The COVID‑19 pandemic is magnifying threats to the safety and fundamental rights of migrant workers and religious minorities, independent human rights experts told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, as delegates engaged with them in animated virtual discussions, which spanned half a day.
Questions around the right to free assembly, creation of an equitable world order and efforts to stem enforced disappearances — a crime that is soon to reach 1,000 cases a day — took centre stage in the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, as delegates evaluated the human rights norms underpinning State relations since the Second World War.
Multilateralism and international cooperation are needed to ensure less developed countries can adequately address the enormous challenges posed by the COVID‑19 pandemic, experts told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, as delegates engaged with them in animated virtual discussions covering the right to development and the use of unilateral coercive measures.
The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) tackled broad questions of torture, counter‑terrorism and judicial independence today, as delegates engaged with United Nations experts in addressing eroded prison conditions, underfunding of the treaty body system, and at times, outright denial of international humanitarian law, frequently triggered by COVID‑19.
Aside from weakening vital medical systems, damaging the global economy and slowing development gains, the COVID‑19 pandemic has also caused “profound, multi-faceted blows” to fundamental freedoms worldwide, curbing vital civil liberties, the United Nations human rights chief warned the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, as delegates continued their broad focus on protecting vulnerable communities.
The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) turned its attention to the broad promotion and protection of human rights today, with United Nations experts addressing nuanced questions around child marriage, persons with disabilities trapped in conflict zones and conditions in countries that have raised concerns for years.
Growing numbers of indigenous peoples are succumbing to extreme poverty, amid a spike in land evictions and loss of traditional livelihoods brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, the United Nations expert charged with assessing their wellbeing told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, as delegates raised questions and concerns about their plight.
The COVID-19 pandemic threatens to wipe out a generation of progress in gender equality, United Nations experts told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, as they led a series of interactive dialogues that explored how best to uphold the rights of women and children amid increases in violence and suffering brought on by new virus-induced realities.
The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) concluded its debate on social development today, with delegates drawing attention to the world’s lack of preparedness for COVID-19, a challenge that has exacerbated inequalities between and within countries, raising human rights concerns.
The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) continued its debate on social development today, with delegates highlighting the ways in which COVID-19 has exposed and exacerbated entrenched inequalities and calling for universal distribution of a vaccine, once available, at affordable prices.
