NGOs that themselves provide funding for abortion groups.

“This Policy has led to the defunding not only of reproductive health services globally but also in recent years to broader health services, an issue which in the midst of the current pandemic has been shown to be central to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”, the UN chief said.

“Together, these decisions also send a powerful message to women and girls around the world that their rights matter”, he added.

‘A ray of hope’

The renewal of partnership between the US Government and UNFPA is “a ray of hope” for millions of people around, Executive Director Natalia Kanem said.

The US decision will have significant impact on the lives of women and girls across the world, funding lifesaving maternal health care, family planning services and programmes ending violence against women and girls, according to UNFPA.

“[We] look forward to working with President Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and the American people to deliver a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person can grow up safely to achieve their full potential”, the agency added.

WHO urges effective and fair use of COVID vaccines

“More vaccines are being developed, approved and produced. There will be enough for everyone”, said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO Director General, speaking in Geneva.

“But for now, vaccines are a limited resource. We must use them as effectively and as fairly as we can. If we do that, lives will be saved.”

New ‘window of opportunity’

Saturday will mark a year since the UN agency first sounded the alarm over the new coronavirus disease, declaring it a public health emergency of international concern.

COVID-19 cases worldwide have surpassed 100 million, and Tedros said more cases were reported in the past two weeks than during the first six months of the pandemic.

“A year ago, I said the world had a ‘window of opportunity’ to prevent widespread transmission of this new virus. Some countries heeded that call; some did not”, he told journalists.

“Now, vaccines are giving us another window of opportunity to bring the pandemic under control. We must not squander it.”

Turning point in history

The pandemic has exposed and exploited inequalities, the WHO chief noted.

“There is now the real danger that the very tools that could help to end the pandemic – vaccines – may exacerbate those same inequalities”, he said.

“Vaccine nationalism might serve short-term political goals. But it’s ultimately short-sighted and self-defeating.”

Tedros underscored again, that the pandemic will not be over until it ends everywhere.

“The world has come to a critical turning point in the pandemic”, he said. “But it’s also a turning point in history: faced with a common crisis, can nations come together in a common approach?”

He urged governments to vaccinate health workers and older people, and to share excess doses with the COVAX Facility, the global mechanism working to ensure equitable access and distribution, “so other countries can do the same”.

EU export ban ‘not helpful’

WHO has expressed concern over new European Union (EU) measures to control export of COVID-19 vaccines, announced on Friday.

This is “a very worrying trend”, said Dr Mariângela Simão, the agency’s Assistant Director-General for Drug Access, Vaccines and Pharmaceuticals, responding to a journalist’s question.

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She explained that medicines and vaccines can contain components that come from across the world.

“Let’s say it is not helpful to have any country at this stage putting export bans or barriers that will not allow for the free movement of the necessary ingredients that will make vaccines, diagnostics and other medicines available to all the world”, she said.

Asylum seekers subject to systematic pushbacks at Europe’s borders, says UNHCR

Amid “continuous” reports that some European States are restricting access to asylum, UNHCR urged governments to investigate and end the illegal practice.

Unnamed States had returned people “after they have reached territory or territorial waters (and used) violence against them at borders”, said UNHCR’s Assistant High Commissioner for Protection, Gillian Triggs.

Boats towed back to sea

“Boats carrying refugees are being towed back, people are being rounded-up after they land and then pushed back to sea,” she said, alleging further that people’s international protection needs were being ignored systematically.

Those arriving by land were also being informally detained and then forcibly returned to neighbouring countries without any consideration of their international protection needs, the UNHCR official added in a statement.

‘Illegal’ practice

“While countries have the legitimate right to manage their borders in accordance with international law, they must also respect human rights. Pushbacks are simply illegal,” Ms. Triggs added, noting with regret that the issue of asylum remained so politicized and divisive despite falling numbers of arrivals.

According to UNHCR, arrivals to the European Union continue to decrease year on year. In 2020, 95,000 reached EU States by sea and land, a 23 per cent decrease since 2019 (from 123,700) and a 33 per cent compared with 2018 (141,500).

Independent monitoring

“We advocate for national independent monitoring mechanisms to be set up to ensure access to asylum, to prevent rights violations at borders, and to ensure accountability. Independent monitoring is also proposed by the EU Pact and we urge EU Member States to support this”, said Triggs.

In line with the 1951 Refugee Convention, the European Convention on Human Rights and European Union law, States are required to protect the right of people to seek asylum and protection from refoulement, even if they enter irregularly.

authorities cannot automatically deny entry to or return people without undertaking an individual assessment of those in need of protection, UNHCR explained.

