Monday, May 31, 2010

IAEA CHIEF WELCOMES OUTCOME OF NUCLEAR TREATY REVIEW CONFERENCE

IAEA CHIEF WELCOMES OUTCOME OF NUCLEAR TREATY REVIEW CONFERENCE
New York, May 31 2010 4:10PM
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (<"http://www.iaea.org/">IAEA) today welcomed the unanimous adoption at the end of the latest review of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (<"http://www.un.org/en/conf/npt/2010/npttext.shtml">NPT) of a document which, among other things, contains steps towards achieving a nuclear-free Middle East.

The final document of the five-yearly gathering, issued on Friday, called on Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the co-sponsors of a 1995 resolution proposing a Middle East free of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction to convene a conference to be attended by all States in the region.

Director General Yukiya Amano <"http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/PressReleases/2010/prn201008.html">said he was "delighted" that the conference "gave full support to all the areas of work of the IAEA that are relevant to the three pillars of the NPT: prev
enting the spread of nuclear weapons, the promotion of safe and secure use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, and nuclear disarmament."

He noted that the month-long gathering's success "is particularly important as it can enhance confidence in the nuclear non-proliferation regime, which in turn will provide the IAEA with a stronger basis for its work in all areas."

In a <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=4579">statement issued by his spokesperson on Friday, Mr. Ban hailed the "strong spirit of compromise and cooperation" that has "delivered a significant agreement to build a safer and more secure world."

The action plan adopted by nations lays a solid foundation to further strengthen the treaty and address the challenges that lie ahead, he said.


May 31 2010 4:10PM
_______________________________________________
For more details go to UN News Centre at http://www.un.org/news

To change your profile or unsubscribe go to:
http://www.un.org/apps/news/email/

LATEST ROUND OF UN CLIMATE CHANGE TALKS KICKS OFF

LATEST ROUND OF UN CLIMATE CHANGE TALKS KICKS OFF
New York, May 31 2010 3:10PM
Representatives from 182 governments have gathered in Bonn, Germany, today for a fresh round of United Nations talks on climate change, aiming to pick up on issues left unresolved after December's gathering in Copenhagen.

The Copenhagen Accord -- which dozens of countries have now signed -- was the final document from the conference in the Danish capital, where progress to agree on a binding treaty faltered.

"The Copenhagen meeting may have postponed an outcome for at least a year, but it did not postpone the impacts of climate change," said Yvo de Boer, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (<"http://unfccc.int/2860.php">UNFCCC).

"The deadline to agree an effective international response to climate change at Copenhagen was set because governments, when launching negotiations in Bali in 2007, recognized the scientific warning on climate for what it was: a siren call to
act now, or face the worst," he noted.

The next gathering of the conference of the parties to the UNFCCC will be held later this year in the Mexican city of Cancun.

"Climate negotiations over the next two weeks will be on track if they keep focused on a common way forward towards a concrete and realistic goal in Cancun," Mr. de Boer said. "There is a growing consensus on what that the goal for Cancun can be -- namely, a full, operational architecture to implement effective, collective climate action."

Two working groups will meet during the Bonn gathering, with one focusing on a new negotiating text and the other concentrating on emissions reduction commitments for the 37 industrialized countries that have ratified the Kyoto Protocol for the period beyond 2012.

"I encourage governments to now develop greater clarity on the future of the Kyoto Protocol, since this issue cannot be left unattended until Cancun," the UNFCCC head said.

He also called on industrialized nations to
fulfill the pledge they made in Copenhagen to deploy $30 billion from now to 2012 to jump-start climate action in developing countries. "Cancun can deliver if promises of help are kept and if promises to compromise are honoured in the negotiations."

Last month, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced that Christiana Figueres of Costa Rica will replace Mr. de Boer as head of the UNFCCC when he steps down this summer to pursue new opportunities to advance progress on climate change in the private sector and academia.
May 31 2010 3:10PM
_______________________________________________
For more details go to UN News Centre at http://www.un.org/news

To change your profile or unsubscribe go to:
http://www.un.org/apps/news/email/

SIERRA LEONEAN JUDGED RE-ELECTED HEAD OF UN-BACKED WAR CRIMES TRIBUNAL

SIERRA LEONEAN JUDGED RE-ELECTED HEAD OF UN-BACKED WAR CRIMES TRIBUNAL
New York, May 31 2010 3:10PM
Justice Jon Kamanda of Sierra Leone has been re-elected to serve as President of the United Nations-backed war crimes tribunal set up to deal with the worst acts committed during the long and brutal civil war in the West African nation.

