A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary

Public Diplomacy Watch: "Travel Weekly has a good story about Tim Wirth and Ted Turner's UN Foundation, and its efforts to enlist the travel industry in protecting places designated as "World Heritage" sites by the UN."

Sudan Watch: "A new detailed UN report warns that killings, rapes and indiscriminate attacks are still forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes in Darfur. Excerpt from Scotsman January 28, 2006: "A 42-page report said those carrying out the violence included soldiers who fired at civilians from helicopter gunships. The report criticised the government of coup leader Omar el-Bashir, saying promises to end centuries of discrimination and marginalisation of black African minorities were marked by "token gestures" while murder and torture went unpunished." UN News Centre January 27, 2006 reports that while noting some progress since peace accords were signed last year, such as the lifting emergency law in certain areas, the OHCHR report says other initiatives have been inadequate, especially in Darfur, where any positive political measures were "overshadowed by an ineffective judiciary, an ongoing conflict, and widespread human rights abuses."

Draconian Observations: "The battle over who will replace Kofi Annan as the next Secretary General of the UN is on: Annan's term expires at the end of the year, and several candidates either have or are perceived to have joined the ranks of contenders for one of the most influential and definitely important posts in the world. Financial Times has an interesting piece on the subject coming out of the World Economic Forum summit in Davos. As FT's people aptly summarize, the next UNSG faces several tough challenges."

Kenneth Anderson: "UN Secretary General contenders square off at Davos, January 2006 - AFP on contenders to succeed Kofi Annan as Secretary General, debating at Davos, January 26, 2006: "Contenders for UN's top job face off at Davos - Some of the contenders touted to replace UN chief Kofi Annan set out their stalls when they faced off at a debate here on the future of the worldbody. Joining Annan on stage at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, were Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga, Foreign Minister Ban Ki-Moonof South Korea and senior Sri Lankan diplomat Jayantha Dhanapala. All three promised to continue sweeping UN reforms, with Vike-Freiberga in particular lashing the make-up and influence of the Security Council's five permanent, veto-wielding members..."

Paper Chase: "Lebanon says initial UN talks on Hariri tribunal 'fruitful' - Lebanese government officials have called "fruitful" initial consultations with visiting UN Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs Nicolas Michel on the establishment of an international tribunal for suspects in the February 2004 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. A UN spokesperson also described the meetings constructive and positive. Lebanon Justice Minister Charles Rizk is reported to have suggested either an international tribunal set up outside of Lebanon, or a Lebanon-located court of international judges. Government officials and observers appear to agree that a completely-internal Lebanese proceeding would be too controversial, especial as Syrian defendants could be involved. The UN is authorized to lend assistance to the
Lebanese government in setting up a tribunal under UN Security Council Resolution 1644. This is the first of several planned trips by Michel to Lebanon. Reuters has more."

Techwack: "The $US100 laptop project has got another major backer in the form of the United Nations. The UN lent its support to this innovative project, which aims to provide inexpensive, hand-cranked laptops to school-aged children worldwide. The announcement would be turned into a deal when Kemal Dervis, head of the UN Development Program, will sign a memorandum of understanding Saturday with Nicholas Negroponte at the World Economic Forum's annual meeting. Negroponte is the chairman of One Laptop per Child project. The project has an initial aim of delivering at least 1 million units by the end of next year. These would be sold to governments around the world at cost price for distribution to small children in schools. The project now gets the much-needed support from the UNDP, which would be working with the organization to deliver "technology and resources to targeted schools in the least developed countries."

Feministing: "A United Nations event honoring Mukhtar Mai was cancelled after Pakistan lobbied against it, arguing that it would be embarrassing to the Prime Minister. Mai is a Pakistani woman was publicly gang-raped on orders of a village court."

"The United States and Europe, after hours of negotiations on Iran, won support from Russia and China early Tuesday to refer Iran's nuclear activities to the United Nations Security Council this week, but with a promise that the Council would not act on the question for at least a month." [Full story]

"Tony Blair has admitted that the risks of climate change may be more serious than previously thought. The Prime Minister's concern is revealed today in a book that contains compelling evidence from some of the world's leading scientists of the growing threat to the planet.

Reassessments of major risks to the Earth, such as the melting of the great land-based ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica, which would raise sea levels disastrously, or the slowing down of the Gulf Stream, which would plunge Britain into a new ice age, show that they may be triggered by temperature rises well within those already predicted for the coming century.

The fresh appraisals indicate that the situation is far more dangerous than that set out in the last report of the main scientific body monitoring global warming, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). That study, the IPCC's third assessment report, known to scientists as the TAR, said there was "new and stronger evidence" that much of the warming already observed in recent decades had been caused by human activities, such as the emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases from power stations and motor vehicles." [Read more]

Also see:

Corals and Mangroves in the Front Line

Floods and Drought Boost Global Disasters

Global Warming Study: Polar Ice Sheets Could Start to Melt this Century

"The senior United Nations envoy to Iraq today condemned a series of deadly explosions carried out in coordinated sequence in the vicinity of churches in Baghdad and Kirkuk.

