148 posts tagged with unitednations.
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☑️ The Most Important Election of Our Lifetimes (🇺🇸)
Election Day is finally here. (*gulp*) Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, after replacing a Biden campaign killed by an abysmal June debate, has run a historic sprint to the finish, promising (with Coach Tim Walz) "A New Way Forward" focused on reproductive rights, middle class economics, and protecting American democracy. Former President Donald Trump, saddled with myriad felonies, a historically unpopular running mate, and a platform that ranges from fascistic to incoherent, leads a darkly authoritarian counterculture that tried once to subvert the popular will and aims to do so again. Dozens of key House and Senate and ballot races hang in the balance, and the outcome has titanic implications for human rights, climate change, the international order, and the future of liberal democracy around the world. But despite the stark contrast, a lingering economic malaise (and suspiciously close polling) make this look like the closest contest in modern history. So let's give it a push in the right direction, yeah? Voting resources:
🪪 Check your registration -
🗳️ Find your polling place -
💭 Make your plan -
📆 States with same-day registration -
🗹 See what's on your ballot - 🏛️USA.gov voting guide -
Volunteer to get out the vote:
🚪Knock on doors -
📞 Phonebank -
📱Textbank -
🚗 Carpool -
👋 Neighbor2Neighbor -
❤️🩹Help cure ballots -
Follow the returns: ⌚ Poll closing times - 🚨DecisionDeskHQ results - 📈 538 benchmarks - 📺 Live coverage - 📰 Politico Liveblog - 🐀Preparing for post-election subversion - ⌛Timeline through Inauguration Day [more inside]
ICJ's decision over the Palestinian occupation continues unwinding
UN General Assembly overwhelmingly calls for end of Israeli occupation The UNGA demanded that “Israel brings to an end without delay its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, which constitutes a wrongful act of a continuing character entailing its international responsibility, and do so no later than 12 months”. || previously [more inside]
"We Have Normalised Horror."
Guardian: Mass casualty incidents caused by the Israeli military offensive in southern Gaza are becoming normalised in the west and leading to a sense of fatalism inside Gaza itself, according to Sam Rose, the director of planning for the Palestinian relief agency UNRWA (after its school in Nuseirat was bombed by Israeli forces) || Democracy Now: “Apocalyptic”: 40 Killed in Israeli Airstrike on U.N. School Sheltering Displaced Palestinians in Gaza || BBC: US urges Israel to be transparent over Gaza school strike || Sky News UK: Experts told Sky News the [bomb] fragment [at Gaza school strike] can be identified as part of an American-made GBU-39 bomb; NPR: Israel used a U.S.-made bomb in a deadly U.N. school strike in Gaza [ground reporting that concurs] || MEMO (reporting of a Yedioth Ahronoth article): UN adds Israel to blacklist for harming children in conflict zones || ICYMI: Aharon Barak steps down as Israel's nominated judge to the ICJ case; Israel's Attorney-General urges Netanyahu to form commission of inquiry to provide legal cover from international judicial investigations such as through the ICC; Which ten countries have joined South Africa’s case against Israel at the ICJ? [more inside]
not even a see-through sleeve for my name tag
Plastic, Plastic Everywhere — Even at the UN’s “Plastic Free” Conference. From the moment I landed in Ottawa, the counter-argument of the plastics industry was inescapable, from wall-sized ads at the airport to billboards on trucks that cruised around the downtown convention center. Their message? Curtailing plastic production would spell literal doom. "These plastics deliver water" on an ad depicting a girl drinking from a bottle in what was implied to be a disaster zone.
The Second Haitian Revolution?
The nation of Haiti has been rocked by far more than its fair share of disasters in recent decades, from major hurricanes to a devastating 2010 earthquake (which killed upwards of 200,000) to the lingering effects of the COVID pandemic. The humanitarian situation has been worsened by escalating political instability, with the "legal banditry" of President Martelly followed by the 2021 assassination of President Moïse amidst a wave of mass protests and criminal violence. The ongoing turmoil reached a fever pitch this week as gang leader Jimmy "Barbecue" Chérizier led an audacious jailbreak of the country's prisons, freeing thousands of convicts that have joined forces in a united front that controls most of Port-au-Prince and credibly threatens to overthrow the government. Acting president Ariel Henry (himself a prime suspect in Moïse's murder) remains stranded outside the country, having secured a deployment of Kenyan police to bolster a multinational force. Most Haitian citizens, however, oppose foreign intervention -- understandable after the last UN mission triggered a major cholera epidemic. The Biden administration is allegedly pressuring the embattled Henry to resign (an improvement over the last time the US was involved in Haitian politics). For their part, a coalition of Haitian civil society offers a possible solution in the Montana Accord, a multi-stage plan to restore electoral democracy. [more inside]
"...major upheaval in debates over the language of mass atrocity..."
