Americas

Global perspective Human stories Some people who have fled their homes in Haiti are now living in schools. 19 November 2024 Humanitarian Aid UN Secretary-General António Guterres is alarmed by the escalating violence in Haiti, where armed gangs are reportedly gaining ground in the capital Port-au-Prince, his Spokesperson said on Tuesday. Mr. Guterres strongly supports efforts by the Haitian National Police, with the backing of the Security Council-backed Multinational...

8 November 2024 Human Rights The UN’s independent Group of Human Rights Experts on Nicaragua has raised alarm over rights violations which have been sanctioned by the Government against the university sector. In a new report released on Friday, the three-person group of experts – who are appointed by the UN Human Rights Council – found authorities have used physical and psychological violence, including threats of intimidation, beatings and prolonged solitary confinement against both...

Waanja Kaaria, WFP Representative and Country Director in Haiti, briefed journalists in New York alongside the agency’s Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, Lola Castro. She cited the latest UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis which shows that some 5.4 million people in Haiti, roughly half the population, are suffering from acute hunger. “This includes about 6,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) sheltering in sites where we have also...

15 October 2024 Human Rights Human rights abuses have increased in the past year in Venezuela, a report by the UN Fact-Finding Mission on the country shows, citing arbitrary detentions, torture and violence against children. The new report expands on findings presented in September to the Human Rights Council in Geneva. It documents a pattern of escalated human rights violations committed by Venezuelan security forces, government officials, and pro-government armed civilian groups...

Bruno Eduardo Rodríguez Parrilla said the Israeli army has “massacred” over 40,000 civilians in Gaza over the past 11 months. He also paid tribute to the more than 220 UN staff killed in the conflict. “The genocide against the Palestinian people must end unconditionally and without further delay,” he said. Addressing the risk of escalation, he said that “Israel, with the complicity of the United States, has brought the world to the brink of a major world conflict”, adding that “the...

Tackling insecurity in the Caribbean country must be the utmost priority, the report said, urging the authorities and the international community to do more to protect people and prevent further suffering. “No more lives should be lost to this senseless criminality,” said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk. Abuse, rape and intimidation Haiti has been plagued by violence and insecurity at the hands of armed gangs, amid ongoing political, socioeconomic and humanitarian...

In a new report, the Human Rights Council-mandated investigators described how security forces had raided dozens of homes of suspected critics of the Government “just using social media videos as the only evidence to arrest people”. Violence and threats Victims’ testimonies gathered either side of the disputed Presidential election on 28 July which returned Mr. Maduro to office for the third time pointed to “one of the most acute human rights crises in recent history”, the Independent...

Human rights violations in Nicaragua have been ongoing since 2018 when university students and other civil society activists began protesting a new Social Security Act and calling for the president to step down. The violent crackdown by security forces directed by the Government of President Daniel Ortega resulted in numerous deaths and injuries, and severe restrictions on freedoms of expression, religion, and other rights, under a “weaponised” justice system, according to independent...

3 September 2024 Human Rights The UN human rights office, OHCHR, reiterated deep concerns on Tuesday over the continuing “climate of fear” in Venezuela, after an arrest warrant was issued for the opposition’s presidential candidate in the country’s recent election. “It is a climate of fear in the country at the moment. We are urging the government to ensure that all steps are taken in line with international human rights law with transparency and that steps are taken to resolve this...

This marks just one of many meetings the two young New Yorkers took, as part of the long to-do list that constitutes the Assembly President’s day. The concept of being PGA for a Day is simple: two students from the public school system come to UN Headquarters to shadow President Francis in his role as leader of the General Assembly. They will engage in the meetings he has planned, participate in the same interviews, and even take lunch when he does. The day will be long, but the students...