The attacks, which caused the death and injury of many innocent Iraqis, constituted "a reprehensible act that can only exacerbate sectarian violence," Secretary-General Kofi Annan's Special Representative, Ashraf Jehangir Qazi, said in a statement issued in the Iraqi capital." [More]

Selected summary of United Nations related news and events

Davos: Annan Lauds U.N.'s 'New Mindset'

'The United Nations Cannot Stand Still, Because the Threats
to Humanity Do Not Stand Still', Secretary General
Tells Davos World Economic Forum

Chief of UN Mission in Cote d'Ivoire Says 400 UN Staffers Evacuated After Riots, Siege

Diplomatic 'Quartet' Hails Free Palestinian Elections, Urges All to Renounce Violence

UN Says Asia Will Lead Global Economic Growth in 2006

UN Has Created Innovative Responses to Emerging Global Challenges, Frechette Says

Development: Poorer Nations Weather High Oil Prices - for Now

Meningitis Outbreak Leaves Thousands in Uganda in Need of Vaccine, UN Agency Says

Nicole Kidman Becomes U.N. Women's Fund Ambassador

U.N. Lends Backing to the $100 Laptop

A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary

Em Asomba: "The pioneering $100 laptop program, designed to give children in developing countries access to knowledge and educational tools, came a step closer to realization today with the signing of a partnership agreement in Davos between the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and One Laptop per Child (OLPC)."

Coalition for Darfur: "Uganda: Ready to Attack Rebels in Congo - From Reuters: "The Ugandan military is ready to "deal with" rebels in neighbouring Congo who killed eight U.N. soldiers this week, President Yoweri Museveni said on Thursday. "We told the U.N. they should allow us to go and deal with them in Congo, because we know how to fight those criminals," Museveni said during celebrations at an airfield marking two decades since his National Resistance Movement seized power."

Science Blog: "The head of the UN effort to combat the spread of the deadly bird flu virus today warmly welcomed donor pledges of $1.9 billion to fight the disease made at an international conference in China. "Quite extraordinary," was how David Nabarro, the UN System's Coordinator for Avian and Human Influenza, described an amount that was much more than the $1.4 billion he had previously said was needed to combat the spread of a disease that in humans has already led to 79 deaths globally."

Five Environment: "As a week of activities for United Nations World Environment Day approaches, Bayview Hunters Point continues its fight for environmental justice. In the midst of feel-good, look-good events at posh venues like the Metreon Theater in San Francisco, grassroots organizations and residents are gearing up for the largest environmental justice rally in San Francisco's history."

Woodshavings: "U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan pleads for international intervention by the U.N. Security Council in Darfur in a WaPo editorial [Wednesday]. There have been positive developments. The African Union (AU) has sent a small sized contingent of about 5,000 troops to patrol Texas-sized territory amid peace talks between the Sudanese government and the rebel movement moderated by the AU. The UN Security Council has also referred Darfur to the International Criminal Court. Yet, enough hasn't been done. Annan elaborates: "I wish I could report that all these efforts had borne fruit -- that Darfur was at peace and on the road to recovery. Alas, the opposite is true. People in many parts of Darfur continue to be killed, raped and driven from their homes by the thousands." While international intervention seems legitimate and warranted in Darfur, the inevitable question arises: Are we already too late?"

TPM CAFE (Jeffrey Lewis): "A few weeks ago, Iranian negotiators "stood up" IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei, not showing up for a meeting. The dating analogy is, of course, a poor one. Diplomats don't schedule meetings after a couple of vodkas and then get cold feet googling each other the next morning. This kind of diplomatic gaffe usually means one thing: The Iranian side is crippled by internal politics and can't agree on what to say."

Vital Perspective: "Iran defended its Holocaust denial conference on Tuesday, saying that "For over half a century, those who seek to prove the Holocaust have used every podium to defend their position. Now they should listen to others." Ahmadinejad's disturbing positions have shaken Israel and the West. Dan Gillerman, Israel's ambassador to the UN, said the conference was "proof of what a global threat Iran really is. I fear that the only reason Iran is showing so much interest in the Holocaust is because they may be preparing another Holocaust and it is up to the world and the United Nations to prevent that from happening."

No Time for Apathy on Sudan

By KOFI A. ANNAN, Secretary-General of the United Nations

"People in many parts of Darfur continue to be killed, raped and driven from their homes by the thousands. The number displaced has reached 2 million, while 3 million (half the total population of Darfur) are dependent on international relief for food and other basics. Many parts of Darfur are becoming too dangerous for relief workers to reach. The peace talks are far from reaching a conclusion. And fighting now threatens to spread into neighboring Chad, which has accused Sudan of arming rebels on its territory.

Despite a chronic funding crisis, A.U. troops in Darfur are doing a valiant job. People feel safer when the troops are present. But there are too few of them -- a protection force of only 5,000, with an additional 2,000 police and military observers, to cover a territory the size of Texas. They have neither the equipment nor the broad mandate they would need to protect the people under threat or to enforce a cease-fire routinely broken by the rebels, as well as by the Janjaweed militia and Sudanese government forces." [Read more]

"Patched-together dolls, drawings, poems and other personal effects give a glimpse of childhood turned unthinkable during the horrors of the Holocaust in an exhibition which opened today at the United Nations as part of a week of remembrance there.

No Child's Play, a travelling exhibit produced by Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority in Jerusalem, is part of a series of activities leading up to 27 January, which has been designated by the General Assembly as an annual International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of genocide.

With the theme Remembrance and Beyond, the events are meant to be not only reminders of past crimes and their victims, but also to spark an awareness among the international community and society at large, in order to help prevent future acts of genocide.

