The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is grappling with a dire humanitarian crisis fuelled by ongoing political instability and armed conflicts, severely impacting the entire food supply, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said on Tuesday.
Eastern DRC: UN food aid hangs in the balance amid severe funding crunch
Rights experts call for second UN Decade for People of African Descent
They stressed that more than ever, the world urgently needs humanity to unite and collaborate in a spirit of equality and non-discrimination.
“This demands political will to eliminate all forms of racial discrimination, inequality and stratification at both the domestic and international levels,” they said in a statement.
Achieving this goal means that inequalities within and among countries will need to be drastically decreased, and the legacies of colonialism, apartheid, enslavement and genocide effectively resolved, they added.
‘A cause for humanity’
The General Assembly proclaimed 2015 to 2024 as the International Decade for People of African Descent, with actions at the national, regional and global levels.
Objectives include promoting respect, protection and fulfilment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by people of African Descent, and greater knowledge of their diverse heritage, culture and contributions to society.
“The cause of people of African descent for recognition, justice and development is a cause for humanity,” the experts stated.
Sustain the momentum
They said the UN Decade, together with the International Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, have contributed significantly to combatting racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, and related intolerance.
“However, there is much more work to be done and the momentum gained must be sustained,” they said.
They urged the General Assembly to consider proclaiming a second International Decade for People of African Descent from 2025 to 2034, “with a view to taking further action to address systemic discrimination and legacies of the past to bring about the full recognition, justice, and development for people of African descent worldwide.”
‘Pervasive discrimination’ persists
The 13 experts were appointed by the UN Human Rights Council and are not UN staff, nor are they paid for their work.
They issued their appeal on the eve of the International Day for People of African Descent.
In his message for the Day, UN Secretary-General António Guterres highlighted “the enormous impact” that both the African continent and people of African descent have had on the development, diversity and richness of world civilizations and cultures, which constitute the common heritage of humankind.
“At the same time, we acknowledge the pervasive discrimination faced by people of African descent around the world, and the many obstacles they face to realising their full human rights,” he said.
Promote equality, combat racism
He noted that recent years have seen renewed momentum for change, based on the global anti-racism movement of 2020. Millions of people took to the streets of major cities worldwide following the police killing of George Floyd, an African American man, that May.
Mr. Guterres pointed to UN initiatives, such as the establishment of the Expert Mechanism to Advance Racial Justice and Equality in the context of Law Enforcement, and the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent, as a testament to the collective aspirations of the African diaspora for justice and equality worldwide.
The Secretary-General has also made anti-racism a management priority at the UN, where he has appointed a Special Adviser and team charged with overseeing implementation of a Strategic Action Plan on Addressing Racism and Promoting Dignity for All.
The Int’l Day for People of African Descent (31st August) | United Nations #fightracism
Call to action
“Today, as we mark the International Day for People of African Descent, I reiterate the call of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to use the commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to announce and take prompt and robust steps to advance equality and combat racism, racial discrimination and xenophobia,” he said.
The UN chief urged countries to take concrete steps, with the full participation of people of African descent and their communities, to tackle old and new forms of racial discrimination; and to dismantle entrenched structural and institutional racism.
“Today and every day, we must continue to speak out against all ideas of racial superiority, and work tirelessly to free all societies from the blight of racism,” he said.
Becoming A Digital Nomad: How Fernando Raymond Carved Digital Nomadism
In the bustling heart of London, amidst its iconic red buses and bustling tube stations, emerged a story of unwavering determination and digital prowess. It’s the story of Fernando Raymond, a man who turned his frustration into an empire.
Like many, after graduating, Fernando found himself amidst the sea of corporate culture, grappling with jobs that did not ignite the spark of passion in him. His heart yearned for something more, something meaningful. It was then, around 2013, that the internet became a window to a world he hadn’t dared dream of – the world of digital nomads.
Imagine a lifestyle where you aren’t tethered to one location, one office, or one city. A lifestyle where the world is your office, and your daily tasks are fuelled by the vibrancy of new cities, cultures, and coffee shops. This was the allure of the digital nomadic life. A promise of freedom, adventure, and meaning.
Realizing the endless opportunities the digital realm offered, Fernando dove deep into the world of Search Engine Optimization (SEO). He understood that in a world steered by the likes of Google, businesses needed someone to champion their online presence. And so, with grit and grind, Fernando became that champion, leading London-based businesses to the pinnacle of search results. His adeptness and expertise didn’t go unnoticed. In no time, he wore the crown of the top SEO consultant in London for 3 consecutive years.
