United Nations

Schaefer: US Must Lead UN Peacekeeping Reform

August 03, 2016

Brett Schaefer of the Heritage Foundation writes that the US Congress must develop financial incentives for UN peacekeeping operations to address widespread "mismanagement, corruption, and misconduct," including accusations of rampant sexual abuse by peacekeepers, and improve the treatment of whistleblowers within the UN system.
Rhodes: UN Conflates Rights with Political Objectives

August 03, 2016

Aaron Rhodes of the Forum for Religious Freedom-Europe asserts that, in a speech identifying human rights as the "main tool" in efforts to fulfill the UN's targets on sustainable development, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon ignores the distinction between human rights, which aim to protect people from the actions of oppressive governments, and redistributionist politics.
Scientists: UN Temperature Target Needs More Research

August 03, 2016

According to the website Climate Home, scientists have called for more research to determine the effectiveness of the target agreed in the recent UN climate deal seeking to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
World Bank Pushes Pacific Action on Climate Risks

August 03, 2016

In line with the dire narratives offered by the UN and its associated organizations regarding the devastating future impacts of global warming, the World Bank has published a report advising Pacific Island governments on how they must invest in infrastructure to help their countries adapt to increasing climate risks.
Panamanians Protest UN-Supported "Sexuality Education"

August 03, 2016

C-Fam writes that a mass protest in Panama City targeted legislation in the Panamanian Parliament that would adopt the UN model of "comprehensive sexuality education" in schools around the country, as protesters argued that the proposed law would "promote children's sexualization" and infringe on parents' rights to freedom of religion and conscientious objection.
UN Agents Criticize Dominican Abortion Restrictions

August 02, 2016

A group of UN human rights mandate holders has called on the Dominican Republic "to repeal all restrictive legal provisions regarding abortion" and to block, as a violation of women's rights against discrimination and from "torture and ill-treatment," legislation that would criminalize the act of obtaining an abortion under certain circumstances.
Article Highlights Complexity of Measuring SDGs

August 02, 2016

George Russell writes that efforts by scientists and other experts around the world to develop a system for measuring progress toward the comprehensive and sometimes competing UN Sustainable Development Goals for the year 2030 have served to demonstrate the complexity and vague nature of the UN's sustainable development agenda.
OHCHR Criticizes Australian Youth Detention Conditions

August 01, 2016

The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has raised concerns that the treatment of minors at an Australian youth detention center violated the country's obligations under international human rights law and has called for payment of compensation to the detainees and for the expansion of the scope of an investigation of the centers.
UN Observer Targets "Racism" in US Policies

July 29, 2016

Arguing that US policies including sentencing and drug laws reflect "old philosophies of exclusion and discrimination," the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, Maina Kiai, reported that the "justifiable and palpable anger" from the black community over such policies must be expressed through a robust right to protest.
UN Agent: US Should Reform Policies Toward Protests

July 28, 2016

Arguing that the US Supreme Court's allowance of "time, place, and manner restrictions" on public demonstrations does "not necessarily conform with international law," the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, Maina Kiai, has called for US authorities to open up their process of permitting protests.