"The exhibition serves as a poignant caution to us all to remember the base savagery of which human beings are capable, and as a call to arms to ensure that we all act to prevent such horrors," Shashi Tharoor, UN Under-Secretary-General for Public Information, said at the opening of the children's exhibit." [Read more]

Also see: UN to Hold Solemn Events in Memory of Holocaust

A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary

Serendipity: "The latest State of the World's Children report by UNICEF has been released. Below is the press release from last month. (You can find previous years' reports at here.): "Abused and Neglected, Millions of Children Have Become Virtually Invisible - Hundreds of millions of children are suffering from severe exploitation and discrimination and have become virtually invisible to the world, UNICEF said today in a major report that explores the causes of exclusion and the abuses children experience."

Brenna: "Take a look at these pictures. Be aware of the graphic nature. When have you personally ever seen this? I have never in my entire life seen the UN Peacekeepers rolling down my street in a tank. This picture is from Haiti as they prepare for an election. The UN is present to stop the violence that is occurring as the election draws near. I have never gone to vote and seen armed Peacekeepers patrolling the area to ensure that the election is kept fair. The Haiti election was postponed three times because the violence was too much. And it is looking at these pictures that I find myself disgusted with the low voter turnout here is Canada, and the people that have told me that they are not voting. These men and women are risking their lives to protect democracy and bring a fair election to the people of Haiti. Many Peacekeepers have been killed in the process."

ArmsControlWonk: "An Iranian bomb is not, yet, a foregone conclusion. The degree to which Iran's nuclear program has become an element of the country's domestic politics suggests that fissures exist within Iranian elites that create space for negotiations. Those fissures might be quite severe, as suggested by a curious incident recently when Iranian delegates didn't show up for a meeting with IAEA DG ElBaradei. If I had to guess, the Iranians missed the meeting because they were probably riven internally and couldn't."

Blog Podcast: "WHO Warning About Avian Flu - AlertNet: "Accused of exaggerating the threat of an avian flu pandemic, the World Health Organization again emphasized the importance of and need for finding any early signs of the bird flu virus to prevent its spread. Eighty people in six countries have already died from avian flu virus, and according to the United Nations, a pandemic could kill as many as eight million."

Coalition for Darfur: "UNICEF Seeks $805 Million - From Reuters: "The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) appealed on Monday for $805 million to provide aid to children and mothers in 29 emergencies worldwide. More than one-third of the total sought from donors for this year, $331 million, is for Sudan, where the survival of 1.4 million children in Darfur alone is threatened, it said."

TIMOTHY E. WIRTH
President, United Nations Foundation

Letter to the Editor, Washington Post

"Contrary to the Jan. 9 editorial "Globalization's Deficit," efforts to reform the United Nations have progressed significantly since last year's World Summit. The United Nations has created a Peacebuilding Commission to guide and support nation-building efforts in post-conflict areas, and a Democracy Fund that had been advocated by the Bush administration. Negotiations for a Human Rights Council are proceeding. Management reforms have been implemented, including the creation of an Ethics Office to administer new whistleblower and financial disclosure policies for U.N. staff.

Other changes include a more transparent hiring process and creation of an independent audit board to oversee management practices. Finally, the 2006-07 U.N. budget is tied to the completion of reform initiatives.

The United Nations is making a difference on global challenges. For example, it provided invaluable support to the United States in laying the groundwork for a political transition in Iraq, most recently by providing assistance for the December elections and acknowledging their legitimacy. The Security Council also is investigating Syria's involvement in the assassination of Rafiq Hariri and helping to free the Lebanese from Syrian control.

Like the world, the United Nations is imperfect, but it is being reinvented to meet the challenges of the 21st century."

"Unidentified assailants ambushed United Nations peacekeepers from Guatemala in the restive eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on Monday, sparking an hours-long gun battle that left eight UN troops dead, officials said.

Fourteen UN peacekeepers were wounded in the attack in Garamba National Park, near Congo's borders with Sudan and Uganda in the region of Ituri, UN spokesperson Kemal Saiki said. He had no information the attackers' identities, but said rebels from Uganda's Lord's Resistance Army are known to operate in the region." [More]

A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary

Demagogue: "As I mentioned last week, the AU says it will run out of fund for its mission in Darfur in March. Given the Security Council's reluctance to deal with Darfur, any eventual hand-over to UN troops probably wouldn't even happen this year. So Annan is basically asking member nations to start fully-funding the AU mission so that they can hang on long enough to transfer the mission over to the UN."

Feministing: "The UN says that too many countries are failing women by conducting subpar census reports. "The World's Women 2005, Progress in Statistics" reports that many developing countries are not keeping track of the the sex of those who are born, work and die: "The whole goal of the improvement of the quality of life worldwide is dependent on knowing the situation of women, men, the elderly, infants," said Mary Chamie, chief of the U.N. demographics and social statistics branch. "We need it for questions on globalization, for questions on trade, on understanding of economic production, education, ... getting vaccinated and for that matter, reproduction," she said in an interview. "It's like going to the doctor, but the doctor never examines us." Read the report here."

Belmont Club: "When's a death a death? Yahoo News carries this report on deaths in East Timor caused by Indonesian occupation: "Indonesia killed up to 180,000 East Timorese through massacres, torture and starvation during its 24-year occupation, a report to be handed to the United Nations has found, an Australian daily said on Thursday." The Third World is place where deaths are accounted with altogether different arithmetic than the First World. Events there happen as on another planet. Democracy Rising in a post called Hate Radio Returns As Ivory Coast Teeters On The Brink Of War talks about the implosion of the UN Peacekeeping Mission in the Ivory Coast."

