IDN-InDepthNews – Page 714 – News for a Sustainable World, Peace and Security

Africa2016-07-292023-07-10

NEWSBRIEF: Continuation of Bongo Dynasty in Gabon Rejected

LIBREVILLE (IDN | GIN) – For the past 50 years, the citizens of Gabon have lived under a dynasty with one name. Bongo.

Omar Bongo Ondimba, the father, served from December 1967 to June 2009 to be replaced by his son, Ali Bongo Ondimba who served from 2009 until today. On August 27, Gabonese will have a chance to elect someone other than a Bongo family member although the chances are slim.

In the capital, Libreville, peaceful protestors demanding fair elections are already facing a heavy police presence. Some 15 opposition leaders and hundreds of marchers formed a human chain. Police using teargas dispersed the crowd and several shots were fired.

SYNDICATION, Think-Tanks2016-07-292023-07-12

Aftermath of Turkey’s ‘Failed’ Coup Triggers Ugly Memories

Analysis by Vice Admiral Anil Chopra*

The attempted coup on July 15 in Turkey as well as its aftermath have irreparably dented President Erdogan’s international image and impacted Turkey’s standing as a democratic state, a military power, a NATO member, an EU aspirant, and an emerging economy. This downtrend is unlikely to be reversed in the near future and the country is in for an extended period of instability

MUMBAI (IDN-INPS | Gateway House) – There has been, and continues to be, much speculation about whether the attempted coup in Turkey was staged by President Recip Erdogan himself; about him orchestrating it in order to identify and eliminate his enemies, both Kemalists and Gulenists – as the millions of moderate and pro-western followers of the U.S.-based cleric, Fethullah Gulen, are now referred to. Parallels are even being drawn with Adolf Hitler’s purges after the staged Reichstag fire in 1933.

UN INSIDER2016-07-292023-07-10

Zimbabwe-Chaired ECOSOC Has New Priorities

By J Nastranis

NEW YORK (IDN) – The new president of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Frederick Musiiwa Makamure Shava of Zimbabwe, intends “to dedicate enough time on the question of infrastructure development and industrialization, especially in the context of support for African development, and as a high priority for all the countries in special situations”.

Shava, Zimbabwe’s Permanent Representative to the UN in New York, was elected on July 28 to head the 54-nation body during its 2017 session. ECOSOC is the principal organ for the socio-economic and related work of the United Nations.

Gender Equality2016-07-292023-07-10

In Brazil, Girls Build Self-esteem Through Sport

What does being a winner mean? For 12-year old Adrielle Alexandre, who is carrying the Olympic torch, it’s not only about becoming an Olympic rhythmic gymnast, but to make her community a place free of violence and full of respect. She is among 400 girls who are participating in a programme in Brazil that empowers girls through sport and by creating safe spaces.

NEW YORK (IDN-INPS) – “I’ve learned from sport that we have to make efforts to succeed. We get nowhere if we stay at the same place doing nothing,” says Adrielle Alexandre, a 12-year old young athlete from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Gender Equality2016-07-282023-07-10

Jordan: Football Camps Plant Seeds of Friendship

For Syrian refugees in Jordan, integration into the Jordanian society is fraught with challenges. Mistrust and rumours taint how each group perceives the other. A project by UN Women organized football camps for adolescent girls, where Jordanian and Syrian girls built friendships and social cohesion.

UN Women News Feature

NEW YORK (IDN-INPS) – Rawan and Samah have much in common. They are about the same age; they live in the same city – Mafraq, in northern Jordan – just a short drive from the Syrian border. They are loving, dedicated mothers to daughters who go to the same school. They share similar responsibilities, joys, and struggles in their daily lives. But one crucial difference sets them a world apart.

UN INSIDER2016-07-282023-07-10

UN Security Council Reform Continues to Hang Fire

By J Nastranis

NEW YORK (IDN) – In a setback for the Group of Four (G4) countries – India, Japan, Germany and Brazil – a decision on the long-pending issue of UN Security Council reform has been postponed to the forthcoming 71st session of the UN General Assembly which begins on September 13.

Speaking on behalf of the G4, Brazil’s Permanent Representative (PR) to the UN in New York, Antonio de Aguiar Patriota described Security Council reform as one of the most pressing issues still pending on the General Assembly’s agenda – since 1992.

UN INSIDER2016-07-282023-07-10

Few Doctors Left Behind as UN Prepares for Syria Peace Talks

By Jamshed Baruah

GENEVA (IDN) – More than 10,000 specialist doctors have left Syria, which is plagued by a persistent conflict now in its sixth year. About 40% of the population is therefore without access to primary healthcare, according to Syrian doctors representing the Union of Medical Care and Relief Organizations (UOSSM).

The situation is rather critical in Syria’s largest city, Aleppo, which is home to about one million civilians. It is left with one doctor each for more than 3,300 civilians. In the eastern part of the city, which is besieged by President Bashar al-Assad’s forces, more that 7,350 people have just one doctor at their service.

USA and Canada2016-07-282023-07-10

Montreal World Social Forum to Focus on Nuclear Disarmament

By J C Suresh

TORONO (IDN) – The World Social Forum (WSF), the largest civil society gathering to find solutions to the problems of our time, will convene for the first time in a northern country – in Canada – from August 9 to 14.

Montreal will host the 12th World Social Forum that was launched in 2001 in Porto Alegre, the capital and largest city of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. One of the key issues in focus will be: “Once a nuclear war starts, there’s no way to limit it.”

Radio Canada International (RCI) quoted Gordon Edwards, president of the Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility (CCNR) saying, the “world is teetering back towards the cold war syndrome and towards an escalation of the nuclear threat”.

Gender Equality2016-07-272023-07-10

Scoring for Gender Equality Through Sport

UN Women News Feature

NEW YORK (IDN-INPS) – Sport has the power to transcend boundaries of sex, race, religion and nationality. It promotes health and wellness, improves self-esteem, and teaches leadership, team skills and perseverance.

Women in sport defy gender stereotypes, make inspiring role models, and show men and women as equals. Seeing is one step closer to being.

Women are more visible in sport now than ever before: Of a total of 997 athletes, only 22 women competed, for the first time, at the 1900 Games in Paris. The London 2012 Olympics was the first Games in which women competed in every sport of the Olympic programme. In Rio, approximately 4,700 women – 45 per cent of all athletes – will represent their countries in 306 events.

OPINION2016-07-272023-07-10

Moving from Decision to Action on Sustainable Development

Viewpoint by Dr. Patrick I. Gomes

Following are excerpts from a statement ACP Secretary General Dr. Patrick I. Gomes delivered on behalf of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States, at the 14th session of the Conference of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD XIV) on July 21, 2016 in Nairobi, Kenya.

BRUSSELS (IDN) – Since its establishment in 1964, UNCTAD has been the appropriate forum to ensure a comprehensive dialogue between developed and developing countries on trade and development and interrelated issues.