The Charge of Genocide - Darryl Li writes for Dissent Magazine: "Israel and its supporters have responded to the ICJ case with accusations of antisemitism (describing the case as “blood libel”), attempts at distraction (arguing over quantities of humanitarian aid it allows into the Gaza Strip), and technical legal objections. But South Africa’s willingness to file the case is a sign that the old tactics used to police discourse about genocide have lost much of their power." [more inside]
Guys this is the ultimate audio history records
The historical sound recordings collection includes radio reports, specially-produced programmes, interviews and other recordings from the late 1940s to 1980s. For example, the UNESCO World Review was launched in 1949 to present developments in the fields of UNESCO interest, to show concrete examples of international cooperation within these areas, and in those of other United Nations Specialized Agencies, and to make those items alive and interesting
Project MUSE free access / Women's History Month sources
Several university presses are offering content on Project MUSE for free until the end of May or June: Johns Hopkins University Press; The University of North Carolina Press; University of Nebraska Press; Temple University Press; University Press of Colorado; Utah State University Press; The Ohio State University Press; Vanderbilt University Press; and University of Georgia Press.
Incidentally, it's Women's History Month, and Project MUSE hosts many recent publications of relevance. [more inside]
Humans are an extremely prosocial species.
The world is a rapidly changing place. Among the fastest changing aspects are those relating to how people communicate and interact with each other, whether in their schools and workplaces, their neighbourhoods, or in far-flung parts of the world. This year, we deal with three sets of factors: the links between government and happiness, the power of prosocial behaviour, and changes in information technology. This is the 7th World Happiness Report. [more inside]
Consistent with the right of peoples to self-determination
The International Court of Justice has concluded "that the United Kingdom has an obligation to bring to an end its administration of the Chagos Archipelago as rapidly as possible." 48 years after the small Indian Ocean island group was forcefully depopulated in order to establish a joint UK-US military outpost, the UN high court has "found that the decolonization of Mauritius was not conducted in a manner consistent with the right of peoples to self-determination" (full text pdf) [more inside]
Population plunge: what if the past is not prologue, and the models lie?
The UN's World Population Prospects has a ton of data, including a number of forecasts for world population*, with the median coming in around 11 billion in 2100. Back in 2013, Gapminder (previously) presented an optimistic look at that figure, titled Don’t Panic – The Facts About Population, which presents in a simple, graphical way how we've reached (or will reach) "peak child" (Our World in Data) yet population keeps growing, if more slowly. But what if those projections are wrong, and in roughly three decades, the global population will begin to decline (Megna Molteni for Wired) according to a global look at population trends by journalist John Ibbitson and political scientist Darrell Bricker, and presented in their book Empty Planet (Goodreads; Amazon). [more inside]
Hoping for a better world
Today is the 70th anniversary of the United Nation's passage of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. (Tomorrow will be the 70th anniversary of the proclamation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.) 45 nations have yet to ratify it. "Genocide" is a relatively new word, having been coined in 1943 to describe the Jewish Holocaust and the Armenian Genocide, but the practise is depressingly ancient and common. Biblical scholars argue about whether the Canaanites and Amalekites suffered genocide; Rome and Athens both committed genocides. A two-volume Encyclopedia of Genocide is available. The definition of genocide in the Convention is broader than the conventional usage, and Canadians might be dismayed to realize that forcing First Nations children into residential schools probably counts as genocide under the Convention.
Irony is dead: UK food bank edition
“Happy food poverty!” On BizarroIsland, Conservative MPs have been using food banks as a PR exercise. Newsworthy Claire Perry is particularly jovial, while Ross Thomson is hypocritical. The pictures have not gone down well; recently, the now-former Brexit minister said a typical food bank user is ‘someone who has a cashflow problem episodically’. Context: the UK is the 5th or 6th largest economy by GDP. Since 2010, food bank use has greatly increased; Universal Credit rollout has led to higher demand, and 4.5 million children live in poverty. Recent UN investigation: “14 million people, a fifth of the population, live in poverty. Four million of these are more than 50% below the poverty line, and 1.5 million are destitute, unable to afford basic essentials.”
