A disappointing slide for the US after an election blighted by disinformation. Credit: Aaron Burson/Unsplash.
Opinion
Inter Press Service
Jun 03 (IPS) – Defending democracy has suddenly become one of the central challenges of our age. The land war in Ukraine is widely considered a front line between autocratic rule and democratic freedom. The United States continues to absorb the meaning of the riot that took place on January 6 2021 in an attempt to overthrow the result of the previous year’s election. Elsewhere, concerns have been raised that the pandemic could have provided cover for governments to postpone elections.
Elections are an essential part of democracy. They enable citizens to hold their governments to account for their actions and bring peaceful transitions in power. Unfortunately, elections often fall short of these ideals. They can be marred by problems such as voter intimidation, low turnout, fake news and the under-representation of women and minority candidates.
Our new research report provides a global assessment of the quality of national elections around the world from 2012-21, based on nearly 500 elections across 170 countries. The US is the lowest ranked liberal democracy in the list. It comes just 15th in the 29 states in the Americas, behind Costa Rica, Brazil, Trinidad & Tobago and others, and 75th overall.
Why is the United States so low?
There were claims made by former president Donald Trump of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election. Theses claims were baseless, but they still caused the US elections ranking to fall.
Elections with disputed results score lower on our rankings because a key part of democracy is the peaceful transition of power through accepted results, rather than force and violence. Trump’s comments led to post-election violence as his supporters stormed the Capitol building and sowed doubt about the legitimacy of the outcome amongst much of America.
This illustrates that electoral integrity is not just about designing laws – it is also dependent on candidates and supporters acting responsibly throughout the electoral process.
Problems with US elections run much deeper than this one event, however. Our report shows that the way electoral boundaries are drawn up in the US are a main area of concern. There has been a long history of gerrymandering, where political districts are craftily drawn by legislators so that populations that are more likely to vote for them are included in a given constituency – as was recently seen in North Carolina.
Voter registration and the polls is another problem. Some US states have recently implemented laws that make it harder to vote, such as requiring ID, which is raising concern about what effect that will have on turnout. We already know that the costs, time and complexity of completing the ID process, alongside the added difficulties for those with high residential mobility or insecure housing situations, makes it even less likely that under-represented groups will take part in elections.
Nordics on top, concern about Russia
The Nordic countries of Finland, Sweden and Denmark came out on top in our rankings. Finland is commonly described as having a pluralistic media landscape, which helps. It also provides public funding to help political parties and candidates contest elections. A recent report from the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights found a “high level of confidence in all of the aspects of the electoral process”.
Cape Verde has the greatest quality of electoral integrity in Africa. Taiwan, Canada and New Zealand are ranked first for their respective continents.
Electoral integrity in Russia has seen a further decline following the 2021 parliamentary elections. A pre-election report warned of intimidation and violence against journalists, and the media “largely promote policies of the current government”. Only Belarus ranks lower in Europe.
Globally, electoral integrity is lowest in Comoros, the Central African Republic and Syria.
Money matters
How politicians and political parties receive and spend money was found to be the weakest part of the electoral process in general. There are all kinds of threats to the integrity of elections that revolve around campaign money. Where campaign money comes from, for example, could affect a candidate’s ideology or policies on important issues. It is also often the case that the candidate who spends the most money wins – which means unequal opportunities are often part and parcel of an election.
It helps when parties and candidates are required to publish transparent financial accounts. But in an era where “dark money” can be more easily transferred across borders, it can be very hard to trace where donations really come from.
Democracy may need to be defended in battle, as we are currently seeing in Ukraine. But it also needs to be defended before it comes to all-out conflict, through discussion, protest, clicktivism and calls for electoral reforms.
If everyone were to consume resources at the rate at which people in the United States, Canada and Luxembourg do, at least five Earths would be needed. Credit: Emilio Godoy / IPS
by Baher Kamal (madrid)
Inter Press Service
MADRID, Jun 03 (IPS) – This article is part of a series to mark World Environment Day June 5In a previous article, IPS reported on some of UNICEF’s key findings about the harsh impacts on the world’s children –and the whole Planet Earth– of the excessive consumption by mostly rich countries.
One of these is that if everyone were to consume resources at the rate at which people in the United States, Canada and Luxembourg do, at least five Earths would be needed.
But there is a problem
And it is that there is one Earth.
“In the Universe there are billions of galaxies… In our Galaxy are billions of planets… But there is one Earth (#OnlyOneEarth) reminds the UN on the occasion of the 2022 World Environment Day marked on 5 June.
More than ever, it goes on, this single Earth is now facing a triple planetary emergency: the climate is heating up too quickly for people and nature to adapt; habitat loss and other pressures mean an estimated 1 million species are threatened with extinction, and pollution continues to poison the air, the land and the water.
The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) explains that the current triple planetary crisis consists of three interlinked issues threatening human and environmental health: climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution and waste.
In spite of all the above, there is still a big gap. It is about the gap between what the world needs to spend to adapt and what it is actually spending is widening.
In fact, the UN reports that the estimated costs of adaptation continue to rise and could reach US$280-500 billion per year by 2050 for developing countries alone.
Time is running out
Time is running out, and nature is in emergency mode, warns the UN.
“Without action, exposure to air pollution beyond safe guidelines will increase by 50% within the decade and plastic waste flowing into aquatic ecosystems will nearly triple by 2040.”
Half a century ago…
The “Only One Earth” theme of the World Environment Day was the slogan for the first United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, held in Stockholm in June 1972. Since then, a full half a century has elapsed. And the situation is getting dangerously worse.
Just ahead of this year’s World Environment Day, world leaders and representatives from governments, business, international organisations, civil society and youth, gathered on 2 and 3 June 2022 in Sweden for the Stockholm+50 – an international meeting to drive action towards a healthy planet for all.
