16 December 2014 – Response workers battling the Ebola outbreak in West Africa will receive “hazard pay” for the first time in Sierra Leone using mobile money because “unless there is a certain element of incentives, or danger pay, it’s very difficult to attract and retain people,” the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) announced today. “One of the most difficult things about tackling the Ebola crisis is in the area of human resources,” said Sudipto Mukerjee, UNDP’s Country Director for Sierra Leone. “You can construct a treatment centre in a couple of months. You can construct a community care centre…
Author: UN News
15 December 2014 – The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) today condemned the sharp escalation in violence in the country and called on both sides to cease military operations immediately and give political dialogue a chance. “We consider the military escalation as a direct attempt to undermine the political dialogue efforts,” UNSMIL said in a statement on the escalation. “Those behind it clearly aim to scuttle the work to reach a political solution.” Calling on all political actors to “shoulder their responsibilities with courage and determination”, the statement stressed that that the country’s transition is at a critical…
15 December 2014 – With soaring numbers of refugees seeking asylum in Lebanon, United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson today pledged to “help as much as possible” to ensure that the tragic conflict in Syria will not spread into Lebanese society. Meeting with the Speaker of the Lebanese Parliament Nabih Berri in Beirut, Mr. Eliasson said that his visit to the Middle Eastern nation comes at a “very crucial” time. “I was here two years ago and the numbers of refugees were less than 150,000 and now we have almost ten times that number and we understand fully the strains…
15 December 2014 – A team of United Nations, African Union and other Special Envoys on the Great Lakes region have noted with concern that overall implementation of the Nairobi Declarations remains slow. While welcoming steps taken so far, including on the amnesty and efforts to facilitate repatriation of ex-M23 combatants, the team used the one year anniversary of the Declarations to call on the Governments of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Uganda and Rwanda to strengthen collaboration to speed up repatriation of ex-M23 combatants and their dependants, calling also on leaders of the ex-M23 to cooperate fully.…
12 December 2014 – Reports of excessive use of force by Israeli security forces in the Occupied Palestinian Territory have risen sharply, said the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights as he urged Israel to take steps to halt this “continuous stream of fatal incidents” and to launch a quick and “utterly transparent” investigation into the matter. This call comes days after the death of Palestinian Minister Ziad Abu Ein following clashes with Israeli troops on 10 December during a protest against Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. “The incidents that preceded the Minister’s death are disturbing and…
14 December 2014 – One year since conflict broke out in South sudan and the country’s warring factions have yet to reach a comprehensive peace agreement, endangering the lives of millions of people and the future of the world’s youngest nation, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has warned. “The killing must stop now. The very premise of the country’s independence struggle – a new beginning that was supposed to be founded on tolerance, good governance, accountability and unity – is disappearing before our eyes,” Mr. Ban said in a statement released through his spokesperson’s office. “I am dismayed and saddened…
10 December 2014 – Malta, a key entry point into Europe, needs to step up its preparation for migrants and asylum-seekers crossing the Mediterranean Sea and arriving at its external borders, United Nations human rights expert François Crépeau warned today. He also urged European countries to support Malta’s efforts and “shoulder their share of responsibilities.” This call comes on today’s International Human Rights Day, an occasion to “remember that human rights do not only belong to Europeans,” Mr. Crépeau added. “Malta is likely to see an increase in the number of arrivals in 2015 with the phasing out of the…
8 December 2014 – The Government of Sweden must do more to end discrimination against people of African descent and increase integration as part of a wider effort in combatting racism and hate speech, a group of United Nations human rights experts urged today following their visit to the European nation. The appeal, launched by the Working Group of Experts of People of African Descent, comes amid a heightened prevalence of xenophobic and racist attitudes against migrants and refugee communities despite the Government’s best efforts to counter racial hate. “Afro-Swedes and Africans with whom we met expressed their experiences of…
5 December 2014 – The fighting in eastern Ukraine this year has internally displaced over half a million people leaving them vulnerable to the harsh winter months ahead, the United Nations Refugee (UNHCR) warned today as aid workers race against the clock to distribute essential cold-weather supplies. In a Geneva briefing today, UNHCR spokesperson William Spindler said that the fighting has also forced over two hundred thousand Ukrainians to flee to russia and other neighbouring countries. Applications for asylum by Ukrainian citizens have also risen in the European Union (EU) this year, Spindler told journalists. As of the end of…
5 December 2014 – The rise of migrants and asylum seekers crossing the Mediterranean Sea in the last few months has resulted in a global crisis that calls for a global humanitarian response, a United Nations human rights expert urged today. “This requires a new and concerted strategic approach by European States and the international community,” said François Crépeau, UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, at the end of his follow-up official visit to Italy. According to the statement released by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Mr. Crépeau was in the…
