EINPRESSWIRE // OSCE Viena – The protection of freedom of religion and belief is a fundamental pillar of democratic societies, and the issue of tolerance and non-discrimination is a major one that the OSCE – ODIHR approaches with civil society and participating states during their Human Dimension Implementation meetings and other events.
Last 26th and 27th of June, the Supplementary Human Dimension Meeting organized by OSCE ODIHR took place in Vienna. The North Macedonian Chair-In-Person was followed by most of the representatives of the participating states of the OSCE, and hundreds of grassroots NGOs to exchange and dialogue about the challenges and proposals for solutions.
The two-day meeting delved into the crucial role played by civil society organizations in promoting and safeguarding tolerance while combating discrimination. It also assessed the effectiveness and challenges through sometimes heated discussions on how to provide them with the necessary support and space to carry out their valuable work.
Participants concentrated on three interconnected themes. The initial session shed light on the strategies employed by civil society to foster respect for diversity among young people and tackle intolerance and hatred in the online realm through public educational initiatives. Scientology representative Ivan Arjona was the organizer of one of the eight side events that took place. He explained how the Human Rights online course sponsored by Scientology, and the “How to Solve Conflicts” course (this last one based on the discoveries of L. Ron Hubbard) can be beneficial to Scientologists and non-Scientologists. He elaborated on the tools that can be used to overcome more easily any attempt of discrimination and also help others to do the same in daily life.
Before the side event, during the session entitled “Civil Society Educational Efforts in Promoting Tolerance and Non-Discrimination”, Arjona, like a dozen of others, was given the floor.
He explained to the representatives of the 57 participating states and the hundreds of NGOs that some German public schools “had fostered and sponsored discrimination to minors, teaching propaganda about which religion not to learn about, and dehumanizing in some cases members of the Church of Scientology.” He further explained that “German authorities, despite over 50 court decisions telling the political powers and the judiciary to treat Scientology and Scientologists within the protection of the right to freedom of belief enshrined in the constitution, turn a deaf ear.
Too many continue to request local administrations or companies that receive public funding, to exclude Scientologists from public and private employments such as city gardeners or architects, to name just two.”
He demanded the authorities to stop this “decade’s long discrimination that forces individuals to spend their salaries or savings on having to defend their rights in court, in addition to the dehumanization that they have to endure when such discrimination happens”.
The German government representative unexpectedly asked to use her right to reply and confirmed in front of all delegations that:
“individual persons, who live by the teachings and standards of Scientology or of other religions, depending on the circumstances of the particular case, can claim the protection of Article 4 [Freedom of religion or worldview of the German Basic Law].”
The German official continued and encouraged Scientologist to seek religious freedom protection in court saying “Provided that members of the Scientology […] in Germany in individual cases consider to have been harmed in their basic rights by state agencies, have for that purpose all available remedies under the rule of law at their disposal. In the Federal Republic of Germany it is guaranteed that violations of basic rights can each be scrutinized in individual cases and that legal protection is available” she concluded.
The Scientology representative expressed his happiness for the positive change of language, which “is an important step forward to be cultivated”, and stressed that in fact, “Scientologists and their Church have been doing that for more than 40 years.” This has brought them to win over 50 court cases in Germany alone.
Arjona raises an important question: “With all these cases won by Scientology, and considering we are now well into the 21st century, an era of diversity, tolerance, and human rights, isn’t it time for German politics to take one additional simple step and put an end to the written and unwritten policies that perpetuate intolerance and discrimination against human beings?”
And to conclude, Arjona explains that experts in religious freedom worldwide share concerns regarding the sponsorship of hate speech and discrimination by German authorities against Scientologists. The numerous victories in over 50 court decisions shed light on the unjust treatment faced by Scientologists and expose the existence of structural bias that either fosters or, at the very least, condones these violations. A recent ruling of April 2022 by the Federal Supreme Administrative Court on a so-called ‘sect filter’ case serves as a significant milestone in the struggle for religious liberty. It emphasizes the importance of upholding constitutional guarantees and equal treatment under the law. This ruling should serve as a reminder to recognize and respect the rights of all religious minorities, ultimately fostering a more inclusive and tolerant society, “as it is happening in countries such as Spain, Holland, Portugal, United Kingdom, USA, Canada, South Africa and others where Scientology has been fully recognized as a bonafide religion,” ends Arjona.