Huffington Post (Nathan Gardels): "In the debate raging across the West about taking Iran to the UN Security Council over its nuclear program, little is understood about internal Iranian public opinion. How can human rights activists who oppose theocratic rule at the same time support Iran's right to a nuclear program and resist the idea of punitive sanctions by the rest of the world? Is there a better way for the West to neutralize a potential nuclear threat from Iran? Here is an insight from Shirin Ebadi, the Iranian human rights activist who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005 and a scientific colleague, Muhammaed Sahimi..."

Iddybud: "Janine Zacharia at Bloomberg is reporting that Russia's proposal to hold off on a formal referral of Iran to the United Nations' Security Counci suggests disharmony ahead of an emergency (Feb. 2) IAEA meeting. EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said what action the IAEA will take may not be clear until the last minute. A majority vote by the 35-member board of the IAEA, the UN's nuclear watchdog, is required for a referral to the Security Council."

KOTP: "Well, Ivory Coast has been down the tubes for a while. But, the situation is getting worse with supporters of the government fighting with UN peacekeepers at one of their basecamps. A Bangledeshi contingent at Guiglo, 300km from Abidjan, has pulled out, after killing at least four protestors. The government has pulled out of the peace process, protesting a recommendation that the parliament be dissolved now that its mandate has expired. ... No one in the right mind can fault the peacekeepers for protecting themselves. And, maybe if they - and the French troops stationed there (who wiped out the Cote d'Ivoire airforce in 2004) - were even more proactive, than Gbagbo and his bully boys and the rebels would stop this stupid conflict and finally come to terms."

Rikomatic: "There aren't often events that combine my interests in the United Nations and dance. But on January 26 there will be a discussion with choreographer Bill T. Jones on "The Role of Modern Dance in International Dialogue." It will take place at the Dag Hammarskjold Library Auditorium at the UN at 12:30 pm. Sponsored by the US Mission to the UN."

CNN: "The United Nations resumed crucial relief flights to earthquake-devastated areas of Pakistan on Wednesday, but the race to save hungry and freezing victims was stymied by new landslides."

A UNOCI Military observer handing out posters
and information pamphlets citing the dangers of
unexploded ordnances at an event organized by UNOCI
to celebrate UN Day.

"As hate media in Cote d'Ivoire broadcast messages inciting attacks against United Nations peacekeepers, diplomatic efforts to defuse the crisis are intensifying, a spokesman for the world body said today.

"Violence continues in a number of locations, including Abidjan and Guiglo," Stephane Dujarric told reporters in New York. He added that the situation has calmed somewhat in San Pedro and Daloa, but last night Bangladeshi Battalion elements in Guiglo were forced to open fire to repel attackers trying to overrun the UN compound.

"A number of attackers were killed and others wounded. UN forces are exercising maximum restraint in dealing with these attacks. Non-lethal methods are being used to disburse crowds and deter attacks," he stressed." [Read more]

Selected summary of United Nations related news and events

Powers Split Over Iran Talks Bid

Two U.N. Peacekeepers Killed in Haiti

Landslides Strand Quake Survivors

Condemning Violence in Afghanistan,
Security Council Backs New Development Plan

Lebanon Wants UN Force in South for Another Year

UNICEF Brings Community Health Care to Quake-hit Pakistan

Nabarro Begs Richest Nations as Millions Face Bird Flu Death

Bird Flu: Interview With UN Food and Agriculture
Organization's Erwin Northoff

United Nations Holds Informal Session on Space Technology
for Sustainable Development and Disaster Management

A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary

Education Experts: "The United Nations Fulbright Fellowship Program, now in its third year, was created to build new sources of UN leadership and further the ability of the Fulbright Program to educate leaders and lay the foundation for global problem solving. It is funded by a grant from the United Nations Foundation/Better World Fund. This year, 10 UN Fulbright Fellows served in various United Nations departments, offices and funds both in New York City and worldwide, after completing their graduate degrees in the U.S. under Fulbright sponsorship. From June through December 2005, these UN Fulbright fellows had an opportunity to contribute to the advancement of the work of the United Nations, learn from United Nations staff, and gain valuable professional experience to cap off their Fulbright Fellowship in the United States."

Uncooperative Blogger: "Iran Better Consider the Possibilities - You know I have been doing some thinking, and Iran should be concerned that Iran might face Security Council action in February, the very month John Bolton, U.S. Ambassador to the UN, assumes the Council's Presidency. This would certainly make it more likely that significant sanction would be imposed upon them."

Phil Gomes: "Eric Margolis gives us another view of the possibilities as he anticipates a showdown [with Iran]. Iran must also face the very real threat of punishing UN-imposed sanctions, unless they are vetoed by China or Russia or even a US naval blockade. The EU is proposing sanctions as a way of trying to divert the US from military action, which would damage Europe more than the United States."

Democracy Arsenal: "The latest disturbing news out of Iran is that the government now plans a conference on the Holocaust. Having already judged the Nazi genocide a myth and called for Israel's destruction, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad seems bent on making a name for himself as this century's leading violent anti-Semitic megalomaniac, this time with nukes.... With Ahmadinejad openly advocating Israel's destruction and cutting the UN seals on its nuclear installations, there would seem adequate grounds today for preventive action to stop Iran from acquiring the means to carry out its destructive aims against Israel. But the principle of preventive war is even more controversial than preemptive war, since its not predicated on a threat that's close at hand."

