Petitioners described human rights violations faced by women in Sahrawi refugee camps, as the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) continued its hearing of petitioners on the question of Western Sahara today in the context of its consideration of items related to decolonization.
Petitioners addressing the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) took a range of positions on the long‑standing question of Western Sahara today, with some decrying the situation as a “rationalization of colonialism”, even as others cited high turnout in a recent legislative election as evidence of the population’s willingness to take part in Morocco’s democratic processes.
Ethiopia is violating international law by expelling United Nations staff, Secretary-General António Guterres told the Security Council today, as the country’s representative vehemently rebutted the claim, stressing that the ousted individuals compromised their impartiality and integrity to the detriment of the host State.
The Sixth Committee (Legal) continued its consideration of measures to eliminate international terrorism today, with many delegates disagreeing on how to finalize a comprehensive convention on the matter and develop a global response to a threat that has yet to be defined, particularly when identifying State-sponsored actions.
Calling for swift remedies to mend a fractured non-proliferation landscape, nuclear-weapon-free States demanded an immediate end to deterrence policies and the start of dismantling atomic arsenals, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) moved into the third day of its general debate.
Special Procedure Mandate Holders underscored the importance of digital inclusion today, as delegates in the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) tackled the many ways the COVID-19 pandemic has heightened social inequities among persons with disabilities and older adults.
Stressing that developed countries must ramp up global cooperation to close the world’s glaring economic gap, speakers focused on the need to tackle vaccine inequity, the ruinous effects of COVID‑19, climate change and implementation of development goals, as the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) continued its general debate today.
The proliferation and stockpiling of illicit weapons continue to threaten international peace and security, exacerbating the plight of civilians in strife-torn countries worldwide, the senior United Nations disarmament official told the Security Council today.
Speakers in the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) agreed today that the capacity to pay must remain the core principle that determines how much each Member State must pay into the United Nations’ regular and peacekeeping budgets, but they differed on how best to readjust the scales of assessment for the period 2022‑2024, particularly in the wake of the global COVID-19 pandemic.
Gender‑based violence and discrimination against women continue unabated, even as the pandemic continues to exact a greater toll on them than their male counterparts, the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) heard today, as it commenced its debate on the advancement of women.
