First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska took part in the National Forum on the Rights of People with Disabilities held in Kyiv on December 2-3.
“This event has great value because it brings together civil society activists, government officials, and international partners. This is how we should talk and act. Only together. When the full-scale invasion began, our country’s priority was to survive. But almost immediately it became clear that “survival” meant not only being physically intact, but also not stopping development,” the President’s wife said.
The forum brought together more than 200 participants, including representatives of public and international organizations, local authorities and the business community.
The main outcome of the event was the development of the “Agenda for 2025” by the community of people with disabilities. This is a strategic document that identifies priority areas of work to protect the rights of persons with disabilities.
The document outlines eight steps:
● Ensuring the transition to a human rights-based model of disability and the full implementation of a functional, disability, and health assessment system for both civilians and military personnel.
● Initiating the reform of deinstitutionalizing services for adults with disabilities and older persons.
● Committing to start the reform of current legal capacity legislation and introducing decision-support tools.
● Guaranteeing the right to work for all persons with disabilities in the open labor market.
● Involving the community of persons with disabilities in decision-making processes, at all levels, regarding their safety during wars, disasters, and other emergencies.
● Ensuring access to architecturally accessible housing for IDPs with disabilities.
● Continuing the reform of social services based on international human rights standards.
● Realizing the right to participate in the country’s political life: to vote freely and have all the means to run for office.
“One of the conditions of European integration is deinstitutionalization. Behind this reserved term is a human, absolutely fundamental demand for humanity. Not to keep people in isolation. We cannot allow our defenders, our warriors, to end up in institutional care facilities after being wounded. We cannot continue to turn a blind eye to the fact that adults with disabilities live behind fences,” Olena Zelenska emphasized.
The President’s wife also highlighted the Cabinet of Ministers’ decision to start funding supported living services for older people and persons with disabilities among IDPs. She called on communities to submit applications for the services to the Fund for Social Protection of Persons with Disabilities.
The National Forum on the Rights of People with Disabilities was organized by the League of the Strong NGO together with the Fight For Right NGO with the support of international partners.
Source: President of Ukraine Official website, 3 December 2024 – 15:02.
Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian has questioned the appropriateness of a new law that would toughen penalties for women who do not wear the Islamic headscarf, a law that has sparked controversy since the death of young Iranian Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini two years ago, Agence France-Presse reported.
Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, women in Iran have been required to cover their hair in public.
But since the rise of the protest movement that began after the death of Amini, who died in custody after being arrested for violating the Islamic country’s strict dress code, more and more women have taken to the streets without covering their hair.
The new law, approved by parliament, imposes harsher penalties for women who go out with their hair uncovered. It must be signed by the Iranian president on December 13 to officially enter into force.
“As the person responsible for promulgating this law, I have very reservations about it,” Pezeshkian said in an interview with state television last night.
The law, titled “Hijab and Chastity,” provides for fines in case of repeated violations. Fines can reach up to 20 average monthly salaries for women who do not cover their hair properly or who go out without covering their hair in public or on social media. The fines must be paid within 10 days, otherwise the violators may be banned from leaving the country or denied access to public services, including driver’s licenses.
According to the Iranian president, who took office in July, with this law “we risk losing a lot” in society.
During his election campaign, Pezeshkian promised to remove the morality police, which also controls the wearing of hijabs, from the streets. This unit, which is also behind the arrest of Mahsa Amini, has not been on the streets since the demonstrations began in September 2022, but has never been officially dismantled by the authorities.
Pezeshkian, who was a member of parliament at the time of the young woman’s death, sharply criticized the police for this case.
Illustrative Photo by Mikhail Nilov: https://www.pexels.com/photo/side-view-of-a-woman-wearing-headscarf-7676531/
Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) – which is also Europe’s biggest nuclear energy facility – has been under Russian control since shortly after it launched a full-scale military campaign in February 2022.
In recent days, an IAEA expert team crossed the frontline to replace colleagues at the Zaporizhzhya plant who have been monitoring nuclear safety and security since September 2022. The presence of the “IAEA Support and Assistance Mission” at ZNPP and four other nuclear facilities is meant “to help prevent a radiological accident during the military conflict”, IAEA said in a statement.
“We will stay at these sites for as long as it is needed to help avert the threat of a nuclear accident that could have serious consequences for human health and the environment in Ukraine and beyond,” said IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi. “As the nuclear safety and security situation remains highly challenging, our experts are continuing to play a crucial stabilizing role at all these facilities.”
Media reports indicated ongoing fighting and drone attacks in the vicinity of the Zaporizhyzhya plant in southeastern Ukraine.
Conflict ever-present
“During the past week, the team has continued to hear frequent explosions, some distance away from the ZNPP. No damage to the ZNPP was reported,” IAEA said. The agency’s teams said that the safety and security at four other Khmelnytskyy, Rivne and South Ukraine NPPs and the Chornobyl site reported that safety and security at Ukraine’s four other nuclear plants “is being maintained despite the effects of the ongoing conflict, including air raid alarms for several days over the past week”.