UN International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women
BBC: Marked each year on 25 November, the day is the start of 16-day campaign, calling on people and organisations to address violence. According to the UN, it will affect more than a third of women globally during their lives. The bulk of the support was on the streets, with rallies on Saturday and more to come on Sunday. Here are some of the best pictures. Photos from rallies around the world yesterday and today for the UN International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (Nov. 25). More photos. Finally, 16 Ways, 16 Days: things you can do to end violence against women.
The UN’s human rights chief has had enough and now he’s speaking out
When Zeid became the UN high commissioner for human rights in 2014, no-one expected him to become a warrior, campaigner, target, hero. Activists were aghast that a Jordanian prince had been appointed to take on the world’s elites. Jordan has historically been more known for torture than democracy, and despite reforms, a recent Human Rights Watch report found “restrictions on free expression, free assembly, and women’s rights.”
There is more doubt...about the world’s commitment to development
The Bill and Melinda Gates foundation has released their first annual report, called "Goalkeepers," focused on 18 indicators of global health drawn from the Millennium Development and Sustainable Development goals set by the UN. Through measurements, projections, and case studies, the report showcases many recent advances and ingenuity while contrasting them with signs of donor fatigue and risk of regression. The report is timed for the UN General Assembly meeting this month, as Mr. Gates fears the world is losing its focus on global health. [more inside]
Do Earth laws apply to Mars colonists?
Space law [previously: 1, 2] is a thing. Popular Science asks whether the laws of Earth would apply to the colonists of Mars. Want to know more about the law of space? Engadget has you covered. Space.com tells you who owns the moon. Wired asks whether asteroid mining is legal. [more inside]
do not mistake a desire to avoid violence for the inability to deal it.
United Nations to Name Wonder Woman Honorary Ambassador [Comic Book Resources] In the DC Universe, “Wonder Woman [wiki]” has long acted as an ambassador from her native land, but soon the Themiscyran Princess will take on the role for real when she becomes UN Honorary Ambassador for the Empowerment of Women and Girls. According to a statement released by the UN, the official announcement of “Wonder Woman’s” new title will be made at an event held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on Friday October 21.
The largest refugee camp in the world, Dadaab in Kenya, 25 years old
While the International Court of Justice in The Hague takes up a dispute between Kenya and Somalia over maritime oil and gas reserves this week, Human Rights Watch alleges that Kenya's plan to close the Dadaab refugee camp complex, amidst protest from Somalia, violates the UN's 1951 Refugee Convention, which requires that repatriation of refugees must be voluntary. Earlier this year Kenya's Interior Ministry announced that the camp, covering 50 km² (20 mi²) and home to nearly 300,000 people, would be closed by November. Ground was broken to construct the earliest portions of Dadaab in October 1991 by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees as a temporary measure to aid Somalis fleeing from their country's civil war, but as the years passed the site became home to refugees from other conflicts and to refugees from drought and famine, at its height holding more than half a million people. [more inside]
“it needs to do much more regarding its own involvement in the initial”
U.N. Admits Role in Cholera Epidemic in Haiti [The New York Times] “For the first time since a cholera epidemic believed to be imported by United Nations peacekeepers began killing thousands of Haitians nearly six years ago, the office of Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has acknowledged that the United Nations played a role in the initial outbreak and that a “significant new set of U.N. actions” will be needed to respond to the crisis.” [Previously.] [Previously.] [more inside]
Thirty Million, a film about Bangladesh and climate change
Thirty Million (direct Vimeo link), a U.N.-funded half-hour film about the expected effects of climate change on the country of Bangladesh. Radio interview with one of the directors on Radio New Zealand. Bangladesh will lose 70% of its land area if there is a one-meter sea level rise, displacing thirty million people. [more inside]
"History shows us that minorities do not count until they are counted."
What is it like to be queer in China? UNDP has just launched Being LGBTI in China – A National Survey on Social Attitudes towards Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Gender Expression. With 30,000 respondents, the survey is the largest to date on the topic in China. [more inside]
"From Turtle Bay to Broadway: The Power of Art in American Diplomacy"
Ambassador Samantha Power: "So let me just start by noting that I too am a musician. I sing in a band of other UN Ambassadors called 'UN Rocks.' [Laughter.] The Korean Ambassador plays the drums – this is not a joke, it’s real life [Laughter.]; the Thai Ambassador plays the bass; the Serbian and Danish ambassadors play the electric guitars; and the ambassador from Tonga plays the keyboard. And I wanted to take this opportunity to announce that I have some availability for gigs starting around January 20th, 2017. [Laughter.] In case anybody is interested." [more inside]
The Great Green North
At this week's UN General Assembly Special Session on drug policy - scheduled after lobbying by Mexico, Guatemala and Colombia, whose leaders are calling for a more “humane solution” to the drugs problem that goes beyond a focus on enforcement and criminalization - Canada's Health Minister Jane Philpott announced that Canada will begin the process of legalizing and regulating marijuana in spring 2017.
