I take note of today’s announcement by the US regarding the so-called UN sanctions “snapback mechanism” under UN Security Council resolution 2231.
As I have repeatedly recalled, the US unilaterally ceased participation in the JCPOA by presidential Memorandum on 8 May 2018 and has subsequently not participated in any JCPOA-related activities. It cannot, therefore, be considered to be a JCPOA participant State for the purposes of possible sanctions snapback foreseen by the resolution.
As coordinator of the JCPOA Joint Commission I will continue to do everything possible to ensure the preservation and full implementation of the JCPOA by all. The JCPOA remains a key pillar of the global non-proliferation architecture, contributing to regional security.
return to school – The World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF urged governments on the continent to promote a safe return to the classroom while also limiting spread of the virus.
“Schools have paved the way to success for many Africans. They also provide a safe haven for many children in challenging circumstances to develop and thrive,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa.
“We must not be blind-sided by our efforts to contain COVID-19 and end up with a lost generation. Just as countries are opening businesses safely, we can reopen schools. This decision must be guided by a thorough risk analysis to ensure the safety of children, teachers and parents and with key measures like physical distancing put in place.”
A WHO survey of 39 sub-Saharan African countries has revealed that schools are open in only six nations and partially open in 19. Schools are closed in 14 nations, although 12 plan to resume classroom learning in September, the start of the academic year.
The disruption to education has resulted in poor nutrition, stress, increased exposure to violence and exploitation, childhood pregnancies, and overall challenges in the mental development of children.
UNICEF found violence against children has increased in Eastern and Southern Africa. With 10 million children missing out on school meals, nutrition rates have decreased, with especially high risk among girls, particularly those who have been displaced or from low-income households.
Potential future earnings losses
Meanwhile, the World Bank has highlighted the potential long-term social and economic impact of shutdowns in sub-Saharan Africa, which could result in lifetime earning losses of $4,500 per child.
“The long-term impact of extending the school shutdown risks ever greater harm to children, their future and their communities”, said UNICEF Regional Director for Eastern & Southern Africa, Mohamed M. Malick Fall.
“When we balance the harm being done to children locked out of schools, and if we follow the evidence, it leads children back into the classroom.”
Keeping COVID-19 out of the classroom
WHO, UNICEF and the International Federation of the Red Cross recently issued guidance on COVID-19 prevention and control in schools.
It covers recommendations for physical distancing measures, such as staggering the beginning and end of the school day, spacing desks when possible, and providing handwashing facilities.
“The long-term impact of extending the school shutdown risks ever greater harm to children, their future and their communities”, said UNICEF Regional Director for Eastern & Southern Africa, Mohamed M. Malick Fall.
“When we balance the harm being done to children locked out of schools, and if we follow the evidence, it leads children back into the classroom.”
While also recommending other important measures, such as regular handwashing and daily cleaning of surfaces, a recent report by the two UN agencies found millions of children attend schools that lack water and sanitation services.
In sub-Saharan Africa, only a quarter of schools have basic hygiene services while less than half have basic sanitation.
The COVID-19 pandemic thus provides an opportunity for investment and innovative thinking to address these shortages, according to the UN agencies.
The grounding last month of the MV Wakashio in an environmentally sensitive and biodiverse area, has endangered marine life, food security, and health in Mauritius, as well as its $1.6 billion tourism industry, already hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“There’s a need for universal participation in the existing international legal framework, where all nations are party to agreements, so when incidents like this occur, vulnerable countries are protected”, said Shamika N. Sirimanne, UNCTAD’s technology and logistics director.
UNCTAD said the spill is considered the worst in the history of Mauritius, an island nation in the Indian Ocean known for its spectacular beaches.
The MV Wakashio—a Japanese-owned bulk carrier flying under the Panamanian flag –was travelling from China to Brazil when it grounded on a coral reef on 25 July, close to a marine park and two internationally protected wetland sites. The cause is still unknown.
