Who Was Witold Pilecki? a WWII Hero with a meeting room at the EU Parliament

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31 May 2023

UN commends Criminal Tribunal for former Yugoslavia, as final judgement is delivered

Jovica Stanišić and Franko Simatović were convicted by the court – part of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) which took over from the ICTY – in 2021, for their roles training death squads accused of ethnic cleansing during the conflict that saw the breakup of the former Yugoslavia in the early 1990s.

The two were originally sentenced to 12 years by the court in 2021, but Wednesday’s appeal judgement against them, increased that to 15 years, on the grounds that they were “liable as members of a joint criminal enterprise for crimes committed by various Serb forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1992”, as well as responsible for murder, in the same year.

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Justice for the victims

In a statement, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said that Secretary-General António Guterres “takes note of this appeal and extends his thoughts to the victims, and survivors and their families who have suffered from the crimes for which both defendants have been found guilty.”

The judgement marks the end of the final case relating to “core crimes” that the Mechanism inherited from the ICTY, which was established in 1993 to prosecute suspected war criminals.

The IRMCT Chief Prosecutor, Serge Brammertz, said that the decision demonstrated that the international community, “when united, can deliver justice to the victims and hold the most senior perpetrators responsible for their crimes.

Remembering the victims and survivors, and sheer courage of witnesses who have come forward, he added that there were still thousands of war crimes suspects throughout the former Yugoslavia, “who remain to be prosecuted.”

“We will continue our intensive efforts to provide assistance to national counterparts, to ensure that more justice is achieved for more victims.”

Truth triumphs

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk, also welcomed Wednesday’s final judgement, describing the outcome as a major step to establishing the truth and addressing impunity.

“The extraordinary work and legacy of the Mechanism and of the International Criminal Tribunal before it, have not only contributed to establishing truth, justice and accountability over the years but have also powerfully advanced international criminal justice standards globally,” Mr. Türk said.

Like the Secretary-General, the UN rights chief highlighted the courage, resilience and perseverance of survivors and families who, despite appalling trauma, never stopped seeking truth and justice.

“I want to praise, strongly, the survivors and their families, whose suffering is unimaginable but who persisted in demanding their rights,” he said.

He also stressed that many survivors and their families are still awaiting truth, justice and reparations.

Threats continue

Many victims continue to face threats, intimidation, hate speech and revisionist rhetoric, including rejection of the tribunals’ decisions; denials that crimes were committed; justification of atrocities; and the glorification of war criminals.

“Verdicts like today’s, remind us of an awful past to which we must never return.

He urged the authorities, “media outlets and people in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, Serbia, North Macedonia and Kosovo, to step up efforts to advance truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence.

“Revisionist narratives, genocide denial, divisive rhetoric and hate speech, from any quarter, are unacceptable.”

Uganda: Guterres voices deep concern as Anti-Homosexuality Act signed into law

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31 May 2023

Uganda: Guterres voices deep concern as Anti-Homosexuality Act signed into law

The draconian law foresees the application of the death penalty and long prison sentences for consensual sex between adults.

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Non-discrimination principle

Mr. Guterres called on Uganda to fully respect its international human rights obligations, “in particular the principle of non-discrimination and the respect for personal privacy”, irrespective of sexual orientation and gender identity.

He also called on all Member States to end the criminalization of consensual same-sex relations.

According to the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS, such criminalization continues in 67 countries around the world, with 10 still imposing the death penalty.

Undermining development

Just last week, the UN rights chief Volker Türk said that anti-LGBTQI laws like Uganda’s “drive people against one another, leave people behind and undermine development”.

In a statement released at the end of March, when the Ugandan parliament first adopted the legislation, he described the discriminatory bill as a “deeply troubling development” that was “probably among the worst of its kind in the world”.

“If signed into law by the President, it will render lesbian, gay and bisexual people in Uganda criminals simply for existing, for being who they are. It could provide a carte blanche for the systematic violation of nearly all of their human rights and serve to incite people against each other.”

‘Massive distraction’

The bill, which was formally adopted on 21 March, proposes the death penalty for the offence of aggravated homosexuality, life imprisonment for the “offence of homosexuality”, up to 14 years in jail for attempted homosexuality, and up to 20 years merely for promoting homosexuality.

Mr. Türk said that the law would be a “massive distraction from taking the necessary action to end sexual violence”.

