=?Windows-1252?Q?DENOUNCING=20=91SLAVERY=20IN=20THE=20MODERN=20AGE, =92=20UN=20LAUNCHES=20PLAN=20AGAINST=20HUMAN=20TRAFFICKING?=

DENOUNCING 'SLAVERY IN THE MODERN AGE,' UN LAUNCHES PLAN AGAINST HUMAN TRAFFICKING
New York, Aug 31 2010 1:10PM
The United Nations today launched a global action plan to combat human trafficking, with senior UN officials urging that governments worldwide take coordinated and consistent measures to try to defeat the scourge.

The plan, launched at a high-level meeting of the General Assembly at UN Headquarters in New York, calls for integrating the fight against human trafficking into the UN's broader programmes to boost development and strengthen security around the world.

It also calls for the setting up of a UN voluntary trust fund for victims of trafficking, especially women and children.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told today's meeting that the action plan should serve as "a clarion call" to UN Member States, international organizations and civil society groups of the need to take immediate steps "to stop this terrible crime against human dignity, which shames us all."

The UN has estimated that more than 2.4 million people are currently being exploited as victims of human trafficking.

"It is slavery in the modern age," Mr. Ban said. "Every year thousands of people, mainly women and children, are exploited by criminals who use them for forced labour or the sex trade. No country is immune. Almost all play a part, either as a source of trafficked people, transit point or destination."

The Secretary-General urged countries, philanthropists and others to contribute generously to the new trust fund for trafficking victims.

"The fund aims to help governments, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) provide these vulnerable people with protection and support for their physical, psychological and social recovery. After they have been exploited and abused, they should not be punished, too."

The action plan – which focuses on preventing trafficking, prosecuting offenders and protecting victims – also stresses the importance of obtaining more research, data and analysis about the problem.

"We must improve our knowledge and understanding of this crime if we are to make good policy decisions and targeted interventions," Mr. Ban said.

He added that the only way to succeed is to strengthen partnerships between States, organizations and programmes, such as the UN Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking, known as <"http://www.ungift.org/knowledgehub/">UN.GIFT since its creation in early 2007.

In his address to today's meeting, General Assembly President Ali Treki emphasized the human rights aspects of the fight against trafficking.

"Abduction, coercion, trafficking across national and international borders, forcing women and children into sexual exploitation and servitude – this must not be accepted in today's world," he said.

"As this heinous crime flourishes, thousands of men, women and children are robbed of their safety, their freedom and their dignity. Human trafficking devastates families and tears communities apart. When the history of this horror calls, we cannot let this period be remembered as one in which the global community knew but did not act."
Aug 31 2010 1:10PM
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UN URGES PROPER TREATMENT OF MIGRANTS AFTER REPORTED DEATHS IN SAUDI ARABIA

UN URGES PROPER TREATMENT OF MIGRANTS AFTER REPORTED DEATHS IN SAUDI ARABIA
New York, Aug 31 2010 1:10PM
The reported deaths of five Ethiopian migrants in a deportation facility in Saudi Arabia has refocused attention on the way asylum-seekers are treated, with the United Nations refugees agency recalling its appeal last month for the kingdom's authorities to stop sending people back strife-torn to Somalia.

"These two cases were not necessarily linked, but certainly, the five deaths in detention were deplorable," Adrian Edwards, spokesperson of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (<"http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/home">UNHCR) told reporters in Geneva.

Asked if an investigation will be carried out with regard to the alleged deaths of the five Ethiopians earlier this week, Mr. Edwards said he believed that the "competent authorities" were looking into the matter.

He said UNHCR had no access to any detention or deportation facilities in Saudi Arabia, adding that the agency was exploring the possibility of being allowed to screen the people in those centres to ensure that those being deported were not in the category of people in need of international protection.

In its statement on 30 July, UNHCR said that in June alone, more than 1,000 Somalis were deported from Saudi Arabia, according to reports from Mogadishu, Somalia's capital. A similar number of Somalis were returned to their country in July.

Monitoring reports indicated that most deportees said they fled Somalia due to conflict, indiscriminate violence and human rights abuses, with most coming from southern and central Somalia, which includes Mogadishu.

UNCHR considers such deportations to be incompatible with agency's guidelines on international protection needs of Somali refugees and asylum-seekers. A majority of those being sent back from Saudi Arabia are women.

In its July statement, UNHCR said that many of the people who had been sent back to Somalia from Saudi Arabia had probably come through Yemen, where most of them were immediately recognized as refugees.
Aug 31 2010 1:10PM
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TOP UN OFFICIALS CALL FOR SCALING UP ASSISTANCE TO PAKISTAN’S FLOOD VICTIMS

TOP UN OFFICIALS CALL FOR SCALING UP ASSISTANCE TO PAKISTAN'S FLOOD VICTIMS
New York, Aug 31 2010 1:10PM
Top United Nations officials today urged the international community to boost their support for Pakistan's flood victims, especially for the health and well-being of women and children who make up 70 per cent of the nearly 18 million people affected by the disaster.