Any way out?
Maybe. According to the UN, key areas for transformation include “how we build and live in our homes, cities and places of work and worship, how and where our money is invested…”
“But others of greater magnitude include: energy, production systems, global trade and transport systems, and protection of biodiversity.”
So, there would be a way out, but how? The good news, the world body says, is that the solutions and the technology exist and are increasingly affordable.
Fine, but…
Already a quarter of a century ago, in Athens, a UN-backed meeting with Mediterranean business representatives, informed the the urgent need for action to save Mare Nostrum from the devastating impacts of sea pollution proceeding from land, caused mostly by the region’s industries, oil and gas infrastructures, oil transportation (by that time there was an average of 2.000 oil tankers crossing the sea… and any given minute…), etcetera.
The business sector was then strongly recommended to move, quickly, towards a cleaner production, a cleaner transport, etcetera.
One relevant business’ representative immediately reacted: ”all this is great. We fully agree. But are you going to pay for that? We are business, our job is to make money, so…”
But who can really ‘pay’ for that?
The world’s most industrialised countries seem not to be interested in helping resolve the problems that they have been mostly causing. On the contrary, there have been progressively diminishing the much needed assistance they themselves had committed to.
In view of the relentless depletion of this one Earth’s natural resources, big business –and some of the world’s wealthiest individuals– have been generously funding the exploration –and exploitation– of outer Space.
Is it to search for food, water and fertile lands for the world’s one billion hungry people? Or is it rather to find more minerals to feed the highly lucrative technologies?
Another question: why has the powerful military industry been showing a great interest in exploring outer Space – and even in militaritasing it? Is it also about minerals? After all, more than ever, wars now need highly technologically-sophisticated weapons.
The UN Resident Coordinator in Thailand, Gita Sabharwal (3rd from right), talks to migrants in Tak province on the impact of COVID-19. Credit: UNSDG/Build back better: UN Thailand’s COVID-19 strategy.
Opinion by Simone Galimberti (kathmandu, nepal)
Inter Press Service
KATHMANDU, Nepal, Jun 03 (IPS) – Few deny the huge role the United Nation plays in global multilateral system especially in the area of poverty eradication, sustainability and climate change.
As enabler of the Agenda 2030, the UN system has the ability, stemming from its extraordinary convening powers, to bring around the table global leaders and key stakeholders for the most consequential decisions humanity must take.
Its agencies and programs do make a difference, uplifting millions of people out of poverty.
Yet, at the same time there is no doubt that the system is too complex and fragmented with too many overlaps and duplications that often make its work, using a development jargon, not of much “value for money”.
Short of a complete overhaul that would revolutionize its governance and shut down many of its operations around the world, including the merging of many of its agencies and programs, there is an ongoing attempt of reforming the system from the inside.
Recognizing the urgency for improvements but unable to undertake this needed drastic shift, Secretary General Antonio Guterres is doing what he can.
The focus is on better cooperation and coordination among the agencies and programs around the world and, while not as ambitious as the situation would require, it is still a mammoth operation that has been tasked to UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed.
Based on Resolution 75/233, adapted on 21 December 2020, the Quadrennial Comprehensive Policy Review of operational activities for development of the United Nations system, this is the formal name of the ongoing efforts, is attempting to create a new working culture within the UN.
Such change is desperately needed. The focus is going to be on ensuring a “new generation of United Nations country teams working more collaboratively and according to a clearer division of labor, driving greater alignment with country needs and priorities”.
Some key updates on the progress being made, the so-called Report of the Chair of the UNSDG on the Development Coordination Office and the Report of the Secretary-General on Implementation of General Assembly resolution 75/233 on the quadrennial comprehensive policy review of operational activities for development of the United Nations system, are offering some perspectives on what being achieved and what is still missing.
The UN Resident Coordinator in Thailand, Gita Sabharwal (3rd from right), talks to migrants in Tak province on the impact of COVID-19. Credit: UNSDG/Build back better: UN Thailand’s COVID-19 strategy.
At the center of this broad reform is the revitalization of the role of the UN Resident Coordinators, now full-time positions on their own and no more tied to job of the UNDP Representatives.
The idea is to enable and empower a “primus inter pares” figure, someone who has the authority to also look after and monitor the work being done by each single agencies and programs whose work, so far, has been infamously uncoordinated.
As a consequence, planning mechanisms like the United Nations Development Assistance Framework, UNDAF, the planning matrix listing all the contributions of each single UN entity in a given country, has been turned into a stronger tool, the Country Cooperation Framework.
The name shift from ‘assistance’ to “cooperation” is symbolically indicative of the different role the UN system aims playing: an enabler and facilitator rather than a static, top down “bossy” partner.
There is also a new common assessment, the UN Common Country Analysis (CCA), “an integrated, forward-looking, and evidence-based analysis of the country context for sustainable development”.
Now, the Resident Coordinators have a stand-alone structure supporting their tasks, including different advisors, economists, data specialists and very importantly, partnerships and communication experts.
Technically, their job now also foresees “supporting governments mobilize financing for the SDGs”, as they are going to be “focused on innovative SDG financing approaches with Governments and key partners”.
The ambitious goal is to turn the Resident Coordinators in connectors and to some extent, “fund raisers” for the local governments they are supporting.
With also a new Accountability Framework in place, the common vision is as self- evident as much required but as daunting to achieve as it can be: create a “path forward for the system to work collaboratively under robust and impartial leadership, building on the strengths of each entity but moving away from the ‘lowest common denominator’ that prevailed in the previous architecture”.
The new approach is based on the much needed “dual reporting model in which, at least on the paper, the Resident Coordinators have a role in monitoring and assessing the work of each head of agencies/programs and the latter, on their end, would also asses the work of the Resident Coordinators.