At the Zaporizhzhya plant, IAEA said that it had been informed that two backup transformers had resumed operation after successful high voltage testing, while maintenance would be carried out on the four remaining backup transformers by the end of the year.
The IAEA expert team also reported discussing winter preparations for the plant and receiving confirmation that all six reactors will remain in cold shutdown.
The IAEA expert team also reported discussing winter preparations for the plant and receiving confirmation that all six reactors will remain in cold shutdown.
Humanitarian crisis worsens
Latest updates from UN aid teams have highlighted the deepening humanitarian crisis across Ukraine, particularly in frontline areas in the northeast, east and south, owing to “intensified attacks” by Russian forces. UN human rights monitors have verified more than 1,400 deaths and injuries since the full-scale Russian invasion on 24 February 2022.
“Humanitarian response efforts face growing challenges, including safety risks. “Six aid workers were killed or injured in July and August alone.” said UN aid coordination office, OCHA. It noted that in the first nine months of the year, the humanitarian community has provided at least one form of assistance to 7.2 million out of 8.5 million people targeted for support.
This is despite the 2024 Humanitarian Appeal for Ukraine receiving less than half the requested $3.11 billion.
“Civilians remaining in front-line communities in Donetsk, Kharkiv, Khersons, Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhya oblasts face dire living conditions, which is expected to worsen as winter approaches,” OCHA warned.
Repeated attacks on energy infrastructure “are expected to worsen the challenges civilians will face in the coming winter”, the UN agency continued, highlighting likely disruption to essential services such as water, gas and heating.
According to authorities and UN partners on the ground, attacks in the early hours of Thursday injured dozens of civilians and damaged apartment buildings and hospitals in the capital, Kyiv, and in the front-line regions of Odesa, Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv, Kherson, Donetsk, Sumy and Mykolaiv.
Aid workers swiftly mobilised to offer psychological support, provide construction materials and deliver cash assistance to vulnerable people, OCHA reported.
The UN Resident Coordinator Office in Ukraine, Matthias Schmale, who witnessed the humanitarian impact of the attacks firsthand, met with local authorities and humanitarian partners to discuss ways to strengthen the humanitarian response.
The warning comes in an alert issued by the Integrated Phase Classification (IPC) Famine Review Committee (FRC), which underscored that the humanitarian situation in the enclave is extremely grave and rapidly deteriorating.
“Immediate action, within days not weeks, is required from all actors who are directly taking part in the conflict, or who have influence on its conduct, to avert and alleviate this catastrophic situation,” it said.
‘The unacceptable is confirmed’
Commenting on the alert, the head of the World Food Programme (WFP) stated that “the unacceptable is confirmed.”
Cindy McCain stressed in a post on X that “immediate steps MUST BE TAKEN to allow safe, rapid and unimpeded flow of humanitarian and commercial supplies to prevent an all-out catastrophe. NOW.”
Speaking earlier to UN News, WFP’s Director of Food Security and Nutrition Analysis, Jean-Martin Bauer, said the situation was the result of large-scale population displacement, the reduction of commercial and humanitarian inflows into the Gaza Strip, and the destruction of infrastructure and health facilities.
There has been “a drastic reduction in the number of trucks entering Gaza,” he said.
“In late October, we were down to 58 trucks a day, compared to about 200 during the summer and most of the trucks that did come in…were bringing humanitarian assistance.”
Food costs rising
Furthermore, as a result of the reduced inflows food prices have risen in the north, essentially doubling in recent weeks.
“They’re now about 10 times higher than they were before the conflict occurred. So, this alert is a reminder that the eyes of the world need to be on Gaza and that action is needed now,” he said.
Avert ‘humanitarian catastrophe’
The FRC called for “immediate action by all stakeholders with potential influence to reverse this humanitarian catastrophe.”
The Committee particularly urged all parties directly taking part in the conflict, or who have influence, to immediately allow food, water, medical and nutritional supplies, and other essential items, to enter Gaza.
Other recommendations include ending the Israeli siege in northern areas, as well as attacks on health facilities and other civilian infrastructure, and allowing health facilities to be re-supplied and health workers to be released from detention.
“Failure to respond to these calls within the next few days will result in a further deterioration of the humanitarian situation and additional, avoidable, civilian deaths,” it said.
“If no effective action is taken by stakeholders with influence, the scale of this looming catastrophe is likely to dwarf anything we have seen so far in the Gaza Strip since 7 October 2023.”
More than 700,000 people are displacedin the country – over half of whom are children – with recent violence in the capital Port-au-Prince displacing another 12,000 people in recent weeks.
Food insecurity is at an all-time high, affecting half of Haiti’s population, or approximately 5.4 million people.
Pockets of famine
“For the first time since 2022, we are seeing pockets of famine-like conditionsin some areas where displaced people are living,” highlighted Associate Spokesperson Stephanie Tremblay.
Despite these challenges, UN agencies and partners continue to deliver humanitarian assistance. In the first half of 2024, around 1.9 million people received some form of relief, including food and cash.
Since the end of February, thousands of hot meals and hundreds of thousands of gallons of water have been distributed to displaced people in the capital.