Counterterrorism Blog: "Norway issued a startling declaration earlier this month. Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Store announced January 4th that his country would no longer follow the EU lead concerning the designation of terrorist organizations not included in the UN designated terrorist list. A Copy of the Foreign Ministry Statement is here. Norway had previously aligned itself with the EU's list of persons, organisations and entities set out in the Common Position on the application of specific measures to combat terrorism. The decision to now deviate from the EU means that organizations such as al aqsa Martyrs Brigade, Hamas, and some 45 other designated terrorist organizations around the world may no longer be subjected in Norway to the same restrictions other EU countries have placed on them."

Michelle Malkin: "IRAN: PREPARING FOR THE WORST - We are on the brink. Via AP: "Iran's president on Saturday denounced Western nations threatening to refer his country to the U.N. Security Council for possible sanctions over its nuclear program, saying the international community has no legal basis for restricting Tehran's right to research."

World Changing: "The UNEP Finance Initiative is a global partnership between banks, investors, and insurers, which aims to understand environmental challenges and the potential trillion-dollar markets they bring. During the recent UN Conference on Climate Change in Montreal, they held a side event on post-Kyoto policy. In the resulting report, CEO Briefing on the Future of Climate Change Policy: The Financial Sector Perspective [PDF], their position is very clear: The evidence is overwhelming - human-induced climate change is real, and the environmental, economic and social costs due to inaction against this threat are already high and are likely to be much higher in future...The Kyoto Protocol is the start of an inevitable transition to a low-carbon economy. There is an urgent need now to extend this framework beyond 2012, as a key part of a global policy regime, in order to foster investments in low and non-carbon technologies."

PSD Blog: "Just came across InterWorld Radio. A great site that broadcasts local radio commentaries from around the world - most with a strong development bent. I just listened to a discussion of the impacts of tourism in Ghana and 'debts and daughters' in Malawi. For more 'development-angled' radio programming see OneWorld Radio or UNICEF Radio."

"Experts meeting at the European headquarters of the United Nations in Geneva today begin discussions on racism and the Internet and other related issues.

During their two-week session, an intergovernmental working group set up to follow-up on decisions made at the 2001 World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, held in Durban, South Africa." [More]

WaPo: "Iran threatened on Friday to block U.N. inspections of its nuclear facilities and end all voluntary cooperation with the nuclear watchdog if it is referred to the U.N. Security Council as the long confrontation over Iran's nuclear program moved closer to crisis level."

More from the NYT: "For two years, the United States has repeatedly declared that after many instances of Iran failing to disclose its nuclear activities to international inspectors, its conduct should be subject to condemnation or sanctions at the Security Council. But until this week, the United States' major European allies have declined to endorse that step. Only after allowing the Europeans to negotiate with Iran and to offer possible incentives for suspending its activities, and encouraging Russia to make a separate offer to operate a joint uranium enrichment program on Russian soil, has the United States brought these partners around to more overt pressure."

UPDATE - From Alertnet: "U.S. President George W. Bush said on Friday he would not prejudge what the U.N. Security Council would do with Iran, asked about whether he expected sanctions to be imposed if Iran is brought before the Council over its nuclear program."

A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary

Tapped (Mark Leon Goldberg): "Today, at the United Nations, negotiations will begin in earnest over the composition and mandate of a new human rights council that will replace the much maligned and discredited human rights commission. Creating the council has been on the UN reform agenda for quite some time now, and it was one of the pillars of reform that went unfulfilled at the UN summit last September. But as of today, UN member states are redoubling their effort to create a newly empowered human rights organ -- and spoiler countries, like Pakistan, Cuba, Venezuela and India, are doing their utmost to stall this work."

Coalition for Darfur: "Darfur: Calls for a High-Level Envoy for Peace - From Human Rights First: "Human Rights First today called on the United Nations Secretary-General to appoint a new high-level Envoy for Peace in Darfur, where millions of innocent people are suffering in a human rights crisis. "The situation in Darfur is rapidly deteriorating, and there is an urgent need for greater action by the United Nations and its members, including the United States, to work to end the conflict."

Congogirl: "In DR Congo, the training of 20 civilian and military personnel is in progress in France, to show that that country is dedicated to enforcing the rule of law. This training is an important step in light of recent events in Katanga province: 49,000 people have fled fighting there between the Congolese army and the Mayi-Mayi rebel militia. Humanitarian groups such as Medecins Sans Frontiers are having difficulty accessing those regions to provide aid. The International Crisis Group says that the situation is as bad as in Ituri and the Kivus but is not garnering comparable attention. "The number of displaced in central and northern Katanga now exceeds 100,000," said Anne Edgerton, head of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)...."Their most immediate need is clothing,' she said. 'Many arrived with clothes rotting off their bodies."

Fergie's Tech Blog: "February Meeting on Internet Governance - Kieren McCarthy writes on The Register: "The first steps toward the new Internet Governance Forum, which will take a lead role in how the internet will be run now and in the future, have been taken. A website for the IGF has popped up on the net, and the first official convening meeting has been scheduled for 16-17 February at the United Nations headquarters in Geneva. Invitations to interested parties were sent out yesterday. The establishment of the IGF was decided on at the World Summit in November, where UN secretary general Kofi Annan was asked to "to convene a meeting of the new forum for multi-stakeholder policy dialogue"."