That such system, far from being revolutionary, was never put in place earlier, clearly tells of the substantial ineffectiveness and lack of coordination that stymied the UN System for decades.
Having stronger coordination system makes total sense especially if the empowered Resident Coordinators, of whom, positively, now fifty-three per cent are women, can truly scale up joint pooled funding, bringing together different agencies and programs.
It is already happening but it would be really a game changer if most of the programs supported by the UN would be implemented through this modality.
In this regard the Joint SDG Fund, “an inter-agency, pooled mechanism for integrated policy support and strategic financing that acts as a bridge”, can be promising and if wholly embraced, truly transformative.
Mechanisms like the Joint SDG Fund should become the standard working modality at country levels with more and more power centered on the Office of Resident Coordinators.
Such development would mean much leaner agencies and programs in the country offices because otherwise the risk is to create another coordinating structure without simplifying and “slimming down” the system on the ground.
The scale of work to accomplish in this reform is still significant.
An internal survey, part of official report of the SG General, is emblematic.
Answering to “what extent have the following measures improved the UN Country Team’s offer to the country in the last year”, among the respondents, there was still a considerable percentage indicating that only “moderate change” had occurred so far.
Therefore, there is not only the risk that the well-intentioned reforms being pursued are simply not up to the gigantic needs of change that the UN must achieve but that it will take lots of time and energies to even bring around minimum change at country level.
Moreover, a stronger and better UN system on the ground means also a UN able to do a much better job at engaging and working with the people and civil society.
Being mandated with working with and supporting national governments does not imply as it happened so far, that the UN keeps insulate itself from the society.
You will always read about tokenistic measures that make appear like the UN is always open for collaborations and always striving to reach out the commoners but the reality is very different.
All this means one thing: the revamped offices of the Resident Coordinators have a huge role in enabling a transformation in mindsets and working culture inside the UN.
The report of the Secretary General could not have been clearer on this aspect.
“We must continue our efforts to ensure the reform of the United Nations development system brings about the changes in behavior, culture and mindsets that can maximize the collective offer of the United Nations”.
The Author, is the Co-Founder of ENGAGE, a not for profit in Nepal. He writes on volunteerism, social inclusion, youth development and regional integration as an engine to improve people’s lives.
Juana Martínez takes part in an October 2021 protest in Lima organized by the platform of people affected by heavy metals in front of Congress, holding a sign that reads: “Cajamarca. Mercury Never Again”. She was 29 years old when the mercury spill occurred in her town, Choropampa, in Peru’s northern Andes highlands. Several of her relatives have since died from the effects of the heavy metal and one of her sisters became sterile. CREDIT: Courtesy of Milagros Pérez
by Mariela Jara (lima)
Inter Press Service
LIMA, Jun 03 (IPS) – “We are not asking for money, but for our health, for a dignified life,” is the cry of the people of Choropampa, which lawyer Milagros Pérez continually hears 22 years after the environmental disaster that occurred in this town in the department of Cajamarca, in Peru´s northern Andes highlands, on the afternoon of Jun. 2, 2000.
On that day, a Yanacocha Mining company truck spilled 150 kilograms of mercury on its way to Lima, the capital, leaving a glowing trail for about 40 kilometers on the road that crosses Choropampa, a town of 2,700 people located at an altitude of almost 3,000 meters.
The company, 95 percent of which is owned by a U.S. corporation, set up shop there in 1993, 48 kilometers north of the city of Cajamarca, where it operates between 3,400 and 4,200 meters above sea level. Yanacocha (black lagoon in the Quechua indigenous language) is considered the largest gold mine in South America and the second largest in the world, although its production is declining.
Children and most of the population started collecting the shiny droplets scattered on the ground and in the following days, responding to a call from the mining company that announced that it would purchase the material, they picked it up with their own hands, unaware of its high toxicity and that this exposure would affect them for life.
Before the disaster, the town was known for its varied agricultural production which, together with trade and livestock, allowed the impoverished inhabitants of Choropampa to get by as subsistence farmers.
But their poverty grew after the mercury spill, in the face of the indifference of the authorities and the mining company, which never acknowledged the magnitude of the damage caused.
The Choropampa road, now paved, where a truck of a large gold mining company spilled mercury on Jun. 2, 2000, affecting this small town in the department of Cajamarca, in Peru’s northern Andes highlands. The only change since then has been the paving of the road. CREDIT: Grufides
Violated rights
A report, also from the year 2000, by the Ombudsperson’s Office concluded that of the total mercury spilled, 49.1 kilos were recovered, while 17.4 remained in the soil, 21.2 evaporated, and the whereabouts of 63.3 were not identified.
The autonomous government agency also questioned the actions of the authorities and the mining company, referring for example to the extrajudicial agreements they reached with some of the affected local residents, which included clauses prohibiting them from filing any complaint or lawsuit against the company, and which “violate the rights to due process and effective judicial protection of those affected.”
Twenty-two years after the incident, Choropampa’s demands for reparations and access to justice are still being ignored. Pérez, a lawyer with the non-governmental Information and Intervention Group for Sustainable Development (Grufides), based in Cajamarca, said in an interview with IPS that the effects on the local territory and people’s health are evident.
She explained that despite the attempt to hush up the incident, it received enough attention that then president Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000) was forced to promise “an investigation, punishment and reparations” – although these did not happen.
Against a background of poverty and lack of opportunities, the mining company took advantage of the local residents’ goodwill and reached compensation agreements with some of them in exchange for their silence. There were also collective reparation agreements such as the construction of a town square, but nothing that actually contributed to remedying and addressing the damage caused to the people, say experts and activists.
For instance, the mining company committed to a private health plan for the people who were affected by the disaster, but it ended up being “a sham,” she said.
