London, 26 March 2019 (IOM)* – Vulnerability to human trafficking and modern slavery is influenced by overlapping and interconnected risk factors which cut across individual, household, family, community and structural dynamics, according to a new study.
Two-year IOM, University of Bedfordshire study examined the vulnerabilities to human trafficking for Albanians, Vietnamese and Nigerians. Photo: IOM/Francesco Malavolta
Raise awareness of the dangers of racism and “stand up against old and new forms of slavery” was the resounding message of United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday [25 March 2019] during a special event marking the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade.
UN Photo/Loey Felipe | Exhibition for the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade at UN Headquarters in New York, March, 2019.
“Slavery and the transatlantic slave trade were among history’s most appalling manifestations of human brutality”, he reminded delegates from across the world gathered in the General Assembly Hall with a call for “justice and equal opportunities for all people of African descent”.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged artificial intelligence (AI) experts meeting in Geneva on Monday [25 March 2019] to push ahead with their work to restrict the development of lethal autonomous weapons systems, or LAWS, as they are also known.
UN Photo/Marco Dormino | UNMAS, MINUSMA Mark International Day for Mine Awareness. Robots have been deployed for mine clearance by military authorities in many countries, but concerns are rising over regulation of autonomous weapons which use Artificial Intelligence.
In a message to the Group of Governmental Experts, the UN chief said that “machines with the power and discretion to take lives without human involvement are politically unacceptable, morally repugnant and should be prohibited by international law”.
24 March 2019 (Wall Street International)* — Everything one wants or does not want is likely to be desired or rejected by the other. This is one of the contexts in which exchanges and relationships occur. The commercialization of goods and merchandise is always an exchange, usually made possible by money. The currency and the acquisition patterns allow the circulation of products and ideas in societies.
UN Environment*— In 1998 Beijing began an intensified air pollution control program, and over the last 20 years the city has implemented a series of measures including energy infrastructure optimization, coal-fired pollution control, and vehicle emission controls.
These efforts successfully reduced air pollution. In the five years from 2013 to 2017, fine particulate pollution (PM2.5) in Beijing fell by 35% and by 25% in surrounding regions.
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This report outlines how Beijing’s air quality management programme has evolved over the past quarter century and makes recommendations for near, medium, and long-term steps that Beijing can take to maintain its momentum toward clean air.
Geneva (IOM)*– A focus on improved data will enable IOM to combat fake news and hate speech with solid facts and evidence, a UN meeting in Geneva heard today (22/3/2019).
New European migration section on IOM’s Global Migration Portal Data under the microscope at the UN Economic Commission for Europe in Geneva. Image: IOM’s Global Migration Portal Data
A dedicated Europe section on the IOM Global Migration Data Analysis Centre website has just been launched, and it was presented on 22 March 2019 at a side event at the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe Regional Forum on Sustainable Development.
24 March 2019 (Wall Street International* — The cupping therapy has been used in China for thousands of years. The cupping therapy in its primitive form using cattle horn was used primarily to withdraw pus and blood in the treatment of boils. Cupping was then used as an auxiliary method in traditional Chinese surgery, and in time developed into a special therapeutic method.
The earliest records of cupping in ancient China was found written in Bo Shu 帛书 ancient book written on silk. The texts were buried 186 BC in Ma wang dui 马王堆 tomb.
Through several thousand years of accumulated clinical experience, the clinical applications of cupping have become increasingly wide.
Forensic investigation yields credible evidence 14 civilians were killed in just five strikes
More than 100 strikes by US drones and manned aircraft since early 2017
Strikes in Somalia tripled under Trump, outpacing Yemen and Libya combined
The US government must carry out impartial, thorough investigations into credible evidence its rapidly escalating air strikes in Somalia have killed numerous civilians, Amnesty International said in a new report today [].
The Hidden US War in Somalia details how 14 civilians were killed and eight more injured in just five of the more than 100 strikes in the past two years.
These five incidents were carried out with Reaper drones and manned aircraft in Lower Shabelle, a region largely under Al-Shabaab control outside the Somali capital Mogadishu.
22 March 2019 (WMO – World Meteorological Day)* — The Sun, the Earth and the Weather is the theme of this year’s World Meteorological Day. It highlights the role of the Sun in delivering the energy that powers all life on Earth, and drives the weather, ocean currents and the hydrological cycle.
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World Meteorological Day on 23 March celebrates the anniversary of the convention establishing WMO in 1950 and showcases the essential contribution of the WMO community to the safety and wellbeing of society.
National Meteorological and Hydrological Services provide expertise and services both to harness the power of the Sun and to protect us from it.
Bihac/Sarajevo, BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA, 21 March 2019 (UNFPA)* –“We still risk our lives,” said Hatidza*, a 26-year-old migrant transiting through Bosnia and Herzegovina. “Last time when we tried to pass the border, you could see the footsteps of wolves and bears. Some migrants and refugees were killed by bears. By now we have tried three times to pass the border unsuccessfully.”
Hatidza is a member of the Ahwazis minority group in Iran. She and her brother fled the country after their father was murdered and their family was threatened.
HUMAN WRONGS WATCH 