Mr. Fletcher, a former UK Ambassador and policy adviser to three British Prime Ministers, was appointed UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator by Secretary-General António Guterres last month. In his new role, he will also head the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). He succeeds...
“What we’re hearing is that amongst the 22 people who were killed were 12 women and two children,” said Jeremy Laurence, spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). “We understand it was a four-storey residential building that was struck. With these factors in mind,...
Tackling insecurity in the Caribbean country must be the utmost priority, the report said, urging the authorities and the international community to do more to protect people and prevent further suffering. “No more lives should be lost to this senseless criminality,” said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk....
“It is a climate of fear in the country at the moment. We are urging the government to ensure that all steps are taken in line with international human rights law with transparency and that steps are taken to resolve this dispute peacefully,” OHCHR spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani told journalists in...
A joint report by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission emphasized the need to implement all components of transitional justice equally. These include criminal accountability, truth-seeking, reparations, and guarantees of non-recurrence, involving effective remedies for victims, legal reforms, and...
“We are concerned by reported instances of election-related violence, use of language that could amount to hate speech, and attacks on journalists in Liberia ahead of the general election on 10 October,” said UN Human Rights Office Spokesperson in the country, Seif Magango. Violent clashes Violent clashes between supporters of...
On Thursday, Hoang Thi Minh Hong, an acclaimed climate activist and former World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) employee, was sentenced to three years in prison and fined $4,100 after being convicted for tax evasion. Her trial lasted only three hours, and access to family and defence counsel were limited...
The closure of the office in Kampala follows the recent closure of sub-offices in Gulu and Moroto sub-offices. In February, the Government decided to terminate the mandate of the High Commissioner’s Office, OHCHR, in Uganda. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and human rights defenders denounced the move and had called for its...
Social protection provides a safety net for the vulnerable through policies and programmes that offer financial assistance, healthcare coverage and social insurance. “It helps prevent social exclusion and promotes social inclusion,” said Mahamane Cisse-Gouro, Director of the Human Rights Council and Treaty Mechanisms Division of human rights office OHCHR. Long-term...
In a statement released in Geneva on Friday, OHCHR Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani expressed concern over the death of 17-year-old Nahel M on Tuesday, after he was shot dead driving away from a traffic stop in the Parisian suburb of Nanterre. According to news reports, at least 875 people were arrested...
“We are concerned by the continued devastating impact of the fighting in Sudan on civilians,” Spokesperson Jeremy Laurence told journalists in Geneva. The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and military rival, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), have been locked in vicious clashes since mid-April. Hundreds have been killed and some 1.2...
The incident occurred on Thursday when armed men in uniform encircled Karma village, located in northern Yatenga province, and randomly shot at people. At least 150 civilians were killed, and many more wounded, according to reports. The attackers – allegedly members of the defence and security forces, accompanied by paramilitary...