Imagine the following picture. You stand and calmly watch TV. And your dog is meekly sitting next to you and … looking only at you. You get up and go to make dinner – the pet changes its location in the kitchen and focuses on your face again. It’s like he only has eyes for you and doesn’t care about anything else. You go to the bathroom and… he’s with you again, staring at your actions. And stares and stares…
Why is our dog so obsessed with everything we do and constantly, through staring, seeks contact with us?
Check out the 5 main reasons for this behavior. We are sure – you will easily recognize what the animal is trying to tell you!
• Demonstration of love and affection
Just as we humans cannot “take our eyes off” the object of our innermost feelings, we strive to look into the eyes of our mate, so dogs use the gaze to display the adoration they feel for their owners.
According to recent research related to canine behavior, the mutual gaze between us and our pet releases the same hormonal response that occurs between a mother and her baby. Therefore, if the animal looks at you longingly and for no other apparent reason, this is a sign, that it loves you and is just happy to have you around.
• Attention seeking
Often, dogs start staring at their owners in search of attention. This is not necessarily tied to a specific action that you are expected to do such as pet them or play with them. Rather, they want you to notice that they are in the room too, to indicate their presence.
• The dog is confused
You will easily recognize this state because it includes, in addition to the typical gaze staring at you, a slightly tilted head, sometimes – and slightly curled ears. Yes, dogs have the cutest and most inimitable way of showing us that they’re not sure what’s going on, what they’re doing, and that they expect us to give them direction. Sometimes, if we have given them a certain command and they respond with a look like that, then maybe they don’t quite understand what is being asked of them. In this situation, it is good to think about whether your pet’s training has given the necessary result and whether not to reinforce the main ones through more repetitions.
• Wants something
Often times our dog stares at us for a long time as if expecting to get something. This type of learned behavior is, in most cases, the fault of the owners themselves, who have taught the animal that if it gives them “that pitiful look” it will receive a reward. Whether it’s a walk, a treat, a cuddle or a game, if you reward them with something every time they stand and stare at you, dogs will naturally keep doing it to get what they want.
• A sign of aggression
The focused look of our pet can tell us a few minutes in advance that the dog feels threatened or is inclined to show aggression. Most often in such situations it stands motionless, the fur on its back rises – “stingles”. Usually aggressive looks are directed at unknown dogs, less often – at their owners. It’s important to watch your dog’s body language when interacting with other pets, especially males.
Staring at owners or other dogs may seem strange to us, but in the canine world it is an established form of communication.
Therefore, the next time you wonder why he is “staring at you”, ask yourself what is behind those looks and what is going through the mind of our pet.
Photo by Dominika Roseclay: https://www.pexels.com/photo/winking-black-and-brown-puppy-2023384/
Today, on 29 June, Juan Percowicz, the founder of the Yoga School of Buenos Aires (BAYS), is 85 years old. Last year, six weeks after his birthday, he was arrested with 18 other people from his yoga school and detained for 18 days in a cell with nine other prisoners in inhuman conditions. When he was released from the Argentinian prison hell, he was kept in home detention for 67 more days.
Juan Percowicz, the founder of the BAYS yoga school
HRWF has recently interviewed Juan Percowicz who during his professional life as a certified public accountant and a licentiate in administration. In 1993, he was honoured by the World Education Council for his labor as an educator.
One year after his ordeal, he remains innocent of the charges brought against him by a person whose name is still undisclosed: trafficking in women for sexual exploitation and money laundering. However, every one of the alleged victims has denied being such.
As in many other countries, including in the European Union and other democracies, there are serious abuses of custody and pretrial detention in inhumane conditions and for disproportionate periods. Argentina is no exception to the rule and Mr Percowicz was a victim of such abuses.
