The International Criminal Court, unfit for its purpose and marred by double standards, was destroying peace processes in sub-Saharan Africa, David Hoile, an African scholar and public affairs consultant, said today at a Headquarters news conference sponsored by the Permanent Mission of the Sudan to the United Nations.

Non-governmental organizations had been crucial partners in efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals by 2015, and while their voices were many and diverse, they carried a common message: the Goals must be understood in the context of the need for new development paths.

A global network of child rights monitors today called on the Security Council to prioritize child concerns during its planned visit to Afghanistan, where it said more than 1,000 children had been killed in 2009 as a result of aerial bombings, night raids, landmines and other explosives.

The Executive Director of the United Nations Global Compact Office said today that, while corporate responsibility continues to be high on the business agenda despite the worldwide economic downturn, many companies had nevertheless failed to implement key policies on human rights and anti-corruption.

The Secretary-General spoke by telephone on Saturday with the Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan, Kanat Saudabayev, who is the Chairman-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and they discussed the growing tensions in Kyrgyzstan. The Secretary-General said he was alarmed by the scale of the clashes, the inter-ethnic nature of the violence, the mounting casualties and the large number of displaced people.

Street gangs showed surprising resilience to common law enforcement tactics, such as police sweeps, curfews, and longer prison sentences, according to the tenth annual "Small Arms Survey 2010: Gangs, Groups, and Guns", which was launched today at Headquarters. It also notes that, while such tactics were designed to disrupt gang structures, eliminate leadership and deter youths, in many cases, they failed in their short-term objectives or even increased insecurity.

The Secretary-General spoke separately by telephone today with Roza Otunbaeva, Chairperson of the Interim Government of Kyrgyzstan, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. He told Ms. Otunbaeva the United Nations was closely coordinating with others to respond to the humanitarian crisis in the south of Kyrgyzstan. In his call with Mr. Lavrov, he expressed appreciation for Russia's efforts to address the alarming humanitarian situation.

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea again firmly rejected today charges that it was responsible for the 26 March sinking of the warship Cheonan, as Sin Son Ho, its Permanent Representative to the United Nations, warned that his country would respond militarily to any Security Council condemnation over the sinking of the Republic of Korea vessel, which Seoul blamed on Pyongyang.

The Security Council this morning is holding a meeting to discuss children and armed conflict. Radhika Coomaraswamy, Special Representative dealing with children and armed conflict, discussed the progress made on that issue recently, including the naming and shaming of violators, which she said has persuaded parties to cease this reprehensible behaviour and should deter others from future offences.

At a Headquarters press conference today, Bolivian Ambassador Pablo Solόn strongly objected to a negotiating text for a new climate deal given during working sessions of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Bonn, Germany, earlier this month. He noted that final texts produced by the Chair of the Ad-Hoc Working Group on long-cooperative action absolutely did not reflect the submissions of his country.