United Nations

UN Official Calls for Stronger Climate Pledges

November 08, 2017

Highlighting the demands of UN officials and environmental activists on an urgent halt to greenhouse gas emissions, UN Environment Programme Executive Director Erik Solheim has warned that national pledges made under the UN's Paris climate accord amount to only a third of the action needed to meet the objectives of the deal.
UN Women Strategy Targets "Social Norms"

November 08, 2017

As part of the UN "sustainable development" agenda, and at a planned cost of $1.7 billion, the UN Women agency has endorsed a Strategic Plan for the years 2018 to 2021 that includes a push for the repeal of "discriminatory" legal frameworks and "the transformation of discriminatory social norms and stereotypes" in countries around the world.
UNESCO Chief Seeks Cooperation Toward "New Humanism"

November 01, 2017

Opening the international organization's General Conference, the Director-General of the UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Irina Bokova called for countries to adopt a "new humanism" by rejecting the politics of "withdrawal" and embracing such broad concepts as empathy and dialogue.
WHO Sparks Outcry with Mugabe Appointment

October 25, 2017

The appointment by the UN's World Health Organization (WHO) of Robert Mugabe, the longtime president of Zimbabwe with a "track record of human rights abuses," a "goodwill ambassador" of the organization - an appointment the WHO has since rescinded - points to the WHO's ongoing, controversial relationships with authoritarian governments.
NGO: China Uses UN Machinery to Silence Critics

October 25, 2017

A report from Human Rights Watch accuses China of running a campaign to weaken the UN's global human rights mechanisms by blocking Chinese human rights groups from participating in activities revealing the country's rights abuses at UN bodies, and criticizing UN officials for, at times, acquiescing to Chinese demands to silence its critics.
Article Criticizes UNESCO Promotion of "Sexual Rights"

October 20, 2017

In a recent article, Dr. Marianna Orlandi of the Center for Family & Human Rights raises concerns with a report published by the UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) that she says promotes the recognition of "sexual and reproductive health rights" and "comprehensive sexuality education" among children.
NGO Questions UN Agent on Payments from Russia

October 20, 2017

The nongovernmental organization UN Watch recently questioned UN Special Rapporteur Idriss Jazairy on the relationship between his report calling Russia a victim of human rights violations due to US and EU sanctions against the country and payments he received from the Russian government totaling $50,000.
Western Countries Push for UNHRC Reform

October 20, 2017

The US, UK, and Dutch delegations to the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) co-hosted an event on UNHRC reform and issued a joint statement arguing that the continued presence of "serial human rights violators" on the UNHRC undermines its status as a human rights advocate.
Report Shows UN Failure to Address Peacekeeper Abuse

October 20, 2017

The Associated Press has released a report detailing the UN’s lack of effective response to widespread allegations of sexual abuse committed by UN peacekeepers, stating that “the U.N. failed to meet many of its pledges to stop the abuse or help victims.”
British PM Threatens to Cut UN Funding

October 20, 2017

Sky News reports that UK Prime Minister Theresa May has called for UN reform and announced that 30 percent of the UK’s annual contributions to UN agencies will be “conditional on their ability to show they are efficient and transparent.”