Mental Meanderings: "The New York Times carried an editorial yesterday on John Bolton's proposals for reform of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) in the United Nations. As I wrote here reform of the CHR is one of the main prongs in Kofi Annan's reform package and is long overdue."

Regime Change Iran: "As the world awakens, signs the regime may be fracturing as it prepares for a confrontation. Iran Breaks The Seals and the World Wakes Up: Reuters reported that the U.N. nuclear watchdog confirmed that Iran had broken U.N. seals at the Natanz uranium enrichment plant. * The Financial Times reported that European diplomats said an emergency meeting could be held this week. * The New York Times reported that the White House said if Iran continues on its current nuclear course, it will leave the international community no choice but to refer Tehran to the U.N. Security Council for possible actions. * The Times reported that Iran was likely to be referred to the UN Security Council for punitive sanctions by the end of the month."

Thoughts About K4D: "Temporary Resolution of the US Funding Threats to UN - Read the full article by Thalif Deen published on January 9, 2006 on the Inter Press News Agency website. Lead: "The United States, a major funder of the United Nations and its myriad agencies, has a longstanding notoriety for exercising its financial clout to threaten U.N. bodies refusing to play ball with Washington."

Central PA UNA-USA Chapter: "UN Activist Tool: A Citizens' Guide to the UN in the 21st Century - A Citizens' Guide to the UN in the 21st CenturyYou Can Make a Difference: "We have it in our power to pass on to our children a brighter inheritance than that bequeathed to any previous generation... If we act boldly - and if we act together..." - UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. "A Citizens' Guide to the UN in the 21st Century" is a brochure that you can download, copy, and to use in your communities to talk to your friends and neighbors about the need to make the UN stronger and more effective in order to meet the challenges of a new century."

Bloomberg: "The United Nations World Health Organization said as much as $1.5 billion is needed during the next three years to combat the spread of avian influenza which has killed almost 80 people since December 2003."

Children in Danna village now have warm clothing
to help them fend off the biting winds of winter
and bitter cold. © UNHCR/B.Baloch

"As winter tightens its grip on the earthquake-affected mountainous areas near Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, staff of the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) are distributing warm clothing to vulnerable young survivors.

Teams from the agency recently made the difficult journey to Danna village, traveling some 30 kilometres north of Muzaffarabad city over curved roads beset by landslides.

UNHCR tents in the village provide temporary shelter to families that lost their homes and many loved ones in the 8 October earthquake that killed more than 73,000 people." [Read more]

Selected summary of United Nations related news and events

US Diplomats Ready to Go to United Nations

UN Resumes Earthquake Aid Flights

United States Sending Diplomatic Mission to Ethiopia, Eritrea

Bird Flu in Turkey Following Asia's Pattern of Poultry-to-Human
Transmission, UN Expert Says

Arms Flow to Sudan's Darfur Despite Embargo: UN

Record Number Of Countries Contributed To UNFPA,
The United Nations Population Fund, In 2005

A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary

Transmutations: "Today's New York Times has an editorial concerning Ambassador Bolton's proposal for the new Human Rights monitoring council. The Times seems to be in favor of reform at the United Nations, but against Bolton's proposal because it does not serve the interests of members states and people who most need the rights to be protected. The leaders of the United States must change their policies and redress the wrongs they have done. Otherwise, they will face the consequences -- both from the United Nations, and possibly from foreign malcontents. As for the latter, I am not condoning this, but simply state the obvious. Both the U.S. and the UN need reforms to participate as responsible leaders in the 21st Century. Enacting the change that the Human Rights Commission proposes would facilitate these reforms. Ambassador Bolton's "couldn't care less" attitude would only exacerbate the problem. Justice is the issue, not politics as usual at the UN."

Payne Hollow: "Here's at least one study that acknowledges the wisdom of peacemaking: A major study by the Rand Corp. published this year found that U.N. peace-building operations had a two-thirds success rate. They were also surprisingly cost-effective. In fact, the United Nations spends less running 17 peace operations around the world for an entire year than the United States spends in Iraq in a single month. What the United Nations calls "peacemaking" -- using diplomacy to end wars -- has been even more successful. About half of all the peace agreements negotiated between 1946 and 2003 have been signed since the end of the Cold War."

The Ruth Group: "Writing in the St. Louis Post Dispatch, Andrew Mack reaffirms that UN peacekeeping is having a tangible impact on levels of global violence: "Other international agencies, donor governments and nongovernmental organizations also played a critical role, but it was the United Nations that took the lead, pushing a range of conflict-prevention and peace-building initiatives on a scale never before attempted. The number of U.N. peacekeeping operations and missions to prevent and stop wars has increased by more than 400 percent since the end of the Cold War. As this upsurge of international activism grew in scope and intensity through the 1990s, the number of crises, wars and genocides declined."

Low Level Panel: "Ralph Bunche, the first UN official ever to win the Nobel Peace Prize, said that the UN exists "not merely to preserve the peace but also to make change-even radical change-possible without violent upheaval. The United Nations has no vested interest in the status quo."