The ship was not carrying cargo and reportedly had an estimated 3,894 tons of fuel oil, 207 tons of diesel, and 90 tons of lubricant oil on board.
By 11 August, up to 2,000 tons of fuel had reportedly leaked from the ship, which split in two several days later. Most of the fuel onboard had been recovered by this time, according to the vessel’s owner.
‘An existential and developmental threat’
In an article published this week, UNCTAD outlined how the unfolding environmental crisis in Mauritius shows the importance of having an effective international legal regime for when such disasters occur.
This framework is especially critical for small island developing states (SIDS) which face “an existential and developmental threat” from oil spills in their waters.
UNCTAD is the UN agency that supports developing countries in gaining fair access to the globalized economy.
Like Mauritius, SIDS are often close to global shipping lanes. These nations also rely on the marine environment – and its biodiversity – for tourism, fishing and aquaculture.
Unsplash/Xavier Coiffic
Mauritius’ pristine marine environment is being threatened by the oil spill.
Different ships, different legislation
Although several international conventions govern the seas and how they are used, some are not ratified by all countries while others have yet to enter into force.
Furthermore, different ships are subject to different international legal conventions, which UNCTAD said presents a challenge in the Mauritius case.
While the Bunker Convention would provide for maximum compensation of around $65.17 million, the payout would be four times higher, or $286 million, under the applicable International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds regime.
Given the potentially high costs and wide-ranging environmental and economic implications of ship-source pollution incidents, UNCTAD again underlined the need for all countries to adopt the latest international legal instruments for the global good.
“Sustainable Development Goal 14 calls on us to protect life below water and this means minimizing pollution at every possible turn, including putting all necessary precautions in place to manage environmental disasters like oil spills when they do happen”, said Ms. Sirimanne.
Ten young epidemiologists from different departments at the National Public Health Agency (NPHA) in the Republic of Moldova have joined forces to review and analyse data that will allow their country to respond more effectively to COVID-19.
Over the years, WHO has helped the Republic of Moldova to detect and respond to disease outbreaks by supporting an existing network of field epidemiology training programmes. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, WHO and its partners have conducted 132 training sessions in infection prevention and control and public health emergency management for health professionals from the Republic of Moldova.
Nicolae Furtuna, Director of the NPHA, says, “In our effort to respond to COVID-19, we fully rely on the valuable expertise of our staff, built with WHO support.” He also applauds their commitment, saying, “I am very proud of my young colleagues, who have demonstrated maturity and critical thinking and respected clear lines of communication during the outbreak.”
Working together alongside other public health professionals, the team provides accurate epidemiological data insights from the Republic of Moldova for WHO and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).
The pandemic has demonstrated the importance of investing in human resource development, especially in the domains of epidemiology and public health. Doctors and nurses take care of patients in hospitals, while epidemiologists make sure that public health measures are based on available evidence, helping to prevent disease outbreaks by improving health system resource planning and public health emergency management.
Thirty-year-old epidemiologist Alexei Ceban recently graduated from the State University of Medicine and Pharmacy “Nicolae Testemitanu”, the Mediterranean and Black Sea field epidemiology network training programme (MediPIET) in the field of intervention epidemiology, and the School of Public Health Management. He describes how the work has affected him personally.
“The pandemic means a huge challenge for us, with white nights and no access to families. It is also an extraordinary experience in managing public health emergencies. Epidemiological data analysis must be a priority for the decision-makers – you cannot act and make decisions without qualitative information and data.”
He says that the pandemic has highlighted how crucial it is to have health workers, including epidemiologists, ready and available to assist to a high standard. He has shared his experiences at regional and global levels during training sessions with WHO, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN).
Accurate data informs public health decisions
Another young public health specialist and doctoral student, Alina Druc, manages daily updates from 10 laboratories, sending data for verification and analysing the findings. She reports that the pandemic has forced her to demonstrate all the knowledge she has acquired to date, adding, “These 6 months of intensive work have shown us the importance of teamwork, mutual support, communication and moral resilience.”