"What I saw today has convinced me that we must step up our humanitarian operations to stave off a potential second wave of disease and misery for millions of families, especially the most vulnerable, children and women," the head of the UN Children's Fund (<"http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/pakistan_55798.html">UNICEF) said following a visit to the Muzzafargarh district of Punjab province, one of the worst affected areas.

Anthony Lake toured the area with Josette Sheeran, head of the World Food Programme (<"http://www.wfp.org/news/news-release/unicefwfp-chiefs-call-renewed-support-pakistans-flood-victims">WFP), who warned during a joint press conference in the capital, Islamabad, that there is a triple threat unfolding as the crisis widens and deepens.

"People have lost seeds, crops and their incomes leaving them vulnerable to hunger, homelessness and desperation – the situation is extremely critical. We urgently need continued and strengthened commitment to the people of Pakistan in this time of crisis."

During their visit to Punjab, the two Executive Directors visited a school which has been turned into an emergency relief centre, where UNICEF hygiene kits were being handed out to families hit by the floods.

They also saw a WFP food distribution that included specialized ready-to-eat foods for infants and young children, designed to prevent the early ravages of malnutrition.

WFP has reached three quarters of a million children with nutritious food supplements and nearly three million people with a one-month food ration. Malnutrition rates in the flood zone were high before the surge of water displaced millions, leaving young children even more at risk to waterborne diseases, according to a joint news release.

UNICEF is currently reaching around 2 million people with clean water every day and the agency, through hygiene supplies and assistance in sanitation, is working to prevent serious outbreaks of disease.

The World Health Organization (<"http://www.who.int/en/">WHO) said that over half a million people have been treated so far for some form of diarrhoeal disease.

The agency is establishing diarrhoeal treatment centres throughout the affected areas due to the increased risk posed by the lack of access to safe water, poor sanitation and "compromised hygiene and living conditions" that millions of displaced people have to live in, it stated in a news release.

"The terrible scale of this disaster has shocked the entire world, and the increasing trend of diarrhoeal diseases remains a grave concern to the humanitarian community," said Guido Sabatinelli, WHO Representative in Pakistan.

"The current situation remains a major threat to public health. If the current poor environmental and hygiene situation in affected areas does not improve, coupled with limited availability of safe drinking water and the need for better access to health services, the risk is we may see more potentially fatal diarrhoeal and other acute waterborne diseases cases in coming days."

In addition to diarrhoeal diseases, other public health risks facing the estimated 17.6 million people affected by the floods are acute respiratory infections, hepatitis A and E, malaria and skin infections, WHO added.

Reproductive health also remains a significant concern in the wake of the disaster, UN officials warned today, especially given that an estimated half a million flood-affected women are expected to give birth during the next six months.

"We must ensure the health and safety of all these women and their babies," said UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Pakistan Martin Mogwanja. "This disaster has already affected almost 18 million people. We don't want it to also affect half a million babies who are not born yet."

The UN Population Fund (<"http://www.unfpa.org/public/">UNFPA) has set up labour rooms at a number of service delivery points in the provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh, which provide emergency reproductive health services and emergency obstetric care.

The agency has assisted in some 5,600 safe deliveries since the waters started to ravage the country. At the same time, it stressed that additional support is urgently required to scale up life-saving health activities in affected areas.

"UNFPA has reported challenges in recruiting adequate numbers of female health care providers, especially gynaecologists, in flood-affected areas," said Naseer Nizamani, Assistant Representative of UNFPA in Pakistan.

Meanwhile, the nearly $460 million initial floods response plan for Pakistan launched by the UN and its partners remains 63 per cent covered, having received $291 million in funds and an additional $20 million in pledges.
Aug 31 2010 1:10PM
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PALESTINIAN ECONOMY IN MODEST GROWTH AMID STIFLING ISRAELI OCCUPATION – UN

PALESTINIAN ECONOMY IN MODEST GROWTH AMID STIFLING ISRAELI OCCUPATION – UN
New York, Aug 31 2010 1:10PM
The occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) recorded marginal economic growth last year, but unemployment remained high, with Israel's closure policy in the West bank and the blockade of the Gaza Strip continuing to inhibit the territory's potential for rapid economic expansion, the United Nations reported today.

In its annual report on assistance to the Palestinian people, the UN Conference on Trade and Development (<"http://www.unctad.org/Templates/Startpage.asp?intItemID=2068&lang=1">UNCTAD) estimates that oPt's gross domestic product (GDP) rose by 6.8 per cent in 2009, but the rate of unemployment declined by only 1.6 percent.

Per capita GDP was 30 per cent lower than it was a decade ago, and at least 30 per cent of the Palestinian work force remains jobless. Food shortages are widespread and are especially severe in Gaza, where they affect 60 per cent of the population.