His first brainchild, ClickDo, began as a testament to his capabilities. Today, it’s not just an SEO agency. It’s a beacon of hope for all those entrepreneurs and businesses aiming to make a mark online. And as if one success story wasn’t enough, Fernando’s entrepreneurial spirit danced again, leading him to create SeekaHost – a name synonymous with top-tier web hosting services across the globe.
Now, if you’re reading this, stuck in a 9-5 job that feels more like a trap than a trampoline, take a moment to absorb Fernando’s story. It’s not just about success; it’s about transformation. It’s about taking the reins of your life when everything seems mundane.
Tips and Strategies for Aspiring Digital Nomads:
- Identify Your Skill: It might be SEO, content writing, graphic design, or something entirely different. Dig deep, find what you love, and master it.
- Continuous Learning: The digital realm is dynamic. Stay updated, attend webinars, take courses, and be an eternal student.
- Build a Portfolio: Start small. Offer your services for free, or at discounted rates initially. Build a robust portfolio showcasing your expertise.
- Networking is Key: Join online communities, attend workshops, or simply reach out. The more people you know in the digital space, the better.
- Set Clear Goals: Whether it’s becoming a top consultant, launching your start-up, or traveling to X number of countries while working, define it.
- Perseverance Pays: Fernando’s journey wasn’t a sprint; it was a marathon. Be patient, stay consistent, and results will follow.
- Prioritize Work-Life Balance: Being a digital nomad is liberating but can be exhaustive. Remember to disconnect, rejuvenate, and relish the journey.
In conclusion, if a 9-5 isn’t for you, the world of digital entrepreneurship is vast and inviting.
Fernando Raymond’s journey is a testament that when passion meets perseverance, magic happens.
So, pack your digital tools, harness that inner fire, and carve out a path that not just pays the bills but fills the soul. The world, quite literally, awaits you!
Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh need urgent support as crises multiply: UNHCR
The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, is calling on the international community to renew its commitment to the nearly one million Rohingya refugees who have fled persecution in Myanmar for neighbouring Bangladesh.
ChatGPT’s recommendations for guidelines-based cancer treatments prove limited
Correct and incorrect ChatGPT recommendations for guidelines-based cancer treatments inter-mingled in one-third of the chatbot’s responses, making errors more difficult to detect.
The Internet is a powerful tool for self-education on medical topics for many patients.
With ChatGPT now at patients’ fingertips, researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, assessed how consistently the artificial intelligence chatbot provides recommendations for cancer treatment that align with National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines.
Their findings, published in JAMA Oncology, show that ChatGPT 3.5 provided an inappropriate (“non-concordant”) recommendation in approximately one-third of cases, highlighting the need for awareness of the technology’s limitations.
“Patients should feel empowered to educate themselves about their medical conditions, but they should always discuss with a clinician, and resources on the Internet should not be consulted in isolation,” said corresponding author Danielle Bitterman, MD, of the Department of Radiation Oncology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Artificial Intelligence in Medicine (AIM) Program of Mass General Brigham.
“ChatGPT responses can sound a lot like a human and can be quite convincing. But, when it comes to clinical decision-making, there are so many subtleties for every patient’s unique situation. A right answer can be very nuanced, and not necessarily something ChatGPT or another large language model can provide.”
The emergence of artificial intelligence tools in health has been groundbreaking and has the potential to positively reshape the continuum of care.
Mass General Brigham, as one of the nation’s top integrated academic health systems and largest innovation enterprises, is leading the way in conducting rigorous research on new and emerging technologies to inform the responsible incorporation of AI into care delivery, workforce support, and administrative processes.
Although medical decision-making can be influenced by many factors, Bitterman and colleagues chose to evaluate the extent to which ChatGPT’s recommendations aligned with the NCCN guidelines, which are used by physicians at institutions across the country.
They focused on the three most common cancers (breast, prostate and lung cancer) and prompted ChatGPT to provide a treatment approach for each cancer based on the severity of the disease.
In total, the researchers included 26 unique diagnosis descriptions and used four, slightly different prompts to ask ChatGPT to provide a treatment approach, generating a total of 104 prompts.
Nearly all responses (98 percent) included at least one treatment approach that agreed with NCCN guidelines. However, the researchers found that 34 percent of these responses also included one or more non-concordant recommendations, which were sometimes difficult to detect amidst otherwise sound guidance.