Arbitrary detention in inhumane conditions in Argentina is an issue that needs to be raised at the United Nations and in other international fora.
Q.: In which circumstances were you arrested in a massive raid targeting about 50 private homes?
Juan Percowicz: On 12 August 2022 I was resting in a house that I had rented to recover from the persistent after-effects of two years of confinement and immobility due to the COVID pandemic. I had almost stopped walking during that period. I was moving with great difficulty because of a stroke and only with a cane.
On that fateful evening, I was lying on my bed when suddenly there was a deafening roar followed by many screams and threatening voices. I could hear people running around everywhere inside but I couldn’t understand what was going on.
I was very scared because I was not used to getting visitors and even less so without warning. My first thought was that thieves had broken in.
I soon saw two of my people lying on the floor and people in uniform pointing long guns at them.
I could hear a lot of shouting and I began to distinguish some words “Nobody moves, this is a raid”.
Everything was confusing and above all violent, very violent.
I could not understand why we were treated like dangerous criminals. I never had anything to hide or anything to feel at fault for.
The first thing they did was to take us all to the living room, screaming and handcuffing us, ordering us not to talk to each other or they would separate us. There were five of us and more than 10 of them.
They read us our names and told us that after going through the whole house, which they did with a lot of violence, they would read us their search report.
We could not understand what was happening. Our lives depended on a group of men in uniform who were not willing to explain to us immediately what was going on or what crime we were supposed to have committed. We had to make a lot of efforts to remain quiet without protesting.
The raid, the shouting and the threats lasted for about 15 hours throughout the night.
They searched the whole house. They took all the electronic devices, computers, silver coins from a collection, all the personal papers they found, personal diaries and notebooks and all the money we had, even what we had in our wallets and many other things.
They told us that the procedure was being carried out in about 50 places at the same time, including my home. This made me even more afraid because it was so disproportionate and incomprehensible.
I could not rest all night because of the procedure and the threats.
On the next day at noon, we were transferred to the police station.
The interrogation
Q.: How did the transfer occur?
Juan Percowicz: On the trip I got sick and vomited several times.
When they took us out of the house, they took pictures of us handcuffed in front of a poster. They filmed us as we left and all the pictures were soon published in the press saying that they had disbanded “a cult of horror” and imprisoned the leader.
They told us that they were detaining us to take our data and then they would release us. However, after many hours spent in the police station where they took our fingerprints several times and asked us several times for our personal data, they told us that we were going to be detained.
Those who were arrested with me desperately tried to call the policemen to reason. They told the guards that my life was in great danger if I did not get the medical care and the medication I needed and insisted that they should consider my age, my state of health and my pathologies, but in vain.
The officers were constantly whispering with pride among themselves about the great catch they had made.
The detention
HRWF: How were your detention conditions?
Juan Percowicz: I was taken along with nine companions to a deep, dark and damp basement.
They lowered me down in a dirty wheelchair that we managed to get but I could fall at any time and get seriously injured while going down a steep staircase.
They took my cane and my belongings. I had brought my blood pressure monitor and a glucose measuring device because I am diabetic. They took them from me when they stripped me of my clothes to control my health.
I was very cold, hungry and thirsty.
I was then led down some dark, gloomy, faded and dirty barred corridors to the basement.
Along with the growing confusion and bewilderment, it seemed that the spaces were shrinking and becoming more and more gloomy and threatening.
We tried to encourage each other, but inside we had a feeling of total insecurity and helplessness.
A sink without any water
We arrived at a space measuring approximately 5 x 4 m, dark, windowless, very humid, and inhospitable, with bars separating it from the corridor. I understood that it was our cell. The floor was entirely covered by the mattresses on which we were to sleep. They were absolutely broken, stripped and dangerously dirty. In a corner, there was a hole in the floor to be used as a toilet and a sink without any water.
I could never have imagined in my life that one day I would live for 18 days in such conditions.
I can hardly walk, as I said, and I had to sleep on the floor but I was very grateful to be with companions who could help me to move at any time. Alone, I would never have managed it. There was no decent bathroom or water nearby.
