Human Rights

• December 1, 2022

The United States wants Iran kicked off the United Nations body mandated since 1946 to empower women and promote gender equality. Through a request to hold a vote in the UN’s Economic and Social Council on Dec. 14, the 54 members could agree on a resolution led by the US to oust Iran from …

Asia, Gender Violence, Human Rights, US-UN Relations, Women

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The UN’s Top Labor Expert Resumes Work on ‘Our Common Agenda’ as Controversy Clouds World Cup

Damilola Banjo

• November 29, 2022

Guy Ryder, 66, immediate past director-general of the International Labor Organization for 10 years, begins his new role in New York City as the UN under secretary-general for policy, about 10 days into a World Cup rocked by accusations of human-rights violations of foreign migrant workers. Ryder, who is British, starts in the UN …

Human Rights, Middle East, Migration, Secretary-General

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Navi Pillay, Who Leads a UN Rights Probe on Palestine and Israel, Hits Back on Slurs Against Her

Dulcie Leimbach

• November 23, 2022

Navi Pillay, who leads the United Nations Human Rights Council’s commission of inquiry on Palestine and Israel, has written to the president of the General Assembly about a “matter of significant concern” involving the Israeli ambassador at a public meeting in October at the UN. The letter, dated Nov. 21, 2022, was sent to …

General Assembly, Human Rights, Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Secretary-General

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Will the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council Send a Strong Message to Iran?

Kourosh Ziabari

• November 22, 2022

Leaders of major democracies are intensifying their denunciations of the Iranian government for its continued brutal crackdown on the protests in the country, which are moving into their third month as Iran has issued four death sentences so far linked to demonstrations. Not only are countries levying new sanctions on individuals and entities implicated …

Asia, General Assembly, Human Rights, Middle East, Security Council

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The UN Ignores Repeated Calls to Investigate Killings in Nigeria’s Kaduna State

Damilola Banjo

• November 16, 2022

LAGOS — The United Nations is ignoring repeated calls for help in resolving a resource war between largely Christian farmers and mainly Muslim herders in Kaduna, a state in northwest Nigeria. The conflict has been smoldering since 2011 and now, fanned by climate change, threatens to burst into flame. Violence in northwestern Nigeria killed …

Africa, Climate Change, Human Rights

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WOMEN AS CHANGEMAKERS

A Ukrainian’s Crusade to Fix the International Justice System for Everyone

Dawn Clancy

• October 18, 2022

Documenting the “dozens of thousands” of Russia’s war crimes that have been committed so far in Ukraine isn’t a problem for Oleksandra Matviichuk, a human-rights lawyer and civil society leader based in Kyiv. But having a fully developed international criminal system tasked with pursuing justice for all victims of war, is. “All people deserve …

Human Rights, International Justice, Ukraine-Russia War, Women as Changemakers

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Israeli Campaign in Germany Blocks Award to Navi Pillay, a Renowned Rights Leader

Barbara Crossette

• October 2, 2022

It was billed as a grand ceremony staged by the United Nations Association of Germany to award its biennial Otto Hahn Peace Medal to Navi Pillay, marking her decades of groundbreaking work in human rights and international criminal law, including through the United Nations. The setting for the ceremony on Sept. 28 would be …

Human Rights, International Justice, Israeli-Palestinian conflict

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WOMEN AS CHANGEMAKERS

Born Under Apartheid, Navi Pillay Has Climbed to Global Heights in Promoting Human-Rights Law

Barbara Crossette

• September 12, 2022

Nations of the world have taken giant steps in recent decades to build international structures and strengthen institutions to deal with mass human-rights abusers. At almost every stage, Navi Pillay, a South African lawyer, was there, advancing the rights of political detainees and the protection and status of women. Pillay, 80, is a descendant …

Africa, Gender Violence, Human Rights, Women as Changemakers

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This Belarusian Activist Has One Goal: To See Lukashenko Out and Democracy In

Anastasiia Carrier

• August 30, 2022

When a Belarusian official presented the country’s flattering self-assessment at a forum on sustainable development held at the United Nations in July, Anastasia Kostyugova was there to push back. “[The government] blindly manipulates statistics to portray Belarus as a happy and prosperous country,” Kostyugova read from her statement. “How can a civil society address …

Gender Violence, Human Rights, Peace and Security, Ukraine-Russia War

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WORLDVIEWS

The Afghanistan We Long to See: A Place Where the Rights of Women and Girls Are Restored

