September 20, 2020 No comments
Fighting drug trafficking in the Golden Triangle: a UN Resident Coordinator blog
INTERNATIONAL, 20 September 2020, Law and Crime Prevention - Drug trafficking has long been a problem in the Golden Triangle, the region where Thailand’s Chiang Rai province meets Myanmar and Laos. In this blog, Gita Sabharwal, UN Resident Coordinator in Thailand, and Jeremy Douglas, who represents the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Southeast Asia and the Pacific, explain how the United Nations and the Thai government are working together to tackle the issue. “Thailand has made considerable progress in combating the opium trade over recent decades and represents global good practices. UNODC has a long-term partnership with the Thai government and other stakeholders to combat drug trafficking in the Golden Triangle and, from the military base at Doi Chang Mub overlooking Myanmar,...
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September 19, 2020 No comments
Survival of wildlife reserves under threat in Namibia
INTERNATIONAL, 19 September 2020, Economic Development - After six months of lockdown, the Namibian government ended travel restrictions and curfews on Friday, in light of a drop in new COVID-19 cases. But Namibia’s economy, which depends heavily on wildlife tourism, has taken a major hit during the period, and the future of the country’s wildlife reserves, otherwise known as conservancies, is far from certain. When radio host Tashia Kalondo visited a conservancy in Namibia, she didn’t realize just how close she would get to the wildlife. Ms. Kalondo had travelled widely and seen wildlife before, but when the camp staff said they’d have to camouflage the gate to their campsite with shrubs to prevent elephants from coming in overnight, she found it hard...
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September 19, 2020 No comments
Uncertain future for migrant workers, in a post-pandemic world
INTERNATIONAL, 19 September 2020, Migrants and Refugees - The COVID-19 pandemic has largely put a freeze on migration. But will the movement of people recover once the current crisis is over? In an interview with UN News, Gary Rynhart, a senior official at the UN labour agency, ILO, explains why a return to “normal” is unlikely, and migrants will probably face a very different job market. Gary Ryhhart, Senior Specialist on Employers' Activities, ILO, by Gary Ryhnart Gary Rynhart: When COVID-19 spread around the world, many migrants were shipped home unceremoniously or left to fend for themselves. Migrants have also – because of the sectors they work in, and the poor conditions in which many lower skilled migrants live and work – been vectors for spreading the virus....
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September 18, 2020 No comments
Sustainable Development goals are ‘the future’ Malala tells major UN event, urging countries to get on track
INTERNATIONAL, 18 September 2020, SDGs - The Global Goals represent the future for millions of girls who want education, women who fight for equality, and youth fighting for clean air, UN Messenger of Peace Malala Yousafzai said on Friday, at a side event of the General Assembly, challenging Member States, “when are you planning to do the work”? “When I last spoke here, I was just about to enter university…optimistic about what was ahead: university life, making new friends and access to an incredible education”, she told the inaugural SDG Moment event, intended to renew the effort to meet the ambitious Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) over the coming decade. “This June, I graduated in the midst of a reeling world — one many of us could not have predicted”. The...
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September 18, 2020 No comments
Belarus crisis under the spotlight at Human Rights Council
INTERNATIONAL, 18 September 2020, Human Rights - The Belarus Government should end “violent crackdowns” and “increasing repression” against protesters who are still contesting the result of last month's Presidential elections, UN deputy rights chief Nada Al Nashif told the Human Rights Council on Friday. At the end of a memorable day of back-and-forth discussions between the Council President and delegations - featuring more than a dozen points of order by delegations who questioned the right of some of those addressing the Council to speak and no less than 17 amendments to a European-Union sponsored call for action – the Geneva-based forum finally adopted a resolution on the deteriorating rights situation in Belarus. It passed by 23 votes for, two against and with 22 abstentions. Delivering a statement for UN...
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