13 December 2014 – Somalia’s Government and the international community must work to strengthen the country’s rule of law institutions and safeguard its full transition to peace, stability and democracy, a United Nations human rights expert urged today. “The Federal Government together with the international community need to allocate adequate resources to strengthen the rule of law institutions and ensure that the interim regional administrations benefit from the New Deal Compact for Somalia,” Bahame Tom Nyanduga, a UN independent expert on the situation of human rights in the East African nation, said in a press release as he ended his…
12 December 2014 – Addressing the Congress of Peru today, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that despite impressive development achievements, big challenges remain – to address inequality and insecurity, deepen democracy, improve the quality of education, and protect the rights of all people regardless of gender, ethnicity, culture, religion or sexual orientation. “Your impressive achievements have moved the world closer to meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs),” Mr. Ban said, commending the Latin American nation for advances in poverty reduction, universal education, and water supply and sanitation. “This week, Lima became the centre of global efforts toward an ambitious…
12 December 2014 – As Under-Secretary-General Jeffrey Feltman wrapped up his visit to Burundi, he met today with President, Pierre Nkurunziza, to discuss issues related to the drawdown of the United Nations Office in Burundi (BNUB), and establishment of the UN Electoral Observation Mission (MENUB). Mr Feltman welcomed both the commitment of the Government to continued political dialogue, and of the opposition to participate in the electoral process, congratulating the President on success of the Round Table held yesterday with partners of Burundi. “This was an opportunity for the partners of Burundi to lay the foundation for closer cooperation after…
11 December 2014 – Welcoming recent talks between Presidents of sudan and South Sudan, the United Nations Security Council today called on both governments to hold a high-level security meeting as soon as possible and urged all parties to refrain from violence against civilians and to expedite humanitarian access for the timely delivery of aid to all civilians in need of assistance. In a statement to the press issued this afternoon, Council members also reiterated their grave concern about the dire situation resulting from continued fighting in the South Kordofan and Blue Nile states in sudan. Earlier this week, the…
11 December 2014 – The United Nations atomic agency has made an appeal today for 4.6 million euros so that it can continue to undertake its monitoring and verification activities in Iran until June 2015 under the Joint Plan of Action with Iran agreed to by China, France, Germany, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States last December. Speaking at the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) Board of Governors meeting this morning in Vienna, Director General Amano Yukiya Amano told the IAEA’s 35-nation board about the need for voluntary budget contributions and reiterated that the agency remains…
10 December 2014 – United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today that he is “deeply saddened” by the death of Palestinian Minister Ziad Abu Ein, which occurred after a demonstration near Ramallah that resulted in clashes with Israeli security forces. “The Secretary-General urges the Israeli authorities to conduct a prompt, thorough and transparent investigation into the circumstance of his death and appeals for calm,” Mr. Ban said in a statement by his spokesperson. “He expresses his condolences to Minister Abu Ein’s family, the Palestinian people and its leadership.” Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Robert Serry, also commented…
10 December 2014 – The Security Council today expressed its concern at the grave security situation in parts of Central Africa, particularly the ongoing crisis in the Central African Republic (CAR) and its regional impact, the continuing threat of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), and the expansion of Boko Haram terrorist activities into countries in the sub-region. “The Security Council reiterates its strong condemnation of the appalling attacks, war crimes and crimes against humanity carried out by the LRA,” the Statement said, also citing the group’s “violations of international humanitarian law and abuses of human rights, including the LRA’s recruitment…
9 December 2014 – Despite a volatile security situation and ongoing fighting throughout the country, the Central African Republic (CAR) is now entering “a critical phase” in its transition to stability and democracy, the top United Nations peacekeeping official told the Security Council today, as he urged the international community to remain engaged in the war-torn country. In his briefing to the 15-member Council, Under-Secretary-General for UN Peacekeeping Operations, Hervé Ladsous, spotlighted a potentially explosive situation in the Car amid continuing violent clashes between the Séléka alliance and anti-Balaka militia in areas surrounding the capital, Bangui. Thousands of people are…
9 December 2014 – The United Nations Mission in South sudan (UNMISS) has destroyed a deadly assortment of weapons confiscated from internally displaced persons (IDPs) living at its civilian protection sites, the Mission has announced, amid broader efforts to defuse tensions in the young country. In a press release issued today, UNMISS declared it had fed 25 firearms, including AK-47s, and hundreds of knives, machetes and similar weapons, into a weapons shearing machine that “sliced” the items into unusable pieces. The weapons had been previously removed from residents of the Mission’s IDP camps situated in Juba, South Sudan’s capital and…
8 December 2014 – Ahead of dialogue due to begin tomorrow that is aimed at peacefully resolving the current political crisis in Libya, the top United Nations official in the country, Bernardino Leon, met with Libyan parties. According to the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), Mr. Leon met with Nouri Abu Sahmein in the framework of “intense consultations” being held by the Mission to create an environment conducive to the proposed Libya-owned dialogue, which aim to explore ways to identify and agree on mechanisms for the monitoring and implementation of a ceasefire. The dialogue’s primary objective will be to…