Geraldine Byrne Nason

• August 14, 2022

Today marks a dark anniversary — one year since Kabul fell to the Taliban. As Ireland’s ambassador to the United Nations, I have always said I will judge the Taliban by their actions, not by their words. Their actions in the last year speak of absolute contempt for the rights of the Afghan people, …

Asia, Gender Violence, Human Rights, Security Council, WORLDVIEWS

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WORLDVIEWS

Will It Be a Technocrat or an Advocate? The Search for a New UN Human-Rights Chief Is Underway

Ben Donaldson and Enyseh Teimory

• July 19, 2022

LONDON — A new United Nations high commissioner for human rights needs to be found, appointed by the General Assembly and be ready to begin work on Sept. 1. Anyone who meets the criteria set out in the UN’s official job description can apply for this role — the deadline is July 27. The …

General Assembly, Human Rights, Secretary-General, WORLDVIEWS

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THIS WEEK @UN

Trending UN News: Week Ending July 15

Damilola Banjo

• July 15, 2022

This week, we focus on the rising number of armed children in conflicts in Africa’s Sahel region and how fake news, misinformation and disinformation are hurting peacekeeping worldwide. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues before the organization. The information is gathered from UN press briefings, PassBlue reporting and other …

Africa, Human Rights, Human Trafficking, Humanitarian Aid, Latin America, Peace and Security, Secretary-General, Security Council, This Week @UN

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Ukraine Boosts Its Campaign to Find Children That Russia Has Abducted

Barbara Crossette

• July 14, 2022

Amid mounting reports of Ukrainian children being forcibly deported to Russia during Moscow’s brutal war against the country and its culture, savvy Ukrainian technocrats are launching a tool to fight back in cyberspace. An interactive public website will soon go live to assist expert search teams that are tracking missing children, according to President …

Human Rights, Human Trafficking, Peace and Security

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Under the Radar: Surviving Wars With a Disability

Kelechukwu Ogu

• July 11, 2022

LAGOS, Nigeria — Mauot Louis and his family ran out of their home in Sudan one day in the early 1990s, leaving their puppy behind. They were forced out by Nuer fighters, rebels from the second-largest ethnic group in South Sudan, who were angry with the control of John Garang, the leader of the …

Disabilities, Human Rights

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Britain Sets a Precedent That Worries the UN Refugee Agency

Damilola Banjo

• June 27, 2022

Britain’s new five-year asylum partnership arrangement with Rwanda is showing the rest of Europe how countries can possibly lock refugees out of their borders. And Filippo Grandi, the United Nations high commissioner for refugees, is worried about this precedent. In the wake of the refugee crisis caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, in which …

Africa, Human Rights, Migration, Refugees

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PassBlue Quiz: Women in Politics. Test your knowledge of female leaders and the issues they confront.

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The UN’s Top Labor Expert Resumes Work on ‘Our Common Agenda’ as Controversy Clouds World Cup

Damilola Banjo

WORLDVIEWS

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Human Rights

How Might Iran React to Being Ousted From the UN Commission on the Status of Women?

The UN’s Top Labor Expert Resumes Work on ‘Our Common Agenda’ as Controversy Clouds World Cup

Navi Pillay, Who Leads a UN Rights Probe on Palestine and Israel, Hits Back on Slurs Against Her

Will the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council Send a Strong Message to Iran?

The UN Ignores Repeated Calls to Investigate Killings in Nigeria’s Kaduna State

A Ukrainian’s Crusade to Fix the International Justice System for Everyone

Israeli Campaign in Germany Blocks Award to Navi Pillay, a Renowned Rights Leader

Born Under Apartheid, Navi Pillay Has Climbed to Global Heights in Promoting Human-Rights Law

This Belarusian Activist Has One Goal: To See Lukashenko Out and Democracy In

The Afghanistan We Long to See: A Place Where the Rights of Women and Girls Are Restored

Will It Be a Technocrat or an Advocate? The Search for a New UN Human-Rights Chief Is Underway

Trending UN News: Week Ending July 15

Ukraine Boosts Its Campaign to Find Children That Russia Has Abducted

Under the Radar: Surviving Wars With a Disability

Britain Sets a Precedent That Worries the UN Refugee Agency

This Week's Most Popular

Navi Pillay, Who Leads a UN Rights Probe on Palestine and Israel, Hits Back on Slurs Against Her

How Might Iran React to Being Ousted From the UN Commission on the Status of Women?

How to Move From Hostility to Cooperation in the UN Security Council

UN-Scripted, Passblue's UN podcast series

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