UN News stories

9 stories found over the past 45 days
Countries must repeal laws that discriminate against LGBT individuals – UN officials

17 May 2013 – Marking the International Day Against Homophobia, United Nations officials today issued a call on Governments worldwide to protect the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals, and strike laws that discriminate against them.

Papua New Guinea’s plans to resume death penalty ‘major setback’ – UN

17 May 2013 – The United Nations human rights office today expressed serious concern over Papua New Guinea’s announcement that it will resume the death penalty more than half a century since it last carried out an execution, stressing this would represent “a major setback” for the country.

Justice in Guatemala vital for preventing recurrence of heinous crimes, say UN experts

15 May 2013 – Establishing truth and justice in Guatemala is essential to ensuring that heinous crimes such as arbitrary executions, rape and forced displacement – committed during the country’s civil war – do not take place again and to ending impunity, a group of independent United Nations experts said today.

UN human rights chief urges Syrian rebels to end abuses after gruesome video hits Internet

14 May 2013 – The mutilation of a Syrian soldier purportedly shown in an internet video is a “truly atrocious act” which should be investigated as a potential war crime, the United Nations human rights chief said today, urging the armed opposition to stop such gross crimes.

UN report confirms nearly 200 women and girls raped by Congolese troops, rebels

08 May 2013 – Congolese armed forces, known by the French acronym FARDC, raped more than 102 women and 33 girls, some as young as six years old, as they fled the advance M23 rebels in country’s restive eastern region in November 2012, according to a joint UN report released today.

Persons with albinism must not be treated as “ghosts”, UN experts stress

04 May 2013 – A United Nations group of independent experts today drew attention to discrimination against persons with albinism in Tanzania, where they are the victims of ritual attacks and are routinely mistreated.

Mexico must strengthen its protection of human rights, reduce use of military – UN expert

03 May 2013 – A United Nations independent expert today urged the Mexican Government to strengthen the national structures that protect human rights, in particular the right to life, and reduce the involvement of the military in policing to reduce the use of force in the country.

UN rights chief condemns multiple executions in Iraq as ‘obscene’

19 April 2013 – The United Nations human rights chief today condemned the rampant use of the death penalty by the Iraqi Government, which executed 21 people earlier this week, stressing the country’s justice system is still not functioning adequately and should not carry out capital punishment at all.

UN welcomes Germany’s offer to resettle residents of Iraq’s Camp Hurriya

18 April 2013 – The top United Nations officials in Iraq today welcomed a generous offer by Germany of humanitarian admission for approximately 100 residents from Camp Hurriya, located near the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, and urged the camp residents to cooperate with the UN for a speedy and safe resettlement.