He warned that it would also expose journalists, medical workers, and human rights defenders to lengthy prison terms, simply for doing their jobs.

UN chief strongly condemns DPRK spy satellite launch

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31 May 2023

UN chief strongly condemns DPRK spy satellite launch

The country, commonly known as North Korea, attempted to fire off its first military reconnaissance satellite earlier that day but it crashed into the sea, according to media reports.

The DPRK has reportedly pledged to conduct another launch after it learns what went wrong.

The UN chief noted that any launch using ballistic missile technology is contrary to relevant Security Council resolutions.

“The Secretary-General reiterates his call on the DPRK to cease such acts and to swiftly resume dialogue to achieve the goal of sustainable peace and the complete and verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” the statement said.

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Chaos and confusion

The launch sparked confusion in neighbouring South Korea and in Japan.

Authorities in South Korea’s capital, Seoul, sent text messages urging residents to move to safety but later said they were sent in error.

The Japanese Government also issued a warning to people in Okinawa prefecture, located in the south of the country.

Economic woes dash job prospects in low income countries: ILO

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31 May 2023

Economic woes dash job prospects in low income countries: ILO

In its new Monitor on the World of Work report, ILO shows that while in high-income countries, only 8.2 per cent of people willing to work are jobless, that number rises to over 21 per cent in low-income countries – or one in every five people.

Low-income countries in debt distress are worst affected, with more than one in four people who want to work unable to secure employment.

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Widening jobs gap

ILO’s Assistant Director-General for Jobs and Social Protection, Mia Seppo, said that global unemployment was expected to fall below pre-pandemic levels, with a projected rate of 5.3 per cent in 2023, equivalent to 191 million people.

However, low-income countries, especially those in Africa and the Arab region, were unlikely to see such declines in unemployment this year.

The 2023 global jobs gap, which refers to those who want to work but do not have a job, is projected to rise to 453 million people, she said, with women 1.5 times more affected than men.

Africa hit hardest

The UN agency further indicated that Africa’s labour market had been hit the hardest during the pandemic, which explained the slow pace of recovery on the continent.

Unlike wealthy nations, debt distress across the continent and a very limited fiscal and policy space, meant that few countries in Africa could put in place the kind of comprehensive stimulus packages they needed to spur economic recovery, ILO explained.

Inadequate social protection

Ms. Seppo stressed that without improvement in people’s employment prospects, there would be no sound economic and social recovery. Equally important is investment in welfare safety nets for those who lose their jobs, the ILO senior official insisted, which is often inadequate in low-income countries.

According to the agency’s research, boosting social protection and expanding old age pensions would increase gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in low and middle-income countries by almost 15 per cent over a decade.

Social investment benefit

The annual cost of such measures would be around 1.6 per cent of GDP – a “large but not insurmountable” investment. Ms. Seppo suggested that the amount could be financed by a mix of social contributions, taxes and international support.

“There is an economic gain to investing in social protection”, she said.

Ms. Seppo also insisted that the need to create fiscal space for social investment in low-income countries should be considered “with urgency as part of the ongoing global discussion on the reform of the international financial architecture.”

Prepare for the future of work

While the unemployed divide projected by the report was worrisome, it was “not inevitable”, Ms. Seppo said, and the right concerted action on jobs and social protection funding could support a recovery and reconstruction which leaves no one behind.

In calling for improved capacity to develop “coherent, data-informed labour market policies” that protect the most vulnerable, the ILO senior official insisted that these should have an emphasis on upskilling and reskilling the labour force to prepare it for a “greener, more digital world of work”.

Super-intelligent mushroom that can replace plastic

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Gaston de Persigny

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31 May 2023

In the search for fascinating alternatives to plastic, researchers in Finland may have just found a winner – and it’s already growing on the bark of trees.

The substance in question is a type of fungus known as Fomes fomentarius. It grows on the rotting bark of trees and in the past was mainly used as a fire starter, giving it the nickname “powder mushroom” (also called “hoof fungus” because its shape resembles a hoof), a large perennial polypore mushroom.

However, a research team from Finland’s VTT Technical Research Center believes it could be much more than that, writes The Cool Down.

“The fruiting bodies of Fomes fomentarius are ingeniously lightweight biological constructs, simple in composition but effective in their purpose. “Growing the material using simple ingredients is an alternative solution to overcome the cost, time, mass production and sustainability of the way we produce and consume materials in the future,” says the team’s research, recently published in Science Advances.