Bird Flu Watch: "Bird Flu Claims Third Victim In Turkey - Even vendors selling bird feed at a market in Istanbul aren't taking chances. Officials confirmed three children from the same family have died from bird flu in eastern Turkey, marking a major shift westwards to the edge of Europe of a disease that has so far claimed lives in eastern Asia. The H5N1 virus remains hard for people to catch, but there are fears it could mutate into a form easily transmitted among humans. Experts say a pandemic among humans could kill millions around the globe and cause massive economic losses. But, a U.N. official said the news from Turkey was disturbing but not yet a cause for panic. "This is not the start of the pandemic. The start of the pandemic starts when there is human to human transfer, confirmed and sustained," Dr. David Nabarro, senior coordinator for avian influenza at the United Nations, told Reuters."

Brlogsbane: "Parag Khanna's article about the United Nations in January's issue of Harpers is rivetting, and sad, and beautifully written. Most of the criticism of the UN that I've read has been by people who don't like what the UN is trying to achieve in the first place. If you read an opinion piece about the UN in the Murdoch press, it's most likely a defense of the United States imposing its will on the world. The buzzard-like commentators are usually barely able to hide their glee at the UN's paralysis. (Sometimes that paralysis is not a bad thing, mind. Remember the gloating at the start of the Iraq war about how the UN didn't have the bottle to invade Iraq?) Khanna's article is refreshing because he's actually sad and frustrated about the UN's current condition."

Democratic Underground: "Think about it this way: Where would the world be without the UN?

* Where would the 40+ million refugees and internally displaced people around this world be without the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (http://www.UNHCR.ch ), which gives victims of genocide, war, and other forms of violence (over 80% of whom are women and children) food, shelter, education and protection?

* Where would the world's poorest children be without UNICEF?

* Where would the world's hungry be without the World Food Program?

* What other body can bring together 160+ world leaders at the same time in a peaceful way to discuss an agenda that includes world poverty and the Millennium Development Goals (as happened just this September at the UN World Summit in NYC?)

* How many more world treasures would have been destroyed if not for the protection of UNESCO? (the UN Educational Scientific and Cultural Org)."

Dying in Darfur: "As the military and humanitarian situation continues to deteriorate in Sudan, Secretary-General Kofi Annan has expressed concern over the slow deployment of troops with the U.N. peacekeeping mission currently underway in the politically troubled African nation." [AllAfrica.com]

PC Information: "NationMaster.com, a massive central data source and a handy way to graphically compare nations. NationMaster is a vast compilation of data from such sources as the CIA World Factbook, United Nations, World Health Organization, World Bank, World Resources Institute, UNESCO, UNICEF and OECD. Using the form above, you can generate maps and graphs on all kinds of statistics with ease."

"Iran said it was ready to remove U.N. seals at some atomic research and development sites on Monday, a move that would raise the stakes in Tehran's dispute with the West over its nuclear programme.

European Union and U.S. officials say that, if Iran goes ahead with the move, diplomatic efforts to settle the issue would be endangered and that could lead to Tehran being referred to the U.N. Security Council for possible sanctions.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Mohamed ElBaradei told Sky Television in an interview to be broadcast on Monday the world was "running out of patience with Iran"." [Read more]

Also see: 2005 in Review: A Notable Nuclear Year

CNN: "The Brazilian commander of U.N. peacekeepers in Haiti was found dead on the balcony of his hotel room Saturday after shooting himself in the head, authorities said, in a blow to the 9,000-strong force and efforts to restore democracy in Haiti."

A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary

Kenneth Anderson: "Reuter's carries a story on a report from the UN staff union that attacks on UN workers around the world were up significantly in 2005, here. I discuss the general problem of UN neutrality and values in this Harvard Human Rights Journal article, from 2004, here."

Green Think: "The UN Millennium Eco-System Assessment, the most comprehensive study of its kind ever done, tells us that 60% of the earth's eco-systems are not functioning or are in a state of decline. This is the degradation of our life support systems. The same things that are negatively impacting our health are also having the same impacts on our biosphere."

Coalition for Darfur: "From AFP: "More than 46 000 people have fled fighting in the past two months between army troops and local militia in the southeast of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a UN aid official said Wednesday. The numbers of the newly displaced come in addition to 121 000 others who fled the war-torn region of the vast central African state in 2005 following continued unrest, UN humanitarian affairs official Anne Egerton told AFP. Egerton, who heads the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Kalemie, in Katanga province, warned that the situation of the new internal refugees was "extremely difficult"."

Intelligence Watch: [Reuters] "The U.N. peacekeeping mission in Ivory Coast needs major reinforcements to cope with the volatile security situation there as the West African nation nears long-delayed elections, the United Nations said on Wednesday. The mission, which now stands at 6,891 soldiers and 697 international police, needs an additional 3,400 soldiers and 475 police officers, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said in his latest progress report on Ivory Coast to the Security Council. His appeal, which is certain to meet with resistance in the budget-conscious 15-nation council, was based on the findings of a U.N. team that visited the region in November 2005."

Paper Chase: "The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Wednesday appealed to Egyptian authorities in an attempt to prevent the deportation of 654 Sudanese refugees whom Cairo authorities say are in the country illegally. Also Wednesday, US-based rights group Human Rights Watch (HRW) urged Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to stop the deportations, which were announced earlier this week following a violent dispute on December 30 between Egyptian police and approximately 2,5000 Sudanese protesters. An estimated 27 Sudanese were killed [BBC report] during the violence. Both HRW and UNHCR have sent letters urging Egypt not to deport the refugees, with the concern that some of the refugees may face persecution in Sudan if they are forced to return. Reuters has more. AKI has local coverage."

