The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) continued its debate on human rights today, holding a series of dialogues with United Nations experts who called for a definitive break with exploitative systems that have left the world’s poorest without safe drinking water and healthy food, and struggling to avoid hazardous waste discharged by companies unconcerned by the planetary impact of their operations.
The Security Council entity overseeing sanctions on Somalia sent two letters covering issues concerning possible adjustment of the arms embargo on that country, and measures to counter the funding of Al-Shabaab, its Chair said today, briefing on the subsidiary body’s work between 15 June and 20 October.
Through a presidential statement, the Security Council urged signatory states of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as well as regional organizations and the international community, to coordinate their efforts to undercut the economic lifelines of armed groups that benefit from the illegal exploitation and trade in natural resources, and to prevent the exploitation of women and children in the trade of these resources.
Delegates touched on a range of topics as the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) continued its general debate today, with some calling for collective action to end Israel’s impunity in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and others urging the United Nations to redouble its efforts to achieve true multilingualism, especially in the wake of the COVID‑19 pandemic.
Poorer nations will feel the full brunt of COVID‑19 as the crisis continues, suffering from rising hunger, poverty and heightened inequities, a United Nations official said today at a joint meeting of the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) and the Economic and Social Council on productive capacities and the post-pandemic world.
The United Nations senior management official told members of the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today that the Organization’s budget process is locked in a vicious circle of annual liquidity shortages that are hampering the delivery of mandates.
Against the backdrop of profound anxiety wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic and escalating global challenges, the President of the General Assembly today urged Member States to “leave behind the uglier aspects of our history, from conflict to colonialism” and unite around a better future, as the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) began its annual general debate.
Resolving the longstanding Israeli-Palestinian conflict requires a package of parallel measures by the two sides and the international community, rather than piecemeal responses, a senior United Nations official for the Middle East peace told the Security Council today, as the 15‑member organ examined recent developments, including Israel’s plan to build new settlements in the occupied Palestinian land.
Scholars and human rights defenders warn that technology advances in neuroscience and cognitive psychology may enable access to the very content of human thought, affecting how people think, feel and behave, experts told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, as delegates discussed freedom of thought and religion, and the right to privacy.
Impediments to freedom of expression for women, discrimination against migrants during the COVID-19 pandemic and an uptick in enforced disappearances were among the concerns addressed by human rights experts in the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, as delegates raised questions about how better to protect vulnerable communities during interactive dialogues.