European epidemiology network professionals and WHO say they appreciate the accuracy of epidemiological data from the Republic of Moldova. As Secretary of State of the Ministry of Health Constantin Rimis emphasizes, “A functional national surveillance system for communicable diseases relies on the availability of data, which is routinely collected by the dedicated team at the National Public Health Agency.”
He adds, “Public health measures are fully guided by accurate data processed using modern technologies, which not only serves to keep decision-makers informed, but also helps to communicate the epidemiological situation clearly to the general public.”
Risk of #COVID19 resurgence is never far away, but now we know how to target the virus instead of targeting society
Statement to the press by Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe
20 August 2020, Copenhagen, Denmark
Good morning and welcome after a very busy summer.
The European Region has registered 3.9 million cases corresponding to 17% of the global total, that is approaching 22 million cases. The epicentre of the pandemic is now in the Americas but other regions are also seeing a steep rise in cases.
The European Region is on a trajectory of its own, showing a different trend compared to the rest of the world. The virus hit Europe early and hard. Countries made phenomenal efforts to stop the spread by locking down schools and non-essential businesses as part of a comprehensive set of measures. And this worked: between May and July many countries managed to suppress transmission. Where policy decisions were prompt and responsive, the response was effective. But the virus has been merciless where there was partisanship, disinformation and denial.
The risk of resurgence has never been far away. In the last two months, new cases have been steadily increasing every week in the Region. There were 40,000 more cases in the first week of August, compared to the first week of June, when cases were at their lowest. Every day now the European Region reports an average of over 26,000 new COVID-19 cases. This is due in part to the relaxation of public health and social measures, where authorities have been easing some of the restrictions and people have been dropping their guard.
The good news is that we now know much more about the transmissions of this virus, and in particular how it is spread indoors in poorly ventilated settings, and especially where large numbers of people are coming together and speaking loudly or singing. The challenge is that localized outbreaks and clusters are now occurring with greater frequency, often in closed settings, such as work places and care homes, or linked to specific events, social gatherings, communities, food production and other industrial facilities and travel. Recent outbreaks among vulnerable groups such as migrants and refugees illustrate how we cannot leave anyone outside of our protective efforts. The virus increases inequalities.
As summer turns to autumn, what challenges lie ahead? We must make sure that we adopt the right public health measures to enable the safe return to school, manage the approaching influenza season, sustain our economies, and address the increased health risks to older people at this time of year.
The COVID-19 pandemic has created the largest disruption of education systems in history, affecting nearly 1.6 billion learners in more than 190 countries, and our Region is no exception. Most countries in the Region closed schools at some point between February and July this year, as part of COVID-19- related public health and social measures.
The WHO European Regional Office is convening a virtual meeting for all 53 countries on re-opening of schools and COVID-19 on 31 August where concrete actions will be discussed to ensure children receive proper education in safe settings. Such options might include heightened hygiene and physical distancing in school settings for all, and the introduction of targeted measures quickly and effectively to suit local circumstances – open schools where virus levels are low; adjust school schedules and limit pupil numbers where cases are more widespread; and consider keeping schools closed temporarily in areas where community transmission is high.
I am grateful to the Minister of Health of Italy, Roberto Speranza, for being the catalyst for this initiative.
The next influenza season is also approaching fast. Now, it is critical that countries monitor flu activity and restore and reinforce routine sentinel surveillance to include both viruses, and that they promote flu vaccination for at-risk groups. This is even more important this year as we need to protect our hospitals and health workforce already coping with COVID-19, from being overwhelmed. This year, even more than previous years, we must support older people to get their flu jab early, in a safe environment.
We are not in February, we can manage the virus differently now than we did when COVID-19 first emerged.
Already in the past month, two thirds of countries in the Region have re-introduced restrictions on mass gatherings, weekend curfews and/or closure of certain non-essential businesses.
