Record executions, large-scale arrests and detentions: New Iran human rights report

22 June 2023

“The overall human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran has markedly deteriorated against the backdrop of continuously worsening socio-economic conditions, aggravated by sanctions and the lingering impact of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Nada Al-Nashif, UN deputy human rights chief, presenting the report to the Human Rights Council in Geneva.

The report focuses on developments since the onset of nationwide protests following the death of 22-year-old Jina Mahsa Amini on 16 September last year. Three days after she fell into a coma and died in police custody, following her arrest by Iran’s so-called Morality Police.

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Hundreds put to death

The report notes with serious concern the high number of death penalty sentences and executions during the reporting period.

“In 2022, 582 people were executed”, noted the Deputy High Commissioner of UN human rights office OHCHR.

“That is a 75 per cent increase compared to 2021 during which 333 people were reportedly executed. There were three children among those executed in 2022. Of the total number of executions, 256 were for drug-related offences.”

According to Ms. Al-Nashif, this marks the highest rate of drug-related executions in the country since 2017.

At least 44 children killed

The total detained for taking part in the protests is estimated at around 20,000, the report said.

Thousands of children are estimated to have been among those arrested during the protests, while at least 44 children, including 10 girls, were reportedly killed by security forces using lethal force.

The highest number of deaths was reported in the Sistan and Baluchistan Province, where at least 10 children were killed.

“There have been numerous allegations of torture and ill-treatment of individuals by security forces during arrest and interrogation to extract forced confessions as well as allegations of sexual and gender-based violence committed against women, men and children, especially in detention,” said Ms. Al-Nashif.

“Prison conditions including denial of medical care, dire sanitary conditions, contaminated drinking water and overcrowding, remain of concern.”

Rights diminishing

Since the onset of protests, respect for the right to freedom has significantly deteriorated, the Human Rights Council heard.

State policy was also found to have become more stringent in enforcing mandatory veiling and imposing harsher penalties on women and girls who fail to respect the ruling.

AI tracks veil offenders

“On 15 August 2022, the President signed a decree which includes the introduction of face-recognition technology to track and punish unveiled women or those who actively question compulsory veiling”, said the deputy UN rights chief.

“At the legislative level, new draft provisions to the Penal Code are being considered in parliament to expand the scope of offences for non-compliance, allowing imprisonment, flogging and other punishments.”

The report also noted Iran’s failure to protect the physical and mental well-being of female students and attacks on their right to education.

Suspected poisonings

“As of 2 March of this year more than 1,000 students, the majority of whom are girls, had reportedly been affected by suspected poisoning in 91 schools in 20 provinces. The authorities provided conflicting accounts of these incidents,” noted Ms. Al-Nashif.

Ali Bahreini, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Iran to the UN in Geneva, rejected the report outright as inaccurate.

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Scientology organizes event at OSCE/ODIHR Meeting in Vienna

Newsdesk

22 June 2023

VIENNA, AUSTRIA, June 22, 2023/EINPresswire.com/ — Supplementary Human Dimension Meetings are mandated meetings, dedicated to discussing the implementation of OSCE “human dimension commitments” and sharing recommendations on key substantive concerns relevant to the selected topics.

The third “Supplementary Human Dimension Meeting” of 2023, organized by the OSCE Chairpersonship of North Macedonia, OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), will look at the role of “civil society organizations in promoting and protecting tolerance and combating discrimination,” as well as assess the effectiveness of their efforts and discuss the best ways to give them the space and support they need to do their work.

As part of the main meetings, civil society is encouraged to organize 8 side events within the framework of the main meeting. It is in this space that an event proposed by the European Office of the Church of Scientology for Public Affairs and Human Rights has been accepted in the calendar.

With the title “Faith-Based Approaches to Combatting Discrimination and Promoting Inclusion”, the event organized by Ivan Arjona as representative of the Scientologists to all European institutions, OSCE and United Nations, explained in the summary of the event to take place on Monday 26, that

“Faith-based organizations can play a crucial role in promoting tolerance and non-discrimination. Faith-based organizations have the potential to make a significant impact in promoting tolerance and non-discrimination. The event will attempt to offer valuable insights and resources to help understand how to approach these issues from a faith-based perspective, and how to effectively promote and protect tolerance and non-discrimination within faith communities. How can Faith-based organizations use their influence to advocate for policies that promote equality and justice? We will cover different practices such as lobbying lawmakers, participating in public demonstrations, or partnering with other organizations to promote social justice.”

This side event will include the view of different religions, including the one of Scientology, based on the teachings of its founder L. Ron Hubbard.

