On 7 October 2016, IIMA and VIDES attended the UNOG Library Event on the topic “UN and Women’s Leadership: How can we move forward?” The theme took a cue from Torild Skard’s book Women of Power: Half a century of female presidents and prime ministers worldwide which is a comprehensive overview of how and why women in 53 countries rose to the top in the years since the World War II. Michael Møller, Director General, UNOG, and Geneva Gender Champion gave his welcome remarks. The panel was moderated by Sigrun Habermann,...

Today is the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. This year, the theme celebrated is "Moving from humiliation and exclusion to participation: Ending poverty in all its forms." Let us remember that poverty is a multi-faceted reality: aside from material deprivation, it also entails exclusion from the basic opportunities and liberties that allow human beings to flourish in their environment. For more information: http://www.un.org/en/events/povertyday/...

In 2010 Haiti was decimated by an earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale. Still struggling to recuperate from this devastating tragedy, last week Haiti was hit by its largest natural disaster since the earthquake: Hurricane Matthew. Characterized as the worst Caribbean storm in a decade, Haiti’s death count has reached 900. According to the BBC, some areas have seen 90% destruction. Churches, schools and homes have been reduced to rubble. The situation has aggravated Haiti’s cholera epidemic, which has already left 10,000 people dead since the events in 2010. A...

On October 5th, the United Nations Security Council unanimously nominated António Guterres to replace Ban Ki-moon as the 9th UN Secretary General. The appointment will be formalized after the 71st session of the UN General Assembly to take place later this month. Guterres hails from Portugal, where he was Prime Minister from 1995 until 2002. In 2005, he took on the position of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The election of Guterres came as a surprise, as the climate seemed to favor the election a woman from Eastern...

The last week of the HRC session began with the Annual Discussion on the Integration of a Gender Perspective.  The panel discussed issues of import that still affect women in some parts of the world such as female genital mutilation and sexual violence in prisons.  But there appears to be some hope of improving gender perspective and integration through the Universal Periodic Review (UPR).  Gender-related recommendations are the second most prevalent theme in the UPR; however, we were reminded of the Chinese saying that “the blossoming of a single flower...

Today is the International Day of Non-Violence, celebrated since 2007 on October 2nd on the occasion of the birthday of Mahatma Ghandi. This pioneer of the strategy of non-violence said that this philosophy “is the greatest force at the disposal of mankind. It is mightier than the mightiest weapon of destruction devised by the ingenuity of man." Recognizing the many wars being fought around our world, this message is imperative in order to move towards a “culture of peace, tolerance, understanding and non-violence.” This year’s celebration seeks to place a special...

On 28 September 2016, Greece’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations in Geneva (UNOG) organized a high-level side event on the topic: Sports and sport values education as means to promote local integration and enhance the protection of human rights of refugees and migrants.  The central theme of the panel was how sports can be an entry point for refugee and migrant children to integrate into their host communities.  For these children and young people, sports can play a healing role that can bring a sense of normalcy to their uncertain lives and...

     On the 26th of September 2016, the United Nations in Geneva held the annual discussion on the integration of a gender perspective throughout the work of the Human Rights Council and that of its mechanisms, focusing specifically on the theme: gender integration in the resolutions and recommendations of the Human Rights Council.  The panel was chaired by H.E. Mr. Choi Kyong-lim, President of the Human Rights Council. The opening statement was delivered by Ms. Kate Gilmore, United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights. Ms. Gilmore painted a...

On the 20th of September 2016, the United Nations in Geneva held its annual half-day discussion on the rights of indigenous peoples, the theme of which was: the causes and consequences of violence against indigenous women and girls, including those with disabilities. The panel was chaired by H.E. Mr. Choi Kyong-lim, President of the Human Rights Council (HRC). Mr. Adam Abdelmoula, Director of the HRC and Treaty Mechanisms Division, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) gave the opening statement.   Mr. Abdelmoula highlighted the need to raise the...

At the UN Summit for Refugees and Migrants that was held in New York on September 19, 2016, world leaders came to a consensus on addressing the issue of large movements of refugees and migrants.  The New York Declaration contains a list of commitments for Member States to follow some of which are of key interest to IIMA and its activities such as: Protecting the human rights of all refugees and migrants, regardless of status. This includes the rights of women and girls and promoting their full, equal and meaningful...