GENEVA (4 August 2020) – A year after India revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, UN human rights experts* today called on India and the international community to take urgent action to address the alarming human rights situation in the territory.
“Urgent action is needed,” the experts said. “If India will not take any genuine and immediate steps to resolve the situation, meet their obligations to investigate historic and recent cases of human rights violations and prevent future violations, then the international community should step up.”
Since the Indian Parliament revoked the constitutionally mandated status of the state of Jammu and Kashmir on 5 August 2019, “the human rights situation in Jammu and Kashmir has been in free fall,” the experts said. “We are particularly concerned that during the COVID-19 pandemic, many protestors are still in detention and Internet restrictions remain in place.”
“We have yet to receive any reply to three of the four letters,” the experts said.
The October 2019 closure of the Jammu and Kashmir State Human Rights Commission, which had been one of the few ways victims of human rights violations could seek remedy, is particularly concerning. Furthermore, no information was provided to the public about what would happen to the ongoing cases the body had been investigating, including hundreds of suspected enforced disappearances dating from as far back as 1989. Allegations regarding thousands of unmarked and some mass graves sites have also not yet been properly investigated.
“Decades on, families are still waiting in anguish and now there is a stream of new alleged rights violations,” the experts said. “With no State Human Rights Commission and internet restrictions, the avenues for reporting are further reduced.”
In 2011, India extended an open invitation to Special Rapporteurs to visit, but has several requests pending. “We call on India to schedule pending visits as a matter of urgency, particularly of the experts dealing with torture and disappearances,” they said.
John Hume, Irish nationalist, Northern Ireland peace broker, praised by Catholics, Protestants and world leaders
John Hume was a Catholic nationalist who stood for Ireland as a unitary state, but he was also a peacemaker and straddled the divide into the mainly Protestant unionist camp at a time when Northern Ireland was in a state of deep conflict in the last century.
His funeral was at St, Eugene’s Cathedral, Londonderry on Aug. 5 after he died two days earlier at the age of 83.
Ireland’s President Michael D Higgins, Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Micheál Martin and Northern Ireland’s first and deputy first ministers Arlene Foster and Michelle O’Neill were among the mourners at the requiem mass.
Due to the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, Hume’s family had asked mourners to stay at home and light a “candle for peace” at their door in tribute ahead of the funeral which was tailored to the pandemic.
Hume was born in Londonderry in January 1937 at the height of the Depression, the son of an unemployed riveter, Reuters news agency wrote.
‘CAN’T EAT A FLAG’
His father, his hero, urged him to avoid narrow nationalist chauvinism “because you can’t eat a flag”.
“What he was saying is what I am saying today, that real politics are not about flag-waving. They are about providing bread on your table and a roof over your head,” Hume said.
He received plaudits from Catholic, Anglican and Protestant leaders as well as political leaders internationally for his role in the peace process.
“The death of John Hume, one of the greatest peacemakers and champions of social justice of our time, will be felt by many people locally and around the world,” said the Catholic bishop of Derry, Bishop of Derry after his death.
“He dedicated his life to the welfare of this community, at no small cost to himself.
“While he strode the world stage, he remained firmly rooted in his local city. It was the specific circumstances that prevailed here in his native city that helped develop his vision for the future.”
The tributes to Hume, one of the key architects of the Northern Ireland peace process, reflected his international reputation, the BBC reported.
Former US President Bill Clinton remembered his persistence and unshakeable commitment to non-violence, while former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, who was in office when the Good Friday Agreement for peace in Northern Ireland was signed, described him as a political titan.
His role in brokering the 1998 power-sharing arrangement, which brought an end to the region’s sectarian violence involving groups like the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF), saw him win a Nobel Peace Prize.
Hume was a co-recipient of the prize with, David Trimble when he was leader of the Ulster Unionist Party a party that stands Northern Ireland being part of the United Kingdom and not in a united Ireland.
The two had brought into the peace process warring sides seen as representing groups backed by minority Catholics and majority Protestants.
“In his campaign for peace, inspired by the example of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., he employed a winning combination of public exhortation against the violence of the Irish Republican Army and secret diplomacy with its political leadership, sitting down for talks in his modest rowhouse over coffee. Deftly and persistently he enlisted the White House to help him reach his goal,” Alan Cowell wrote in The New York Times on Aug 3.