In regards to the main OSCE, where Arjona will have the possibility to interact, participants will concentrate on three interrelated issues. The first session will focus on civil society techniques for teaching young people about diversity and combating prejudice and hatred in the online space through public education campaigns. The second session will concentrate on civil society efforts to combat intolerance and prejudice against communities that are frequently targets of hatred, such as Roma and Sinti, as well as migrants and refugees.

Finally, participants will explore the role and effectiveness of collaboration among various civil society organizations, as well as collaboration with state institutions, in improving the situation throughout the OSCE region.

The “Supplementary Human Dimension Meeting” will bring together representatives from OSCE participating states, OSCE institutions and structures, international organizations, civil society, media, and other stakeholders with relevant experience. The Partners for Cooperation are welcome to participate and contribute to their field cooperation and relations with the OSCE.

PETA – after the animal skins, – the silk and wool

Gaston de Persigny

22 June 2023

What are the substances that the organization believes should be banned

Some may scoff at the environmentalists People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), but in recent years they have succeeded in enforcing a number of their rules.

Clothing and accessories made of animal skin with hair are now considered unacceptable kitsch in the fashion world and have long been replaced by synthetic materials. Now, however, PETA wants to expand the list of materials it doesn’t want the textile industry to work with.

Animal skin, wool, silk – all materials that the organization believes should be banned.

Since 2020, the face of this part of PETA’s campaigns is the actress Alicia Silverstone. To complement her message, Silverstone is pictured wearing a pair of cowboy boots that are made entirely from a vegan alternative to animal skin.

According to the information on the PETA website, the rejection of animal fur has a double impact – it saves animals and protects the environment, because animal fur requires more processing and consumption of water and electricity for its processing. Vegan leather, on the other hand, is far more economical.

Currently, vegan leather alternatives are produced from cacti, various types of mushrooms and even from apple peels.

There are also polyurethane options and a variety of plastic sources. Vegan leather is already being used by a number of “fast fashion” brands, but more elite designer brands still refuse to completely replace natural leather with artificial leather.

The problem is that vegan leather can’t match natural leather in terms of durability.

According to experts cited by Vogue, genuine leather items last between 2 and 5 years with moderate use and good maintenance. In some cases, the life of these goods can reach 10 years or more if the leather is of superior quality and is carefully cared for and cleaned.

Vegan leather is thinner and, accordingly, less durable. It wears out more easily, scratches and damage are more visible and the average life of such a product does not exceed 2-3 years.

Therefore, it is not surprising that expensive fashion brands want their logos on genuine leather. But what about PETA’s campaigns against wool and silk?

The organization begins its campaign against the wool with a clip that supposedly aims to show how violently the sheep are sheared. Along with the footage of the sheep shearing, PETA also captured several British reality stars and influencers reacting strongly to what they saw.

Some are outraged, others start to cry, with one of the Love Island reality contestants saying she thought they were “just shearing the sheep”.

Conservationists are convinced that animals suffer harassment and insurmountable stress during their shearing, and therefore it is best to give up wool products en masse. At first glance, this sounds easier than going completely vegan leather, because wool has quality alternatives.

Wool can be replaced by linen, cotton, bamboo, lyocell, and some fully synthetic fabrics that, when woven fine enough, resemble wool.

However, with their “Save the Sheep” appeal, PETA misses the fact that sheep must be sheared at a certain period of time, otherwise they begin to suffer.

The long and unmaintained fleece begins to cause the sheep itches, skin irritations, weighs them down and prevents them from moving freely. Unshorn fleece can also be a favorable environment for ticks, fleas and lice, and proper shearing should definitely not cause pain to the animal.

For painless fleece removal, there are a number of positions that farmers should learn in which the sheep do not feel any pain.

As for the video that PETA is distributing, it is from 2014 and is from Australia. It shows enraged farmers kicking and punching sheep and then shearing them literally to the point of blood.

The Ministry of Agriculture reacted immediately and declared the footage an isolated case and unjustified cruelty to animals, which should not be encouraged under any circumstances.

Last but not least, the nature protection organization also wants a ban on the use of natural silk and declares it incompatible with a vegan lifestyle.

Silk is obtained after boiling the silkworms in a period in which they have formed a sufficient amount of threads around their body. On their website, PETA explains that bugs are actually sentient creatures capable of experiencing stress, pain, and suffering, and therefore boiling them is barbaric.

Natural silk can be replaced with nylon fabrics, polyester and synthetic satin.

And in this case, the organization will probably hit a snag with designer brands, because none of the alternatives to silk have its qualities. Artificial fabrics crumple much more easily, tear more easily and, last but not least, steam the skin.

As for the suffering of silkworms – so far there are not many studies that conclusively show that insects can really have feelings like fear and grief.

