IDN-InDepthNews

OPINION2017-01-312023-07-10

Donald Trump Says ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ to Torture

By Jonathan Power

LUND, Sweden (IDN-INPS) – In a press conference on January 27 President Donald Trump said he believed in the worth of torture but then added most surprisingly that using it wasn’t going to be his decision. It would be decided by the Secretary of Defence, General James Mattis, who, as Trump said, is against torture.

Three years ago the US Senate Intelligence Committee published a summary of a thorough report on the recent American use of torture. Its chairwoman, Dianne Feinstein, said the 6,000-page report is “one of the most significant oversight efforts in the history of the US”.

Africa2017-01-302023-07-10

‘Lifestyle Diseases’ Pose Grave Challenges To Africa

By Zipporah Musau*

NEW YORK (IDN | Africa Renewal) – Anxiety grips Jennifer Nakazi as her phone beeps for the third time since she arrived at a busy bank lobby in downtown New York. She’s going to wire money to her family in Uganda. Her brother is calling with the latest update on their critically ill mother.

After battling diabetes for almost a decade now, the 63-year-old matriarch has just been hospitalized after her blood sugar level hit a record high. Her blood pressure also shot up, raising fears she could also be hypertensive.

EU & Europe2017-01-302023-07-10

Kazakhstan Moves Toward Democratic Development

By Devinder Kumar

NEW DELHI | ASTANA (IDN) – President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan whose commitment to international peace and security facilitated the Central Asian state’s election to the UN Security Council as a non-permanent member, has laid out far-reaching plans for government reforms and constitutional changes.

The intention is “to build a more efficient, sustainable, modern system of governance” in the country which celebrated its 25th anniversary of independence from the then Soviet Union in December 2016.

UN INSIDER2017-01-292023-07-10

G77 Urges UN to Address Developing Countries’ Needs

By Santo D. Banerjee

NEW YORK (IDN) – The Group of 77 (G77) and China, the largest coalition of developing countries in the United Nations, is calling upon the international community “to address the challenges and needs faced by developing countries, especially countries in special situations”.

These, says Ambassador Horacio Sevilla Borja, Ecuador’s Permanent Representative to the UN in New York, in a statement on behalf of G77 and China, include “in particular, African countries, least developed countries, landlocked developing countries and Small Island developing States”.

UN INSIDER2017-01-292023-07-10

UN and Thailand Launch ‘South-South In Action’ Series

By J Nastranis

NEW YORK (IDN) – The United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC) has launched a publication series – ‘South-South In Action’ – purported to highlight the vast reservoir of developing country experiences and how these are enhancing South-South cooperation.

The first volume of the series, jointly published by the Royal Thai Government and the UNOSSC was presented at the UN headquarters in New York on January 12, one day before the Southeast Asian country handed the annual Chair of the Group of 77 (G77) and China over to Ecuador.

UN INSIDER2017-01-282023-07-10

Search For ‘Hopeful Spots’ As Funding Cuts Threaten UN

By Ramesh Jaura

BERLIN | NEW YORK (IDN) – While a drastic cut in U.S. contributions is hanging like a Damocles’ Sword over the head of the new UN Secretary-General António Guterres, senior Government officials and civil society representatives have stressed the “nexus” between enduring peace and sustainable development, urging the need to raise awareness about such a link beyond the world body’s headquarters in New York.

Goal 16 of the Agenda for Sustainable Development that highlights the importance of the need to “promote just, peaceful and inclusive societies” underlines such an innate bond, they say, but it has escaped wider public and diplomatic attention – one year after the United Nations started implementing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) endorsed by 193 member states in September 2015.

Latin America & the Caribbean2017-01-272023-07-10

Caribbean Countries Strive For Energy Security

By Desmond L. Brown

NASSAU, The Bahamas (ACP | IDN) – Caribbean countries have found themselves between a rock and a hard place. Already grappling with a myriad of challenges, including crime and weak economies, Caribbean Community (CARICOM) member states from Jamaica in the north to Guyana in the south are also now faced with extremely high energy costs.

Prime Minister of The Bahamas, Perry Christie, said his country and its neighbours must move with haste to transition to sustainable energy sources, something he believes would also help shore up their ailing economies and also address the crime scourge.

UN INSIDER2017-01-272023-07-10

An Eminent Buddhist Leader Urges Nuke Disarmament Summit

By Ramesh Jaura and Katsuhiro Asagiri

BERLIN | TOKYO (IDN) – Japanese Buddhist philosopher and peace builder Daisaku Ikeda has urged the U.S. and Russian leaders to come together for a summit meeting as soon as possible to pledge a global drift toward nuclear disarmament. The two countries together hold more than 90% of the world’s nuclear arsenal.

The advice by Ikeda, who is the President of the Soka Gakkai International (SGI) Buddhist association, is contained in his 35th annual peace proposal titled “The Global Solidarity of Youth: Ushering in a New Era of Hope” issued on January 26, 2017.

UN INSIDER2017-01-262023-07-10

UN Stresses Puerto Ricans’ Right to Self-determination

By J C Suresh

NEW YORK (IDN) – The United Nations Special Committee on Decolonization has welcomed the commutation of the prison sentence of Puerto Rican nationalist Oscar López Rivera, the world’s longest-serving political prisoner confined in a U.S. federal penitentiary since 1981.

Puerto Rico – Spanish for ‘Rich Port’ – is an “unincorporated territory” of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean Sea, with a population of about 3.4 million and San Juan as most populous city.

Rich history, tropical climate, diverse natural scenery, renowned traditional cuisine, and attractive tax incentives make the main island of Puerto Rico – and a number of smaller ones such as Mona, Culebra, and Vieques – a popular destination for travellers from around the world.

UN INSIDER2017-01-262023-07-10

UN Chief Guterres Committed to a Nuclear-Weapons Free World

By Jaya Ramachandran

GENEVA (IDN) – Within less than four weeks of taking office, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has pledged to “actively pursue the abolition of all weapons of mass destruction and the strict regulation of conventional weapons”, arguing that disarmament can play an important role in ending existing conflicts and preventing the outbreak of new.

“I am committed to achieving a world free of nuclear weapons,” Guterres declared in a video message to the Geneva-based Conference on Disarmament, which opened the first segment of its three-part 2017 session on January 23.