Public information

Jayathma Wickramanayake, the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth, and The Body Shop, launched a campaign today that seeks to get young voices into the halls of power.  The campaign, “Be Seen, Be Heard”, seeks to create long-term structural changes that will make decision-making more inclusive of young people and ensure their participation in political life.

Denouncing the epidemic of misinformation and disinformation proliferating during the coronavirus pandemic, the climate crisis and the rising geopolitical tensions, delegates welcomed today an initiative by the Department of Global Communications to draft a code of conduct to promote integrity in public information while urging it to mainstream multilingualism into its activities.

Following is the text of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ video message to the General Assembly virtual event in observance of World Press Freedom Day:  “Journalism under Digital Siege”, in New York today:

Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ message for World Press Freedom Day, observed today:

In Haiti, clashes resumed between gangs in Port-au-Prince, forcing hundreds of people to flee their homes, according to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.  In the commune of Croix-des-Bouquets, violence has displaced more than 1,200 people.  Dozens of houses were burned and a hospital in Marin was looted.

With core United Nations values under the greatest strain since the Organization’s founding, the Department of Global Communications is spearheading robust efforts to stem the tide of disinformation, counter attacks on human rights and tell the human stories on the front lines of conflict, the agency’s top official told the Committee on Information, as members opened their forty-fourth session today.

In Haiti, violent clashes between gangs in the capital have displaced several hundred people and preliminary data indicates at least 20 civilian deaths, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports.  United Nations agencies are helping the Government to assess emergency needs in impacted areas.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed Damian Cardona Onses of Spain as Director of the United Nations Information Centre in Canberra, Australia.  Mr. Cardona assumed his duties on 20 April.

The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said they are closely following reports about the mobilization of forces and movement of large convoys of armed groups that have increased tensions in and around Tripoli.  The Mission calls on all parties to refrain from any action that could lead to armed clashes.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed Sherri Aldis of Canada as Director of the United Nations Regional Information Centre (UNRIC) in Brussels.  She assumed her duties on 14 February 2022.