“They give them pills for the pain and nothing more, to people affected by mercury, while every day it becomes more difficult for them to support their families as they suffer terrible loss of vision, decalcification, bone malformations, and permanent skin irritations, which make it impossible for them to work their land and lead the lives they had before,” said Pérez.
Lawyer Milagros Pérez, who is dedicated to fighting for the reparations demanded by the population of Choropampa after a mercury spill in 2000 by the Yanacocha Mining Company in this town in the northern Andean department of Cajamarca, Peru, which caused irreversible damage to their health and lives. CREDIT: Mariela Jara/IPS
Women, affected in very specific ways
The Grufides attorney stated that there is also an additional impact that has remained in the dark until now.
“Although the population in general has suffered damage to the corneas, nervous system, digestive system, skin, and bone malformations, we have noticed specific problems in women related to their reproductive capacity, such as premature births, miscarriages, sterility and births of infants with malformations, which have not been investigated,” she said.
Pérez criticized the fact that to date the affected population continues without specialized attention, with access only to a health post with a general practitioner and three nurses, who lack the capacity to deal with the specific ailments caused by contamination with heavy metals such as mercury.
“What the women are experiencing is part of this overall situation, effects that began in the year 2000 after the spill, according to the testimonies we have been collecting. But they need a specialized health diagnosis, something as basic as that, in order to begin to remedy the damage,” she said from Cajamarca, the capital of the department.
Pérez also mentioned the effects on women’s mental health and their role as caregivers, as a collateral aspect of this tragedy that has not yet been documented.
She cited the example of Juana Martínez, who is known for her defense of the rights of the local population and who for this reason has been threatened and slandered by unidentified persons.
“I tell her, Juanita, you don’t die because everyone needs you, that keeps you alive; because as a result of the contamination, her sister, her mother-in-law and her sister-in-law all died. There is a chain of contamination, the problem is much bigger and it affects different generations, but they don’t want to study it,” she said.
IPS tried to contact Martínez, but was unable to do so because she lives in a remote area far from the town, where there is no cell phone signal.
Denisse Chávez is an ecofeminist activist and member of the team promoting the Third International Tribunal for Justice and Defense of the Rights of Pan-Amazonian-Andean Women, to be held Jul. 30 in the city of Belem do Pará, Brazil, where the case of the women of Choropampa, whose health was affected by mercury contamination in 2000, will be presented. CREDIT: Mariela Jara/IPS
Getting their voices heard in an international ethical tribunal
Denisse Chávez, an ecofeminist activist, told IPS that the case of the women of Choropampa affected by the mercury spill will be among those presented at the Third International Tribunal for Justice and Defense of the Rights of Pan-Amazonian-Andean Women, to be held Jul. 30, 2022, in the city of Belem do Pará in Brazil’s Amazon region.
The tribunal is one of the emblematic activities to take place within the framework of the 10th Pan-Amazonian Social Forum, which under the slogan “weaving hope in the Amazon” will bring together for four days some 5,000 people from different countries of the Amazon basin interested in coordinating actions in defense of nature and the Amazon rainforest.
Chávez, a member of the group organizing the tribunal, which also includes feminist and human rights activists from Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia and Uruguay, denounced that the Peruvian State has failed to make the company compensate the damage caused to the local population or to make visible the specific impacts on women, in the past 22 years.
“Choropampa is an area far from the city and with a highly vulnerable population, with high rates of poverty and illiteracy. In more than two decades no government has been interested in solving the problems while the mining company continues to offer solutions on an individual basis, which is violent since money is offered so that people do not talk,” she added.
She said the tribunal will bring the case international visibility, like others from Brazil, Colombia and Ecuador, which “have in common the impact caused by extractive economic activities on the lives of our peoples and especially on the bodies of women, which is still not taken into account or discussed.”
The ethical, symbolic tribunal will issue a judgment specifying the violations of women’s human rights and the obligations incumbent upon States and corporate actors.
Chávez said the document would be sent to the Peruvian authorities, both in Cajamarca and at the national level. “We cannot allow impunity in the Choropampa case; we will continue to keep the memory of what happened alive,” she said.
Pérez pointed out that the government’s decision was the result of pressure from civil society and groups affected by heavy metals. But Choropampa has not been included in this first stage, despite the lasting impact on its population and soils.
“It is supposed to expand gradually but we will be closely watching the decisions that are taken because a protocol of attention and budgets for diagnostics must be elaborated,” she said.
Juana Martínez takes part in an October 2021 protest in Lima organized by the platform of people affected by heavy metals in front of Congress, holding a sign that reads: “Cajamarca.
“The Government of Iraq admittedly operates in a complex environment, including within the context of stalled government formation,” said the Update on Accountability in Iraq, jointly published by the UN Assistance Mission there (UNAMI) and the UN human rights office, OHCHR.
“However, continued impunity for killings, disappearances, abduction and torture of activists, undermines the authority of State institutions.”
Elections
Between 1 May 2021 and 15 May this year, the report notes an increase in politically motivated violence during the pre and post-election period.
The authors explain that in October last year, early parliamentary elections took place in the wake of an “unprecedented wave of country wide demonstrations in 2019,” which were marked by violence, excessive force, abductions, and targeted killings the saw hundreds perish, and thousand suffer injuries.
According to latest news reports, the biggest party to emerge from the vote, led by Shia religious leader, Muqtada al-Sadr, has still been unable to put together a new coalition government.
Limited progress
The Update highlights that while some progress has been made, particularly on victim compensation, accountability remains limited.
From 1 May 2021 to 30 April, UNAMI and OHCHR documented convictions in relation to four cases concerning violence perpetrated by “armed elements”.
And although the Government-established Fact-Finding Committee is operational, it has not produced any investigative outcomes or provided public information about its work.
The report found that Iraqi authorities have taken just “limited steps” to investigate the unlawful killing and injury of protestors, critics and activists, saying that “much more needs to be done to identify, arrest and prosecute the perpetrators of those crimes, including those responsible for ordering and planning them”.