PRESBYTERIAN MODERATOR
The Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, Rev. David Bruce, said, “In pursuing a peaceful and just society, John Hume’s belief that past grievances and injustices could give way to what he called ‘a new generosity of spirit and action’ should not be forgotten.
“He demonstrated a genuine desire to bring people together for the common good and to build a just and peaceful society. We give thanks for peacemakers, and on this sad day, John Hume in particular.”
The Anglican Archbishop of Armagh, John McDowell, said Hume “will be remembered not only as a significant politician in Ireland but also for his unambiguous dedication to making political change happen by purely peaceful means.”
Painted murals of Hume have long been a feature of the walls of Londonderry – also known as Derry – a city bordering Ireland which witnessed some of the darkest chapters of what is often referred to as “The Troubles” in Northern Ireland.
On one, his silhouette ranks besides fellow Nobel laureates Nelson Mandela, Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King Jr.
As a boy, Hume attended Saint Columb’s College in Derry before entering the seminary in Maynooth, in County Kildare in the Republic of Ireland, where he decided that the priesthood was not for him, RTE, the Irish national broadcaster reported.
He became a teacher and married Patricia in 1960.
A tribute from Pope Francis to Hume was read out at the funeral mass by Bishop McKeown.
“Mindful of the Christian faith that inspired John Hume’s untiring efforts to promote dialogue, reconciliation and peace among the people of Northern Ireland, his Holiness commends his noble soul to the loving mercy of Almighty God,” said Francis
The Irish pop star and celebrity Bono wrote, “We were looking for a giant and found a man whose life made all our lives bigger.”.
Thailand’s overall response, and ability to curb infections, has led the World Health Organization (WHO) to identify Thailand, alongside New Zealand, as a success story in dealing with the pandemic. Of course, that success entirely depends on continued vigilance, a whole-of-society approach, and ramped up testing to prevent a second wave as borders open and full economic activities are resumed.
The economic impact of the pandemic has been serious, with predictions of an 8.1 per cent contraction of the economy in 2020. According to a recent survey, 65 per cent of people in Thailand report that their incomes are totally or very inadequate under pandemic conditions, with almost the same percentage saying that their finances had been adversely affected.
UNDP Thailand and a local NGO arranged for the delivery face masks to the ethnic community in Phuket province, Thailand.
Having started in my position just one week before the lockdown, my view of Thailand has been very COVID-centric. We have all personally felt the effects of the pandemic in many different ways and a large number of UN staff in Thailand have been apart from their families for months due to travel restrictions – my own family reunification was postponed for the first half of the year, and I hope to see my husband next month for the first time since the outbreak. At the same time, we are profoundly aware that vulnerable communities are bearing the brunt of this crisis, making our advocacy and work with partners all the more important.
As the Resident Coordinator, my focus has been on working closely with the UN Country Team to develop the UN’s comprehensive response strategy to the pandemic and positioning it to be cutting edge, forward leaning, and offering thought leadership to sustain development gains and build back better.
Our understanding of the impact of the crisis and its implications on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) continues to unfold as we speak. It is only now that we are more fully understanding the implications of COVID-19 on agriculture and farm households, and the more long-term social impact.
The Royal Thai Government’s contribution to the UN’s COVID-19 Fund speaks to this shared responsibility. Similarly, the role played by the 1 million health volunteers, two-thirds of whom are women, in contact tracing across the country speaks to the whole of society approach.
The government’s stimulus packages have been comprehensive, rapid and well-sequenced, constituting 15 per cent of GDP. Almost half of respondents to a recent survey reported having received government support. Modelling estimates suggest that while government expenditure is emerging as the most effective means to support growth and employment, cash handouts followed by soft loans are the next best measures. In partnership with the National Economic and Social Development Council, the national economic planning agency of Thailand, UN Thailand will monitor the impact of these fiscal stimulus packages targeted at local economies to inform government programming.