What is different is that many of these recent restrictions have been implemented locally, showing that we are learning how to apply smart, time-limited and risk-based measures, capable of reducing both the spread of COVID-19 and its impact on the wider society and economy. Today, with increased knowledge and experience we also know that some measures require nationwide and sustained implementation – including the extensive testing and isolation of all cases, and the tracing, quarantining and 14-day follow-up of contacts. With the basic nationwide and additional targeted measures – we are in a much better position to stamp out these localized virus flare ups. We can manage the virus and keep the economy running and an education system in operation.
We can save lives and livelihoods, it’s not a matter of one or the other.
Young people that they are at the forefront of the COVID-19 response and they have a powerful message to convey through their behavior and their communication.
To my daughters, to teenagers everywhere, to all of you at that exciting, adventurous point in your lives – thank you for the sacrifices you have made to protect yourselves and others from COVID-19. No youngster wants to miss a summer. But I am very concerned that more and more young people are counted among reported cases and among deaths. Low risk does not mean no risk. No one is invincible and if you do not die from Covid, it may stick with your body like a tornado with a long tail. While young people are less likely to die than older people, they can still be very seriously affected. We are now seeing many more cases of what has been described as Long COVID, whose characteristics were summarized in a recent paper in the British Medical Journal. This affects organs throughout the body, but especially the lungs and heart, with some young and fit people, including elite athletes, suffering considerably.
The youth alike everyone has to play your part to limit the opportunity for the virus to spread by:
Wearing a mask in situations when you will be interacting with other people – to protect them from getting infected;
Avoiding crowds and large groups – staying away from crowded bars and big parties.
Meet outdoors rather than inside, if possible.
Whenever meeting in smaller groups – keep at least 1 metre apart.
Always, always, wash your hands, and
With any sign of symptoms – stay at home and seek testing.
To repeat my key messages:
We are not back in February, we know how to target the virus instead of targeting society. We became smarter.
To the younger members of society: spread fun, but do not spread the virus. Protect your parents and grandparents.
In his remarks online to the World Conference of Speakers of Parliament, the Secretary-General said that COVID-19 was highlighting the challenges plaguing societies and had exposed some major systemic fragilities.
“Even before the virus, our societies were on shaky footing, with rising inequalities, worsening degradation of the environment, shrinking civic space, inadequate public health and untenable social frictions rooted in governance failures and a lack of opportunities,” said Mr. Guterres.
“And so we cannot go back to what was, but rather must turn the recovery into a real opportunity to do things right for the future”, he added.
The Secretary-General underscored that this is all the more important in responding to the climate crisis, with climate-related destruction continuing to intensify and ambition for climate action falling short of what is needed.
“While COVID-19 has forced the postponement of COP26 until 2021”, he said, referring to the UN conference that assesses progress in dealing with climate change, “a climate emergency is already upon us.”
Mr. Guterres added that as the international community works to overcome the COVID crisis, it has an opening to address another, and steer the world onto a more sustainable path.
“We have the policies, the technology and know-how,” he continued, urging countries to consider six climate positive actions as they rescue, rebuild and reset their economies.
Quite simply, how the world recovers from COVID-19 is a ‘make-or-break moment’ for the health of our planet – Secretary-General
Six climate-positive actions
The actions, he outlined, include making societies more resilient and ensure a just transition; ensuring green jobs and sustainable growth; having bailouts of industry, aviation and shipping conditional on aligning with the goals of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change; stopping fossil fuel subsidies and the funding of coal; considering climate risk in all decision-making; and working together.
“Quite simply, how the world recovers from COVID-19 is a ‘make-or-break moment’ for the health of our planet,” stressed the UN chief.
Address inequalities
In his address, the Secretary-General also highlighted that recovery efforts must address other sources of instability and drivers of discontent, including inequalities both within and between countries and communities.