In short, instead of mass-producing plastic at a huge cost to our planet, in the future we could simply grow a sponge with similar structural integrity to plastic.

Fomes fomentarius “has a very dense and hard protective outer layer, it has a softer porous middle layer and a strong and tough inner layer,” according to Dr. Pejman Mohammadi, one of the study’s co-authors. This means that the use of the sponge can be incredibly diverse.

Mohammadi tells CNN that potential applications for Fomes fomentarius could include things ranging from shock-absorbing materials, heat and sound insulation, and even parts for consumer products.

The fungus takes seven to 10 years to grow to significant size in the wild, but the researchers believe that in the lab they could produce a lot of it within a few weeks.

“With advances in industrial biotechnology, we predict the production of tons of mushrooms in a matter of weeks, as opposed to wild-type mushrooms that take years to grow,” says Mohammadi.

Photo: Pixabay

Armed Houthis attack peaceful Baha’i gathering, arresting at least 17, in fresh crackdown

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Newsdesk

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30 May 2023

Houthis — Houthi gunmen have staged a violent raid on a peaceful gathering of Baha’is in Sanaa, Yemen, detaining and forcibly disappearing at least 17 people

NEW YORK—27 May 2023— Houthi gunmen have staged a violent raid on a peaceful gathering of Baha’is in Sanaa, Yemen, on 25 May, detaining and forcibly disappearing at least 17 people, including five women. The raid leaves the Yemeni Baha’is reeling from the latest blow to a severely persecuted religious community in that country. The Baha’i International Community (BIC) calls for the immediate release of those detained.

A video of the latest attack was captured by Baha’is joining the gathering via Zoom.

BREAKING#Yemen: Armed #Houthi gunmen stormed a peaceful #Bahai annual general meeting in Sanaa today, after years of persecution, detaining at least 17 including 5 women. Other homes also raided.

Yemeni Baha’is on Zoom captured this video.
Details and our statement to follow. pic.twitter.com/CbMXsz3UY9
— Baha'i International Community (@BahaiBIC) May 25, 2023

The BIC has also been alerted to other incidents suggesting that the raid may be the first of more attempts by security to target Baha’is across Houthi-controlled Yemen. Details of these incidents are being withheld for security reasons.

“Across the Arab region we see governments striving to work toward peace, to set aside outdated social differences, promote peaceful coexistence, and to look to the future,” said Bani Dugal, the BIC’s Principal Representative to the United Nations. “But in Sanaa the de facto Houthi authorities are headed in the opposite direction, doubling down on the persecution of religious minorities, and staging brazen armed raids against peaceful and unarmed civilians. The Houthis have violated the human rights of Baha’is and many others, time and again, and it must stop.”

The attack came as a group of Baha’is had gathered in a private home to elect the community’s national governing body. The move is a clear violation of the freedom of religion or belief and the right, under international covenants, to gather and conduct religious and community affairs.

Baha’i’s do not have clergy and annually form councils to minister to the spiritual and material needs of their communities.

The Baha’is in Yemen have suffered years of arrests, imprisonments, interrogations and torture, and public incitements to violence at the hands of the Houthis who have also seized Baha’i-owned properties. Several Yemeni Baha’is have been exiled from the country. The government has yet to dismiss a previous case against 24 Baha’is.

“Even while talks are underway to end the war in Yemen, we see the Houthi authorities continuing to engage in violent acts of persecution against their own people,” said Ms Dugal. “The international community must now use its leverage to compel the Houthis to respect the human rights of all Yemeni citizens, starting with the release of these 17 or more innocent Baha’is arrested in this violent, unjustifiable raid. Yemeni Baha’is want to serve their country, to help it overcome its current challenges, and work towards advancing its peace and prosperity. How tragic that, at this propitious moment, the Houthi authorities choose to act in this shameful way.”

IAEA chief outlines five principles to avert nuclear ‘catastrophe’ in Ukraine

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30 May 2023

IAEA chief outlines five principles to avert nuclear ‘catastrophe’ in Ukraine

Delivering his latest update, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi reported that the situation at the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) – the largest in Europe – remains extremely fragile and dangerous.

Military operations continue in the region “and may well increase very considerably in the near future,” he warned.

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Rolling the dice

The Zaporizhzhya plant has come under fire during the war. It has lost off-site power seven times and had to rely on emergency diesel generators – “the last line of defence against a nuclear accident,” he said.