The government will also need to closely watch the impact at the household level in the third and fourth quarters, and further refine the mix of stimulus measures with sharper targeting. In terms of vulnerabilities, the impact assessment indicates that youth could potentially lose out the most given rising unemployment and with nearly half a million young people joining the labour force at a time when jobs are difficult to secure. Similarly, women and men are impacted equally, yet differently, which will serve as a drag to the recovery process.
Increased health and social protection
UN Women/Ploy Phutpheng
Scene at Suvarnabhumi Airport, Bangkok, Thailand.
UN Thailand’s strategy focuses on investing in partnerships with a clear-eyed view to build back better, while keeping the SDGs on track. The plan combines the direct health response based on the principle of leaving no one behind while investing in forward-looking policies to protect jobs and economies as well as to strengthen social capital.
Our immediate health response focuses on supporting the Government to strengthen surveillance and laboratory capacity, as well as to facilitate private and public sector engagement on vaccine research and pilot a “new normal” health service through tele-medicine. It also ensures that vulnerable groups such as migrants and refugees have access to PPE and health services.
In order to leave no one behind, UN Thailand has prioritised social protection, including successfully advocating for augmenting old age, child, and disability grants. In dialogue with the Royal Thai Government, we are supporting real-time monitoring of gender-based violence and violence against children while strengthening prevention and response. The UN is also mapping digital infrastructure to understand geographies and communities that are underserved to bridge the digital divide and support e-learning platforms for schools.
Rebuild a more equitable society
IOM/Benjamin Suomela
Burmese migrant worker in Bangkok
In partnership with local communities, the UN is scaling up sustainable tourism models which protect biodiversity, linking supply chains with markets to strengthen the network of community food management, as well as working with small and medium enterprises to support green technology to jumpstart the local economy, and supporting dialogue with youth across the country to showcase innovations which have created jobs for the marginalised in response to the crisis.
All evidence suggests that the pandemic will impact the SDGs, but it doesn’t have to, as long as there is effective reprioritisation, and public and private investments are strategically maximised. A resilient recovery will demand sustained economic support, long-term thinking, and policies which include a focus on building back better to jumpstart local economies and enable a green recovery.
Polling suggests that more than one-third of people in Thailand have donated cash, food or supplies during the pandemic, with most donations under 5,000 baht (about 160 US dollars). To me, this speaks of the social capital of the country and in many ways the glue that holds society together. There is also anecdotal evidence that in more marginalised regions, such as the northeast and deep south, the scale of donations has been higher.
We have seen in Thailand and around the world that times of crisis bring out the best of people. COVID-19 presents unprecedented challenges, but also opportunities to build back better. UN Thailand remains committed to working collaboratively to recover from the pandemic and to rebuild for a more equitable, just and resilient society.
The appeal, during World Breastfeeding Week, comes as WHO warned that not using mother’s milk is linked to 820,000 child deaths a year, at a cost to the global economy of $300 billion.
“WHO has been very clear in its recommendations to say absolutely breastfeeding should continue,” said Dr. Laurence Grummer-Strawn, head of the World Health Organization’s Food and Nutrition Action in Health Systems unit. “We have never documented, anywhere around the world, any (COVID-19) transmission through breastmilk.”
Exclusive breastfeeding for six months has many benefits for the infant and mother which far outweigh any risk from the new coronavirus pandemic, according to WHO.
These advantages include the fact that breastmilk – including milk which is expressed – provides lifesaving antibodies that protect babies against many childhood illnesses.
This is only one of the reasons why new mothers should initiate “skin-to-skin contact” and “room-in” with their babies quickly, as “the risks of transmission of the COVID-19 virus from a COVID-positive mother to her baby seem to be extremely low”, added Dr. Grummer-Strawn.
Having tested the breastmilk of “many” mothers around the world in a variety of studies, the WHO official explained that although a few samples had contained the virus, “when they followed up to see whether the virus was actually viable and could be infective, they could not find any actual infective virus”.
Underscoring the WHO’s longstanding support for using mother’s milk over substitutes, Dr. Grummer-Strawn also warned that the pandemic had weakened essential breastfeeding support usually provided to families with newborns.
COVID ‘undermining essential support’
“The interruption of services has been tremendous around the world providing the kind of support mothers normally would get with breastfeeding,” Dr. Grummer-Strawn told journalists.