This will be his second term as the Presiding Judge of the appeals chamber, a post which automatically makes him the President of the Special Court for Sierra Leone (<"http://www.sc-sl.org/">SCSL).

Justice Emmanuel Ayoola of Nigeria, who previously served as the court's President, also also been re-elected as Vice-President, according to a press release issued today by the court from Freetown, the capital.

The SCSL's judged wrapped up their 14th plenary on Friday in The Hague, voicing "sincere appreciation and gratitude" to the International Criminal Court (<"http://www.icc-cpi.int/Menus/ICC?lan=en-GB">ICC) for the use of its courtroom and other
support for the trial of former Liberian president Charles Taylor, who is under indictment for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The Special Court is an independent tribunal established jointly by Sierra Leone's Government and the UN in 2002. It is mandated to try those who bear the greatest responsibility for atrocities committed in Sierra Leone after 30 November 1996.

Last September, the eight prisoners convicted and held by the SCSL were transferred to Rwanda to serve their sentences since no prison in Sierra Leone meets the required international standards. The remaining trial, involving Mr. Taylor, is continuing at The Hague, where it was moved for security reasons.

May 31 2010 3:10PM
_______________________________________________
For more details go to UN News Centre at http://www.un.org/news

To change your profile or unsubscribe go to:
http://www.un.org/apps/news/email/

AT ICC REVIEW CONFERENCE, BAN DECLARES END TO 'ERA OF IMPUNITY'

AT ICC REVIEW CONFERENCE, BAN DECLARES END TO 'ERA OF IMPUNITY'
New York, May 31 2010 2:10PM
More than one decade after the International Criminal Court (<"http://www.icc-cpi.int/Menus/ICC/Home">ICC) was set up, a new "age of accountability" is replacing the "old era of impunity," Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon underlined today.

Twelve years ago when world leaders gathering in Rome for its establishment, "few could have believed, then, that this court would spring so vigourously into life," Mr. Ban <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=4585">said at the first-ever review conference of the ICC held in Kampala, Uganda.

"Seldom since the founding of the United Nations itself has such a resounding blow been struck for peace, justice and human rights," he stressed.

Today's gathering, the Secretary-General said, marks an occasion to bolster "our collective determination that crimes of humanity cannot go unpunished."

The new "age of accountability," he noted, dawned with the N
uremberg and Tokyo Tribunals, gaining strength with tribunals for Rwanda, the former Yugoslavia, Sierra Leone, Cambodia and Lebanon.

"Now we have the ICC -- permanent, increasingly powerful, casting a long shadow. There is no going back," Mr. Ban stressed.

"In this new age of accountability, those who commit the worst of human crimes" -- be they rank-and-file foot soldiers or top political leaders -- "will be held responsible," he said.

Former Serbian president Slobodan Milosevic and former Liberian leader Charles Taylor are among those who have already been called to justice. "Not long ago," the Secretary-General said, "this would have been unimaginable."

But for the ICC to have the reach it needs, it must have universal support. "Only then will perpetrators have no place to hide," he said.

So far 111 countries have become parties to the Rome Statute that established the ICC, while 37 others have signed but not yet ratified it. But some of the world''s largest and most powe
rful countries, including China, India, Russia and the United States, have not joined.

The ICC is a court of last resort, exercising jurisdiction only where national courts do not or cannot take action themselves, Mr. Ban pointed out.

"This is important: where a State is unwilling to genuinely investigate and prosecute perpetrators, the Court can get involved," he said. "No government or justice system that is complicit in international crimes can any longer shield the perpetrators from justice."

The Secretary-General told participants at the conference's opening that maintaining the balance between peace and justice is a "false choice," given that civilians are the main victims in today's conflicts, with women, children and the elderly being deliberately targeted.

"Yes, it may be true: demanding criminal accountability, at the wrong time, can discourage warring parties from sitting down at the negotiating table," potentially perpetuating bloodshed.

"Even so, one thing is cl
ear: the time has passed when we might speak of peace versus justice, or think of them as somehow opposed to each other," he said, underscoring the importance of reconciliation.

International criminal justice has become an increasingly power tool in ending violence against women, with the Rwanda Tribunal defining rape as a crime against humanity for the first time in 1998, Mr. Ban said.

The Special Court for Sierra Leone (<"http://www.sc-sl.org/">SCSL) convicted three members of the rebel movement known as the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) for sexual enslavement, while alleged perpetrators of rape and sexual slavery in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) face war crimes charges at the ICC.