UNCTAD argues that the Palestinian economy is still held back by fallout from the Israeli military operation in Gaza in 2008-09 and by the costs of Israel's closure policy in the West Bank and its continued economic blockade of Gaza.

At the heart of the Palestinian development impasse is a tradable goods sector whose competitiveness is crippled by closures, the use of foreign currencies (the Israeli shekel, United States dollar and Jordanian dinar) and an eroded productive base, according to the report.

It contends that revitalizing the tradable goods sector and rebuilding productive capacity are essential for Palestinian economic development. While donor support is vital, its economic effectiveness will only be sufficiently realized when the Israeli closure policy and blockade of Gaza are lifted, the report adds.

UNCTAD is mandated to assist the Palestinian people to alleviate the adverse economic conditions and to create conditions conducive to building a sovereign and viable Palestinian State.

The revival of the private sector in oPt continues to be hampered by Israeli movement restrictions both within the territory and at border crossings, in addition to the effects of the Israeli separation barrier, settlements, and confiscation of land, according to the UNCTAD report.

Those factors have deprived productive sectors of their most vital resources while inflating transaction costs to prohibitive levels and therefore reinforcing an economic shift towards low value-added activities.

The situation in Gaza is far worse than in the West Bank, where the so-called "tunnel economy" and informal economy expanded at an unprecedented rate to compensate for the collapse of the productive sector, the report says.

As a result, the Palestinian trade deficit worsened from 57 per cent of GDP in 2008 to 59 per cent in 2009. This deficit continued to be coupled with heavy dependence on Israel, which accounted for more than three quarters of Palestinian trade. Although the trade deficit with Israel declined from 82 per cent to 65 per cent of the overall trade deficit between 2008 and 2009, it is still high, exceeding the $2.4 billion in donor support provided to the oPt in last year.

Despite significant fiscal reforms, the Palestinian Authority (PA) public deficit on a "commitment' basis – which reflects what was actually committed for public spending during the fiscal year – deteriorated by 2.6 per cent to reach $1.6 billion in last year.

The report warns that while fiscal reforms and a narrowing of the public deficit can be important policy goals, they should not be pursued in a manner that worsens already serious poverty levels, nor should they undermine the ability of local governments to deliver services and respond to the needs of their constituents.

According to the UNCTAD analysis, indirect cost in terms of lost output ranges from $600 million to $800 million per year, or about 13 per cent of GDP. When the $1.3 billion in direct costs of physical damage caused by the 2008-09 Israeli military operation in Gaza are taken into account, the direct and indirect economic losses add up to $3.1 billion for the period between 2008 and this year.

Overcoming the Palestinian economic crisis, widespread unemployment, and deepening poverty is not possible unless all Israeli restrictive measures are lifted, the report contends, noting that "palliative measures" will not re-launch sustained growth or promote development, and donor support has its limits.

UNCTAD's quantitative-scenario analyses estimate that an injection of $1.6 billion in aid for public investment from 2010 to 2012 under conditions of continued blockade and closure may increase annual GDP by less than 1 per cent on average.

However, the same level of investment under a scenario of full lifting of the blockade of Gaza and a relaxation of the West Bank closures may increase annual GDP by 14 per cent on average, and could help spur the creation of 80,000 jobs per year.
Aug 31 2010 1:10PM
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UNICEF WELCOMES SUDANESE MEASURE TO END USE OF CHILD SOLDIERS

UNICEF WELCOMES SUDANESE MEASURE TO END USE OF CHILD SOLDIERS
New York, Aug 31 2010 1:10PM
The United Nations agency charged with protecting the rights of children today welcomed the launch of a programme by the Sudanese Government to end the use of child soldiers by the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA).

The formation of the child protection unit follows an action plan signed by the SPLA committing to release all children in its ranks by November 2010 and to end the exploitation of children as soldiers across southern Sudan.

The United Nations Children's Fund (<"http://www.unicef.org/">UNICEF) hailed the development as a milestone for the rights of children in the country, where the SPLA and the National Congress Party (NCP) signed a peace accord in 2005 to end the long-running north-south civil war.

"The launch is testimony to the commitment of the Government of Southern Sudan and the SPLA to accelerate the establishment of an environment where the rights of all the children are respected," said UNICEF's Catherine Mbengue, speaking at the launch in the town of Juba.

"Concrete measures must now be taken to ensure that all within the SPLA understand and respect their obligations," she added.

The child protection unit is charged with ensuring that no children are in the ranks of the SPLA. It will also work with partners during the verification, registration and demobilization of children still associated with the SPLA.

UNICEF will provide both financial and technical support to carry out sensitization campaigns and raise awareness with the SPLA officers regarding the legal framework on child rights – international and national laws that prohibit recruitment and use of children by armed forces and armed groups.
Aug 31 2010 1:10PM
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