No, Mr Abbott, we are sick of cruelty*
The UN has released a report finding that Australian policies may breach the international convention against torture. Prime Minister Tony Abbott's response? "I really think Australians are sick of being lectured to by the United Nations." * Not so much. Meanwhile, thousands of letters of support to detainees in Nauru have been returned, undelivered. [more inside]
We eat bacon and pastries and are happy. Oh, and the North Pole is ours.
In 2012, the UN said that Denmark was the happiest place on earth. This year, Denmark returned to the UN with some nice Danish pastries, and a territorial claim to the North Pole based on its relationship with Greenland, a Danish autonomous territory. [more inside]
"I decided that I was a feminist. This seemed uncomplicated to me."
Emma Watson, in her position as UN Women Goodwill Ambassador, has delivered an excellent speech on feminism to the United Nations. Part 1. Part 2.
Humans of New York World Tour: Iraq and beyond
If you visit the Humans of New York website or on the Facebook page now and in the next few months, you'll find portraits and stories from beyond New York. Brandon Stanton and HONY will be going on a "world tour," to be part of the UN's Millennium Development Goals Advocacy Group effort to raise awareness for the eight international Millennium Development Goals with a target date of 2015 . Currently, HONY is "suddenly a war report form Iraq". [more inside]
Veto bunnies
World Health Organization quietly endorses drug decriminalization
"The United Nations approves of the criminalization of narcotics. But the World Health Organization, a branch of the UN, apparently disagrees. The Economist has flagged a report on prevention and treatment for HIV in groups most likely to contract the disease. In the report, the WHO quietly recommends decriminalizing drugs — specifically, injectable drugs that spread HIV." [more inside]
United Nations report on human rights within North Korea
Hostis Humani Generis
The legal framework of terrorism has been ... complex. Under the Bush Administration, terrorists were deemd to be "unlawful enemy combatants," and not afforded the protections of the III Geneva Convention. The policy, thought not the name, has continued under the Obama Adminstration, and this indeterminate legal status has significantly complicated efforts to try or release them.
However, there is an older legal model that may suffice: piracy. (previously [more inside]
Stop the killer robots before it's too late!
Nobel laureate's campaign calls for pre-emptive ban on autonomous weapons. As our technology advances, it becomes more and more feasible to give more and more autonomy to our drones. A new campaign led by 1997 Nobel laureate Jody Williams calls for an international ban on the design of autonomous weaponized drones. [more inside]
Around the world in 194 meals
Jesse and Laura are cooking and eating their way through the United Nations, and raising money for World Food Program USA as they do.
To ensure the effective protection of the right to life of all persons under their jurisdiction...
Senator Chip Rogers - Agenda 21 - Mother Jones
Chip Rogers is the Republican Majority Leader of the Georgia State Senate, and Treasurer of ALEC (previously 1 2). On October 11th he hosted a four-hour briefing for his fellow senators, regarding Obama's mind-control techniques which are forcing the US into a United Nations-led Communist dictatorship in which suburbanites are forcibly relocated to cities. The theory is based on Agenda 21, the non-binding 1992 UN treaty on sustainable development. Rogers narrowly failed to pass a resolution against Agenda 21, but other states have done so, and Alabama has even forbidden its implementation in law.
Iranian uranium
The International Atomic Energy Agency says that Iran has tripled its production of >20% enriched uranium in the past three months, while adding 2,600 new uranium centrifuges to its main enrichment facility in Natanz. The agency has not received a "satisfactory explanation" of how 20kg of uranium metal went missing from an Iranian research laboratory. Iran has been blocking IAEA inspections, and the agency "is unable to provide credible assurance about the absence of undeclared nuclear material and activities in Iran, and therefore to conclude that all nuclear material in Iran is in peaceful activities". In recent years, Russia and China have chosen to limit UN sanctions against Iran, whose government denies it aims to make atomic weapons.