To curb Haiti’s growing needs, the $684 million Humanitarian Needs and Response Planhas been launched, but it remains only 43 per cent funded.
Samoa facing a plastic tide: Environment expert
Like other Small Pacific Island States, Samoa is facing a surging plastic tide, a top independent rights expert has said.
Marcos Orellana, the Special Rapporteur on toxic environments and human rights, warned on Friday that while Samoa is taking measures to ban some plastics, it “cannot keep up with growing amounts of plastic waste”.
The independent rights expert, who does not work for the UN, added that Samoa was “at the receiving end of cheap plastic imports (and) pesticides that are banned in other countries”, along with used cars and tyres.
Samoa simply “does not have financial, technical and human resources to deal adequately” with all the waste being generated, Mr. Orellana insisted, before calling out plastic producers for not doing enough to prevent pollution in the first place.
The latest international negotiations on a legally binding instrument on plastic pollution had taken a “wrong turn”, the rights expert said, maintaining that current international talks risked “shifting responsibility from plastic-producing States to developing States that lack capacity or resources to confront the global plastic scourge”.
WFP boost for bakeries on Ukraine’s frontline
The UN World Food Programme (WFP) is delivering $870,000 worth of equipment to help support small bakeries located near Ukraine’s frontline as Russia’s invasion grinds on, the agency said on Friday.
WFP collaborates with local food producers to deliver food assistance in frontline regions. In September, these small bakeries supplied over 500,000 loaves of bread which WFP and its partners distributed to communities living near the frontline.
Buy local
More than 80 per cent of WFP’s food assistance in Ukraine is bought from local suppliers.
In total WFP will deliver over 60 pieces of machinery to 14 small bakeries in Mykolaiv, Kherson, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kharkiv regions.
This includes seven industrial generators, 11 rotary ovens, six dough kneading machines, as well as dough dividers, dough rounders and other similar tools.
“Bread is the lifeblood of Ukrainians – but small bakeries in frontline regions have been struggling to sustain their production due to the war and energy challenges,” said Richard Ragan, WFP Country Director in Ukraine.
“By providing additional equipment, we not only support local businesses in the areas most affected by the war, but also make sure that people will have enough fresh bread this winter,” he added.
Expert calls for release of indigenous human rights defenders in Mexico
On Friday, the independent UN expert who investigates abuses against human rights defenders, Mary Lawlor, voiced alarm over the arbitrary detention of indigenous rights defenders in Mexico and the imposition of harsh sentences against them for peaceful activities aimed at protecting their communities.
The Human Rights Council-appointed Special Rapporteur highlighted cases of 10 indigenous defenders subjected to flawed judicial processes facing charges “such as murder, in some cases even when they were not in the place or area where the crime took place.”
The combined sentences of nine of the 10 defenders totalled almost 300 years in prison, with Zapotec leader Pablo López Alavez detained for 14 years without a sentence. In 2017, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention concluded his detention had been arbitrary.
Ms. Lawlor condemned what she described as a “misuse of criminal law” to suppress indigenous leaders’ efforts to defend land rights and their communities against development exploitation of natural resources, the detrimental effect of an economic model based on extracting wealth from the land together with organised crime.
Collective harm
She underscored that the criminalisation of these defenders not only harms them individually but also undermines the wellbeing and security of their communities.
While Ms. Lawlor welcomed the recent revocation of David Hernández Salazar’s sentence, she argued it only exposed the fabricated nature of his and other defenders’ charges.
“I urge the competent authorities to revoke the sentences of Kenia Hernández Montalván, Tomás Martínez Mandujano, Saúl Rosales Meléndez, Versaín Velasco García, Agustín Pérez Velasco, Martín Pérez Domínguez, Juan Velasco Aguilar and Agustín Pérez Domínguez, and drop the charges against Pablo López Alavez, and release them immediately,” Ms. Lawlor said.
The Special Rapporteur, who is not UN staff and does not represent any government or organization, is in contact with the Mexican authorities regarding these concerns.
The update from UN agencies also reported that Israeli strikes have left more than 3,100 people dead and over 13,800 injured since October last year.
Turning to the hospitals in conflict areas – Tyre and Jbeil Bint, Marjeoun, Baabda, Lebanon Mount and Baalbek – eight are non-functional, nine are semi-functional and six have sustained damage.
Media reports indicated that dozens of people were killed across Lebanon in strikes on Sunday, including 23 in the village of Almat. The health authorities said that at least seven children were among the dead in the village which is located 30 kilometres (19 miles) north of the capital, Beirut.
Pager escalation
Nearly one in four people in Lebanon have been impacted by the conflict which escalated on 23 September when hundreds of pagers belonging to the Hezbollah armed group exploded, causing death and injury.
Following that widely condemned pager attack for which no-one has claimed responsibility, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) embarked on a wave of deadly airstrikes in retaliation at Hezbollah rocket attacks across the border into Israel, which intensified in support of Hamas following Israel’s October 2023 offensive in Gaza.
Today, 1.4 million people and more than 875,000 people have now been internally displaced across Lebanon. WFP said that 618,000 individuals have received food or cash assistance since January, but needs are outpacing resources, with only six per cent of the $116 million requirement provided so far.
