Tag: United Nations

Climate Refugees Cannot Be Forced Home, U.N. Panel Says in Landmark Ruling

Climate refugees cannot be sent home, the U.N. Human Rights Committee ruled in a landmark judgment.

“The decision sets a global precedent,” Kate Schuetze, Amnesty International’s Pacific Researcher said Monday, in response to the news. “It says a state will be in breach of its human rights obligations if it returns someone to a country where – due to the climate crisis – their life is at risk, or in danger of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment triggered.”

While the judgment is not binding, it does emphasize that countries have a legal responsibility to protect people whose lives are threatened by the climate crisis. Here’s what to know. Continue reading.

Trump goes to the United Nations to argue against everything it stands for — again

But the world seems to be over Trump’s nationalistic schtick.

UNITED NATIONS, New York — In his third annual speech to the United Nations General Assembly, President Donald Trump delivered a clear message in favor of nationalism and national sovereignty and against globalism.

But three years into Trump’s presidency, that kind of rhetoric is no longer as shocking as it once was. Most of the world has heard it from him before.

Trump, in an oddly subdued speech in New York on Tuesday, reprised his case that all nations should exert their sovereignty, protect their borders, and reject any mutual and international cooperation that doesn’t put their country’s own interests first. For Trump, it’s “America First;” for everyone else it’s “[Insert Country Here] First.”

View the complete September 24 article by Jen Kirby on the Vox website here.

Trump complains to UN: ‘I would get a Nobel Prize for a lot of things if they gave them out fairly’

AlterNet logoPresident Donald Trump asserted on Monday that the Nobel Peace Prize process is unfair because he should get one “for a lot of things.”

While appearing at the UN, Trump speculated on why he had not been awarded a Nobel Prize.

“I would get a Nobel prize for a lot of things, if they give it out fairly, which they don’t,” Trump said. “They gave one to Obama immediately upon his assent to the presidency and he had no idea why he got it.”

View the complete September 23 article by David Edwards from Raw Story on the AlterNet website here.

United Nations Blasts Migrant Detention Centers For ‘Damage’ To Children

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet slammed the current state of facilities used by the Trump administration to detain migrants families.

“As a pediatrician, but also as a mother and a former head of State, I am deeply shocked that children are forced to sleep on the floor in overcrowded facilities, without access to adequate healthcare or food, and with poor sanitation conditions,” Bachelet, a former president of Chile, said in a statement released on Monday.

“Detaining a child even for short periods under good conditions can have a serious impact on their health and development — consider the damage being done every

View the complete July 8 article by Oliver Willis on the National Memo website here.

U.N. investigator calls for probing Saudi officials in Khashoggi killing

Suspicions over the role of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince in the coldblooded murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi returned to the spotlight Wednesday, as a special U.N. investigator called for a criminal investigation of high-level Saudi officials.

Agnes Callamard, a human rights expert who is a special rapporteur for the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, released a 101-page report on her months-long inquiry into Khashoggi’s death last year at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.

Callamard faulted the United States and other countries for not exerting more pressure on Saudi Arabia despite “credible evidence” that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was likely involved in some way. She called for sanctioning and freezing the prince’s assets until he is either cleared or implicated by a U.N. investigation.

View the complete June 19 article by Carol Morello and Kareem Fahim on The Washington Post website here.

Three Takeaways as Trump Picks Former Fox Anchor for UN Envoy Post

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (center) speaks with staff, including spokeswoman Heather Nauert, President Trump’s pick for UN ambassador, during a G-20 summit last week in Argentina. Credit: Ron Przysucha, public domain via Flickr

By selecting State Department spokeswoman and former Fox News anchor Heather Nauert as his next UN ambassador, President Donald Trump has further consolidated his control of America’s foreign policy.

“Heather Nauert will be nominated for the ambassador to the United Nations,” Trump told reporters on his way to Marine One on Friday.

Other than her 20-month run as the top spokesperson at Foggy Bottom, Nauert has no diplomatic experience. She spent her entire career before going to State at ABC News and Fox. The latter is Trump’s favorite cable news network, which helped her land the State Department job.

View the complete December 7 article by John T. Bennett on The Roll Call website here.

Trump to nominate Nauert as United Nations ambassador

President Trump officially tapped State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, ending weeks of speculation about Nikki Haley’s replacement.

The U.N. post represents a significant promotion for Nauert, who since April 2017 has served as the State Department’s chief spokesperson.

“Heather Nauert will be nominated for the ambassador to the United Nations,” Trump said on Friday.

As U.S. ambassador to the U.N., Nauert will be a key figure in promoting and defending the Trump administration’s foreign policy on the international stage.

View the complete December 7 article by Morgan Chalfant on The Hill website here.

Trump administration to stop funding for UN Palestinian refugee program

The following article by Justin Wise was posted on the Hill website August 31, 2018:

Credit: AP Photo, Carolyn Kaster

The Department of State on Friday announced that it would stop funding the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), a United Nations body that gives out aid to Palestinian refugees.

The announcement comes just a day after the Washington Post reported that the administration was considering funding cuts over its concerns on the number of refugees recognized by the organization and how the organization spends its funds.

“The Administration has carefully reviewed the issue and determined that the United States will not make additional contributions to UNRWA,” Heather Nauert, spokesperson at the department, said in a statement.

View the complete article here.