“Oftentimes, the health services that would provide maternal child health have been diverted to take care of the COVID response; sometimes families do not feel comfortable in going into the health services, because they’re afraid that they might get COVID and so they don’t come for the routine kinds of support.”
According to the WHO, “about 820,000 children’s lives are lost every year because of a lack of breastfeeding”, Dr. Grummer-Strawn continued, in reference to deaths among under-fives. “Economically, there are losses of about $300 billion a year in economic productivity, lost because of a lack of breastfeeding,” he added.
Numerous good things come from breastfeeding – for the child and their mother in developing and industrialized countries – WHO has long maintained.
It has insisted that “it is not safer to give infant formula milk”, together with UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN).
Benefits for baby and mother
The three organizations have united in their call to Governments to protect and promote women’s access to skilled breastfeeding counselling, for World Breastfeeding Week 2020 (1-7 August).
“Breastfeeding provides benefits during the time of breastfeeding, and those that are most recognised are protection against diarrhoea, which is one of the top causes of mortality in low-income countries, protection against respiratory infections, against obesity – childhood obesity later on – as children get older, protection against leukaemia,” said Dr. Grummer-Strawn.
Breastfeeding also protects the mother against breast cancer, ovarian cancer, Type 2 diabetes later on, the WHO official said, “so there are benefits for both the mother and the baby, and when we added these up it comes out to about 820,000 lives around the world, even in high-income countries”.
In addition to the pandemic, breastfeeding is under pressure from what WHO and UNICEF have described as harmful promotion of breast-milk substitutes.
Countries could do more to protect parents from misleading information, the UN agencies believe. “We continue to be very concerned about the practices of the formula industries, both the big multinational corporations as well as in many countries there are local manufacturers of breastmilk substitutes that are trying to get mothers to get on to their products,” said Dr. Grummer-Strawn. “They use a number of tricks, sometimes it’s not as blatant advertising as it once was, because they know that they can get caught.”
According to WHO, of 194 countries analysed, 136 have legal measures related to the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes and subsequent resolutions adopted by the World Health Assembly (known as the Code).
Tricks of the trade
However, only 79 countries prohibit the promotion of breast-milk substitutes in health facilities, and only 51 have provisions that prohibit the distribution of free or low-cost supplies within the health care system, WHO said in a report published in May.
Only 19 countries have prohibited the sponsorship of scientific and health professional association meetings by manufacturers of breast-milk substitutes, which include infant formula, follow-up formula, and growing up milks marketed for use by infants and children up to 36-months old, the UN health agency study found.
WHO and UNICEF recommend that babies be fed nothing but breast milk for their first six months, after which they should continue breastfeeding – as well as eating other nutritious and safe foods – until at least two years old.
“The aggressive marketing of breast-milk substitutes, especially through health professionals that parents trust for nutrition and health advice, is a major barrier to improving newborn and child health worldwide,” said Dr. Francesco Branca, Director of WHO’s Department of Nutrition and Food Safety. “Health care systems must act to boost parent’s confidence in breastfeeding without industry influence so that children don’t miss out on its lifesaving benefits.”
UN, humanitarian partners launch largest COVID-19 response plan to aid 5.4M poorest Filipinos
The UN and humanitarian partners in the Philippines launched today the largest international humanitarian response plan in the country since Typhoon Haiyan.https://t.co/7JCvER5E5epic.twitter.com/3Lh0d41stz
According to the UN, the Humanitarian Country Team, the COVID-19 Response Plan aims to provide “critical health interventions and multi-sectoral humanitarian assistance” to those in epidemic hotspots and will be the largest response since 2013, when Typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda ravaged the country and claimed some 7,800 lives.
“The pandemic is challenging the capacity of response of any single country in the world”, said Gustavo Gonzalez, UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in the Philippines.
“Our role is to make best use of our global knowledge and resources to join Government’s efforts to contribute to the safety and well-being of the Filipino people”, he added.
Building resiliency
Some 50 UN and local and international non-Government partners are involved in the programme. And with a price tag of about P6 billion – $122 million – 23 per cent of the response plan has already been mobilized, the UN said.
The plan is being kicked off as the epicenter of Manila and surrounding provinces have returned to lockdown after eased quarantine measures saw a surge in cases.