We still did not understand what was happening and why we were prisoners. We had no answers and nothing made sense. There was nothing to justify our deprivation of freedom in such awful conditions.
On the next day our comrades who were free managed to bring us some food and some protection against the cold and the humidity.
I was also worried about the health and well-being of those who were with me. Some of them had some pathologies and needed specific care.
At the court
Q.: When were you taken to court and how was the media coverage?
Juan Percowicz: Three days after the raid, I was taken in a wheelchair to the court in Comodoro Py to testify. When we were leaving the police station, they made us get in and out of the truck twice because the person filming the transfer did not get the filming right. I was taken handcuffed in a transport truck.
In Comodoro Py the magistrates read some illogical and unintelligible accusations, which corresponded more to a fantastic novel than to reality.
Comodoro Py Court (Credit: DYN)
Once again, when I got off, media people were filming. My photo was in the news all the time with the most infamous and lying stories. Every time there was a transfer, people were filming us: the media and the police. I was repeatedly presented in the media as a corrupt, diabolical and dangerous person, without any reason or evidence of any kind to support such a hypothesis. My reputation was shattered and soiled, damaged forever.
Inhumane detention conditions for 18 days
Q.: How was the daily life in detention?
Juan Percowicz: There were three guard shifts.
The guard who arrived in the morning at about 5:30-6:00 would take a head count to make sure we were all there.
I will never forget the noise of the keys opening bars and moving irons and padlocks. Every morning I was wondering for how many more days the whole nightmare would go on.
During the night I was trying to rest but I had to get up many times to urinate, and in those deplorable conditions much more than usual.
We had breakfast thanks to the things that our companions brought us from outside.
Every time I moved, I needed the help of three of them to get up and move around, because as time went on my body became more and more numb.
Once the comrades tried to pour water with a bucket over the sink that did not work, but the drain was broken and the water came out on the floor of the cell and the mattresses got wet.
Our cell could only get some light from a low-intensity bulb in the entrance corridor, too far away to be efficient.
We did not know if it was night or day. Our only landmark was the changing of the guard.
One day the sewage drain in the latrines was clogged and dirty water began to come out through a drain a few meters away. We had to lift our mattresses so that they would not get wet with the infected water. Some of our colleagues unclogged the pipes with tape but had to endure grabbing and splashing faecal matter in order to keep us from being flooded with shit. All this took place in the dark.
Everyone was very worried about me and I was worried about them. The situation was desperately incomprehensible to everyone. The days went by and nothing was changing. I did not know how or when it would end.
Back home with an electronic anklet and a trauma
Q.: How was your life when you were under home arrest?
Argentina and its Yoga School: Happy 85th birthday, Mr Percowicz 6
Juan Percowicz: Eighteen days after my detention I was transferred to my home to continue my captivity in house arrest with an electronic anklet.
In the meantime, my health had seriously deteriorated, my body was numb, my legs were swollen and I was almost almost unable to walk. I was physically very weak.
I could not leave the apartment at all. A policeman came in the morning and another one at night to check me and my anklet. I also could not have any contact with the outside world. That lasted for 67 days.
To this day I have had nightmares of persecution. Sometimes I try to watch some news or programs about the raid and the judicial procedures broadcast during my incarceration but it is too painful. I am still deeply hurt by the determination of some to destroy us and by the malice of an infamous press.
I am deeply grateful to God for having kept me alive in such adverse moments and in the company of friends who protected and defended me at every step.
A large group of Members of the European Parliament, judges, and officials gathered in Brussels on Tuesday evening to support Omar Harfouch, the Leader of the Third Lebanon Republic initiative, who is being politically and judicially repressed for his fight against corruption in Lebanon.
A conference was held on Tuesday evening at the European Parliament headquarters in Brussels to discuss the future of Lebanon and the role of the European Union in advancing human rights in the country. The conference was attended by European deputies, judges, and officials, as well as Omar Harfouch, the Leader of the Third Lebanon Republic initiative. Harfouch is a Lebanese activist who has been persecuted by the Lebanese government for his work to fight corruption. The conference was held in support of Harfouch and his efforts to promote democracy and human rights in Lebanon.