“UNAMI/OHCHR remains extremely concerned by the continued limited progress towards accountability for crimes perpetrated against protestors, critics and activists,” the report said.
And many who have been subjected to threats and violence have unsuccessfully sought accountability.
Meanwhile, as civic space remains limited and those expressing dissent at risk of reprisal from armed elements, a climate of impunity for human rights violations has evolved, with “a chilling effect” on the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.
Recommendations
The Update recommended that the Government of Iraq conduct prompt, independent and credible investigations of all alleged human rights violations and abuse perpetrated against protestors, activists, journalists, and critics.
It must also work harder to ensure that victims have access to effective remedies, such as judicial and administrative processes that are responsive to their needs.
Victims must also be informed on the scope, timing, and progress of the proceedings and disposition of their cases.
And the Government should assist victims throughout the legal process, taking measures to minimize their inconveniences, protect their privacy, and ensure their safety – as well as that of their families and witnesses on their behalf – from intimidation.
Global support
The international community also has a role to play.
The report advocates for funding and capacity-building programmes for the police and judiciary, which should include structured oversight.
This aims to ensure that entities comply with international human rights law standards surrounding investigations, prosecutions, and victim’s rights, particularly concerning crimes targeting protesters, activists and critics, and provide assistance where needed.
UN News: The Russian war in Ukraine has reached a tragic milestone. Are there any hopes that this war will end anytime soon?
Amin Awad: “There is optimism that the war will end, because neither Ukraine nor Russia can afford it. Ukraine is suffering from the loss of life, the destruction of hospitals, schools, homes, railway stations and tracks, and the transport sector. And the sanctions on Russia are severe.
It is also destructive for the world. Ukraine supports about 15 to 20 per cent of the world’s food needs. This food is trapped, and we have another harvest season coming up: we have an impeding disruption of food pipelines and supply chains.
We’re also seeing inflationary problems and countries defaulting on their debt: Sri Lanka, for example, is unable to pay its loans. The world is not in a good place.
UNOCHA/Ivane Bochorishvili
Aid workers prepare to deliver the much-needed assistance from the UN and humanitarian partners in Sievierodonetsk, Ukraine.
UN News: Civilians are paying the highest price for this invasion. Many were killed, while millions have sought refuge in neighboring countries. What is the situation like for those who are still in the country?
Amin Awad: There is a sense of despair. There are almost eight million people displaced internally, and another six million abroad. Around 15 million did not leave their homes, but they’re impacted by the loss of their livelihoods, and have lost access to services like education, health, and other amenities. Millions of children are not going to school.
The social security system is strained. Government services are stretched. So is the humanitarian community. It’s a really bad situation.
UN News: The UN and Red Cross (ICRC) facilitated the evacuation of desperate civilians trapped in the Azovstal steel plant in the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol. Are there any similar operations the UN is involved in right now, to evacuate those who are trapped in the hostile zones?
Amin Awad: We haven’t received requests for evacuations, such as the one in Mariupol, but we have been putting requests forward for access to areas where populations are in need of food, medical supplies, and other kind of support.
Civilians from Mariupol flee the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol in a UN-led evacuation.
Moreover, I think now we have to really concentrate on winter: we are already in June, and winter is around the corner and, in this part of the world, temperatures are sub-zero. With the destruction of many of the power energy plants, and the loss of alternative energy supplies, we need to quickly come up with a strategy to support millions of people during this winter.
UN News: You have been in Ukraine for a while now, and you’ve seen the ugly face of this war. Can you tell us a human story that touched you deeply?
Amin Awad: There’s a lot of suffering. Driving through some of these areas of destruction, I see children who have escaped the destruction of their homes or apartment building, and find themselves alone on the road, with no parents, no guardians, and nowhere to go.
There’s a lot of suffering. Driving through some of these areas of destruction, I see children who have escaped the destruction of their homes or apartment building, and find themselves alone on the road, with no parents, no guardians, and nowhere to go.
I think this is one of the ugly faces of war that we have to stop.
UN News: Regarding the safety of the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant, is the UN working with parties to address any possible threats?
Amin Awad: The International Agency for Atomic Energy (IAEA) has been here many times. They went to all the plants. Zaporizhzhya is under Russian control, and I believe that there’s a negotiation underway to provide access to the agency.
Nuclear plants could pose a danger, not only to Ukraine, but to the whole continent. So, they need the utmost attention, and security procedures and protocol have to be followed.
UN News: There were many attacks on schools across Ukraine. You’ve been calling on warring parties to spare civilians and civilian infrastructure and you stressed that these obligations under international humanitarian law are non-negotiable. Are there any signs that Russia is listening to these calls?
Amin Awad:We continue to call on Russia to really spare what we call civilian infrastructure, which is sources of water, electricity, schools and hospitals.
We will continue to make these calls, because the number of people who fled because of these attacks is huge and unacceptable.
Ambassadors were briefed by the President of the UN’s highest court, the UN human rights chief, and an Oxford University law professor, who advocated for the adoption of a convention on the prevention and punishment of crimes against humanity.
A draft developed by the International Law Commission, a UN expert body, is currently under consideration by the General Assembly.
At the ready
“Adoption of a convention on crimes against humanity would be one way to promote accountability for violations of some of the most fundamental obligations found in international law,” said Judge Joan E. Donoghue, President of the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
“The Court stands ready to decide any disputes over which it would have jurisdiction on the basis of such a convention.”
The ICJ, which is known as the world court, settles legal disputes submitted to it by countries, and its judgements are binding. However, she said the Court must convince national governments that it has the jurisdiction to proceed.
Recognizing ICJ jurisdiction
The ICJ can consider claims, and any counter claims, if both parties recognize its jurisdiction, said Judge Donoghue, who spoke via videoconference from The Hague, in the Netherlands, where the Court is based.