Millions remain out of jobs, while the already crippled economy face bleak forecasts, according to news reports.
The response plan to COVID-19 concentrates on supporting the Government in addressing its immediate challenges, including health, food security, water and sanitation.
And while it spans until the end of the year, the plan will be updated according to needs as they arise throughout the deadly pandemic.
The response plan is also a steppingstone to the UN’s mid- and long-term support to COVID-19 recovery, which will be developed in the upcoming UN Socioeconomic and Peacebuilding Framework.
“As we work together to support Government efforts to contain the virus against the demand to restore the economy, the UN and humanitarian partners will continue to seize opportunities to build greater resiliency, equity and inclusivity, in short, to build forward better,” Mr. Gonzalez explained.
India treats Confucius Institutes and higher education cooperation in fair manner’: China
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China on Tuesday said it hopes India maintains healthy and stable development of people-to-people contact and cultural exchanges between two countries.
Confucius Institutes are public educational partnerships between colleges and universities in China with those in other countries and deals in Chinese language teaching. “Over the years, Confucius Institutes have played an important role in promoting Chinese language teaching in India and China-India people-to-people and cultural exchanges. This has been generally recognised by the Indian education community,” read the statement.
The Embassy of China in a statement said Beijing hopes New Delhi will treat “Confucius Institutes and higher education cooperation in a fair and objective manner”.
The statement comes as the government of India is reported to review Chinese language programmes across universities.
“Indian relevant parties can treat Confucius Institutes and China-India higher education cooperation in an objective and fair manner, avoid politicising normal cooperation and maintain healthy and stable development of China-India people-to-people and cultural exchanges,” it said.
It said that the Confucius Institutes have played an important role in promoting Chinese language teaching in India and China-India people-to-people and cultural exchanges.
Confucius Institutes are public educational partnerships between colleges and universities in China with those in other countries and deals in Chinese language teaching.
The Embassy statement further added that the demand for Chinese language teaching is expanding in India.
“China-India cooperation on Confucius Institute Project has been carried out for more than 10 years,” it stated.
The National Education Policy (NEP) has not mentioned Mandarin – group of Sinitic Chinese languages from the list of the examples of foreign languages.
All Confucius Institutes were established by the Chinese and Indian universities after signing a legally binding cooperation agreement in accordance with the principles of mutual respect, friendly consultation, equality and mutual benefit and on the premise that the Indian side applied voluntarily and met the conditions for running the Institute. China-India cooperation on Confucius Institute Project has been carried out for more than 10 years,” it stated. Yesterday it was reported that the Ministry of Education will review the setting up of local chapters of the Confucius Institutes in association with seven local colleges and universities in the country.
United Nations Under-Secretary-General (USG) and Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, Adama Dieng, and Special Adviser (SA) and Head of the United Nations Investigative Team to promote accountability for crimes committed by Da’esh/ISIL in Iraq, Karim A. A. Khan Q.C., commended religious leaders for endorsing an Interfaith Statement on the Victims of ISIL.
The Statement followed extensive engagement with religious authorities by UNITAD which continued during USG Dieng’s visit to Iraq between 1–6 March. The statement is the first time Iraqi religious leaders have formally endorsed a common statement on the need for justice and the rights of victims and survivors of ISIL. USG Dieng and SA Khan applauded its adoption by His Excellency Sheikh Dr. Ahmed Hassan al-Taha Chairman of the Iraq Jurisprudence Council, His Eminence Sheikh Abdul Mahdi Al-Karbala’i, His Holiness Baba Sheikh Khurto Hajji Ismail Yazidi Supreme Spiritual Leader, and His Beatitude Louis Raphaël I Sako, Patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans and Head of the Chaldean Catholic Church.
In the Statement, religious leaders repudiate and condemn the violence of ISIL as completely contrary to their respective faiths. It also underscores that members of all religions across Iraq have been impacted by the crimes of Da’esh, and that all survivors must be supported in their efforts to continue their lives within their communities. The Statement also recognizes the many acts of heroism in which members of their respective communities rose up in defense of those from other religious and ethnic backgrounds.