“We are fortunate that a nuclear accident has not yet happened,” Mr. Grossi told ambassadors.

“As I said at the IAEA Board of Governors last March – we are rolling a dice and if this continues then one day, our luck will run out. So, we must all do everything in our power to minimize the chance that it does.”

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Rafael Mariano Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), briefs members of the UN Security Council on protecting the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine.

A specific request

Mr. Grossi recalled that the Ukraine crisis marks the first time in history that a war is being fought amid the facilities of a major nuclear power programme. He said several of the country’s five nuclear plants and other facilities have come under direct shelling, and all nuclear plants have lost off-site power at some point.

The IAEA has maintained a presence at the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant since September. The site was occupied by Russian forces in the early days of the conflict, with a “significantly reduced” Ukrainian staff carrying out operations.

Throughout the conflict, the IAEA chief has repeatedly promoted seven indispensable pillars for nuclear safety and security, which include maintaining the physical integrity of facilities and ensuring secure off-site power supply.

“The time has come to be more specific as to what is required. We must prevent a dangerous release of radioactive material,” he said.

Five concrete principles

Following extensive consultations, including with the sides, Mr. Grossi developed five concrete principles essential for averting “a catastrophic incident” at the Zaporizhzhya plant.

“There should be no attack of any kind from or against the plant, in particular targeting the reactors, spent fuel storage, other critical infrastructure, or personnel,” he said, outlining the first point.

The nuclear plant also should not be used as storage or a base for heavy weapons, such as multiple rocket launchers, or military personnel that could be used for an attack emanating from it.

Off-site power to the plant should not be put at risk, and all efforts should be made to ensure it always remains available and secure, he said.

Furthermore, all structures, systems and components essential to the safe and secure operation of the plant should be protected from attacks or sabotage. Finally, no action should be taken that undermines the principles.

“Let me say something very clearly: These principles are to no one’s detriment and to everyone’s benefit. Avoiding a nuclear accident is possible. Abiding by the IAEA’s five principles is the way to start,” said Mr. Grossi.

Principles are aligned: Russia

Russian Ambassador Vasily Nebenzya said his country has made every effort to prevent threats to the safety of the Zaporizhzhya plant, which he attributed to Ukraine and its “Western backers”.

“The shellings carried out by Ukraine of the power plant are absolutely unacceptable, and Mr. Grossi’s proposals to ensure the security of the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant are in line with the measures that we’ve already been implementing for a long time, in accordance with decisions taken at the national level,” he said.

He added that no attacks were ever carried out from the territory of the plant. Additionally, heavy weapons or munitions were never placed there, nor are there any military personnel present who could be used to carry out an attack.

“In the current conditions, Russia intends to take all possible measures to strengthen the safety and security of the power plant in accordance with our national legislation and our obligations under relevant international legal instruments to which our country is a party,” he said.

Withdraw from the plant: Ukraine

Ukrainian Ambassador Sergiy Kyslytsya also addressed the Council.

He said Russia continues to use the nuclear plant for military purposes and has deployed roughly 500 military personnel and 50 units of heavy weaponry there, as well as equipment, munitions and explosives.

“We reiterate that by illegally occupying ZNPP and making it an element of its military strategy, Russia has violated all key international principles of nuclear safety and security and the vast majority of its obligations under international treaties,” he said.

Mr. Kyslytsya recommended that the IAEA principles should also include withdrawal of Russian troops and personnel illegally present at the plant, guarantees of uninterrupted power supply to the facility, and a humanitarian corridor to ensure the safe and orderly rotation of staff.

Belarus: ‘Unprecedented level of repression’ must end, say UN rights experts

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30 May 2023

“The unprecedented level of repression must stop,” the experts said. “The international community must demand that Belarus comply with its international human rights obligations to ensure truth, justice and reparation for victims of human rights violations.”

Belarus: ‘Unprecedented level of repression’ must end, say UN rights experts

“The practice of incommunicado detention of members of the political opposition and prominent figures sentenced to lengthy prison terms for voicing dissent increased in 2023,” the 18 Special Rapporteurs and Human Rights Council-appointed Working Group rights’ experts said.

In their statement released by UN rights office OHCHR, they reported that according to the Viasna Human Rights Centre, 1,511 people have been detained on politically motivated charges since widespread protests swept the country in 2020, following the disputed presidential poll in August, which saw millions take to the streets.

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Average of 17 arrests daily

The centre has also documented an average of 17 arbitrary arrests and detentions a day.

