By KazInform ASTANA (IDN) – China’s plans to establish the Silk Road Economic Belt, also known as the One Belt and One Road Initiative, are “great”, according to President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan, reports Kazinform international news agency. In an interview aired by China’s CCTV-13 channel, Nazarbayev stressed the importance of the state visit to […]
From Tlatelolco to the UN Nuclear Weapon Ban Treaty
By Jorge Alberto López Lechuga Jorge Alberto López Lechuga is Research and Communication Officer of the Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL). The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of OPANAL and its Member States. – The Editor MEXICO (IDN) – On February […]
Religious Leaders Plan Action Against Inciting Atrocity Crimes
By Jaya Ramachandran VIENNA (IDN) – The United Nations has taken an important step towards preventing incitement to violence that could lead to atrocity crimes. More than 150 religious leaders from around the world, member states and UN officials, gathered in Vienna to discuss the implementation of the Plan of Action launched by Secretary-General António […]
Sustainable Livelihoods Behind Street Vending in Thailand
By Kalinga Seneviratne KHAOSAN, Bangkok (IDN) – When people talk about sustainable development there is rarely any mention of the many street vendors who make a living on streets in Thailand, as across the rest of Asia. Even attempts to stop them doing business – like the unsuccessful year-long attempt by the governor of Bangkok […]
Changing the Narrative on Violence Against Women at Home
By Helen Hemblade* This is the seventh in a series of reports on the Vienna UN Conference from January 10-12, 2018, which discussed actions and challenges linked to the Sustainable Development Goal 5 (SDG 5) and in the spirit of SDG 17. The Vienna Liaison Office of the Academic Council on the United Nations System […]
Women Are Being Left Behind in Spite of UN Pledge
By J Nastranis NEW YORK (IDN) – Two and a half years after the international community adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which pledged not to leave any one behind, women around the world are faced with stark inequalities and grave challenges, says a new report by UN Women, the United Nations Entity for […]
No Harm to be Polite When Dealing with North Korea
Viewpoint by Jonathan Power* LUND, Sweden (IDN-INPS) – How rude can you get? The US vice-president, Mike Pence, sitting one row in front of the sister of the North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un refused to turn round and say hi. She was one outstretched arm away from him. For the whole of the opening […]
UN-Habitat and ACP Partner to Ameliorate Urban Poverty
By Dr Patrick I. Gomes, ACP Secretary-General The following is a slightly modified abridged version of the text of the video message by ACP Secretary General to the 9th World Urban Forum in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 8-9 February 2018 at the launch of Phase III of the Participatory Slum Upgrading Programme (PSUP). Launched in […]
UK Aid Groups Face Inquiry Over Sex Abuse In Poor Countries
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) – Revelations that the renowned emergency aid group, Oxfam International, failed to catch rogue aid workers who hired prostitutes for sex orgies in Haiti and Chad, have shaken the aid community in the UK and the U.S. According to a blistering new expose in The Times […]
Transforming Risks on the Korean Peninsula into Stable Peace in Northeast Asia
By Katsuhiro Asagiri TOKYO (IDN) – ‘Building Stable Peace in Northeast Asia: Managing and Transforming Risks on the Korean Peninsula’ was the subject of a colloquium in which regional experts on peace and security, policy makers and civil society organizations from the United States, China, South Korea and Japan participated against the backdrop of a […]