USG Dieng and SA Khan were particularly pleased that the religious leaders spoke with one voice in acknowledging the tremendous suffering members of their communities had endured as a result of sexual and gender-based violence and in underlining their commitment to ensure that survivors of such crimes are fully supported and do not suffer from any form of stigmatization. Noting the particular suffering endured by children impacted by the crimes of ISIL, the religious leaders recognized that such children are blameless and should benefit from love and kindness.
The critical importance of ensuring that ISIL members are held individually responsible for crimes committed, through fair trials in a court of law, as well as the investigation of cases of those disappeared and abducted by ISIL, is further underlined in the Statement. In this regard, all religious authorities expressed their strong collective support for the work of UNITAD.
USG Dieng and SA Khan emphasized that the collective endorsement of this statement reflected the religious leaders’ joint effort in advancing accountability for crimes committed by ISIL and prioritizing the need for justice and accountability – as well as empathy and solidarity for all victims. They stressed the crucial role religious leaders can play in fostering a peaceful and inclusive society and noted their essential role in ensuring effective support to the survivors of ISIL, countering violent ideology, mistrust and fear, and in bringing people together on the common ground of humanity.
SA Khan stated “This Statement constitutes an extremely important moment, representing as it does, a coming together of leaders from the Christian, Sunni, Shia and Yazidi communities, around universal values represented and promoted by their respective faiths. Justice for the victims of ISIL, support for survivors and an emphasis on inclusion and support in preference to exclusion, stigmatization and derision are important elements to ensure support for survivors – whether men, women or children. I am particularly grateful to the religious leaders for reiterating their unequivocal support for UNITAD and its mandate to vindicate the rights of victims and survivors to justice.”
USG Dieng stated “This Interfaith Statement constitutes a strong symbol of unity and a renewed call to deepen efforts to address concerns from all citizens of Iraq in their quest for a future together and in peace. It also represents a strong endorsement from these religious communities of the imperative to hold ISIL members responsible for their crimes”.
Reflecting his engagement with religious authorities across Iraq during the visit, as well as the statement made by Sheikh Ahmed Hasan al-Taha upon signature, USG Dieng further noted that efforts were also needed to ensure that accountability is delivered for all crimes committed against members of all communities in Iraq. He noted that such work would serve to strengthen the basis for stable and peaceful relations across Iraq, and that in his capacity as Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, he will continue to engage with national governments, UN partners and other actors to promote justice for all victims as well as recognition of their suffering.
Upon endorsing the Statement during a meeting with USG Dieng and SA Khan on 6 March, His Eminence Sheikh Abdul Mahdi Al-Karbala’i described the meeting as “an historic day” and he called upon other religious communities to also endorse the Statement. In the same vein, Cardinal Sako proposed a follow-up conference to broaden the endorsement for the Statement by other religious communities and build upon it.
USG Dieng and SA Khan noted that the adoption of the Statement represented the beginning of a process of further engagement with other religious leaders in Iraq and both emphasized that the statement remains open for signature and that any and all faith leaders who wish to sign or endorse the Statement and implement the principles reflected within it are welcome to do so.
Religious leaders from communities across Iraq called for greater “healing and reconciliation” during a UN-organized event on Thursday, reaffirming their commitment to support survivors of crimes perpetrated by ISIL terrorist fighters.
Key signatories of a landmark Interfaith Statement on the Victims and Survivors of ISIL – representing Islam, the Christian church and other faiths – joined the discussion online, held under the auspices of the UN Special Adviser who also heads up the Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Da’esh / ISIL (UNITAD) and co-hosted by the international coalition, Religions for Peace, which consists of 90 national and six regional Interreligious Councils.
The event was made possible by the UN Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect, headed up by Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser, Adama Dieng.
Mr Dieng said it was and honour to be accompanied by religious representatives “whose tireless work, days after day, is making a difference in the lives of all Iraqis. Their leading efforts for justice, peace and reconciliation constitutes an example for all society to follow.”
He noted that many of the challenges for peace in Iraq did not start with the emergence of ISIL nor have they ended with its military defeat: “Many communities still feel vulnerable and consider that not enough is being done to protect not only their linguistic, religious or cultural heritage, but their very physical integrity. Addressing long-term grievances is one the most effective ways of prioritizing prevention of human rights violations, including atrocity crimes.”
