Viewpoint by Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana The writer is United Nations-Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific (ESCAP). BANGKOK (IDN) — The world is emerging from the biggest social and economic shock in living memory, but it will be a long time before the deep scars of […]
The NPT – From Promise to Reality
Viewpoint by Sergio Duarte The writer is Ambassador, former High Representative of the United Nations for Disarmament Affairs and current President of Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs NEW YORK (IDN) — “How can we—the non-nuclear-weapon States—be expected to enter into an interminable obligation to remain non-nuclear if the nuclear-weapon States are engaged in […]
My Vaccination Story
By Azu Ishiekwene The writer is the Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of The Interview magazine based in Abuja, Nigeria. ABUJA (IDN) — It wasn’t planned. I was seeing off my neighbour and friend on March 18 evening when one of the officers of our estate residents’ association called out to me. He was in knickers and shirtsleeves, […]
The Story of China’s Development Miracle
Viewpoint by Siddharth Chatterjee UN Resident Coordinator* in China Siddharth Chatterjee, formerly the Resident Coordinator in Kenya, considers how China’s admirable rise can provide valuable lessons for developing nations looking to improve livelihoods for their citizens. The ‘story’ first appeared on UN News on March 20, 2021. BEIJING | GUANGZHOU (IDN) — Arriving in Guangzhou […]
Stop Arms Sales—Open Markets for Middle East Exports Wider
Viewpoint by Jonathan Power* LUND, Sweden (IDN) — The Middle East is going to hell in a handbasket. Israel is about to hold its fourth election in two years. After having effectively quashed the notion of a two-state solution, the favourite for the premiership is the long-serving Benjamin Netanyahu, the principal living architect of the […]
Secularism Is the Principle That Binds India Together
Viewpoint by Dr Ram Puniyani This article is the 12th in a series of joint productions of South Asian Outlook and IDN-InDepthNews, the flagship of the International Press Syndicate. The writer is a former professor of biomedical engineering and former senior medical officer affiliated with the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (now Mumbai). NEW DELHI […]
Emerging QUAD Appears to Be A Threat To APEC
Viewpoint by Kalinga Seneviratne SYDNEY (IDN) — With the elevation of the QUAD (Quadrilateral Security Dialogue) grouping to a head of state summit on March 12, it is opportune to ask what would happen to APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation) that has been losing its shine in recent years. Australia and Japan have been the […]
The ICC Is Now an Important Weapon to End War and Crimes Against Humanity
Viewpoint by Jonathan Power* LUND, Sweden (IDN) — Uphill work, outlawing war crimes. The arrest in London of the former Chilean dictator, Augusto Pinochet, accused of inflicting widespread torture, was a bolt from the blue. Not even the most well-informed human rights supporters considered it a possibility. It can be said with near certainty that […]
Asia-Pacific Needs Transformative Change Towards a Sustainable Future
Viewpoint by Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana The writer is United Nations-Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific (ESCAP). BANGKOK (IDN) — The COVID-19 crisis poses an unprecedented threat to development in the Asia-Pacific region that could reverse much of the hard-earned progress made in recent years. The […]
Profit Hungry Modi Government Ready to Risk Famine in India
Viewpoint by Justin Podur* This article was produced by Globetrotter, a project of the Independent Media Institute. TORONTO (IDN) — India’s right-wing government has been deploying all the modern tools of repression against a historic farmers’ protest. Much is at stake. For the people of India, their agricultural system is about to get far more […]