Photo by Trinity Kubassek: https://www.pexels.com/photo/sheep-288621/

UN remains focused on ‘critical needs’ of Ukraine’s people

United Nations News

21 June 2023

UN remains focused on ‘critical needs’ of Ukraine’s people

Achim Steiner, head of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and Vice-Chair of the UN Sustainable Development Group told delegates he had just returned from the war-torn country, noting civilians’ “extraordinary determination to adapt, to recover and to rebuild.”

“The UN had developed a clear picture to inform a targeted recovery through a Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment developed with our partners”, he said.

He added that the UN continues efforts to provide assistance to all of those in need, including in areas currently under Russian control where humanitarian access is extremely limited.

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Farming and environment

To chart a way forward, Mr. Steiner said the UN and partners were developing a damage assessment with a focus on agriculture and the environment.

He said that in 2023, the UN scaled up its recovery efforts, implementing $1 billion of recovery and development programming in line with the Government’s priorities, driven by 24 different UN offices and more than 3,700 personnel.

Mr. Steiner highlighted that the UN’s pledge to stay and deliver in Ukraine is characterized by community-level recovery – jointly planning, sequencing, and layering our humanitarian, development, and support for social cohesion.

Rescue workers killed and injured

The World Food Programme’s (WFP) senior humanitarian official on the ground, Matthew Hollingworth, has condemned an attack on Kherson on Tuesday that killed and injured rescue workers from Ukraine’s emergency services.

He said the incident was yet another example of the human impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, reminding the country of its obligations to protect civilians, including rescue workers, under international humanitarian law.

UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told reporters in New York on Wednesday that agencies were continuing “to work non-stop” to help those impacted by the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam, assisting the “remarkable work” of volunteers and government responders.

“Two weeks since the disaster, UN agencies and humanitarian partners organized 12 inter-agency convoys, including two by boat and amphibious trucks, delivering 50 truckloads of vital supplies to help people in the Kherson Region and those living in the Dnipro Region”, aid Mr. Dujarric.

Access to drinking water continues to be extremely limited due to the disaster.

“Overall, and across all affected areas, the UN – along with our partners – delivered more than two million litres of water, 130,000 ready-to-eat food rations, hygiene items, medical supplies, shelter kits, sleeping bags, blankets and other essential items.”

‘Marshall plan’ approach needed to stop landmines wrecking economy

Another by-product of Russia’s invasion is the scourge of landmines planted by invaders during their occupation of the country since February last year.

Tens of thousands will need to be cleared to put the country’s economy back on track and enable food to be grown for the rest of the world, said UNDP on Wednesday.

The UN agency has been mandated by Ukraine’s Government to address the economic impact of mine contamination “in years, not decades”, UNDP’s Paul Heslop, who leads mine action in the country, told reporters in Geneva.

He told reporters in Geneva that a “Marshall Plan-type approach” to mine clearance was needed, so that agricultural land can be returned to use as quickly as possible.

The plan devised by the Truman Administration in 1947 helped restore the economic infrastructure of post-World War Two Europe.

“I think it is very realistic for us to say to the international community, make the commitment over the next five years, and we will see Ukraine retake its place as an agricultural powerhouse, and that will affect the world”, said Mr. Heslop. “It will bring down food prices for everybody.”

UNDP believes that with “the right resources and the right commitment”, the world can help Ukraine remove 75 per cent of the economic impact of mine contamination by 2028, Mr. Heslop said.

He stressed this will require harnessing innovation like satellite imagery and drones alongside traditional demining techniques.

More investment in training and equipment will also be needed and new lending arrangements so farmers can clear land.

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Afghanistan mission chief to Taliban: Bans on women and girls cost you legitimacy at home and abroad

United Nations News

21 June 2023

Afghanistan mission chief to Taliban: Bans on women and girls cost you legitimacy at home and abroad

UN Special Representative Roza Otunbayeva was briefing the Security Council on the dire situation facing the country and the international aid effort, with UN women workers among those now prevented by Taliban edicts from working.

“We will not put our national staff in danger and therefore we are asking them not to report to the office” she said, adding that the UN Assistance Mission she also heads, UNAMA, has no intention of replacing them with male staff.

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No assurances

She said the Taliban had given her no explanation for the ban, “and no assurances that it will be lifted.”

She said she had been “blunt” with the all-male leadership about the obstacles their decrees and restrictions on women in public life were creating, which include denying schooling beyond primary level, bans on visiting parks, gyms and playing a role in public life in general.

She has conveyed that while they persist with the human rights clamp down on women and girls, “it is nearly impossible that their government will be recognized”.