The conference was held few days ago at the invitation of a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET),MEP Lukas Mandel, and was titled “Which Future for Lebanon? The Role of the European Union in Advancing Human Rights in Lebanon.” According to sources, the most prominent figures who attended the meeting were the Public Prosecutor of Mount Lebanon, Judge Ghada Aoun, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, Andre Petrojev, a member of the French Senate, Natalie Gaulier, and the founder of “Sherpa” lawyer William Bourdon, in addition to Representatives from various European countries.
Claude Moniquet, a former intelligence agent at the French Directorate-General for External Security (DGSE), and CEO of the European Strategic Intelligence and Security Center (ESISC) believes that Harfouch was the victim of an unfair and unlawful campaign to have him imprisoned. He called on the European Union to intervene and cancel the arrest warrant against Harfouch, arguing that the charges against him, which were brought by the Lebanese Prime Minister personally, did not give him the right to defend himself in court. Moniquet also pointed out that the accusations against Harfouch of meeting with Israelis or Jews under the roof of the European Parliament were an insult to the EU, as it is a place where people of all nationalities and religions come together.
Moniquet urged European countries to protect Harfouch from the political and judicial targeting he is facing in Lebanon, to cancel the illegal arrest warrant, and to impose sanctions on the politicians and judges involved in the case. The issue of sanctions against those involved in the Harfouch case is also expected to be on the agenda of the European Union in September when a vote on the matter will be held.
Upon his return from Beirut, lawyer William Bourdon spoke about the fight against corruption in Lebanon. He highlighted how the crimes committed by Riad Salameh, the Governor of the Banque du Liban, have been exposed, including the freezing of funds in Europe that he personally supervised. Bourdon warned that the coming days could bring trouble for some politicians who have been involved in corruption and money laundering
The intervention of Judge Ghada Aoun was under embargo on her demand who spoke about the corrupted judges in Lebanon and that without real justice the state of Lebanon would not exist, and considered that what Harfouch is exposed to is the best evidence of the existence of corruption in the judiciary.
In turn, Harfouch touched on his case in the military court, especially that the court moved against him with superficial allegations, specially considering that being in the same place with an Israeli journalist happened already in 2004 and long time has passed by, and that the real reason is that Harfouch fights corruption and exposes many scandals and files.
It is noteworthy that Harfouch did not mention during his speech the prime minister, Najib Mikati, or the first investigative judge in Tripoli, Samaranda Nassar who are doing a real unjustified war against him. When asked about the reason for not mentioning them, he said that he did not want to use the European Union platform to score points, and that those present talked about the issue and the result will come on conclusions.
But the point that aroused the attention of the audience was when Harfouch touched upon what Judge Aoun, lawyer Wadih Akl and Harfouch were subjected to, in terms of parallel political and judicial campaigns in terms of timing and source, because the trio were the ones who most confronted the corrupt in Lebanon, so the system wanted to get rid of them in any way.
The session came a week before the European Parliament voted on a decision regarding Lebanon and the possibility of including sanctions against officials in it who are related to corruption or those who protect the corrupt and a possible resolution in next September, after it was debated during the plenary session a week ago in Strasbourg and the case of Omar Harfouch was mentioned publicly and officially during the session, which is likely to be mentioned on the European decision itself.
A strongly worded statement by the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General reiterates that settlements are a flagrant violation of international law and relevant UN resolutions. Antonio Guterres, it says, urged the Government of Israel to halt and reverse the expansion of settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, to immediately and completely cease all settlements activities there and to respect its relevant legal obligations.
The statement refers to the Monday’s advancement of plans for over 5,500 housing units in Israeli settlements in Area C of the occupied West Bank, including the retroactive regularization, under Israeli law, of three settlement outposts adjacent to the settlement of Eli.