In other cases, jurisdiction is limited, such as when clauses in particular international conventions – on genocide or racial discrimination, for example – have been invoked as the basis for jurisdiction.
“Today, when armed conflicts and mass atrocities continue to drive human suffering in various parts of the world, I take this opportunity to remind Member States that the Court can promote accountability only to the extent that Member States accord it the jurisdiction to do so,” she said.
Filling the gap
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, called for enhancing the normative and institutional framework to further strengthen the legal basis for accountability and justice efforts.
“The adoption of a Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes against Humanity would, in my view, fill a significant gap in the current international framework, and facilitate international cooperation in this area,” she said, speaking from Geneva.
Relevant treaties which provide the jurisdictional basis for accountability deserve universal adherence, she added, and should be ratified by all States.
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Centre on victims
They include the Rome Statute, the 1998 treaty that established the International Criminal Court (ICC), which prosecutes war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
Ms. Bachelet encouraged all States to accept the compulsory jurisdiction of the ICC “in the common interest of the entire international community”.
The UN Security Council’s support for independent and impartial investigation, justice and accountability efforts is essential, she added, while stressing the importance of putting victims at the heart of these efforts.
“This is not only the right thing to do, in acknowledgment of the victims in whose names these processes were created. But it also helps to identify and address the conditions that have led to the serious violations in the first place,” she said.
Also address aggression
For Professor Dapo Akande of Oxford University, adoption of the draft convention “will ensure that the framework for punishing crimes against humanity is put on a similar level as that with respect to genocide and war crimes”.
Mr. Akande further stated that the focus for accountability is incomplete as the fourth international crime – aggression – often goes unaddressed.
“To improve the normative framework with regard to accountability for all international crimes, States should consider ratifying the amendments on the crime of aggression so as to allow the ICC to be able to exercise jurisdiction over the supreme international crime,” he said.
The world population is already using the equivalent of 1.6 Earths to maintain the current way of life. Credit: Mario Osava/IPS
by Baher Kamal (madrid)
Inter Press Service
MADRID, Jun 02 (IPS) – This article is part of a series to mark World Environment Day June 5As an introduction to this year’s World Environment Day on 5 June, this report deals with how the excesses of the world’s population, mostly in the wealthiest countries, are causing so much harm to Planet Earth.
For this purpose, the following account of some of the major facts and figures that the world’s largest multinational body–the United Nations Organisation– has been successively providing, should be enough to complete the picture.
For this purpose, the following account of some of the major facts and figures that the world’s largest multinational body–the United Nations Organisation– has been successively providing, should be enough to complete the picture.
In contrast, in the specific case of Africa –54 countries home to 1.4 billion humans– causes a negligible 2% to 3% of all global greenhouse emissions, however it falls victim to more than 80% of the world’s climate catastrophes.
Meanwhile, in high-income countries, the material footprint per capita – the amount of primary materials needed to meet the world’s needs — is more than 10 times larger than in low-income countries.
Moreover, some 93 billion cubic metres of water — enough to meet the consumption needs of five million people — is used by the fashion industry annually.
Gobbling up the Earth’s resources
The current demand for natural resources is at an all-time high and continues to grow — for food, clothing, water, housing, infrastructure and other aspects of life, the UN reports.
Specifically, the extraction and processing of materials, fuels and food contribute half of total global greenhouse gas emissions and over 90% of biodiversity loss and water stress.
Currently, the transport sector is almost completely dependent on fossil fuels. It contributes approximately one quarter of all energy-related carbon dioxide emissions.
Every year around the globe 1.3 billion tonnes of food is lost or wasted, that is 1/3 of all food produced for human consumption.
Food losses represent a waste of resources used in production such as land, water, energy and inputs, increasing the greenhouse gas emissions in vain, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) reports further
Every year, an estimated 11.2 billion tonnes of solid waste is collected worldwide, and decay of the organic proportion of solid waste is contributing about 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Where waste cannot be avoided, recycling leads to substantial resource savings. For every tonne of paper recycled, 17 trees and 50% of water can be saved.
From 2010 to 2019, e-waste generated globally grew from 5.3 to 7.3 kilograms per capita annually. Meanwhile, the environmentally sound recycling of e-waste increased at a much slower pace – from 0.8 to 1.3 kilograms per capita annually.
Conclusion
In short, the world population is already using the equivalent of 1.6 Earths to maintain the current way of life.
But the fact is that ecosystems cannot keep up with such demand. Consequently, should the world continue to consume the resources at the rate it now does, at least five Earths would be needed.
Opinion by Kwan Soo-Chen, David McCoy (kuala lumpur, malaysia)
Inter Press Service
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Jun 02 (IPS) – It is increasingly clear that human health and wellbeing are being threatened everywhere because of global warming and environmental damage. Extreme weather events, sea level rise, increasing scarcity of freshwater, drought and high temperatures, combined with loss of biodiversity and other aspects of ecological degradation such as soil erosion and coral bleaching are all features of anthropogenic self-harm and an increasingly inhospitable planet for human society.
The 2015 Paris Agreement established a target of limiting global warming to no more than 1.5 °C above pre-industrial temperatures. We are now at 1.1°C of warming. A special report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) paints a grim picture of what we would face should we reach 1.5°C of warming.
Crucially, failing to limit global warming to 1.5°C could result in the planet being pushed over a number of tipping points that would see accelerated and irreversible warming, with a variety of cascading effects (e. g. loss of the polar ice caps and massive dieback of the Amazonian rainforest) that would see billions of people facing an existential crisis.
Such concerns are not alarmist or exaggerated. The most recent set of Assessment Reports by the IPCC, released over the past few months, presents clear evidence that we are in trouble. Among other things, it projects that average global surface temperatures will most likely reach 1.5°C above pre-industrial averages before 2040.