‘Rejuvenation of Libyan patriotism’ deserves full Security Council support, says UN mission chief

Stephanie Williams, the Acting Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Libya and Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), told the 15-member organ that intra-Libyan dialogues – facilitated by the Mission – have produced “tangible results”.

Those include a ceasefire agreement in October between the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord and the Libyan National Army led by Khalifa Haftar, a roadmap for an interim executive authority ahead of elections on 24 December, and long-overdue economic reforms – but not, however, the exit of foreign fighters and mercenaries before a deadline that expired on 23 January.

Owning their destiny

“Libyans are keen to turn the page, to reclaim Libyan sovereignty and ownership of their destiny as a people after many years of relentless armed conflict, societal fragmentation and crippling institutional division”, Ms. Williams told the Council, meeting via video-teleconference due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This rejuvenation of Libyan patriotism must be sustained, harnessed and supported by this Council to open a new path for Libya towards democracy, respect for human rights, accountability and justice under the rule of law”, she said.

New resolution plea

More specifically, the Special Representative said that the Council should signal its clear support for the new temporary Libyan unified government through a resolution that would also call for the dissolution of “all existing parallel executive entities” around the vast North African country.

Ms. Williams briefed the Council ahead of a decisive round of intra-Libyan talks in Geneva that are expected to result in the creation of the new government – and before she hands over the reins of the Mission to her successor, Ján Kubiš, who was appointed Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Libya earlier this month.

Oil-rich Libya has been divided since the overthrow of President Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, with bloody conflict between the UN-recognised Government of National Accord in the west, and the Libyan National Army in the east.

Major breakthroughs

An agreement in Geneva earlier this month among members of a key committee of the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum over an interim political leadership deal marked a major breakthrough in the drawn-out quest for peace.

Despite progress on the political front, Ms. Williams expressed concern at ongoing fortifications and defensive positions created by General Haftar’s forces at the Gardabiya air base in the strategic oil port city of Sitre.

She called on the Government of National Accord and the Libyan Armed Forces to fully implement the ceasefire agreement – and echoed the Secretary-General’s appeal for all regional and international actors to respect its provisions, including by speeding up the departure of an estimated 20,000 foreign fighters.

Escalating hostilities in Yemen’s Hudaydah put thousands of civilians at risk

The warning from the UN’s senior humanitarian official in the country, Auke Lootsma, follows an uptick in fighting around the crucial Red Sea port area since mid-January.

In the last three months of 2020, 153 civilian casualties were reported in the western Governorate, the highest number reported across the country.

Main victims: women and children

Women and children have been the principal victims of the violence, and scores of houses and farms have also been damaged in southern districts of the Governorate, Mr Lootsma said in a statement.

At least 700 people have been displaced to date, he added.

Houthi rebels, formally known as the Ansar Allah movement, have been fighting for control of the impoverished Arab nation against Government forces, backed by a Saudi-led coalition, since early 2015.

“The conflict continues to exert misery on millions of lives”, said Mr. Lootsma said, insisting that those fighting paid “little or no regard” for civilians or their efforts to work.

“An immediate end to hostilities is urgently needed to allow humanitarians to conduct needs assessments and provide crucial medical support to wounded civilians and material support to those who have been displaced and lost their livelihoods,” the humanitarian official added.

Mass casualty plan

In response to the increased violence, Mr. Lootsma confirmed that partners had implemented a mass casualty plan at a hospital serving the conflict-affected areas, and provided medical items, including dressing kits for the wounded.

Describing Yemen as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, Mr. Lootsma said that nearly 80 per cent of the population – more than 24 million people – require some form of humanitarian assistance and protection.

Only 56 per cent of the $3.38 billion needed for the humanitarian response in 2020 has been received.

Oil tanker inspection delayed

In a related development, the long-awaited inspection of a rusting oil tanker off the coast of Yemen has been postponed until early March, the United Nations has said.

The news follows administrative delays involved in securing the necessary international shipping documentation for the mission, “which has now been resolved” UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric reportedly said on Wednesday.

The 44-year-old Safer supertanker holds 1.1 million barrels of oil. Fears of an environmental catastrophe increased last May, when the tanker sprang a leak.

It was abandoned in 2015 off the coast of Hudaydah when its engine room flooded with seawater, leaving it under the nominal control of Houthi militants – formally known as Ansar Allah – who are fighting the internationally recognized Yemeni Government.

Sticking to the new inspection timeline would depend the cooperation of the Houthis, Mr. Dujarric said.

Make 2021 a year of possibility and hope, UN chief tells General Assembly

Outlining his priorities for the months ahead, Mr. Guterres emphasized that now is the time to secure the well-being of people, economies, societies and the planet.

