XUNICEF News and Views

  Click on the link below to browse all the articles which have appeared recently on our website.  xunicefnewsandviews.blogspot.com From Your Editors Repeating Our Frequent Appeal for Better Internet Etiquette  Each month or two we lose a few members.  Why? The number one reason they cite is that they receive too many unwanted emails on the XUNICEF network.  Remember that not every one of our 800 members wants to see your message , or your reply to someone else's message.  1.  Is your message  so urgent that it must be sent immediately as an email to all 800 members?  Really? Can it not wait until the next Weekly Update?  If it can wait a day or two, send it instead to us at xunicef.news.views@gmail.com .  It will usually appear on the same day on our website and at the end of the week in the Weekly Update.  2.  If "yes, this is urgent and important for all members to see immediately.",  do not address it as:   "To: allmembers@xunicef.com".  Instead, use "

Remember our special edition in September 2019 - the Arts and Artists of XUNICEF?  Our December 2019 Quarterly with a special section on the Music and Musicians of XUNICEF?  Our November 2019 call for contributions to our gallery of  XUNICEF Photographers?   Our artists, photographers and musicians stepped forward and gave us an amazing collection of their works.  The result was an outstanding collection contained in three galleries on our website - Artists of XUNICEF , Photographers of XUNICEF , and Musicians of XUNICEF .  We hope you have visited those galleries. In July 2020 we began presenting these works again through a series of weekly slideshows, alternating each week between Artist of the Week and Photographer of the Week.   As we approach the end of the year, we recognize that we will need fresh material for 2021 . So we use this opportunity to call for everyone to contribute. For those who have already contributed their work, let us know about your more recent projects. Fo

‘High time for accountability’, UN expert says as Israel approves highest rate of illegal settlements By news.un.org 3 min View Original Michael Lynk, UN Special Rapporteur for the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967, pointed out that while “Israeli settlements continue to devour the land that is meant for the independent Palestinian State, the international community observes, it sometimes objects, but it does not act”. Against the backdrop that earlier this month, a defense ministry planning committee approved plans for 4,948 more homes, he spelled out: “It is high time for accountability”. Expansion deteriorates human rights The latest announcement means that the Israeli government has approved more than 12,150 settlements this year, said the independent UN expert. According to the advocacy group Peace Now, this would be the highest number of annual approvals by Israel since the group began recording figures in 2012. “While Israel may have s

UNICEF Australia welcomes the Australian Government’s announcement of $500m over three years to support the introduction of a vaccine against COVID-19, once a safe and effective vaccine has been successful. The introduction of a successful COVID-19 vaccine is an essential step towards ending the acute phase of this global pandemic, which has had devastating health, social and economic impacts on countries and communities around the world, including our nearest neighbours. “We know that until the pandemic is over for everyone, it’s not for anyone and this support for South East Asia and the Pacific to introduce a successful vaccine is a strong contribution towards ensuring the health of all Australians and our neighbours, supporting the global recovery from this pandemic,” said Alice Hall, COVID-19 Vaccine Lead at UNICEF Australia. Under the COVAX Facility, UNICEF is leading efforts to procure and supply vaccines in what could be the world’s largest and fastest ever procurement and s

Russia makes bid to water down UN commitments on female peacekeepers By Liz Ford theguardian.com 2 min View Original Note: This is a short excerpt. Please read the full article by clicking the link above. Russia has introduced a new UN security council resolution that could threaten the rights of women in conflict by attempting to water down previously agreed commitments on human rights. Negotiations are ongoing and it is doubtful they will conclude ahead of a special virtual meeting on Thursday to discuss women’s role in peace and security efforts. Last year a resolution introduced by Germany to combat wartime rape was only passed when references in the text to sexual and reproductive health and rights were removed to suit the US.

U.S. Expels Migrant Children From Other Countries to Mexico By CAITLIN DICKERSON nytimes.com 7 min View Original Note: This is a short excerpt. Please read the full article by clicking the link above. Children from Central America are being sent across the border to Mexico, where they may not have any family. An internal email said the transfers violated the government’s own policies. A U.S. Customs and Border officer guiding asylum-seeking migrants across a bridge from Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, into the U.S. Leer en español U.S. border authorities have been expelling migrant children from other countries into Mexico, violating a diplomatic agreement with Mexico and testing the limits of immigration and child welfare laws. The expulsions, laid out in a sharply critical internal email from a senior Border Patrol official, have taken place under an aggressive border closure policy the Trump administration has said is necessary to prevent the coronavirus from spreading into the United S

Yemen on brink of losing entire generation of children to hunger, UN warns By Kaamil Ahmed theguardian.com 1 min View Original Note: This is a short excerpt. Please read the full article by clicking the link above. Almost 100,000 children under the age of five are at risk of dying in Yemen as the country slides back into a hunger crisis. An analysis by UN agencies says the coronavirus pandemic, economic problems and conflict have led to the highest levels of malnutrition ever recorded in parts of the country. Serious malnutrition in southern Yemen has risen 10% this year, according to the study, but rose to 15% among under-fives. “Yemen is on the brink of a catastrophic food security crisis. If the war doesn’t end now, we are nearing an irreversible situation and risk losing an entire generation of Yemen’s young children,” said Lise Grande, the UN’s humanitarian coordinator for the country. “Acute malnutrition among children is hitting the highest levels we have seen since the war

Compelling writing, new ideas and global exploration about planetary concerns Basel - Brussels - Dublin - Geneva - Nairobi - Philadelphia - Bangkok Compelling journalism, new ideas and global exploration Planetary themes for International Switzerland, Europe and Beyond. Global Insights Magazine: our print & e-edition  www.global-geneva.com Newsletter, Friday, 30 October, 2020 WELCOME TO GLOBAL INSIGHTS MAGAZINE www.global-geneva.com Global Geneva's new print & e-edition SCROLL DOWN for new and recent articles, photography & videos. Cartoons at the top and bottom of this newsletter by Jeff Danziger , a member of Global