The theme of World Environment Day this year – “Only One Earth” – correctly points out that all of humanity shares a common dependency upon a single planet. Perhaps nothing is more emblematic of the need for global solidarity and international cooperation than the planetary crisis we face. However, there are also regional differences in terms of both the impacts that will be experienced and the contributions that can be made to averting the crisis.
So, what can be said about South East Asia?
For one, in line with global warming trends and the continued rise in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, the region has seen its annual mean temperature increase at a rate of 0.14°C to 0.20°C per decade since the 1960s. It is hotter than it used to be and the region can expect further increases in temperature. South East Asia is also expected to see an increased frequency of heatwaves.
The high humidity of the region will compound the high temperatures and increase the incidence of heat stroke and heat-related deaths. According to one study, heat-related mortality has already gone up by 61% in Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines since the 1990s.
Higher temperatures and heat stress at 3°C warming are expected to reduce agriculture labour capacity by up to 50% and reduce agricultural productivity and food production. According to one study, this will lead to a 5% increase in crop prices from increased labour cost and production loss.
Rates of malnutrition will likely rise in the region, especially as crop production in other parts of the world come under stress. An example is the drought caused by 2015-2016 El-Niño in South East Asia, Eastern and Southern Africa which resulted in 20.5 million people facing acute food insecurity in 2016 and 5.9 million children became underweight. Rising levels of CO2 in the atmosphere will also reduce the nutritional quality of certain crops and increase the likelihood of greater micronutrient deficiency.
The higher levels of energy and moisture in the atmosphere, produced by global warming, will translate into changing rainfall patterns. Increased annual average rainfall has already been observed in parts of Malaysia, Vietnam and southern Philippines.
Paradoxically, some parts of the region would observe a reduction in the number of wet days. According to the IPCC, the Philippines had observed fewer tropical cyclones, but they were more intense and destructive.
Changes to the hydrologic cycle will also impact on the availability of freshwater and undermine water security in the region. This will in turn lead to associated health problems due to lower levels of sanitation and hygiene.
In the Mekong River basin, due to both climate change and unsustainable levels of water consumption, it is projected that groundwater storage will reduce by up to 160 million cubic meters and that this will be accompanied by delta erosion and sea level rise, affecting coastal cities such as Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh City.
Three quarters of the cities in the South East Asia will experience more frequent floodings, potentially affecting tens of millions of people every year by 2030. In 2019, South East and East Asia had already recorded the internal displacement of 9.6 million people from cyclones, floods, and typhoons, representing almost 30% of all global displacements in that year.
Climate change and extreme weather events will also increase mental illness. Children, youth, women and elderly are particularly at risk of developing anxiety and depression, as well as post-traumatic disorder associated with extreme weather events and the loss of homes and other assets.
A recent nationwide survey by UNICEF Malaysia in 2020 found that 92% of young persons are already worried about the climate crisis (ecoanxiety).
These forecasts highlight the importance of GHG reductions and the preservation of vital ecosystems services. Unfortunately, progress on this front remains inadequate across the region. Between 2010 and 2019, the region saw an annual average increase of 1.8% in carbon intensity, and of 5.1% in CO2 emissions from 2015 to 2019 in the energy sector.
South East Asia also recorded the fastest per capita growth in transport emissions (4.6% per year) in the world, and saw its forest cover decrease by a whopping 13% between 1990 and 2015, with mangrove forest loss growing by 0.39% per annum between 2000 and 2012.
One ray of hope, according to the IPCC, is that South East Asia has the potential to rapidly reduce as much as 43% of GHG emissions by 2050 from reduced energy demand and increased energy efficiency in the building sector, and that further GHG reductions would be possible with more investment and research on decarbonization.
This is critical. If the world is to have a decent chance of limiting global warming to 1.5°C, we need to achieve net zero CO2 emissions by 2050 at the very least. Presently however, policy makers and politicians are either not taking the problem seriously enough or feel unable to break out of our dependency on fossil fuels as indicated by an ASEAN report that shows a gap between current country commitments and the necessary GHG reductions.
Similarly, the radical change required to the way we treat and use the land currently appears to be beyond the capabilities of society.
The last United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow last year that brought together 120 world leaders saw some welcome commitments from governments. For example, Indonesia, as one of the world largest carbon emitters through deforestation and land use change, made a commitment to the Glasgow Leaders Declaration on Forests and Land Use.
A number of countries (Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam) signed the Global Methane Pledge to cut 30% methane by 2030, and a portion of ASEAN countries (Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, and Vietnam) fully or partially signed the Global Coal to Clean Power Transition Statement. These pledges and commitments must still be translated into action. But even if they are, more rapid and radical change is needed.
NAIROBI, Kenya, Jun 02 (IPS) – The following article is part of a series to commemorate World Environment Day June 5
The writer is Program Associate, Sustainable Energy Futures Program, Society for International Development (SID)A global transition to lower-carbon energy sources is crucial for our species’ survival given the worsening effects of climate change. With many people increasingly advocating for a rapid shift from an energy system dependent on fossil fuels, questions on how to make this transition arise – one that is just and equitable, especially in the developing world.
There are many questions that need to be answered. How do we make realistic and enforceable policies that support energy transition in an equitable way? What changes do we need to make to existing infrastructure and in storage technologies?
How can we increase funding and investments to develop clean and effective energy sources inclusive of clean cooking technologies? How do we ensure employment, prosperity and other opportunities are maintained and increased during this transition?
According to CDP Africa report (2020), Africa accounts for the smallest share of greenhouse gas emissions at 3.8% of the total global emissions but experiences harsh climate change effects. Even with continued growth in industrialization and development activities in Africa, emissions remain low.