The Rights that were Left.
On December 6th, 2011, International Human Rights Day, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton delivered a speech in front of the United Nations proclaiming freedom and equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons (transcript included). [more inside]
Guatamalan Mother Searches Five Years for Daughter
In a case that is rocking the international adoption world, a Guatemalan judge has ordered the return of a six year old girl to her biological family. [more inside]
Famine in East Africa
With East Africa facing its worst drought in 60 years, affecting more than 11 million people, the United Nations has declared a famine in the region for the first time in a generation. Alan Taylor's In Focus quickly brings home the scale of the suffering, with a link to the CNN article listing several ways to donate.
Gay rights are human rights and human rights are gay rights.
In a non-binding resolution narrowly passed by 23 to 19 (with 3 abstentions), the United Nations Human Rights Council has condemned violence and discrimination against gays, lesbians, and transgender people for the first time. [more inside]
One step at a time
The Global Commission on Drug Policy is the latest group to advocate an end to the drug war - but also an unusually high-profile one, including former Presidents of Brazil, Colombia, Mexico and Switzerland, Prime Minister of Greece, Kofi Annan, Richard Branson, George Shultz and Paul Volcker. Tomorrow, June 2, sees the launch of their report, which advocates treating recreational drug use (and abuse) as a public health issue rather than a criminal justice one. [more inside]
Over 2.7 million nations served.
NationStates is a free political simulation game founded by author Max Barry back in 2002 (previously). Loosely based on his dystopian corporate thriller Jennifer Government, the game starts by asking players to provide some national trappings and answer a few civics questions, then generates a virtual country with a matching political outlook. Periodic policy decisions like mining rights and compulsory voting allow players to further modify their country along axes of social, political, and economic freedom, arriving at one of twenty-seven colorful government types like Tyranny By Majority or Scandinavian Liberal Paradise. There's also a healthy roleplaying community -- players can discuss current events in the General forum, practice wargaming in International Incidents, form cooperative Regions to debate internal affairs (many of which form their own communities), and elect Delegates to send to the World Assembly (so renamed after an amusing cease-and-desist from the real-world U.N.). Their collective history is thoroughly recorded in the 35,000-article NSWiki, which provides a detailed legislative record, gameplay guide, and profiles on many of the 90,000 active nations, 8,000 player regions, and countless characters that currently make up the game world.
The US Pot describes the Chinese Kettle, and the Kettle replies in kind
Recently, Secretary of State Hilary Clinton released the 35th annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, covering the legal status of human rights in more than 190 countries and territories around the world. This year, Clinton had tough words for China, amid crackdowns on dissent. In response, China provides a profile of the US, pointing out actions related to Wikileaks, civilian casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the prisoner abuse scandals related to counterterrorism initiatives. [more inside]
Cole to Left: "Learn to walk & chew gum at the same time."
"The United Nations-authorized intervention in Libya has pitched ethical issues of the highest importance, and has split progressives in unfortunate ways. I hope we can have a calm and civilized discussion of the rights and wrongs here." Professor Juan Cole of the University of Michigan writes An Open Letter to the Left on Libya.
Gays able to be executed without cause
On 16 November 2010, the UN General Assembly Third Committee removed a reference to sexual orientation from a resolution on extra-judicial, summary or arbitrary executions, a move condemned by gay and lesbian rights groups. [more inside]
The Gangster Prince of Liberia
Adam Higginbotham wrote an interesting article in 2007 about Chuckie Taylor's reign of terror in Liberia. (Note: PDF link) [more inside]
Say Hello to the Newest Member of the Former Yugoslavia
Kosovo's declaration of independence has been declared legal by the International Court of Justice. [more inside]
FDR: "People who are hungry, people who are out of a job are the stuff of which dictatorships are made."
The United States was engaged in the largest two-front war of its, or any nation's history. Though victory was not yet certain, there were discussions on a multi-national level regarding the future peace, and on the President of the United States was looking to the post-war prospects for the nation. With that in mind, the annual address of the President to Congress and the nation was summed up in one word: Security. "And that means not only physical security which provides safety from attacks by aggressors. It means also economic security, social security, moral security -- in a family of nations." This was Franklin D. Roosevelt's third-to-last Fireside Chat, presented on Tuesday, January 11, 1944, which included what he proposed to be the Second Bill of Rights. [more inside]
Portraits of Power
Portraits of Power "An interactive portfolio of portraits by Platon of world leaders, with commentary by the photographer."