From tragedy to transformation

“2020 brought us tragedy and peril. 2021 must be the year to change gear and put the world on track”, he said, speaking from the podium in the General Assembly Hall.

“We need to move from death to health; from disaster to reconstruction; from despair to hope; from business as usual, to transformation.”

The Secretary-General has called for a global reset as the world continues to reel from the COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed more than two million lives and some 500 million jobs.

He said the crisis is an opportunity for change, stating “We can move from an annus horribilis to make this an ‘annus possibilitatis’ – a year of possibility and hope.”

Vaccine solidarity a top priority

Ensuring equal access to newly developed COVID-19 vaccines is the first step in the transformation, but here the world is falling short.

“Vaccines are reaching a handful of countries quickly, while the poorest countries have none. Science is succeeding — but solidarity is failing”, the UN chief said.

Calling vaccines “the first great moral test before us”, Mr. Guterres urged countries to step up support to the COVAX Facility, the international coalition working to make these treatments available and affordable to all.

“There is only one victor in a world of vaccine haves and vaccine have-nots: the virus itself”, he stressed.

Inclusive and sustainable recovery

However, the world cannot heal if economies are on life support, the Secretary-General continued, underscoring how post-pandemic recovery must be both inclusive and sustainable.

Countries must invest now in sectors such as health, social protection, employment, and education.

Mr. Guterres was concerned about developing nations, which have lost out hugely on remittances and tourism revenue due to the crisis, and he highlighted the need for debt relief and financial support.

“Recovery must also be sustainable — embracing renewable energy, and green and resilient infrastructure,” he added. “Otherwise, we will lock in harmful practices for decades to come.”

A ‘critical year’ for climate action

Making peace with nature is another top priority for 2021, which the Secretary-General described as “a critical year” for climate and biodiversity.

“I call on every city, company and financial institution to adopt concrete roadmaps with clear intermediary milestones to get to carbon neutrality by 2050. Key sectors such as shipping, aviation, industry and agriculture must do the same”, he said.

Mr. Guterres challenged countries to phase out coal power over the next two decades, and to end subsidies for fossil fuels, urging them to “shift the tax burden from income to carbon, from taxpayers to polluters”.

The UN chief again expressed solidarity with developing nations, particularly small island developing states confronting the existential threat of climate change.

“Their territories could disappear within our lifetimes”, he warned. “We must never allow any Member State to be forced to fold its flag because of a problem that is within our power to fix.”

Fight neo-Nazism and racism

With extreme poverty and hunger rising, the pandemic has worsened inequalities and injustices. Human rights and basic freedoms are also under threat, as women, girls, minorities and LGBTI people experience chronic discrimination and violence.

In welcoming new momentum in the global fight for racial justice, the Secretary-General underlined the UN’s commitment to promoting tolerance.

“We must all stand up against the surge of neo-Nazism and white supremacy”, he said.

“The United Nations will never veer from its commitment to fight racism and discrimination. There is no place for racism within our Organization – and we will continue our work to root it out.”

Immediately after the General Assembly meeting, the UN chief briefed reporters at UN Headquarters. You can watch the full event below:

UN chief receives COVID-19 vaccine in New York

In a Tweet, Mr. Guterres expressed his gratitude and good fortune at receiving the jab, and urged the international community to ensure that vaccines becomes available to everyone, on an equitable basis. “With this pandemic, none of us are safe until all of us are safe”, he wrote.

71-year-old Mr. Guterres was eligible to receive the vaccine on the basis of his age: New York residents over the age of 65 are included in the current phase of vaccinations in the city, which also includes school workers, first responders, public transit workers and grocery workers.

In December, Mr Guterres declared that he would happily receive the vaccine in public, and said that, for him, vaccination is a moral obligation: “Each one of us provides a service to the whole community”, he said, “because there is no longer a risk of spreading the disease.”

Journalists and camera crews were invited to observe the UN chief receive his shot, which took place at a time when many countries are seeing a significant proportion of their citizens expressing “vaccine hesitancy”.

UN regional offices have noted a significant level of mistrust and, in some countries, including Japan and several European nations, around half the population are reportedly unsure about getting a COVID-19 vaccine at this stage.

Commenting on the UN chief’s vaccination appointment on behalf of the Mayor’s Office, Penny Abeywardena, Commissioner for International Affairs, said that she was heartened that the Secretary-General had secured his appointment online, and received the vaccine in a New York City public school, in the same manner as many other city residents.

“This will go a long way in building trust in our communities that the vaccine is safe for all”, she said.