He noted that Iraqi society has experienced “the tremendous cost of not addressing long-term grievances. It must therefore work to build and strengthen an inclusive society, where diversity is not perceived as a flaw but as an asset.
The prevention of genocide chief said he was convinced that Thursday’s Interfaith Statement on Victims and Survivors of ISIL constitutes “an essential step in this direction, in line with the Plan of Action for Religious Leaders and Actors to Prevent Incitement to Violence that Could Lead to Atrocity Crimes. I am proud to support it and commit my Office’s assistance in ensuring its full implementation.”
The participants condemned ISIL’s ideologically-driven acts of terror as being “contrary to the core principles of our religious faiths as well as the fundamental values of humanity”.
“What can religion be if not for peace?”, UNITAD Head, Karim Asad Ahmad Khan QC said to the meeting.
Attacks ‘far from over’
The UNITAD chief, expressed gratitude to Iraq religious leaders for their courage “in these difficult times” as they together support survivors and victims of ISIL.
Stressing that as ISIL attacks are “far from over” across the world, he exhorted representatives of all religions to denounce the group’s ideology as alien to religious values and those of all humanity.
According to Mr. Khan, the only way to respond to groups like ISIL, is for religious leaders to support each other and each other’s communities.
“Whenever people seek to weigh the worth of humans by their own belief, there should be alarm”, flagged the Special Advisor, adding that everyone must “start to implement a zero tolerance to intolerance.”
No religion spared
All religions across Iraq have been impacted by ISIL atrocities, the signatories said, as they underlined the importance of supporting survivors within their own communities.
“In showing ISIL crimes are divorced from the values of all faiths, Iraqi religious leaders have exposed crimes of ISIL”, upheld the UNITAD chief.
At the same time, the participants also noted that their brutality had prompted “acts of heroism” in which religious communities rose up in defence of those from different religious and ethnic backgrounds.
The most vulnerable
In recognizing the “tremendous suffering” endured by victims of sexual and gender-based violence, the signatories underscored their commitment to ensuring that those individuals are “fully supported” and do not suffer from stigmatization.
And for the “innocent children of God” impacted by ISIL, they stressed that “whatever pain these children have suffered, they are blameless” and called on the terrorists to return every child they have abducted to their rightful families.
Delivering justice
Justice will only be delivered for ISIL victims by ensuring that those who fought in its name, are held responsible for their actions, and that people forced to flee the violence, can return home safely.
To this end, they underscored their “strong collective support” for UNITAD’s work while stressed the importance of exposing ISIL’s offenses in a court of law.
“Investigating the cases of disappeared persons and those abducted” not only delivers justice for victims but also promotes “understanding of the severity and scale” of the violence and prevents “future revisionism”, maintained the signatories.
In closing, they highlighted their “common commitment” and “collective stamina” to promote “justice, tolerance, reconciliation and forgiveness” as the most effective way to combat ISIL’s crimes in Iraq.
This also serves as “a key step in preventing the re-emergence” of any similar terrorist ideology or groups, said the religious leaders.
EURONEWS – With Gianni Infantino’s running of world football being examined by a Swiss special prosecutor, FIFA’s hopes of shedding the image of scandal have been derailed by its president’s secret meetings with authorities.
A Swiss special prosecutor opened a criminal case into the Infantino’s conduct last week over his meetings with the country’s attorney general who has been leading a sprawling investigation into football corruption.
“The FIFA president is subject to a criminal investigation by the Swiss judicial authorities,” FIFA said, “but he has not been charged nor is he guilty of anything. … FIFA and its president will continue to cooperate fully with the judicial authorities in Switzerland until these investigations are concluded.”
It is five years since Sepp Blatter was toppled by a FIFA ethics verdict of financial wrongdoing which came in the fallout from a wave of arrests of high-ranking football officials by Swiss and American authorities.
Now Infantino’s talks with Swiss attorney general Michael Lauber about the corruption probe has put them both in the sights of a special prosecutor. There are records of what was said in the three meetings.
“It’s a matter of record now that there is a criminal investigation — we can’t erase that,” FIFA deputy secretary general Alasdair Bell told The Associated Press on Monday. “In that respect the damage is, to some extent, irreversible.”