A non-concordant treatment recommendation was defined as one that was only partially correct; for example, for a locally advanced breast cancer, a recommendation of surgery alone, without mention of another therapy modality.
Notably, complete agreement in scoring only occurred in 62 percent of cases, underscoring both the complexity of the NCCN guidelines themselves and the extent to which ChatGPT’s output could be vague or difficult to interpret.
In 12.5 percent of cases, ChatGPT produced “hallucinations,” or a treatment recommendation entirely absent from NCCN guidelines. These included recommendations of novel therapies, or curative therapies for non-curative cancers.
The authors emphasized that this form of misinformation can incorrectly set patients’ expectations about treatment and potentially impact the clinician-patient relationship.
Going forward, the researchers are exploring how well both patients and clinicians can distinguish between medical advice written by a clinician versus a large language model (LLM) like ChatGPT. They are also prompting ChatGPT with more detailed clinical cases to further evaluate its clinical knowledge.
The authors used GPT-3.5-turbo-0301, one of the largest models available at the time they conducted the study and the model class that is currently used in the open-access version of ChatGPT (a newer version, GPT-4, is only available with the paid subscription).
They also used the 2021 NCCN guidelines, because GPT-3.5-turbo-0301 was developed using data up to September 2021. While results may vary if other LLMs and/or clinical guidelines are used, the researchers emphasize that many LLMs are similar in the way they are built and the limitations they possess.
“It is an open research question as to the extent LLMs provide consistent logical responses as oftentimes ‘hallucinations’ are observed,” said first author Shan Chen, MS, of the AIM Program.
“Users are likely to seek answers from the LLMs to educate themselves on health-related topics—similarly to how Google searches have been used. At the same time, we need to raise awareness that LLMs are not the equivalent of trained medical professionals.”
Source: BWH
China – No More iPhones for Government Officials
China has issued a directive instructing government officials at central government agencies to refrain from using Apple iPhones and other devices with foreign brands for official purposes or bringing them into the office.
This news was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
These instructions were reportedly conveyed to staff by their superiors through workplace chat groups or meetings, although the extent of the distribution remains unclear.
The ban comes ahead of an upcoming Apple event expected to unveil a new line of iPhones, potentially raising concerns for foreign companies operating in China amidst escalating tensions between the United States and China.
While the report did not mention any specific phone makers aside from Apple, it highlights China’s long-standing efforts to reduce reliance on foreign technology. In the past, Beijing has encouraged state-affiliated organizations, including banks, to shift to domestic software and promote local semiconductor chip manufacturing. These initiatives have gained momentum, especially as concerns over data security have grown.
China’s focus on technological self-reliance intensified in 2020 with the proposal of a “dual circulation” growth model aimed at reducing dependence on foreign markets and technology. The country has urged major state-owned enterprises to play a central role in achieving technological self-sufficiency.
Experts say China is determined to reduce its dependence on American technologies, even affecting a company as prominent as Apple.
Analysts suggest that this development should encourage businesses to diversify their supply chains and customer bases to reduce reliance on China in the face of worsening tensions between the two nations.
Apple, a major player in China’s market, is unlikely to see an immediate impact on its earnings due to the iPhone’s popularity in the country. However, the move underscores the broader challenges that foreign companies face in China’s evolving regulatory landscape.
The directive from China is reminiscent of similar bans in the United States, where Chinese companies like Huawei and TikTok have faced restrictions. Tensions between the two superpowers have escalated, impacting various industries and raising concerns for international business operations in both countries.
Written by Alius Noreika
Guterres calls for end to ‘atrocious crime’ of enforced disappearances
Enforced disappearance has regularly been used as a tool for instilling fear and exert control over a population. The feeling of insecurity it generates is not limited to close relatives of the disappeared, but also their communities and society as a whole.
In a post on social media platform X, The UN chief said enforced disappearance was “a serious human rights violation that has frequently been used to spread terror…I call on countries to help put an end to this atrocious crime”.
News that may never come
According to the UN human rights office (OHCHR), enforced disappearance can be defined as the arrest, detention, or abduction of an individual by the State or group acting with the authorization of the State, followed by concealment of the whereabouts of the disappeared person.
It is a crime under International Human Rights Law. Victims are frequently subjected to torture and live in perpetual fear for their lives. Their families, ignorant of the fate of their loved ones, are left wondering and waiting for news that may never come.
According to the UN, hundreds of thousands of people have vanished during conflicts or periods of repression in at least 85 countries around the world.
