Human Rights

• December 17, 2020

MADRID — A record-breaking vote on a resolution for a moratorium on the use of the death penalty has been passed by the United Nations General Assembly, with 123 countries in favor, 38 voting against and 24 abstaining. The vote, held on Dec. 16, was an improvement over an earlier vote, on Nov. 17 …

General Assembly, Human Rights, WORLDVIEWS

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‘He Is Who He Is’: 4 Experts Assess the Record of the UN’s António Guterres

Barbara Crossette

• December 14, 2020

Ever since the day in 1946 when the first secretary-general of the United Nations, Trygve Lie of Norway, took office, big powers have meddled in how the job is done. Most often, the United States has been the most intrusive. Lie resigned in 1953, before the end of his second, shortened term, with his …

Gender Violence, Human Rights, Secretary-General, US-UN Relations

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WORLDVIEWS

The Vanishing Democracy in Hong Kong

Alan Doss

• December 1, 2020

Recent events in Hong Kong should alert those people who hope that economic development can lead to democratic change. A few weeks ago, the territory’s fragile democratic order took another hit when opposition members of Hong Kong’s Legislative Council resigned to protest the disqualification of four of their members, labeled by the Chinese authorities …

Asia, Governance, Human Rights, WORLDVIEWS

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THIS WEEK @UN

Fed-Up Africans; Has Biden Forgotten the UN?; Don’t Sanction the Houthis

Dulcie Leimbach

• November 20, 2020

Africans are fed up with being sidelined in the Security Council; hey, Joe Biden, don’t overlook the UN; a mother of five competes against 12 men in the Burkina Faso presidential election. You are reading This Week @UN, highlighting the most important news on the world body. The information is drawn from the UN spokesperson’s …

Africa, Human Rights, Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Secretary-General, This Week @UN, US-UN Relations

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THIS WEEK @UN

A Norwegian Diplomat Disgraced; Covid Strikes the UN Security Council; Russia Fails to Promote Women’s Rights

Dulcie Leimbach

• October 31, 2020

A scandal involving a Norwegian diplomat erupts; Covid-19 rears its head at the United Nations; and who could become its 194th member state? Greetings from This Week @UN, highlights of the most important news on the world body. The information is drawn from the UN spokesperson’s briefings, our original reporting and other sources. Scoop: In …

General Assembly, Health and Population, Human Rights, Nuclear Disarmament, Security Council, This Week @UN

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UN-75: The Moment to Build a More Inclusive World Order Is Here

María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés and Tijjani Muhammad-Bande

• October 24, 2020

Since its founding 75 years ago, the United Nations has proven, with the support of its member countries and other partners, its worth in complex problem-solving. That includes preventing great-power wars, remedying humanitarian emergencies, safeguarding human rights and reducing extreme poverty. But as we commemorate UN Day, with world leaders having marked the world …

Development, Disarmament, Governance, Health and Population, Human Rights

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THIS WEEK @UN

The Rough Road to Gender Equality; a Major Message on Hunger; No Saudis on the Human Rights Council

Dulcie Leimbach

• October 17, 2020

For once, two pieces of good news from the United Nations: The World Food Program receives the Nobel Peace Prize and the Security Council begins meeting physically again in its chamber. But some reality-checking: 25 years after the Beijing conference on women, the road to gender equality is still being dug. Greetings from This Week …

Africa, Health and Population, Human Rights, Israeli-Palestinian conflict, This Week @UN, US Foreign Relations

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China and Russia Win Human Rights Council Seats, but the Saudis Get Rejected

Dulcie Leimbach

• October 13, 2020

Nearly two and a half years after the United States withdrew from the Human Rights Council, China and Russia have just won elected seats in the body. Both countries suffer from human-rights abuses against their own populations. China and Russia join 13 others as Council members for three-year terms starting on Jan. 1, 2021, …

Human Rights, US-UN Relations

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TOPIC: WOMEN

The UNFPA Is Thriving as It Praises an American Who Kept US Interest Alive

Barbara Crossette

• September 29, 2020

In the rubble of what’s left of American commitments to international organizations, one survivor is doing well. The United Nations Population Fund, or UNFPA, the perennial target of Republican politicians and presidents since the 1980s, is thriving. Arthur Erken, director of communications and strategic partnerships at the Population Fund, said in an interview with …

Health and Population, Human Rights, Women

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THIS WEEK @UN

Protecting a Nobelist, Dr. Mukwege; Climate Chaos; Where Are the Women at #UNGA75?

Dulcie Leimbach

• September 12, 2020

Iran continues to enrich low-grade uranium; the United Nations finally sent peacekeepers to protect Dr. Denis Mukwege, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, after he received more death threats; and the major General Assembly session of world leaders, starting Sept. 22, features only 11 women so far, and the first one to speak is No. …

Africa, Climate and Environment, Education, General Assembly, Human Rights, This Week @UN, US-UN Relations

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WORLDVIEWS

There’s Another Important Election Coming Soon, and It Concerns Universal Human Rights

John Packer

• September 11, 2020

States parties to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights will elect new experts on Sept. 17 to the Human Rights Committee, which supervises the covenant’s implementation. It is one of the two solemn, widely ratified covenants that codify in treaty form the provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and detail …

Human Rights, WORLDVIEWS

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WORLDVIEWS

Beijing, 25 Years Later: Are Women Better Off?

Ellen Chesler

• September 4, 2020

Twenty-five years ago, the United Nations hosted the largest gathering of women (and more than a few good men) in its 50-year history. Some 17,000 participants — among them, official government delegates, representatives of accredited nongovernmental organizations, international civil servants and members of the press — registered for the Fourth World Conference on Women …

Human Rights, WORLDVIEWS

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COVID-19

In Mexico, the UN Refugee Agency Alleviates a Crisis Created by the Trump Administration

Maurizio Guerrero

• August 26, 2020

“Yes, there’s always the fear of being kidnapped,” said Óscar, a 30-year old asylum seeker who fled political persecution in Cuba in May 2019 and landed in the Mexican border city of Ciudad Juárez, where violent crime and gang activity are common. Óscar, who used a pseudonym to protect his privacy, knew of asylum …

Covid-19, Human Rights, Refugees, US Foreign Relations

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Where Is Brazil as the UN Marks Its 75th Anniversary?

Adriana Erthal Abdenur and Maiara Folly

• August 12, 2020

RIO DE JANEIRO — This year marks the 75th anniversary of the United Nations. Amid the major economic and geopolitical effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is a time to reflect on the successes and failures of the UN system, Brazil’s role in its story and what needs to be done to improve the …

Climate and Environment, Governance, Human Rights, Latin America, World Bank

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COVID-19

Haiti Could Face a ‘Perfect Storm’ With the Pandemic

Fiona Shukri

• August 4, 2020

As Covid-19 continues to ravage many parts of the world, the effect of the virus in Latin America and the Caribbean region has been particularly devastating. The situation in Haiti, for example, has alarmed international humanitarian groups, as the country lacks sufficient virus-testing ability and has limited health-care infrastructure, among other serious problems. On …