Human Wrongs Watch
Separating children from their undocumented parents is a traumatic violation of their rights, UN independent experts said on 19 October 2018.
20/10/2018
Khashoggi Case Highlights ‘Very Worrying Practice’ of Overseas Abductions – UN Human Rights Expert
Human Wrongs Watch
18 October 2018 — The case of Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi is just the latest example of a “new and very worrying practice” of States abducting individuals beyond their own borders, said the Chair of the UN Working Group on Enforced Disappearances, addressing the UN General Assembly on 9 October 2018.
19/10/2018
Libya – ‘Amid Increasingly Violent Clashes in Tripoli, UN Refugee Agency Airlifts 135 Migrants and Refugees to Safety in Niger’
Human Wrongs Watch
18 October 2018 – Amid increasingly violent clashes between rival armed groups in Libya’s capital, Tripoli, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) has successfully airlifted 135 migrants and refugees to safety in Niger. The agency staff endured security challenges including having to operate under the threat of intermittent fire between rival militias.
19/10/2018
UN Vote on Palestine a Humiliating Defeat for US and Its Envoy
Human Wrongs Watch
By Thalif Deen*
UNITED NATIONS, Oct 17 2018 (IPS) – Nikky Haley, the vociferously anti-Palestine US Ambassador to the United Nations, warned member states last year she will “take down names” of those who vote against American interests in the world body—perhaps with the implicit threat of cutting US aid to countries that refuse to play ball with the diplomatically-reckless Trump administration.
Credit: Institute for Palestine Studies
But that vengeance-driven head count – and no ball playing — could be a tedious exercise for the US when 146 out of 193 member states vote to affirm Palestine as the new chairman of the 134-member Group of 77, the largest single coalition of developing countries at the United Nations.
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19/10/2018
Bring Killers of Journalists to Justice: UNESCO Seeks Media Partners for New Campaign
18 October 2018 – Every four days, a journalist is murdered, often for simply doing their job of uncovering something that someone wants to stay hidden: the vast majority of these killings go unpunished.
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To help raise awareness of this situation, UNESCO, the UN Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization, is launching a new campaign, Truth Never Dies, on 2 November, the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists.
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19/10/2018
Notes on Waste Land – How We Have Transformed Our Natural World
Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area, Silver Bow/Deer Lodge Counties, Montana, 1986 | Photo from Wall Street International.
19/10/2018
U.S. Withdraws Also from the UN Universal Postal Union
Human Wrongs Watch
The United Nations specialized agency which coordinates the global postal system, has expressed “regret” over the withdrawal by the United States from the world body’s membership.
In a statement on 18 October 2018, Pascal Clivaz, the Deputy Director General of the UN Universal Postal Union (UPU), established in the 19th Century, recalled the “tremendous and positive contribution” made by the US.
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19/10/2018
‘Violence Is on the Rise in Occupied West Bank, Including East Jerusalem, and Israel Continues to Demolish and Confiscate Palestinian-Owned Homes and Property, in Contravention of International Law’
Human Wrongs Watch
Violence is on the rise in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Israeli authorities are continuing to demolish and confiscate Palestinian-owned homes and property, in contravention of international law, the United Nations envoy for the Middle East Peace Process said on 18 October 2018.
Briefing the Security Council, Nikolay Mladenov called on Israel to stop the demolitions, adding that a negotiated resolution of the so-called final status issues – as defined by Israelis and Palestinians themselves – was essential for any lasting peace settlement.
18/10/2018
One Million Cisterns for the Sahel
Human Wrongs Watch
A new programme is bringing water and hope to family farmers.
Producing extra food to sell at the market is easier now that farmers have the means to irrigate crops all year round. ©FAO/Benedicte Kurzen/NOOR for FAO
18 October 2018 (FAO)* – Like many farmers in Senegal, Guilé Mané used to struggle through the dry season. Rainfall here can be very low and irregular, even in the rainy season.
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18/10/2018
‘Virginity Testing’: a Human Rights Violation, with No Scientific Basis – UN
17 October 2018 – A group of United Nations agencies has issued a joint statement calling for a ban on tests meant to assess the virginity of a girl or a woman, which is a common practice in at least 20 countries.