Settlements impede peace
Antonio Guterres emphasized that Israel’s persistent expansion of settlements, including in East Jerusalem, “deepens humanitarian needs, fuels violence, increases the risk of confrontation, further entrenches the occupation, and undermines the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination”.
The UN chief warned that the ongoing settlements are eroding the possibility of establishing a contiguous and viable sovereign Palestinian State, based on the pre-1967 lines and impede the ability to achieve a viable two-State solution, and a just, lasting and comprehensive peace.
The UN’s top humanitarian official in the country Matthias Schmale informed that severe hunger is affecting 4.3 million people in Nigeria’s Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states. The number of children under five at risk of life-threatening severe acute malnutrition has doubled in one year to reach 700,000.
Describing the situation in the region, Mr. Schmale said: “I have been to Borno and the other two states several times, I’ve seen mothers fighting for lives of their malnourished children in nutrition stabilization centres.” The children he spoke to complained about being hungry for days.
“Those of us who are parents must imagine what it’s like when you cannot ensure your children have enough to eat,” he emphasized.
Drivers of crisis
The “catastrophic” situation is primarily the result of more than a decade of insecurity linked to non-State armed groups, which prevents people from farming and earning income from the land, Mr. Schmale said.
Another harmful factor is climate change and extreme weather impacts. Last year saw the worst floods in ten years in Nigeria, which affected more than 4.4 million people across the country, not just the north-east.
Soaring prices of food, fuel and fertilizers have exacerbated the crisis, and the response remains severely underfunded. The UN official said that out of the $1.3 billion in humanitarian funding needed for the region, only 25 per cent has been secured so far.
The setbacks also hit insect breeders and lab-grown meats
Unreal Food has ended its attempts at an eggless egg. Remastered Foods has stopped developing vegan bacon. The Meatless Farm has discontinued its plant-based sausages.
The big shake-up in the global meat substitute sector is here and expanding.
With money flowing less freely due to rising interest rates, investors have sharply withdrawn funding just as inflation is driving up production costs and making consumers more selective about their food choices. This hits a crowded field that mushroomed after the early success of Beyond Meat Inc. and Impossible Foods Inc.
With consumers put off by excessive processing, nutritional value and taste, a growing list of alternative protein companies are closing, laying off staff and selling their businesses. Industry observers say there is more upheaval to come before the sector stabilises.
Enthusiasm for alternatives to beef and pork grew after Beyond Meat’s initial public offering in 2019, and venture capital was willing to invest in companies that offered little more than a recipe book.
But sales fell short of wildly optimistic forecasts, as high prices and strange flavors and textures made expensive products easy to cross off shopping lists. The streak of failures stretches from plant proteins and vertical farmers to insect breeders and lab-grown meats. Global investment in food and agricultural technology is set to drop by 44% in 2022, according to AgFunder.
The downturn so far has wiped out mostly obscure names and early-stage companies, such as Canada’s Merit Foods and China’s Hey Meat.
In the UK, two promising companies recently appointed administrators: The Meatless Farm cut staff at its Leeds headquarters, while Plant & Bean was hit by a spike in food and energy prices just two years after opening a mega factory in Lincolnshire.
The upheaval is part of an adjustment phase happening in almost every high-growth consumer segment from smoothies to popcorn, said Andy Shovell, co-founder of British plant-based meat company THIS, whose sales have grown about 45% this year.
The result will be less confusion in stores, better quality and prices that will approach those of meat, according to Chauvel. “From the customer’s point of view, this is only good news,” he said.
Strong industry leaders have also stumbled. Beyond Meat, whose market value is down more than 90% from its peak, has had several rounds of layoffs in the past year, as has Impossible Foods. The cuts also affected Spain’s Heura Foods and California-based Eat Just Inc., which continued to expand its U.S. distribution.
Traditional food companies are also downsizing. Nestle SA has pulled its Garden Gourmet line and Wunda pea milk from the UK due to stiff competition. Meat giant JBS SA has spun off its Planterra unit after pouring cash into a mega factory in Colorado.
