'Unseen' News and Views
21 December 2019 (UN News)* — Although they spent 20 years living in a refugee camp in Uganda, Jean-Pierre Ntegyeye and Isaiah Bahati never gave up hope of leaving for a better life. Today, with help from the UN migration agency, IOM, their dream has come true, but they haven’t forgotten the plight of those left behind. Their story is told in a new movie, One Way Ticket, screened as part of the Global Migration Film Festival (GMFF).
20 December 2019 (UN News)* — Following a “thorough, independent and objective assessment”, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced on Friday [20 December 2019] that she plans to open a formal investigation into alleged war crimes in Palestine, but asked the Court for a further ruling over territorial jurisdiction.
ICC | International Criminal Court Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda.
Maintaining that “war crimes have been or are being committed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip”, she believes that “potential cases arising from the situation would be admissible” and that there were “no substantial reasons to believe that an investigation would not serve justice”.
(UN News)* — Both Iran and the United States have been putting strain on the groundbreaking 2015 deal to monitor Iran’s nuclear programme, which remains a “cornerstone of international peace and security”, said the UN’s political affairs chief on Thursday [19 December 2019].
The first-ever Global Refugee Forum concluded in Geneva on Wednesday [18 December 2019] with more than 770 pledges of support, covering areas such as protection, employment, and education, for refugees and the communities which have taken them in. .
As “policies shaped more by fear than fact” have caused untold suffering to migrants, the UN Secretary-General is urging countries to realize the goals of a global agreement that promotes enhanced international cooperation on migration. (*).
António Guterres issued the charge in his message for International Migrants Day, observed annually on 18 December.
UNRWA | The UN Special Coordinator for Middle East Peace addressed the Security Council on Wednesday, asking for more funding for the occupied territories. About 76 per cent of funds requested for the Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) for 2020 target the Gaza enclave.
10 December 2019 (Wall Street International)* — As William Nordhaus illustrated in his Nobel award address in December last year, the free-rider problem is particularly severe for climate change. Those who do nothing ride free, while those who undertake costly reductions pay dearly. If an important player does not go along, the others could establish a climate club with penalties in the form of tariffs for the free rider.
Like many countries in the world, Australia had several indigenous peoples, often called aboriginals or tribes, living in this subcontinent.
St Patrick’s Cathedral
Again, as in other countries, these peoples were conquered, crushed and their cultures, cuisines, knowledge systems destroyed.
These peoples have become extinct except for a few stray tribes who still exist in small numbers and who are difficult to see in most places.
One such place is called Toowoomba about 150 km from the modern city Brisbane located in the province of Queensland on the eastern coast of the country.
This place is beautiful, peaceful, serene, full of gardens, and open areas. As they say in Toowoomba, it has pleasant weather on one day and perfect the next.
– Appearing before 17 judges of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague, Aung San Suu Kyi, the de facto civilian leader of Myanmar, became a public apologist for the military government of Myanmar which has long been accused of genocide and forcing over 730,000 Rohingya Muslims to flee to neighboring Bangladesh since a 2017 crackdown.
International Court of Justice in The Hague. Credit: United Nations
Young people represent the majority of the population in most developing countries, where they are often directly exposed to the effects of climate change, conflict, exclusion or economic instability. And in many parts of the world, it is still difficult for youth to be heard — and to influence decision-making processes.
UNDP is proud to continue to help empower young people to better know and claim their rights – which is critical to help build a brighter, more sustainable and more inclusive future. ©UNDP / Freya Morales
HUMAN WRONGS WATCH 