‘Every day is a fight’
“For the families & friends of the disappeared, every day is a fight to know the fate & whereabouts of their loved ones. Truth & justice are essential,” said High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, in a tweet on Wednesday.
“I call on States to guarantee protection, accountability, transparency & redress for all victims of enforced disappearances,” he continued.
Global problem
Enforced disappearance, once largely the product of military dictatorships, has become a global problem and is not restricted to a specific region of the world. It has been used frequently as a means of political repression.
At the same time as the UN General Assembly sanctioned the international day in December 2010, the same resolution adopted the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and declared 30 August the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, beginning in 2011.
Practical support
OHCHR officials and a large group of UN-appointed regional human rights experts urged States to provide effective access to justice for victims who have suffered harm as the direct result of enforced disappearance, in a statement delivered on Tuesday.
They warned that ensuring adequate access to justice and proper accountability for perpetrators at all levels was critical.
“Access to justice must not be merely theoretical but guaranteed in practice through concrete measures that promote and fully value the genuine and meaningful participation of victims and their representatives throughout the process,” the experts said.
In the context of the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, OHCHR officials and the group of UN-appointed human rights experts jointly called on all member states to make pledges to promote justice for all victims of enforced disappearances without delay, and to ratify international and regional instruments on enforced disappearances.
UN-appointed regional human rights experts are part of the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council, work on a voluntary and unpaid basis, are not UN staff, and work independently from any government or organisation.
Top UN aid official in Ukraine deplores latest wave of ‘massive Russian attacks’
Russian strikes on at least 10 regions in Ukraine have left a path of death and destruction over the past 24 hours, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in the country said on Wednesday.
Syrians suffer as political stalemate persists: UN Special Envoy
The only path out of the war in Syria is a political process, which would also help to address the many crises affecting the country, UN Special Envoy Geir Pedersen told the Security Council on Wednesday.
Mexico: Rights experts ‘outraged’ over attacks on women activists
“We are outraged that those searching for forcibly disappeared family members and loved ones continue to be targeted and face violence in Mexico,” they said in a statement, issued in the wake of two recent incidents.
Brutal killing
Human rights defender Teresa Magueyal was shot dead while riding her bicycle in Celaya, Guanajuato state, on 2 May. Her son, José Luis Apaseo Magueyal, 34, disappeared three years ago.
Ms. Magueyal was part of a group formed by families of people who have disappeared and was the sixth volunteer to be killed since 2021, according to media reports.
Two months earlier, Araceli Rodríguez Nava, who is in a tireless search for her disappeared son, was attacked in Chilpancingo, capital of Guerrero state. The incident took place on 4 March.
Both women were beneficiaries of the federal protection mechanism for human rights defenders and journalists, the UN experts said. Although their cases remain under investigation, information about its effectiveness has been scarce.
Ensure freedom and safety
The UN experts urged the Mexican authorities to ensure human rights defenders working on enforced disappearances can operate freely and safely.
They said enforced disappearances and attacks targeting these activists are linked to the presence of organised crime groups, extortion, human trafficking, kidnapping networks, corruption and collusion with authorities.
Furthermore, operating in a constant environment of fear, threat and insecurity has an intimidating effect on relatives of the victims, civil society, human rights defenders, and organisations.
Investigate and prosecute
They added that many of the rights defenders are women and older persons, increasing their risk of being targeted.
“It is extremely worrying that impunity for crimes against human rights defenders and activists continues despite complaints being filed. Prevention measures and protection for victims and targets of the attacks are either not provided, or not effective,” they said.
“The Government of Mexico needs to promptly investigate, prosecute, and impose appropriate sanctions on any person responsible for the alleged violations”.
Adopt all measures
As their statement was issued on the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, the UN expert surged the Mexican Government “to adopt all necessary measures to prevent irreparable damage to the life and personal integrity of those searching for the forcibly disappeared, their family members, civil society movements, organisations and public servants.”
They noted that a presidential campaign called De Frente a la Libertad is underway in Mexico that is giving greater visibility to the risks faced by journalists and human rights activists in the country.
They said it was time for authorities to take effective measures to protect human rights defenders searching for truth and justice.
About UN rights experts
The statement was issued by Mary Lawlor, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders; Reem Alsalem, UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, and Claudia Mahler, Independent Expert on the enjoyment of all human rights by older persons.
It was endorsed by a UN Working Group and Committee whose mandates cover enforced or involuntary disappearances.
The experts were appointed by the UN Human Rights Council and work on a voluntary basis.
They are not UN staff and do not receive payment for their work.