“It’s almost preposterous to suggest that because someone doesn’t remember the details of a meeting, therefore something criminal should have been discussed,” he said.
“I don’t really think it’s reckless not to take minutes when the FIFA president meets the attorney general of the country,” Bell added. “You don’t really expect when you go to meet the most senior prosecutor in the country, to have a discussion about governance reform at FIFA, to have a discussion about the ongoing cases involving FIFA … after that to end up yourself being the subject of a criminal investigation.”
But special prosecutor Stefan Keller has written to Infantino to say he cannot “exclude the possibility that something criminal might have been discussed you can’t remember,” according to a version recounted by Bell.
The potential criminal charges facing Infantino could be “incitement to abuse office, incitement to violate secrecy, incitement to obstruct justice,” Bell said.
Gianni Infantino can remain FIFA president and should not be forced from power while under criminal investigation, world football’s governing body told AP at the weekend.
Lauber was recused and disciplined after it was revealed he had three meetings with Infantino to discuss the FIFA investigations, which has included at least 25 open criminal proceedings.
There is no timeframe for completing the cases in a country that has been slow to progress investigations linked to FIFA.
A criminal proceeding against Blatter — for a $2 million payment he authorized to then-FIFA vice president Michel Platini in 2011 for uncontracted salary — remains open after almost five years.
“It doesn’t help Lauber’s case that for five years the office of the attorney general, for which he’s responsible, has made very little, if any, progress on all these FIFA corruption cases, including the one with Sepp Blatter,” Bell said. “It doesn’t look good at all. I think it looks particularly bad when you can see and compare it with the progress the authorities in the United States made with the cases they handled.”
Describing education as “the key to personal development and the future of societies”, António Guterres issued recommendations to get children back in the classroom in a policy brief launched alongside a new global campaign called Save our Future.
“As the world faces unsustainable levels of inequality, we need education – the great equalizer – more than ever,” he said in a video message.
“We must take bold steps now, to create inclusive, resilient, quality education systems fit for the future.”
The UN estimates that the pandemic has affected more than one billion students worldwide.
Despite efforts to continue learning during the crisis, including through delivering lessons by radio, television and online, many are still not being reached.
The UN chief said learners with disabilities, members of minority or disadvantaged communities, as well as refugees and displaced persons, are among those at highest risk of being left behind.
Even those students who can access distance learning face challenges, as success depends on their living conditions, and other factors such as fair distribution of domestic duties.
Looming potential catastrophe
A learning crisis existed even before the pandemic, the Secretary-General said, as more than 250 million children were out of school.
Furthermore, only a quarter of secondary school children in developing countries were leaving school with basic skills.
“Now we face a generational catastrophe that could waste untold human potential, undermine decades of progress, and exacerbate entrenched inequalities,” said Mr. Guterres. “The knock-on effects on child nutrition, child marriage and gender equality, among others, are deeply concerning.”
Children work from home in Guatemala following guidelines received from the Ministry of Education during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Back to school
The policy brief calls for action in four key areas, starting with the re-opening of schools once local transmission of COVID-19 is under control.
The UN chief also called for greater investment in education, as low- and middle-income countries had already faced an annual funding gap of $1.5 trillion prior to the pandemic.
“Education budgets need to be protected and increased,” he said.
“And it is critical that education is at the heart of international solidarity efforts, from debt management and stimulus packages to global humanitarian appeals and official development assistance.”
Education initiatives must also seek to reach those at greatest risk of being left behind, he continued. They also should be sensitive to the specific challenges faced by girls and boys, and women and men, while also addressing the digital divide.
Quality education for all
For his final recommendation, the UN chief highlighted what he sees as the “generational opportunity” to deliver quality education for all children, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The 17 goals, which world leaders adopted five years ago, provide a pathway to a more sustainable future that benefits both people and the planet.
“To achieve this, we need investment in digital literacy and infrastructure, an evolution towards learning how to learn, a rejuvenation of life-long learning and strengthened links between formal and non-formal education,” said Mr. Guterres.
“And we need to draw on flexible delivery methods, digital technologies and modernized curricula while ensuring sustained support for teachers and communities.”