“From racism and gender discrimination to income disparities, these deeply entrenched violations of human rights threaten our wellbeing and our future,” he said.
Inequality, Mr. Guterres continued, is associated with economic instability, corruption, financial crises, increased crime, and poor physical and mental health, and it is manifesting in new dimensions.
New social contract
“That is why I have been calling for a New Social Contract at the national level,” he said.
“This should feature a new generation of social protection policies and safety nets, including Universal Health Coverage and the possibility of a Universal Basic Income. Education and digital technology can be two great enablers and equalizers, by providing new skills and lifelong opportunities.”
And at the international level, a New Global Deal is needed, to ensure that power, wealth and opportunities are shared more broadly and equitably, with a fair globalization and a stronger voice for developing countries.
“Parliamentarians have a central role to play in helping the world respond to the pandemic wake-up call. We need you to align your legislation and spending decisions with climate action and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),” said the Secretary-General.
Kenyan Bishops, alongside several pro-life groups in the country, have pushed against a 2019 Reproductive Health Care Bill currently before the senate of the east African country.
In a collective 17 August memorandum to the country’s Senate Committee on Health, the groups asked for the bill’s withdrawal “entirely without amendments” following fresh calls for public participation in the proposed law.
The memorandum was signed by the leadership of 26 groups including the Kenyan Bishops’ Conference (KCCB), Catholic Members of Parliament in Kenya, Kenyan Christian Professionals Forum (KCPF), Franciscan Friars Kenya, the Evangelical Alliance of Kenya (EAK) and the Kenya Catholic Doctors Association, among others.
The groups listed various concerns regarding the proposed bill arguing that it is pushing for “illegalities and practices that are not acceptable” as they will “make abortion on demand legal” – which, they said, “is contrary to the spirit of our Constitution of 2010 and the Penal Code.”
Besides, the groups allege that the bill is “sponsored and championed by foreign NGOs that have continually pushed for it online, through media and also through holding workshops with a number of legislators.” All of these, they claim, are aimed at making abortion legal in all of Africa, beginning with Kenya.
Also, they said that proposed law pushes for surrogacy “without offering a clear framework on how this can be practiced” and with all of its negative effects “including harm to the best interests of the child and the spirit of Article 45 of the Constitution.” They also said that the bill leaves “loopholes for same-sex unions and related practices which are currently illegal in the country,” and it aims “at legalizing Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) in the name of adolescent-friendly education.”
Kenyan Bishops against the bill
The Catholic Bishops in Kenya have been vocal in their campaign against the proposed law.
On 23 June, the Bishops explained their opposition to the Bill in a letter to the country’s Catholic Members of Parliament. They listed various concerns including the “deliberately ambiguous” wording of the bill, and its contravention of the teachings of the Gospel, especially concerning the right to life and the protection of children and the family.
In particular, the Bishops contested the definition of pregnancy as “the presence of a foetus in the womb” – a definition which, according to them, does not recognize the right to life of everyone, and that the life of a person begins at conception. They also pointed out that they are aware that “a proposal to legalize abortion has been presented in parliament.”
“As Bishops, we respond to our belief that regards abortion as the intentional killing of human life,” read the Bishops’ June statement.
Also, in a collective statement on 5 July, the Bishops reiterated their push against the Reproductive Health Care Bill, underscoring their dedication to defending the “right to life, the dignity of children and the family as an inseparable unit.”
And, as an alternative to a clause in the bill that provides justification for the “termination of unwanted pregnancies,” the Bishops propose a proactive approach that involves “mentorship and behavior change programs, life skills and human sexuality programs.”
On 19 August 2020 the Government of Liechtenstein lodged an inter-State application against the Czech Republic under Article 33 (Inter-State cases) of the European Convention on Human Rights, alleging breaches of the rights of its citizens in property cases.
The case concerns the Government of Liechtenstein’s complaint under several Articles of the Convention about the respondent State’s classification of Liechtenstein citizens as persons with German nationality for the purposes of applying the Decrees of the President of Republic of 1945 (also known as the Beneš decrees), which, among other things, confiscated property belonging to all ethnic Germans and Hungarians after the Second World War.