"This jurisprudence sends a strong and necessary signal. It is up to you to make sure that message continues to be heard," the Secretary-General said.

"Indeed, it is time to turn up the volume."

In his address, Mr. Ban also countered criticism that the ICC is "selective," with Af
rican nations too frequently the focus of its work.

Currently, four situations are under investigation by the prosecutor: the Darfur region of Sudan, the DRC, Uganda, Central African Republic (CAR) and Kenya.

"Most of these situations were referred to the Prosecutor by the governments concerned," he said. "Correctly, they see the court as a help to them, not a threat."

Further, the Secretary-General said, "in all these cases, African society is cheering," since the ICC is "firmly on the side of the victims."

He told participants that "the decisions you take this week will be felt around the world -- wherever there is injustice, wherever people live in fear."

Evoking the horrors of Srebrenica, Sierra Leone, Cambodia and Rwanda, Mr. Ban -- who took part in a soccer match in Kampala honouring the victims of war yesterday -- said "that is why this court exists. That is why we are here. That is what we have all worked so hard to achieve."
May 31 2010 2:10PM
_______________________________________________
For more details go to UN News Centre at http://www.un.org/news

To change your profile or unsubscribe go to:
http://www.un.org/apps/news/email/

NEW NATURE RESERVES TO BE ADDED TO UN LIST

NEW NATURE RESERVES TO BE ADDED TO UN LIST
New York, May 31 2010 1:10PM
New nature reserves such as lakes and wetlands will be added to a United Nations network that was created in an attempt to halt the loss of biodiversity and promote sustainable development, during a meeting that began today at the headquarters of the UN agency tasked with preserving the world's heritage.

In total, 25 new proposals and applications for extension will be examined for addition to the list of biosphere reserves during the five-day <"http://www.unesco.org/new/en/media-services/single-view/news/meeting_at_unesco_to_designate_new_biosphere_reserves/">meeting of the International Coordinating Council of the Man and the Biosphere (<"http://portal.unesco.org/science/en/ev.php-URL_ID=6393&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html">MAB), a programme of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (<"http://www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/">UNESCO).

The proposed additions to the MAB network come from
20 countries. The Council will also examine applications for the MAB Awards for young scientists, UNESCO said in a press release.

Every year since 1989, 10 young researchers have received awards worth up to $5,000 each to support their examination of ecosystems, natural resources and biodiversity. This year, two special awards, financed by the Austrian MAB committee, will also be given to young scientists within the context of the International Year of Biodiversity.

Those seeking the Michel Batisse Award, which is worth $6,000 and is awarded every two years, will present their work to the Council showing how they were managing a nature reserve.

A touring exhibition of aerial photographs of the Rhône Delta in France taken by Jean E. Roché will be the subject of a presentation on Wednesday.

The MAB World Network numbers 553 sites in 107 countries. It includes sites as varied as Tonle Sap Lake in Cambodia, the largest freshwater lake in Asia; the Mare aux Hippopotames (Hippopot
amus Lake) in Burkina Faso; the Pantanal wetland region in Brazil and Fuerteventura Island in the Canaries Archipelago in Spain.

Biosphere reserves are sites that are proposed by local and national authorities, in cooperation with local communities, where new practices for reconciling human activities and nature are tested. In this way, biosphere reserves are laboratories for sustainable development, according to UNESCO.
May 31 2010 1:10PM
_______________________________________________
For more details go to UN News Centre at http://www.un.org/news

To change your profile or unsubscribe go to:
http://www.un.org/apps/news/email/

Entertainment News from USATODAY.com - May 31

To view the latest USA TODAY Entertainment headlines on your mobile device, click here.
If you have trouble reading this e-mail newsletter click here.
To make changes to your e-mail subscriptions, click here
Home News Travel Money Sports Life Tech Weather
Most Popular
Bandleader Kevin Eubanks ends 18 years with Leno
'Shrek' bests 'Sex' with $43M at box office
Life was rarely an easy ride for Dennis Hopper
Celine Dion is pregnant with twins
Bomb stash found at George Clooney's Italian villa
Ashley Judd gets her Harvard degree
Critic's Corner Holiday: 'National Memorial Day Concert'
Photo Galleries

Day in Celebrities

2010 Day in Pictures
Games

Communities

Advertisement <
Sponsored Links
To forward this e-mail to a friend, please click here.

You are currently subscribed to this newsletter with the address: phoenixnews09@gmail.com.
To UNSUBSCRIBE, please click here.

Privacy Policy - Your California Privacy Rights



© 2010 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc.
7950 Jones Branch Drive, McLean, VA 22108