Despite the turmoil, some investors remain optimistic. Big Idea Ventures, a fund of food-tech investors, said last month it was closing in on a $75 million fundraising goal. Fake bacon maker MyForest Foods raised $15 million in new funding earlier this month, and Israeli startup Chunk Foods announced a seed round of the same size in the spring.
Emissions of key air pollutants monitored under EU law continued to decline across most EU Member States maintaining a trend since 2005. However, the most problematic area remains reducing ammonia emissions, emitted mostly by the agriculture sector. The latest annual European Environment Agency (EEA) analysis of air pollution data provided by EU Member States is published today.
In 2021, 13 Member States met their respective 2020-2029 national emission reduction commitments under the EU’s National Emission reduction Commitments Directive (NECD) for each of the five main pollutants (nitrogen oxides, non-methane volatile organic compounds, ammonia, sulphur dioxide and fine particulate matter) according to the EEA assessment. Thirteen Member States failed to do so for at least one of the five main air pollutants (and one Member States did not report this year). The overall downward trend since 2005 comes despite economic growth over the same period.
The EEA briefing is based on the latest available data reported by Member States in 2023 for their 2021 emissions. It describes the progress made towards reducing emissions of the five main air pollutants regulated under the directive. It presents an assessment of Member State performance against the emission reduction commitments for 2020-2029 as well as their progress towards achieving the more ambitious reduction commitments that will apply from 2030 onward.
Achieving further reductions for 2030 and beyond will be a significant challenge for nearly all EU countries for nearly all pollutants, as the reduction rate for some pollutant emissions is now levelling off according to the briefing. One exception is sulphur dioxide, where many countries are already compliant with their 2030 reduction commitment. Sulphur dioxide emission contribute to acidification and is responsible for damage to ecosystems and buildings, among other detrimental effects.
Reducing ammonia emissions remains the biggest challenge. Ammonia emissions are a concern as they contribute to excessive nitrogen presence in water ecosystems leading to the known phenomenon of eutrophication, among other environmental negative impacts. Ammonia is also a precursor to fine particulate matter, very harmful to health. Ten Member States will have to reduce their ammonia emissions compared to 2021 levels to fulfil their 2020-2029 reduction commitments. The agriculture sector is the principal source, responsible for 93% of total ammonia emissions in the EU. Since 2005, ammonia emissions have only slightly decreased in many Member States and in some cases have even increased.
This information is based solely on data provided by Member States and does not constitute a compliance check by the European Commission. The numbers presented here may be subject to change in relation to the result of the NEC directive inventory review.
The separate annual EU emission inventory report 1990-2021, also published today by the EEA, showed a continued downward trend in emissions for most main air pollutants, however emissions decreased more slowly from 2007 to 2021. The report looks at air pollutant emissions reported by the EU under the UNECE Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (the Air Convention) and includes a wide range of substances. These include the five main air pollutants (NOX, NMVOCs, SO2, NH3 and PM2.5) but also others such as heavy metals, black carbon or persistent organic pollutants.
Background
Under the National Emission reduction Commitments (NEC) directive 2016/2284, EU Member States are required to meet national commitments to reduce emissions for these five air pollutants to deliver clean air for human health and the environment.
The EEA analysis is based on the latest air pollutant emission inventory data, as reported by Member States in February 2023 both under the Directive and the UNECE Air Convention.
“We’ve already seen over 560,000 people crossing into neighbouring countries…[and] nearly two million people displaced internally,” said Raouf Mazou, UNHCR’s Assistant High Commissioner for Operations, following a visit to Sudan.
Since conflict erupted there on 15 April when rival militaries clashed, more than half a million people have reached neighbouring countries in a bid to escape the fighting, with Egypt receiving the most refugees followed by Chad, South Sudan, Ethiopia, and the Central African Republic.
Based on the continuing violence, the UN agency now expects that its previous estimate of one million refugees will be surpassed.
In response to the crisis, UNHCR and other UN agencies, humanitarian partners, and host communities have increased efforts to provide emergency shelter, clean water, health care services, psychosocial support, and other vital assistance to help displaced populations inside and outside Sudan.
