World is moving backwards on eliminating hunger
6/7/2022: The UN's 2022 edition of The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World reports that as many as 828 million people were affected by hunger in 2021, 150 million more than in 2019. The Sustainable Development Goal of ending hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition by 2030 is in trouble.
Source: UN News
Tshisekedi, Kagame to meet in Angola over Congo war
6/7/2022: Angolan President Joao Lourenço, who is also the chairman of the International Conference for the Great Lakes Region, will hold talks with the two leaders with the aim of brokering peace between Rwanda and DR Congo. The countries have been at loggerheads following counter accusations of support for rebel groups in eastern DRC.
Source: The East African
UN Ocean Conference ends with promises
1/7/2022: The UN Oceans Conference has concluded discussions focused on achieving Sustainable Development Goal 14. While participants made hundreds of conservation commitments, experts say that there is still a lot of work to be done to provide a legal framework for protecting 30% of international waters.
Source: Mongabay
ICC double standards have no place in global justice
1/7/2022: As the International Criminal Court marks its twentieth anniversary, Amnesty International has warned that its legitimacy risks being eroded by a selective approach. For example, recent attention to alleged war crimes in Ukraine contrasts with reticence in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Source: Amnesty International
Greenpeace protest at failure of UN Ocean Conference
30/6/2022: Final negotiations for a Global Ocean Treaty to protect 30% of the world’s oceans by 2030 will take place in August 2022. Greenpeace activists have protested at the lack of progress at the preparatory Lisbon conference recently concluded.
Source: Greenpeace International
Mourning Hong Kong’s democracy
29/6/2022: July 1, 2022 marks the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong’s transfer of sovereignty from British to Chinese rule. Beijing has broken the 1997 promise to respect the city’s freedoms and imposed a draconian National Security Law on the city.
Source: Human Rights Watch
G-7 pledges $4.5 billion for global food security
28/6/2022: The G-7 group of leading nations has pledged contributions totaling $4.5 billion to address the deterioration of global food security due to Russia’s war in Ukraine and the continued effects from COVID-19 and climate change. Apart from the US share, few details have been presented.
Source: Devex
International Criminal Court at 20: renewing the promise of justice
29/6/2022: The Registrar of the International Criminal Court takes stock of its progress over the 20 years since its founding treaty entered into force. The ICC has established itself as a permanent, impartial and independent judicial institution. with 17 ongoing investigations.
Source: Inter Press Service
New government in Philippines must confront human rights crisis
29/6/2022: Amnesty International is calling on incoming President Ferdinand Marcos Jr to end the catastrophic disregard for human life and dignity shown under the Duterte administration. Extrajudicial executions and arbitrary detention committed in the name of the ‘war on drugs’ must end.
Source: Amnesty International
Campaigners call on Guterres to rescue biodiversity agenda
27/6/2022: The last preparatory meeting before the December UN biodiversity conference has ended with virtually no progress being made. Eight conservation groups have urged UN chief António Guterres to convene political leaders to intervene.
Source: Climate Home News