Syria Comment: "Khaddam is moving to form a government-in-exile, as-Seyassah reports below. Asad and Sharaa have been asked to testify before the Hariri investigators. According to ABC news, Syria has agreed that Sharaa will testify. Anyone interested in what I had to say on the PBS News Hour with Jim Lehrer can read the transcript of the show."

Washington Note: "TWN has been inundated with emails asking why I have not written more about revelations about non-court approved NSA intercepts of electronic phone and email transmissions within the United States and the connection to John Bolton's requests for NSA intercept material when he served as Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security. My response will no doubt frustrate many, but it is an honest one. I don't believe that John Bolton was involved with electronic monitoring or spying domestically -- with a couple of potential exceptions."

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan:

"The Secretary-General is deeply concerned about the health of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. He is following developments closely and very much hopes that the Prime Minister will make a speedy recovery. His thoughts are with Mr. Sharon and his family, as well as with the Government and people of Israel."

More

"With the expiration of the four-month unilateral ceasefire by Communist rebels in Nepal, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights today urged all sides to avoid a renewal of the gross abuses that characterized their conflict.

"It is a tragedy for the people of Nepal that full-scale armed conflict may now resume. But there need not and must not be the same gross violations of international humanitarian law and human rights standards that have been perpetrated during previous phases of the conflict," High Commissioner Louise Arbour said in Geneva. The truce expired on 2 January." [Read more]

From the BBC: Fresh 'Rebel' Violence in Nepal

A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary

Rob's House: "The sturgeon in the Caspian Sea are almost gone. That means extinct, never to be seen again. The reason? Caviar. It is therefore good news that the United Nations has declared that there is no longer any legal international trade in caviar from wild fish. Henceforth, only farmed caviar is allowed."

Ace of Spades HQ: "UN Investigators Seek Assad Q&A - Go, UN, go!: "A spokeswoman for the United Nations inquiry, Nasrat Hassan, told wire services that investigators had requested interviews with Mr. Assad and with Syria's foreign minister, Farouq Shara, along with others. She said the investigators were awaiting a reply. A preliminary report by the United Nations panel had concluded that the bombing was a terrorist act carried out by high-ranking Syrian and Lebanese intelligence officers." They'll also be interviewing the Syrian ex-VP Khaddam."

Bogosity: "Gwynne Dyer writes great analysis of world news. Here's his 2005 wrapup. 2005 Year Ender - Gwynne Dyer: "First, the good news. In October, a comprehensive three-year study led by Andrew Mack, former director of the Strategic Planning Unit in the office of United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, concluded that there have been major declines in armed conflicts, genocides, human rights abuses, military coups and international crises worldwide."

Sudan Watch: UN warns of growing catastrophe in Sudan - UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan warned on Thursday that the security situation in Darfur continued to deteriorate. In his latest monthly report on Darfur, he called it a "deeply disturbing trend" with "devastating effects on the civilian population." "Civilians continue to pay an intolerably high price as a result of recurrent fighting by warring parties, the renewal of the scorched earth tactics by militia and massive military action by the government," he said in the report released on 29 December."

Coalition for Darfur: "From IRIN - via POTP: "An enormous humanitarian crisis is emerging in the Democratic Republic of Congo's Katanga Province, with tens of thousands of people being displaced, but so far the government and the international community are doing little. ... "The number of displaced in central and northern Katanga now exceeds 100,000," said Anne Edgerton, head of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in the town of Kalemie on Lake Tanganyika. "We know of at least 39,000 people who were recently displaced -- they do not include 72,000 displaced earlier in 2005." Edgerton said there might be tens of thousands more people displaced in the north and centre of Katanga Province - people whom aid agencies are unable to reach because of conflict."

Mark A. Kilmer: "The Iraqi Shi'ites, Kurds, and Sunnis want a government. The Kurds had all parties up North for a meeting Tuesday, and the parties are talking and plan will keep discussing matters. A sticking point is still the accusation that the Shi'ites stuffed the ballot boxes: "Though some Sunni Arab leaders say they will protest and reject talks on government roles unless the foreign monitors uphold their claims of fraud, the United Nations has already called the election largely fair and other Sunni politicians are staking their claims to a share of power in negotiations."

Stygius: "The domestic and international power-plays in Syria seem to be further fusing into one big chaotic ball, as both the United Nations requests to interview President Assad himself in the Hariri inquiry, and Syria's former vice president (now in exile) does his best on al-Arabiya to imply official approval of Hariri's assassination, breaking with the Baathist regime."

UN News Service: "Laws aimed at protecting Afghanistan's wildlife, waterways and forests, believed to be the first legal conservation tools in the country, have been developed by the Government with assistance from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the agency announced today."

"The United Nations' refugee agency has received assurances from Egypt that Sudanese refugees would not be deported to Sudan despite media reports to the contrary, a spokesperson for the agency said on Tuesday.

Egypt's state owned Al-Ahram newspaper said in Tuesday's edition that an unspecified number of refugees were being held in a military camp near Cairo airport in preparation for deportation within two days." [More}

"U.N. investigators want to question Syria's president and foreign minister about the assassination of a former Lebanese leader and have made a request to that effect, a spokeswoman for the probe said Monday.

Nasra Hassan, who speaks for a U.N. commission heading the inquiry, also said investigators want to interview former Syrian Vice President Abdul-Halim Khaddam "as soon as possible." [Full Story]