Category: UN INSIDER

By J Natranis NEW YORK (IDN) — The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered a deeply troubling situation in the world’s poorest countries. It threatens to push the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) another ten years further into the future, warns the Financing for Sustainable Development Report 2021 by more than 60 United Nations Agencies […]

By Radwan Jakeem NEW YORK (IDN) — As Viet Nam takes the presidency of the UN Security Council in for the month of April, the 15-member Council’s report for March in Hindsight examines mercenarism and the mercenaries’ heavy involvement in illicit, destabilising activities in a number of countries on the Security Council’s agenda. Viet Nam […]

By J Nastranis NEW YORK (IDN) — UN Secretary-General António Guterres has condemned in the strongest terms, the killing of dozens of civilians, including children and young people, by security forces in Myanmar on March 27. In a statement issued by Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq, the UN chief said, “the continuing military crackdown…is unacceptable and […]

By Radwan Jakeem NEW YORK (IDN) — Earth Hour, India’s donation of 200,000 vaccines to protect UN blue helmets against the coronavirus, and the UN is scaling up its efforts to help Nepal, which faces numerous natural threats, are some of the notable events in the last days. On March 27, the world began to […]

By Jaya Ramachandran GENEVA (IDN) — A once-in-a-century crisis—a Great Disruption unleashed by the COVID–19 pandemic—hit the world economy in 2020. The pandemic has reached every corner of the globe. Meanwhile, more than 120 million have been infected and close to 2.7 million people killed worldwide. High unemployment and loss of income have pushed millions […]

By Caroline Mwanga NEW YORK (IDN) — UN Women has reiterated the concerns expressed by the United Nations in Turkey and other partners regarding Turkey’s announced termination of being a party to the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence (the “Istanbul Convention”). It has urged Turkey to […]

The goal of the campaign is to democratize the selection process and give António Guterres a viable candidate to run against. By Stéphanie Fillion*, Passblue NEW YORK (IDN) — A new grass-roots campaign, called #Forward, is launching open, digital global primaries to find a “people-backed” candidate to run for United Nations secretary-general this year, for […]

By Ramu Damodaran The writer is Chief, United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) hosted in the Department of Global Communications. This OpEd first appeared in the latest #WhyWeCare, @ImpactUN. NEW YORK (IDN | UNAI) — “STOP” said the imperious red sign (actually two red signs) as I ventured to the frostily frigid February frontline of the […]

By Jamshed Baruah GENEVA (IDN) — Providing a global update to the Human Rights Council, Michelle Bachelet has said that as the COVID-19 pandemic gathers pace, people worldwide are “being left behind — or pushed even further behind”; they are being excluded from not only development but also opportunities. At the same time, civil society […]

By Thalif Deen The following are excerpts from a just-published book “No Comment – and Don’t Quote me on That”, a collection of political anecdotes reflecting over 40 years of reporting from the United Nations*. NEW YORK (IDN) – When UN member states compete for the presidency of the General Assembly or membership in the […]