'Unseen' News and Views
(UN News)* — One hundred days since the Myanmar military seized power, the “brutal” repression of protesters has continued, despite all international efforts to end the violence, the UN rights office (OHCHR) said on Tuesday [11 May 2021].
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“The military authorities are showing no sign of letting up in their brutal crackdown on opponents in a bid to consolidate their hold on power”, spokesperson Rupert Colville told journalists at a media briefing.
World Environment Day, which falls on 5 June, marks the official launch of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, a global push to revive natural spaces lost to development. In the lead-up to the Decade’s launch, UNEP is looking back on some of our most popular restoration-related stories, including this piece originally published in December 2020.
Reuters / Andrees Latif / 01 Dec 2020
11 May 2021 (UNEP)* — The record-breaking wildfires that engulfed the western United States in 2020 show the danger from global heating and ecosystem decline, but also highlight how forest and landscape restoration can reduce the threat of catastrophic fires.
Human Rights Watch Introduces Country Index Based on Laws, Policies
Beirut – Governments in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) should outlaw the violent discipline of children, Human Rights Watch said today [10 May 2021], introducing an index categorizing countries in the region based on their laws and policies.
Image from Greenpeace International.
The deep sea mining industry is planning to send monster machines to plunder the seabed and extract polymetallic nodules – potato-sized lumps of rocks loaded with metals and minerals. Deep sea mining isn’t happening yet, but the kinds of metals this industry is targeting are used in phones, laptops and batteries.
10 May 2021 (IOM)* — Gender inequality is magnified in situations of conflict. Women are disproportionately disadvantaged in terms of personal safety, access to employment, resources and basic services in fragile, conflict-ridden environments. They are most affected by poverty and the value of the support they provide at home is mostly rendered invisible.
Photo: IOM Afghanistan
In a society like Afghanistan, traditional norms often make it difficult for women to access employment, get a loan or start a business. Yet, when women are given an opportunity, they make significant contributions to the growth and development of their families and their communities at large.
Sakina was born in a small village in Helmand in 1995. She was 5 years old when her family fled Afghanistan in 2000 and migrated to Pakistan.
UNHCR study shines light on a hidden national issue that, despite recent progress, still affects millions of people around the world. | Español | Français | عربي
A recognised stateless person in the UK sits on a park bench in east London. © UNHCR/Katie Barlow
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LONDON, UK (UNHCR)* – For more than seven decades, Benjamin has lacked something that most people take for granted: a nationality.
Born in Namibia, then part of South Africa, he did not acquire nationality at birth because at the time neither of his parents had citizenship or permanent residency in the country.
And bird watching seems to be becoming more popular. Starting in April 2020, eBird began to see a notable increase in contributions of bird observations. April 2020 eBird checklist submissions increased by 41 per cent compared to April 2019.
HUMAN WRONGS WATCH 