Uprooted by war, today’s 68.5 million refugees are often branded as threats — turned back at borders, left to perish at sea, or detained indefinitely in horrific conditions, Filippo Grandi, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, as he called for a return to dignity, human rights and a sense of shared humanity.
Despite recent progress, the continued impasse in the Conference on Disarmament undercuts its credibility and raises doubt about its continued relevance, delegates stressed today, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) took up its cluster on the disarmament machinery before concluding the thematic portion of its work.
Speakers overwhelmingly called on the United States to end its economic, commercial and financial embargo against Cuba as the General Assembly began its annual debate on the issue amid demands for the cessation of unilateral coercive measures.
Shrinking budgets are at odds with increasingly complex peace operations, delegates warned today, as the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) continued its general debate on the comprehensive review of United Nations peacekeeping.
While information and communications technologies can drive social and economic development, malicious use of these innovations could threaten global security, First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) delegates warned today as they exchanged views on ways to shield cyberspace from such threats.
The subject of the environment dominated the Sixth Committee (Legal) debate today with speakers discussing the ongoing degradation of the atmosphere and the gaps and discrepancies in international law when protecting the environment during occupation, as review of the second cluster of topics of the International Law Commission’s annual report concluded and review of the third cluster began.
Mercenaries and private military companies can violently destabilize a country, rendering it helpless and ineffective, the mandate holder tasked with monitoring those activities told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today as delegates explored such challenges to building just, inclusive societies.
Highlighting the Secretary-General’s Action for Peacekeeping initiative, senior United Nations officials called today for multidimensional approaches to sustainable peace, as the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) today began its annual review of all aspects of peacekeeping operations.
Racism, bigotry, xenophobia, nationalist populism, white supremacy and hate speech are on the rise, and often made more casual by public figures, experts told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, sounding an alarm bell against a “general indifference” to the perilous uptick in such behaviour.
While it is extremely easy to violate human rights anywhere, justice systems in too many places remain unable to adequately deal with these crimes, the President of the International Criminal Court told the General Assembly today, calling for the requisite support for the institution to deliver on its mandate of prosecuting the world’s worst atrocities.
