28 January 2014 – Following Tunisia’s adoption of a new constitution, the United Nations human rights office today added its voice to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s in encouraging politicians to ensure that the next steps in the country’s democratic transition are conducted in a “peaceful, inclusive and transparent” manner. The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) called on Tunisian political actors to make certain that the independent institutions established in the constitution are strong and “help promote accountability and the rule of law with full respect for human rights”. These include the National Human Rights Institutions, which…
Author: UN News
27 January 2014 – Côte d’Ivoire is making “good progress” towards lasting peace and stability, but with presidential elections on the horizon, urgent steps need to be taken in security sector reform and national reconciliation, the top United Nations official in the country told the Security Council today. Briefing from Abidjan by video conference, Aïchatou Mindaoudou, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative and head of the UN Operation in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI) told the Council that “it is important to work now to put in place the conditions for an environment conducive to peaceful elections” in 2015. The West African country’s stability…
27 January 2014 – Despite significant progress towards peace in the strife-torn eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the international community must keep humanitarian aid flowing into a country where nearly 3 million people, half of them children, are currently displaced, according to the United Nations. “We are united by the goal of responding to the needs of the most vulnerable in the DRC,” UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Deputy Executive Director Yoka Brandt said over the weekend at the end of a high-level joint visit with the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and UN refugee agency (UNHCR). “Significant progress towards…
27 January 2014 – Warning that the Central African Republic (CAR) is now at a critical juncture, the United Nations human rights chief today called on the international community to help restore security in the country, including by boosting the peacekeeping effort there. “We simply cannot let the social fabric of this country be torn apart. I call as a matter of utmost urgency upon the international community to strengthen peacekeeping efforts,” said High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay. “There is a need to urgently restore security not only in Bangui but also in other parts of the country.…
26 January 2014 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today commended “another historic milestone” in Tunisia’s democratic transition with the adoption of the country’s new constitution. In a statement from his spokesperson, Mr. Ban encouraged Tunisia’s political actors to ensure the next steps of the transition are conducted in a “peaceful, inclusive and transparent manner”. Tunisia’s Parliament today adopted the constitution, the country’s first since massive public demonstrations ousted President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January 2011. The actions of Tunisian citizens sparked the wave of popular uprisings across North Africa and the Middle East that became known as the Arab…
25 January 2014 – The Philippine Government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) today signed a final security agreement that paves the way for a comprehensive peace accord on the island of Mindanao, a move welcomed by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. In a statement from his spokesperson, Mr. Ban congratulated the negotiating teams of the Government and the MILF for “their perseverance, courage and commitment in having reached this important milestone in the peace process”. He also commended President Benigno S. Aquino III and the MILF chairman, Murad Ebrahim, for their “vision and leadership throughout this historic peace process”. The…
23 January 2014 – The United Nations human rights and humanitarian chiefs on Thursday voiced deep concern about reports of alarming levels of violence in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, including the killing of many civilians and a policeman, and called for an immediate investigation by the authorities. The UN has received credible information that, on 9 January, eight Rohingya Muslim men were attacked and killed in Du Chee Yar Tan village by local Rakhine, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said in a news release. This was followed by a clash on 13 January in the…
22 January 2014 – Reiterating deep concern over continued terrorist attacks and sectarian violence in Pakistan, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today strongly condemned a spate of deadly violence in the country, including the bombing of a market earlier this week in Rawalpindi, and a series of attacks against polio workers. In a statement issued by his spokesman New York, Mr. Ban deplored the bombing at a market in Rawalpindi on 20 January that left at least 13 dead, as well as yesterday’s attack in Baluchistan, Pakistan, on a bus carrying Shia pilgrims returning from Iran, which reportedly killed more…
23 January 2014 – The United Nations Compensation Commission (UNCC), which settles the damage claims of those who suffered losses due to Iraq’s 1990 invasion of Kuwait, today made $1.03 billion available to the Government of Kuwait. The latest round of payments brings the total amount of compensation disbursed by the Commission to $44.5 billion for more than 1.5 million successful claims of individuals, corporations, Governments and international organizations, leaving some $7.8 billion remaining to be paid to the only outstanding claim. The claim by the Kuwaiti Government was submitted on behalf of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation and awarded $14.7…
23 January 2014 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today called on Egyptians to mark the third anniversary of their revolution by renewing their commitment to peaceful dialogue and non-violence based on pluralism with political space for all. In a statement issued by his spokesperson, he reiterated the commitment of the United Nations to support the country in building the future for all Egyptians, with dignity, freedom, responsible governance and development that inspired the uprising of 2011, which toppled President Hosni Mubarak nearly three years ago after mass protests. “The Secretary-General believes that one of the central challenges moving forward is pluralism:…