Before violence escalated in October, Lebanon was already suffering from chronic economic problems, linked to COVID-19 and a long-running political crisis. The war has made the situation far worse, with damage estimated at $12 billion across the economy including buildings and infrastructure.
“The conflict also threatens the agricultural sector in the Bekaa and the South, accounting for more than 60 per cent of Lebanon’s agricultural production,” WFP said.
Syria crossing
Latest data from the Syria border indicates that 561,800 people have crossed into Syria since 23 September (66 per cent Syrians and 34 per cent Lebanese).
Recent Israeli strikes near Lebanon’s border with Syria have limited crossing points to just one in northern Lebanon, with water, core relief items and psychological support to people who have fled, “many on foot, to try to find safety”, said the UN refugee agency, UNHCR.
According to UNHCR, almost 31,000 people from Lebanon arrived in Iraq between 27 September and 05 November 2024.
Echoing concerns over the deepening humanitarian emergency in Lebanon, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) said that in a single week, local authorities registered 214 related deaths and 731 injuries.
The southern suburbs of Beirut, Bekaa, South and Balbek “continue to be systematically targeted” by strikes, the UN agency continued, with insecurity and restricted access of health workers and first responders “impacting work on the ground”.
As part of the UN response, more than a dozen trauma kits have been distributed to hospitals in Bekaa governorate and an influenza vaccination campaign has progressed, targeting thousands of high-risk individuals.
Nonetheless, the WHO warned that the violence continues to uproot people into “sub-optimal” shelters, increasing the risk of infectious disease spread.
On 22 November, the Hindu community of Belgium celebrated the first legal step to the recognition of Hinduism by the Belgian Government and Parliament with their decision last year to grant a subsidy to the Hindu Forum Belgium, the official interlocutor of the Belgian State.
This platform for all Vedic spiritual traditions will coordinate cooperation among various Hindu/Vedic communities and organisations in Belgium towards full recognition.
“Recognition is more than just a legal formality or access to government benefits; it is a moral acknowledgment of the positive contributions that Hindu communities make to Belgian society,” said in his introduction to the event, Martin Gurvich, President of the Hindu Forum.
“It places them on an equal footing with other faith communities and non confessional philosophies and affirms their place in Belgium’s rich cultural and spiritual tapestry,” he also stressed.
Other speakers were Caroline Sägesser (CRISP), Prof. Winand Callewaert (KULeuven), Ambassador of India H.E. Saurabh Kumar, Hervé Cornille from the Belgian Parliament and Bikram Lalbahadoersing (Hindu Council of The Netherlands). The event was enchanced with music and dances.
Hinduism in Belgium in short
The Hindu Forum Belgium was launched in 2007 in Brussels. It comprises 12 Hindu organizations and is affiliated with the Hindu Forum Europe. It is estimated that about 20,000 people in Belgium practice a form of Hinduism.
The first Hindu immigrants arrived in Belgium in the late 1960s, mostly from the Western Indian State of Gujarat. More recently, they have come from Kenya, Malaysia, Mauritius Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Afghanistan.
The Hindu Forum of Belgium represents the richness of Hindu/Vedic culture and provides a unified platform for all spiritual traditions rooted in the Vedic scriptures. It embraces the diversity of perspectives within Hinduism, from Vaishnavism (worship of Vishnu), Shaivism (worship of Shiva), Shaktism (worship of the Goddess), Smartism (worship of five major deities: Vishnu, Shiva, Shakti, Ganesha, and Surya), and other traditions.
Hinduism has close links with vegetarianism, non-violence towards living beings and also with yoga. In 2014, the United Nations proclaimed 21 June as the International Day of Yoga to raise awareness worldwide of the many benefits of practicing yoga.
Hinduism is an umbrella for a wide range of Indian religious and spiritual traditions, having no identifiable founder. It is often referred to as Sanātana Dharma (a Sanskrit phrase meaning “the eternal law”) by its adherents. It calls itself a revealed religion, based on the Vedas. It originated in the Indian subcontinent in ancient times. It is the world’s third-largest religion, with approximately 1.2 billion followers, or around 15% of the global population.
The financing of Hinduism
A first amount of 41,500 EUR was granted to hire two people in their secretariat (one full-time and one part-time) and to pay the charges of their premises in Brussels, for six months in 2023. Annually, this subsidy will be doubled: 83,000 EUR. This is only a first step towards a path that promises to be long to obtain full recognition.
Indeed, on 5 April 2022, the European Court of Human Rights ruled in the case Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses of Anderlecht and Others v. Belgium(application no. 20165/20) noted that neither the criteria for recognition nor the procedure leading to recognition of a faith by the federal authority were laid down in an instrument satisfying the requirements of accessibility and foreseeability.
The European Court observed, firstly, that recognition of a faith was based on criteria that had been identified by the Belgian Minister of Justice only in reply to a parliamentary question dating back to last century. Moreover, as they were couched in particularly vague terms they could not, in the Court’s view, be said to provide a sufficient degree of legal certainty.