The energy sector is a major contributor to growth and development of a country but also accounts for high emissions with burning of fossil fuels needed for building roads, cold storage facilities and transport in and out of the cities.
There is need to focus on where we can reduce emissions and start on climate mitigation while providing reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy.
Transport Sector
Two-thirds of the global greenhouse gases emitted today are linked to the use of fossil fuels in the generation of energy for lighting, transport, and in industry. The transport system in Africa is highly dependent on fossil fuels, recent price increases of which have had a knock-on effect on food prices and more generally, impacted negatively on living standards for many in poverty-stricken areas.
Furthermore, the transport system contributes largely to outdoor pollution, especially in the East Africa which has seen in recent years, an increase in the road infrastructure and the acquisition of motor vehicles (most of which are imported ‘reconditioned’ from Europe and the Far East, and whose tail-pipe emissions would not be considered acceptable in those countries).
African countries are consolidating mitigation approaches to reduce the effects of fossil fuels from the transport sector. This includes a shift from fossil fuel-powered transport, an example of that being Kenya launching electric shuttle buses in the public transport system this year (CitiHoppa and East Shuttle) and motorcycles (Ecobodaa).
While these shifts are appreciable, they still have a long way to go in terms of replacing traditional vehicles, as the costs remain prohibitive for most, and the support infrastructure needed for electric vehicles is still largely absent.
Clean cooking
In Africa more than half the population has no access to clean and reliable energy sources which results in the use of biomass (charcoal and firewood) for their heating and cooking needs, in turn contributing to environmental and health complications.
Clean cooking is an integral aspect not to be left behind in this transition. According to latest SDG7 (IEA) tracking report, 2.5 billion people worldwide do not have access to clean cooking facilities and rely on kerosene, coal and solid biomass for cooking.
This number has increased with population growth and challenges levied by the COVID-19 pandemic which led to governments shifting priorities, and increase in poverty with loss of employment opportunities making basic energy services unaffordable.
The use of biomass not only increases pollution, and affects the total forest cover globally, but also poses serious health risks to users, particularly women and children who are the most vulnerable segments of the population.
Encouraging clean cooking innovations seeks to provide alternative technologies that are sustainable, efficient, reliable, and affordable to these communities. Incentives towards adoption and use of liquified petroleum gas can greatly reduce illness, deaths, and indoor air pollution.
Awareness creation and training initiatives by both governments and civil society groups have yielded some results with more households adopting clean cooking technologies. This has been further made possible through government incentives and policies that create a conducive environment for the production and/or importation of these technologies as well as facilitating access to them.
Government Policies
Government policy is a key component in addressing energy-related issues and ensuring that a just transition can be achieved. In particular, governments have a crucial responsibility in ensuring that innovations and technologies are developed and delivered. Well thought out strategies and policies are required for this transition to work.
The policy development process should be participatory and inclusive of all stakeholders to ensure equal and adequate representation of interests, ideas, and issues in the transition plans. This means governments working together with local communities, businesses, the labor market, and development partners to identify areas for improving and developing clean effective sources of energy and clean cooking technologies and develop policies to encourage innovation, investments, and new markets.
Strategies to support incentives for technology transfer and development and reduced taxation are also a requirement to accelerate this shift.
During this year’s SE4All forum held in Kigali, Rwanda, conversations around a just and equitable transition were held with ministries and high-level delegates of several African countries agreeing on seven transformative action points of implementation.
Governments committing and actioning these seven transformative actions would ensure that Africa is on a path towards economic prosperity and achieving a net zero future. These action points look to making modern sustainable energy available, pursue a modern energy of up to 6000kWh per capita in Africa which prioritizes clean cooking, scale up private and public sector investment in new energy technologies, infrastructures, and distribution systems.
They also point out support to Africa in deployment of gas as a transition fuel and green hydrogen for industrial development with the sustainability aspect checked, prioritizing local job creation in the energy sector for local economies, lifting development finance restrictions limiting project in Africa to ramp up domestic resource mobilization and make changes towards technology transfer mechanisms to ensure Africa has access to latest energy innovations.
These transformative actions offer opportunities to engage local communities and better meet the needs of the disadvantaged and those that lack modern energy services.
Renewable energy
Energy generation from renewable sources is one of the ways we can achieve net zero emissions by 2050. Replacing conventional forms of energy generation with new energy sources has boosted the sector and energy decarbonization, thus, ensuring reduced carbon emissions and costs while providing reliable, affordable, and sustainable power.
Technology innovation and investments in new technologies must be put to work to respond effectively to arising challenges in consumption and power generation. Adopting new technologies will ensure that power generation is more efficient and that the power grid is more secure and resilient to support and supply consumer needs.
With a huge population in Africa living in rural areas coupled with poor infrastructure development, there is need to accelerate the green mini grids and off grid plans in the sector for enhanced and reliable energy access.
Green mini grids are flexible, and their designs can be altered to fit specific sites and are deployed in closer proximity to the user hence more reliable and accessible.
Renewable energy technologies and green mini grid systems must be included in energy policies and plans to address the barriers that hinder the adoption of these new, more reliable, efficient, and sustainable technologies worked out.
Governments should put in place and support policies that promote technological advancement in renewable energy generation and distribution while facilitating financing and investment opportunities in the sector.
Energy planning should leverage existing data to develop demand-based plans to ensure energy needs are met. Decision-making in the energy sector must be data-driven to ensure useful information is captured and analyzed to reflect and support the advancement of and forecast predictive maintenance.
Today 759 million people live without electricity, with many millions living with unreliable and insufficient access. Though significant progress has been made, gaps in this sector are daunting, and more needs to be done.
To accelerate progress, Africa requires support through stronger government commitments in terms of adequate policy and incentives and long-term energy demand planning. This will spur fast uptake of sustainable energy solutions while supporting innovations and investments in technology development.
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