By Ramesh Jaura UNITED NATIONS (IDN) – The outgoing UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, has expressed “acute concerns” over the human rights situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including the situation in the occupied Gaza Strip, which in recent months has escalated dramatically, with the potential to generate threats to […]
Study Finds Congressional Attention on Nuclear Security Waning as Nuclear Terrorism Threat Persists
By J C Suresh TORONTO (IDN) – A new report reveals an alarming diminution of U.S. congressional engagement and interest in critical efforts to prevent nuclear terrorism and proposed “action items” for lawmakers in enhancing nuclear security efforts and reducing global stockpiles of nuclear materials. Titled Empowering Congress on Nuclear Security: Blueprints for a New […]
Japan-China Relations Apparently Back On Track
Viewpoint by Katsuji Nakazawa* TOKYO (IDN-INPS) – In early May 2018 during his first visit to Japan since being appointed in 2013, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang publicly remarked that Japan-China relations had returned to a path of normality. This “throw-away line” revealed that China’s official perspective prior to then was that Japan-China relations had been […]
Rwanda President Launches VW’s Car Assembly Plant in Kigali
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | KIGALI (IDN) – You’ll see plenty of Volvos, Mercedes, Hondas, Toyotas and even a Ford Windstar tootling around the booming cities of Lagos, Nairobi and Johannesburg. But these foreign cars were no spring chickens when they arrived in Africa after years of use. Often they had […]
AIDS 2018 Conference Trying To Break Barriers, Build Bridges
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | AMSTERDAM (IDN) – The International Conference on AIDS (AIDS 2018) – the largest gathering on any global health issue in the world – opened in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, on July 23 under the title Breaking Barriers, Building Bridges. With hundreds of scheduled talks and roundtables, the […]
UN Conference Warns Of Huge Backlogs Before Achieving Global Development Goals
By Ramesh Jaura UNITED NATIONS (IDN) – Three years since the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were adopted by the UN, at first glimpse progress seems to have been made in “transforming our world” by implementing “a plan of action for people, planet and prosperity.” But senior UN officials admit that a […]
The Media Is Misleading On Trump’s Remarks in Helsinki
Viewpoint by Jonathan Power* LUND, Sweden (IDN-INPS) – I don’t think I’ve ever witnessed in all my years of journalism such a hysterical outpouring against a presidential statement as I’ve seen in the aftermath of Helsinki summit. President Donald Trump has even been accused of treason by prominent columnists and politicians. There’s barely a voice […]
Trump’s Trade War With China Prompted By Flimsy Reasons
Viewpoint by Yu Yongding* BEIJING (IDN-INPS) – No one wins in a trade war. Yet U.S. President Donald Trump seems determined to pursue one with China, which he accuses of causing the United States’ trade deficit, violating World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and using unfair practices to acquire foreign technology. While most economists marvel at […]
Education Isn’t the Only Key to Female Employment in Morocco
Viewpoint by Katherine O’Neill* MARRAKECH (IDN) – The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has the lowest female employment rate of anywhere in the world. Though most countries in the MENA region, including Libya and Iran, have seen gradually increasing rates of working women, Morocco’s female labour force participation (FLFP) rate has actually decreased since […]
291 Million Youth Live With No Electricity, No Computers, No Printers – UN Laments
By Shanta Roy NEW YORK (IDN) – When the United Nations commemorated World Youth Skills Day on July 16, there was one strong underlying theme that overshadowed the event. Despite marked progress in the role of youth in a society increasingly characterized by high technology and artificial intelligence, the new generation, particularly in the developing […]