Secondly, the Court noted that the procedure for the recognition of faiths was likewise not laid down in any legislative or even regulatory instrument. This meant, in particular, that the examination of applications for recognition was not attended by any safeguards. No time-limits were laid down for the recognition procedure, and no decision had yet been taken on the applications for recognition lodged by the Belgian Buddhist Union and the Belgian Hindu Forum in 2006 and 2013 respectively.
State financing of religions in Belgium: 281.7 million EUR
In 2022, the public authorities financed Belgian religions at the level 281.7 million euros:
112 million from the Federal State (FPS Justice) and 170 million from the Regions and Communities (maintenance of places of worship and accommodation religious leaders).
These figures are from Jean-François Husson, Dr in political and social sciences (University of Liège). The amounts were distributed as follows:
In the last few months, the number of criminal proceedings against religious conscientious objectors has suddenly dramatically increased in Ukraine, mainly affecting the members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ community and even their religious ministers. The convictions are severe: imprisonment for a term of 3 years.
As of late October, police and prosecutors were investigating about 300 criminal cases against conscientious objectors (over 280 were Jehovah’s Witnesses), according to Forum18. Some others were Adventists, Baptists, Pentecostals and non-believers.
This situation is the consequence of a decision of the Supreme Court which clearly confirmed on 13 June 2024 the suspension of the right to conscientious objection and to an alternative civilian service during the war with Russia, in a case opposing the Adventist Dmytro Zelinsky to the Ukrainian state.
Quote from the decision of the Supreme Court:
“According to Art. 17 of the Law of Ukraine of 06.12.1991 № 1932-XII ‘On Defense of Ukraine’ protection of the Fatherland, independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine is a constitutional duty of the citizens of Ukraine. Male citizens of Ukraine, eligible for military service for health and age, and female citizens, also with appropriate professional training, must perform military service in accordance with the law.
Thus, no religious beliefs can be the basis for evading a citizen of Ukraine, recognized as fit for military service, from mobilization in order to fulfill his constitutional duty to protect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the state from military aggression by a foreign country.”
Dmytro Zelinsky appealed to the Constitutional Court and on 24 September 2024, proceedings were opened about his complaint. An answer is not expected until several months.
Constitutional and legal framework
The Constitution of Ukraine (Article 35) enshrines the right to freedom of religion and worldview. While granting freedom to profess any religion or not to profess any, to freely perform religious and ritual rites individually or collectively, to conduct religious activities, the Constitution states that no one can be relieved of his duties to the state or refuse to comply with the laws on the grounds of religious beliefs. If it is contrary to the religious beliefs of the citizen, the fulfillment of this duty must be replaced by an alternative (non-military) service.
The legislation of Ukraine protects the right of its citizens to conscientious objection to military service, but only for ten categories of religious associations:
Reformed Adventists
Seventh-day Adventists
Evangelical Christians
Evangelical Christian Baptists
Pokutniki (stemming from the Uniate Church in the mid-1990s)
Jehovah’s Witnesses
Charismatic Christian Churches (and similar Churches according to the registered statutes)
Christians of the Evangelical Faith (and similar Churches according to the registered statutes)
Christians of the Evangelical Faith
Society for Kṛiṣhṇa Consciousness.
Believers of other religions and followers of non-religious worldviews (atheists, agnostics…) are not eligible for the status of conscientious objection.
Noteworthy is also that while Adventists can accept an alternative civilian service under military supervision, Jehovah’s Witnesses refuse any form of alternative service under the authority of the army.
The specific law of Ukraine “On Alternative (Non-Military) Service” provides for the possibility of replacing only fixed-term military service with alternative (non-military) service, i.e. only military service that is valid in peacetime.
Fixed-term military service was abolished with Russia’s invasion of the territory of Ukraine on 24 February 2022. Ukraine declared a state of martial law and general mobilization was quickly introduced by presidential decree. All men between the ages of 18 and 60 were deemed eligible for call-up in a general mobilisation and were banned from leaving the country.
The law does not provide for the possibility and a procedure for replacing military service with alternative (non-military) service during military conscription (mobilization). The decisions of the courts dealing with conscientious objectors in this context were first uncertain.
Number of arrests on the rise
From February 2022 to July 2024 (28 months), the number of sentences in criminal cases issued against Jehovah’s Witnesses who refused to be mobilized due to their religious beliefs was only 4 cases. In the period from July to November 2024 (5 months), their number escalated to 14 cases.
It must be stressed that there are about 100,000 Jehovah’s Witnesses in Ukraine and thousands of them have the age to be mobilized. It means that the problem could quickly become daunting with a massive number of convictions to prison terms. In the meantime, their only option will be to go into hiding, to live at a place different from their official address, to choose self-confinement, to stop working outside or to be careful on their way to their workplace, to avoid public transport, train and bus stations, public events…
The trucks are carrying food and nutrition supplies for about 12,500 people in the striken camp, and the agency said it was determined to provide the life-saving aid “safely and quickly”, said UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric, briefing journalists in New York.
“WFP underscores that the Adre corridor is a vital lifeline to get urgent assistance into the hands of desperate families across the Darfur region,” he added.