Host communities unaffected by the conflict until now are also “seeing the consequences”, Mr. Mazou said.
“All are in need of protection and assistance,” he added. “What is also quite striking, and which needs to be underlined, is how welcoming the host populations are.”
West Darfur horror
Although violence has erupted across multiple fronts, UNHCR raised particular concerns about West Darfur. Aid access is “limited” amid reports of “wanton killings” by militia that the UN human rights office, OHCHR, has condemned.
Bordering West Darfur, Chad has seen 170,000 people crossing its borders to flee the conflict, according to the UN refugee agency. Many, including women and children, have arrived needing treatment for their injuries, the agency said.
At the same time, the rainy season has thwarted aid workers from reaching those crossing the border and transporting them to refugee camps, the agency said.
Tents have been set up at the Gorom refugee camp in South Sudan to host new arrivals from Sudan.
South Sudan returnees
More than 120,000 people crossed the border into South Sudan, where sparse infrastructure and security concerns represent significant challenges that are preventing new arrivals from moving on, the agency warned. Much of the assistance they need will have to be airlifted, which is both costly and complex.
Meanwhile, UNHCR teams are registering new arrivals, providing them with emergency relief, and helping them to reach different locations as quickly as possible.
Most of the arrivals are South Sudanese, returning to their country, Mr. Mazou said.
“They are part of the 800,000 South Sudanese refugees who were in Sudan, but they are now going back,” he said.
Strained resources
Capacity at border reception and transit facilities in neighbouring countries have been strained by the sheer numbers of people arriving, leading to overcrowding and further stretching of already limited resources, the UN refugee agency said.
Those fleeing Sudan arrive exhausted after days or sometimes weeks on the road, shocked by the violence they have witnessed and in need of food, medical care, and relief items, UNCHR reported.
During a donor conference for Sudan in Geneva on 19 June, $1.52 billion in pledges were received against an appeal for $3 billion to address the current situation.
Learn more about how UNHCR is helping the people of Sudan and those fleeing the violence here.
“The effects of climate change are becoming more severe, and the number of people displaced across international borders is rapidly increasing,” said Ian Fry, independent human rights expert on climate change, who took up the new post last year.
“In 2020 alone, 30.7 million people were displaced from their homes due to weather-related events. Droughts were the main factor,” Mr. Fry said in his latest thematic report to the Human Rights Council in Geneva. “We must take immediate steps to give legal protection to these people.”
The independent expert said that people displaced by climate change face multiple human rights violations including of their rights to food, water, sanitation, housing, health, education and, for some, their basic right to life.
“The human rights implications of climate change displacement, in particular across international borders, are significant and truly disturbing,” the expert said.
He called it “profoundly worrying” that large numbers of people displaced across borders, die or go missing every year on both land and sea.
More than 50,000 lost their lives during migratory movements between 2014 and 2022. “It is equally shocking to note that more than half of those deaths occurred on routes to and within Europe, including in the Mediterranean Sea,” he said.
Displacement and natural disasters
According to the independent expert, displacement due to climate change can take many different forms.
It can involve sudden events or more slow acting factors such sea level rise or drought. Most people affected by these events feel they have no choice but to move. Women and children are the most impacted by disasters and the effects of climate change, and also account for the majority of displaced people.
“The international community must realise its responsibility to protect people displaced across borders by climate change impacts,” the expert said.
Legal protection
Mr. Fry explained that the world was not operating in a total vacuum in terms of legal protection safeguards, with several options already in place.
“The Human Rights Council should prepare a resolution for submission to the UN General Assembly urging the body to develop an optional protocol under the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees to address displacement and legal protection for people all over the world affected by the climate crisis,” the expert said.
“Until then, I urge all nations to develop national legislation to provide humanitarian visas for persons displaced across international borders due to climate change, as an interim measure,” he said.
Independent experts and other UN Human Rights Council-appointed rights experts, work on a voluntary and unpaid basis, are not UN staff, and work independently from any government or organisation.