Half the population suffering

She said based on UNAMA’s engagement with civil society around the country: “it is also clear that these decrees are highly unpopular among the Afghan population. They cost the Taliban both domestic and international legitimacy while inflicting suffering on half of their population and damaging the economy.”

The UNAMA chief called on ambassadors and the international community to do more to ensure the future stability of the Afghan economy, especially in light of an expected decline in humanitarian funding this year.

The spotlight on women’s rights has also obscured some “more positive achievements” of Taliban rule, she said, mentioning the growing evidence of an effective ban on opium poppy cultivation.

Stable economy

The economy too “remains stable” with inflation down and exchange rates steady – due in part to a reduction in high level corruption.

“This macroeconomic stability, however, coexists with severe household poverty” with 58 per cent struggling to satisfy basic needs, according to the World Bank.

On other areas of concern, the UNAMA head said despite concerted counter-terrorism efforts, the terrorist group ISIL-KP continued to target both Taliban official and civilians.

Although the Taliban takeover has led to a sharp fall in civilian casualties, she said the UN Mine Action Service was reporting there continue to be around 100 casualties per month from unexploded ordinance.

In conclusion, she told the Council that UNAMA and the UN system in Afghanistan would continue to engage with the Taliban, building on “established reliable working channels”.

“We could do much more however, if the Taliban rescinded its punishing restrictions on its female population.”

Fanning the flames

Shabana Basij-Rasikh, the co-founder of Afghan girls’ education non-profit SOLA, told ambassadors she had lived through the darkness of Taliban rule in the 1990s and the secret schools she attended, are back.

“I am the inheritor of the bravery of Afghan women and men too, who kindled fires in the darkness of our nation as the world’s attention drifted away. Those fires are burning even now. The secret schools have reopened in Kabul and the provinces. My school SOLA, forced into exile, is thriving in Rwanda”.

She said a record 2,000 applications had been received from Afghan communities spread across the world. “2,000 fires in the darkness, and each one represents the unquenchable, and unconquerable desire for access to the basic human right of education.”

“It is our task – the world’s task – to ensure that these flames never go out”, she said.

“What we want is summed up in a single world. That word is stability. And what makes that word possible is education.”

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With needs at a record high, underfunding is chronic Guterres tells humanitarians

United Nations News

21 June 2023

With needs at a record high, underfunding is chronic Guterres tells humanitarians

With 360 million people worldwide in need of humanitarian assistance, up 30 percent since early 2022, global humanitarian needs have yet again reached record levels.

In a video message to the Humanitarian Affairs Segment, a platform created by the UN’s Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) to find solutions to pressing humanitarian aid issues, Antonio Guterres cited some shocking figures: more than 110 million people have been forced from their homes, while more than 260 million face daily difficulties getting food.

Famine is a growing risk for many.

While the figures change, the reasons driving them up do not. The Secretary-General referred to the devastating impact of unresolved conflicts, that “grind on while new wars are launched” and the global economic turmoil triggered by COVID and aggravated by the worldwide impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Another hostile factor driving up fatalities and displacing millions is climate change, he said.

And as the most vulnerable are hit hardest, “sustainable development – the ultimate prevention tool – has stagnated or gone into reverse,” warned Mr. Guterres.

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Crisis of funding

Many responsible for rising conflict are violating international law, attacking hospitals, schools and critical infrastructure. Rampant human rights violations are being committed, including against women and girls.

In response, humanitarian aid agencies and UN partners on the ground are finding new ways to provide emergency aid around the world, said the UN chief.

In Ukraine last year aid workers ramped up deliveries to support some 15.4 million people. Another 17 million people in Afghanistan, 2.8 million in Nigeria and 2.5 million in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have received humanitarian aid since the beginning of this year.

The Secretary-General assessed those operations as “huge” and regretted that financing for them cannot keep up with rising demand.

Halfway through 2023, the Global Humanitarian Appeal is only 20 per cent funded.

“This is causing a crisis within a crisis,” Mr. Guterres believes. Shortages of funds are causing rollbacks of food aid in Syria, Bangladesh, the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Afghanistan, and Yemen. Without a solution to the funding crisis, further cuts are inevitable, warned the UN chief.

Solutions focus

Antonio Guterres encouraged meeting participants to consider ways to increase humanitarian resources, to deliver aid more efficiently and effectively, to better protect individuals in crises, to reduce food insecurity and to increase resilience by investing in climate adaptation.

ECOSOC’s Humanitarian Affairs Segment brings together UN Member States, UN organizations, humanitarian and development partners, the private sector and affected communities.

They meet each June to discuss how to best tackle the most recent humanitarian concerns and crises.

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Record executions, large-scale arrests and detentions: New Iran human rights report

Hundreds put to death

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