Food for nearly 500,000
“Through this crossing, WFP has now transported over 5,600 metric tonnes of food and nutrition supplies – which is enough for nearly half a million people – and that has gone in just three months since 20 August.”
He said it was crucial the crossing remains “usable and open for humanitarians to ramp up aid and get a steady supply of aid to communities facing extreme hunger.”
WFP said it was also using a network of local retailers under contract with WFP to get aid into ZamZam which has allowed the emergency food agency to reach around 100,000 people out of the 180,000 they hope to reach.
Pakistan: Toxic air threatens more than 11 million under five in Punjab
Toxic smog is threatening the lives of more than 11 million under-fives in the most populous province in Pakistan, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned on Monday.
“As smog continues to persist in Punjab province, I am extremely concerned about the well-being of young children who are forced to breathe polluted, toxic air,” said Abdullah Fadil, UNICEF Representative in Pakistan.
Record-breaking air pollution
This past week, air pollution levels in the provincial capital Lahore and another major city, Multan, broke records, clocking in at over 100 times the air quality guidelines issued by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Hundreds have been hospitalized including dozens of children, and the air pollution is so severe it is now visible from space, according to media reports.
Mr. Fadil said that prior to the record-breaking levels of air pollution, roughly 12 per cent of deaths in under-fives were due to air pollution.
“The impact of this year’s extraordinary smog will take time to assess but we know that doubling and tripling the amount of pollution in the air will have devastating effects, particularly on children and pregnant women,” he added.
Millions out of school
Meanwhile, schools in smog-affected areas have been closed until mid-month to protect children. However, education is now disrupted for some 16 million children at time when Pakistan is already facing an “education emergency”, with more than 26 million boys and girls out of school.
“Every child has the right to clean air. Children’s health and right to an education must be protected. UNICEF calls on the Government of Pakistan to fulfill these rights for every child,” said Mr. Fadil.
UNICEF is supporting awareness measures as part of the Government of Punjab’s official plan to reduce the smog.
“Reducing emissions from agricultural and industrial activities and encouraging clean and sustainable energy and transportation initiatives are no longer just climate change mitigation strategies, they are critical to protect children’s health today,” said Mr. Fadil.
More than 100 civilian casualties in Ukraine since Thursday
Ukrainian authorities on Monday reported that there have been more than 100 civilian casualties across the country over the past five days, including children, alongside widespread infrastructure damage.
UN aid coordination office OCHA said that a deadly attack in Zaporizhzhia on Saturday – the second in five days – caused dozens of casualties.
“Authorities also report an increase in drone strikes in the south of the country, especially in the regions of Odesa, Mykolayiv, and Kherson, leading to scores of civilian casualties and damage to civilian infrastructure, which include heating and gas facilities,” UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said.
UN support
Aid workers have provided hot meals, materials to cover damaged windows, blankets, solar lamps, and hygiene kits, as well as cash and psychosocial support.
In some frontline communities, basic food is becoming scarce as many shops have stopped functioning, OCHA said.
To address this, the World Food Programme (WFP) has supplied ovens, dough-kneading machines and generators, among others, to 14 bakeries in six of the war-affected regions of Ukraine.
Families wait to cross the Masnaa border from Lebanon into Syria.
Syria crisis ‘deepening and widening’, say senior humanitarians
Senior UN humanitarians warned on Monday that the Syria crisis is “deepening and widening”, with more than 500,000 seeking refuge there after fleeing the war in Lebanon, adding to 16.7 million who have already received support.
In a joint statement, Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator for Syria, Adam Abdelmoula, and Regional Humanitarian Coordinator Ramanathan Balakrishnan pointed out that two in three people in Syria need assistance.
Over 75 per cent of the new arrivals – since war between Israel and Hezbollah fighters escalated in September – are women, children and people with special needs.
“These people have been driven to seek refuge in a country that has already been reeling from over a decade long, protracted humanitarian crisis,” the officials said.
Services already ‘at breaking point’
“Most of the new arrivals are being hosted with relatives and friends in communities that are already struggling. They are accessing services offered through the existing humanitarian response mechanisms which are already stretched to their breaking point.”
A $4.07 billion Syria Humanitarian Response Plan is only 27.5 per cent funded. Since the launch of the Emergency Appeal in September seeking an additional $324 million, “only a meagre $32 million” has been secured – a figure which includes a $12 million allocation from the UN emergency fund, CERF.
They urged the donor community to significantly and urgently increase its support for Syria’s humanitarian response.
“The costs of inaction would be enormous and will go beyond deepening human suffering, in terms of increase in instability in the region, migration outflows beyond the region and deepening of the conflict,” they stressed.
Institutional Abuse: When Protective Mothers Become Victims of the System
Within the labyrinth of family courts, a chilling paradox persists: mothers, who should be lauded for their courage in denouncing the abuse suffered by their children, often find themselves exposed to paroxysmal institutional violence. These women, often referred to as “protective mothers,” see their role as protective parents distorted, and their rights restricted by institutions meant to ensure justice and safety. But how can processes designed to protect sometimes reproduce the very mechanisms of abuse they are supposed to combat—or even generate new ones?