While Belarusian prisons are notorious for substandard conditions, civil society organisations continue to document the systematic discriminatory placement of persons detained on politically motivated grounds in even harsher conditions than the general prison population, the experts said.

“This arbitrary practice appears to have a systemic character,” the experts said.

The harsh conditions of detention have reportedly had a negative impact on the physical and mental health of the detainees, including dissident video blogger Siarhei Tsikhanouski, activist and campaign strategist Maria Kalesnikava, banker and opposition leader, Viktar Barbaryka, and senior opposition figure and lawyer, Maksim Znak, whose cases have been documented by the experts.

The prisoners were reportedly denied access to timely and appropriate medical examinations and treatment, adequate legal representation and also prevented from contacting their families.

Strategic punishment

“Incommunicado detention – with a risk of enforced disappearance – is indicative of a strategy to punish political opponents and hide evidence of their ill-treatment and torture by law enforcement and prison authorities,” the independent experts said.

They deplored the lack of independent, impartial and thorough investigations into these allegations of inhuman treatment and other human rights violations, as well as the failure to provide effective remedies to detainees and their families.

Demand compliance

Independent human rights experts are appointed by the UN Human Rights Council, in Geneva, under its Special Procedures.

They are mandated to monitor and report on specific thematic issues or country situations. They are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work.

Racism which scars societies, must be stamped out, forum for people of African descent hears

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30 May 2023

Racism which scars societies, must be stamped out, forum for people of African descent hears

“Racism and xenophobia continue to spoil our communities, like scars that spoil the fabric of society. The hatred and violence they engender persist, demanding our collective efforts to eradicate racial violence in all its forms,” he told the second session of the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent.

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Transforming injustice

Mr. Kőrösi said overcoming this requires recognizing our shared humanity, as the “unacknowledged legacies” of slavery and segregation persist today through

oppressive and racially violent prison systems, inequalities in access to healthcare, and exclusion from the workforce.

“We must do away with these inhumane and shameful inheritances, and we must do it now,” he said, speaking in the General Assembly Hall. “I firmly believe that by reflecting on these painful legacies, we can truly transform the injustices of the past into the freedoms of the future.”

Act with urgency

The Permanent Forum was established in 2021 by the General Assembly, following years of deliberations, and in line with the International Decade for People of African Descent, which runs through 2024.

The body will contribute to advancing a UN declaration on the promotion and full respect of the rights of people of African descent, the theme of the current session.

Its establishment crystalized international commitment to accelerate along the path towards full equality and justice for people of African descent everywhere, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said in a video message to the gathering.

He called for recognizing and repairing longstanding wrongs stemming from centuries of slavery and colonialism.

“We must act with greater urgency to rid our societies of the scourge of racism, and ensure the full political, economic and social inclusion of people of African descent as equal citizens, without discrimination,” he said.

A problem everywhere

The fact that racism knows no borders was made clear by Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who highlighted the constant abuse heaped on Brazilian footballer Vinícius Júnior, who plays for Spanish club Real Madrid.

“The lesson we can draw from these unforgivable episodes is that Vini Jr, a 22-year-old, is capable of standing up to hostile crowds, there is no doubt that we can and must do more to interrupt this dehumanizing circuit of violence,” he said in a video message.

Brazil’s Minister of Racial Equality, Anielle Franco, took to the podium to reinforce President Lula’s call for renewing the International Decade for People of African Descent, with a focus on memory, reparations and justice

“Peace, democracy, international security, the fight against inequalities and the guarantee of human rights will only coexist when centuries of systemic racism – which is characterized by dehumanization, subjugation, trauma, the erasure of our culture and psychological violence – are repaired,” she said, drawing applause from the room.

Musicians perform at the opening of the Second Session of the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent.

Tribute to activists

More than a thousand people are taking part in the Forum, which concludes on Friday. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, paid tribute to the large number of activists and civil society representatives in their ranks.

“Many of you have been vital to the continuing efforts of global anti-racism movements, including protests in 2020 that, among other things, helped to expedite the establishment of the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent,” he said in a video message.

Mr. Türk noted that for far too long, racial discrimination has been treated as a social issue, instead of a severe human rights violation.

“It is urgent that we both hold individuals accountable for acts of racism and racial discrimination, and also consider more profoundly the role of structures and systems of discrimination and oppression that replicate and nurture racial hierarchies,” he said.