In its application the Government of Liechtenstein alleges violations of Article 6 (right to a fair trial), Article 8 (right to respect for private and family life) and Article 13 (right to an effective remedy) of the Convention, Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 (protection of property) to the Convention, as well as of Article 14 (prohibition of discrimination) taken together with the other Articles.
The Government of Liechtenstein refers in its complaints to two sets of proceedings concerning property in the Czech Republic, one set against the Prince of Liechtenstein Foundation, which inherited all the property owned by the late Prince Franz Josef II, and one set concerning 33 individual cases brought by Liechtenstein nationals, including the head of state, Prince Hans-Adam II.
The Czech Republic has asserted ownership to the property in the cases. According to the Government of Liechtenstein, one of the cases was concluded in favour of the Czech State in a decision of the Constitutional Court of the Czech Republic of February 2020.
For a Q&A on inter-State cases please click here: https://web.archive.org/web/20211030212417/https://echr.coe.int/Documents/Press_Q_A_Inter-State_cases_ENG.pdf
“Ten years of crisis, repeated attacks on health care, death and displacement of health-care workers, and an increase in hostilities towards the end of 2019 have all posed significant challenges for the ability of the health system in northwest Syria to respond to COVID-19,” says Dr Mohamed Altwaish, a dentist by training who serves as Public Health Coordinator for Hand in Hand for Aid and Development (HIHFAD), a WHO implementing partner in northwest Syria.
Since the first cases were identified on 9 July, COVID-19 has disproportionately impacted health-care workers, who comprise 23 (43%) of all 54 identified cases reported by WHO. This has placed significant pressure on the already fragmented health infrastructure across the region (nearly 30% of health facilities are considered nonfunctional), including in Idleb and Aleppo governorates, which have been strained by years of crisis.
He stresses the critical work spearheaded by local health-care workers to mobilize COVID-19 preparedness and response efforts in collaboration with the WHO Emergency Field Programme in Gaziantep, Turkey, and the coordination of the Turkey Hub Health Cluster’s COVID-19 Taskforce, established in March 2020.
“Even before there were cases identified in northwest Syria, health-care workers were technically and logistically mobilizing local response efforts to combat COVID-19,” says Dr Altwaish. HIHFAD worked closely with WHO to establish isolation and treatment centres for suspected cases of COVID-19, ensure access to proper personal protective equipment for health-care workers across health facilities, and scale up training for community health workers to disseminate public health advice.
Leading training efforts for community health workers is another of Dr Altwaish’s roles. “I provide 1-day trainings for community health workers to engage local communities in COVID-19 prevention efforts as well as provide them with the skills to train other non-medical staff in how to distribute and disseminate these messages.”
Health-care workers have played a vital role in fostering community awareness of the growing threat of COVID-19, which has been one of the most challenging parts of the preparedness and response effort in northwest Syria.
“Health-care workers have struggled a lot to gain the acceptance of the local community, particularly in wearing masks and practising social distancing,” Dr Altwaish says. “Stigma was an issue from the beginning, particularly when the first case was identified among a member of the health-care workforce. Individuals started to assume that if you are a health-care worker, then you must have COVID-19.” He emphasizes the resulting psychological stress and pressure on the health-care workers to ensure the safety of their patients while continuing to provide essential services.
The protection of health-care workers continues to be a priority for WHO and local implementing partners in northwest Syria. Attacks on health care – a hallmark of the conflict in Syria – have brought the number of health facilities down further and deprived civilians of basic access to medical care. Now, with COVID-19 on the rise, stigma and barriers to care have added new challenges for the health-care workforce.
“When a fellow member of the health-care workforce tested positive for COVID-19, the event was an alert to the entire community in northwest Syria to better prepare and plan and avoid this in the future.”