An Intolerable and Systemic Reality
In France, according to the Independent Commission on Incest and Sexual Violence Against Children (CIIVISE), nearly 160,000 children fall victim to sexual violence every year. Among them, a staggering majority (81%) endure abuse within their immediate family. This already appalling reality becomes even more troubling when illuminated by the testimonies of protective mothers. In their attempts to report these crimes and ensure their children’s safety, these women encounter a judicial system where 76% of complaints are dismissed without further action.
An emblematic example is the case of Priscilla Majani, who was convicted of “child abduction” after trying to protect her daughter from a father accused of sexual abuse. Her story highlights the tragic impasse faced by protective mothers: either comply with court decisions they deem unsafe for their children or directly conflict with the law.
A European Crisis: A Widespread, Systemic, and Institutionalized Phenomenon
Spain mirrors similar mechanisms to those observed in France, where mothers denouncing intrafamilial abuse face institutional violence. A recent report by the Council of Europe highlights the psychological torture experienced by these mothers during custody decisions. The concept of “institutional violence,” widely discussed in France, takes on tangible form here. In Spain, the systematic application of the “Parental Alienation Syndrome” (PAS) in family courts continues to discredit allegations of violence, often at the expense of children’s safety. Despite being explicitly rejected by the United Nations, this pseudo-scientific concept is still used to justify forced separations of mothers and their children.
In England, a similar dynamic emerges. A 2021 Women’s Aid investigation revealed that the principle of “contact at all costs” dominates judicial decisions, even when evidence of domestic violence is present. This priority given to maintaining relationships with both parents, regardless of risk to the children, reflects a failure to address trauma in judicial processes. Many families are thus exposed to dangerous situations, perpetuating cycles of control and violence.
In Belgium, the use of parental alienation concepts in courts has also been criticized for lacking scientific grounding. A recent study by the Ligue des Familles highlights the harm caused when this concept is applied indiscriminately in family disputes. Often, it diverts attention from real abuse and places protective mothers in a precarious position, accusing them of influencing their children to harm the father.
The European Parliament recently expressed similar concerns about the impact of domestic violence on child custody decisions. It emphasized the importance of prioritizing the safety of women and children while avoiding the use of scientifically unvalidated concepts like parental alienation to minimize or obscure instances of domestic violence.
The use of Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS), although scientifically discredited by numerous international institutions, remains a frequent tool in family courts to undermine protective mothers. Developed by Richard Gardner in the 1980s without empirical validation, PAS rests on assumptions that obscure dynamics of power and violence in conflictual separations. It is often invoked to characterize mothers’ protective behaviors as attempts to manipulate their children against the father.
Similarly, the concept of loyalty conflict, as defined by De Becker, is used to pathologize the relationship between a child and their protective parent, particularly in cases of intrafamilial violence. This notion, rooted in systemic theories of the 1970s, lacks rigorous empirical validation. It tends to reduce the child to a passive victim, ignoring their agency and adaptive strategies in hostile environments. This theory shifts the focus from the origins of the mother’s behavior—the violence endured—to interpretations that hold her responsible for familial dysfunction. Consequently, it stigmatizes victims as instigators of relational problems, justifying judicial decisions that often lead to unjustified separations between abused parents and their children. The psychological well-being of both the child and the protective parent, already weakened by violence, is frequently disregarded.
Despite its negative impacts and lack of scientific foundation, this theory was incorporated into the national reference framework published by the French National Authority for Health (HAS), legitimizing its use in institutional and judicial contexts. This highlights the systemic and institutionalized nature of these abuses and the secondary victimization caused by judicial systems.
These scientifically unvalidated concepts often divert attention from the violence suffered by children and protective parents, focusing instead on allegations of alienation or parental manipulation. As a result, they justify judicial decisions restricting mothers’ rights and, in some cases, maintaining contact with abusive parents. The misuse of such notions leads to double victimization: children are forced into dangerous relationships, and mothers are deprived of their protective role due to biased judgments.
Institutional Violence: An Echo of Domestic Abuse
Institutional violence refers to the dynamics of power and control exerted by institutions through practices or policies that, intentionally or otherwise, invalidate victims’ narratives and perpetuate their trauma. Institutional gaslighting, for example, describes a process where victims’ experiences are systematically questioned or minimized, creating an oppressive environment that exacerbates initial suffering. These institutional mechanisms, often invisible, reinforce the abuse patterns already present in family contexts.
Controversial theories, often targeting women in the context of child protection, regularly gain traction under the guise of pseudo-legal psychology. These concepts, lacking rigorous empirical validation, sometimes achieve institutional legitimacy through arbitrary recognition processes. However, it is the legal responsibility of the State to ensure that only scientifically validated theories are employed in decisions affecting fundamental rights. Victims of these practices are encouraged to pursue legal recourse against the State if such unvalidated theories cause harm.
A Form of Psychological Torture
The United Nations, within the framework of the Convention Against Torture, defines torture as “any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for purposes such as obtaining a confession, punishment, or intimidation.” By this definition, the institutional violence inflicted upon protective mothers aligns with this framework. The prolonged exposure to complex judicial procedures, where their voices are discredited, and their protective efforts criminalized, constitutes a form of psychological torture.
Chilling Statistics and Widespread Impunity
Despite the steady increase in reports of sexual violence against minors—doubling between 2011 and 2021—conviction rates remain alarmingly low: 3% for sexual abuse cases and only 1% for incest cases. Meanwhile, accusations of parental manipulation, often grounded in pseudo-scientific concepts such as the “Parental Alienation Syndrome” or overdiagnoses of Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy, continue to discredit mothers and favor abusers. However, according to a 2001 Ministry of Justice study, false accusations constitute only 0.8% of cases.
In Spain, these dynamics are exacerbated by structural delays in implementing laws that protect victims of intrafamilial violence. Contradictory rulings and inadequate training for judges contribute to a growing climate of impunity.
Failures of Child Welfare: Fabricated Reports and Intimidation
The French child welfare system (ASE, Aide Sociale à l’Enfance), designed to protect at-risk minors, has frequently been accused of abusive practices that exacerbate the suffering of mothers and children. Fabricated or unverified reports are often used to justify the placement of children into foster care without evidence of abuse, as highlighted in a professional statement published on lenfanceaucoeur.org. These reports frequently lead to unjustified decisions to separate children from their families, fostering an environment of fear that deters mothers from reporting abuse out of fear of institutional retaliation.
These severe failures were flagged by the European Court of Human Rights, which condemned France for failing to protect children entrusted to ASE care, including cases where children endured sexual violence. These institutional failings, compounded by a lack of oversight and accountability, leave families vulnerable to a system meant to safeguard them.
The Urgency of Systemic Reform
Given these alarming findings, rethinking the operations of judicial and social institutions is imperative. Several reform proposals emerge:
Mandatory Training: All professionals involved in these cases, from judges to social workers, must undergo comprehensive training on intrafamilial violence dynamics, the impact of trauma, and their cognitive biases.
Ban on Parental Alienation Syndrome: The use of this controversial concept must be banned in family courts, in line with United Nations recommendations.
Independent Oversight Mechanisms: Establish independent supervisory committees to review judicial decisions in cases involving sexual violence against minors. Additionally, to prevent institutional abuses related to ASE and expert witnesses, creating an independent referral service is essential. This service, accessible in emergencies, would be tasked with impartially reviewing reports and intervening promptly to suspend or rectify decisions that perpetuate institutional violence. Such a structure would restore confidence in child protection systems while safeguarding the fundamental rights of children and protective parents.
Enforcing Evidence-Based Practices : the legal framework, intended to guard against harmful practices, paradoxically enables their proliferation through its laxity. Despite substantial evidence demonstrating increased risks of errors and harm associated with the use of unvalidated theories, no explicit obligation exists to ensure the exclusive application of evidence-based methods. Legislating the mandatory use of scientifically validated approaches in all decisions concerning child protection is essential to curtail abuses and ensure the safety of families.
A Collective Responsibility
The media, institutions, and society play a crucial role in ending this modern form of institutional torture. By breaking the silence and amplifying the voices of victims, we can pressure policymakers and demand profound changes.
Every voice matters in this fight for justice. Protecting children and supporting the mothers who defend them must become an absolute priority. Together, we can transform oppressive institutions into steadfast safeguards against all forms of violence.
Sources :
Commission indépendante sur l’inceste et les violences sexuelles faites aux enfants (CIIVISE). (n.d.). Rapport sur les violences sexuelles faites aux enfants en France. Récupéré de https://www.ciivise.fr
Council of Europe. (n.d.). Protecting children’s rights in family court decisions. Récupéré de https://www.coe.int
Women’s Aid. (2021). The Impact of Domestic Abuse on Child Contact Cases in England. Récupéré de https://www.womensaid.org.uk
Ligue des Familles. (2023). L’utilisation du syndrome d’aliénation parentale dans les tribunaux en Belgique : une critique scientifique. Récupéré de https://liguedesfamilles.be
European Parliament. (2021). Resolution on the impact of domestic violence on child custody rights (2021/2026(INI)). Récupéré de https://www.europarl.europa.eu
Gardner, R. A. (1985). Parental Alienation Syndrome and the Differentiation Between Fabricated and Genuine Child Sex Abuse. Cresskill, NJ: Creative Therapeutics. (Note : Mentionnée comme référence historique mais critiquée scientifiquement).
lenfanceaucoeur.org. (n.d.). Tribune contre les placements abusifs en ASE. Récupéré de https://lenfanceaucoeur.org
United Nations Committee Against Torture. (1984). Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. Récupéré de https://www.ohchr.org
Haute Autorité de Santé (HAS). (n.d.). Référentiel national sur la protection de l’enfance. Récupéré de https://www.has-sante.fr
Ministère de la Justice (France). (2001). Étude sur les fausses accusations en matière de violences sexuelles intrafamiliales. Récupéré de https://justice.gouv.fr
Meehl, P. E. (1954). Clinical vs. Statistical Prediction: A Theoretical Analysis and a Review of the Evidence. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
