The rainy season is about the hit Chad, where 200,000 people live in internally displaced persons camps. Rain means mosquitoes. And for people living in squalid camps, that means malaria and possible death.
The situation is dire, but you can help. Nothing But Nets, a grassroots organization that sends insecticide treated bed nets to Africa, has launched an emergency appeal to send 40,000 bed nets to internally displaced persons camps in Chad in six weeks. The nets cost ten dollars each, and are suited to protect a family of four. Consider helping out. As they say: send a net, save a life.
From the UN News Center:
Acting on the findings of an internal investigation conducted by the United Nations Mission in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI) which revealed serious allegations of widespread sexual exploitation and abuse by peacekeepers there, the world body has suspended the contingent concerned, a spokesperson announced today. The UN's Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) is currently conducting a full investigation, but the UN has decided to suspend the contingent's activities and has cantoned the unit within its base, UN spokesperson Michele Montas told reporters. "The United Nations reiterates its zero tolerance policy towards sexual exploitation and abuse and stresses its determination to work with our troop and police contributing countries to ensure that all UN personnel are held accountable to the highest standards of behaviour," she said.These are obviously very serious allegations. You can read more about the UN's zero tolerance policy on sexual abuse and watch Assistant Secretary General Jane Holl Lute discuss how the UN responds to allegations of sexual abuse among peacekeepers.
US Ambassador to the United Nations Zalmay Khalilzad pens an op-ed in the New York Times today outlining a potential role for the UN in Iraq:
In Iraq, the United States supports a larger United Nations role because we believe that with the right envoy and mandate it is the best vehicle to address the two fundamental issues driving the crisis in Iraq. First, the United Nations has unmatched convening power that can help Iraq's principal communities reach a national compact on the distribution of political and economic power. In the role of mediator, it has inherent legitimacy and the flexibility to talk to all parties, including elements outside the political process. [snip] Second, the United Nations is also uniquely suited to work out a regional framework to stabilize Iraq. Several of Iraq's neighbors -- not only Syria and Iran but also some friends of the United States -- are pursuing destabilizing policies. The United States supports a new mandate that creates a United Nations-led multilateral diplomatic process to contain the regional competition that is adding fuel to the fire of Iraq's internal conflict.Read the whole thing.
From the UN News Center:
The head of the United Nations Independent International Investigation Commission (UNIIIC) probing the 2005 assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri today reported progress in identifying persons suspected of involvement in the attack
"The consolidation of the Commission's findings across several areas of the Hariri case and in some other cases has helped identify a number of persons who may have been involved in some aspects of the crime," UNIIC Commissioner Serge Brammertz told an open meeting of the Security Council.
More.
Late last night, Russia rejected the final draft of a Security Council resolution on Kosovo. The resolution, sponsored by the US and EU, would essential replace United Nations authority in Kosovo with that of the European Union. While the United States and European Union stress that this is not an automatic road to independence, Russian seems unconvinced. Should the resolution pass, it would mean that Russia would effectively loose its ability to veto any future moves toward Kosovo's independence.
The measure was supposed to come to a vote today, but the threat of a Russian veto may prevent that from happening. Meanwhile, Condoleezza Rice told reporters today that Kosovo will have its independence "one way or another" suggesting that the US and EU might move the debate on Kosovo's future status out of the Security Council.
by former Senator Sam Nunn, Co-Chairman of the Nuclear Threat Initiative
The gravest danger in the world today is the threat of a nuclear attack. Whether launched by a state or a terrorist group, a nuclear explosion in a major city could kill hundreds of thousands, close borders, erode civil liberties, slash trade and travel, and change the world as we know it. No country would escape the consequences. Preventing the spread and use of nuclear weapons should be the top security priority of the 21st century. But this is not something that can be done by any one nation; it has to be done by many nations, working together.
During his White House meeting yesterday, Ban ki Moon asked president Bush to personally attend a high-level UN meeting on climate change, scheduled this September in New York.
From UN News:
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today invited United States President George W. Bush to attend a high-level United Nations debate on climate change to be held this fall. "On climate change, which is a very important issue for all humankind, I appreciate President Bush's initiative, during the Heiligendamm G-8 Summit meeting," Mr. Ban told reporters after his meeting with the US leader in Washington, DC.You can read President Bush's statement here.
From the AP:
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he will ask President Bush on Tuesday to have a top U.S. official attend a high-level U.N. meeting on climate change in September because "American participation is crucially important."
The secretary-general told a news conference Monday before he headed to Washington to meet Bush that he wants the September meeting to provide "strong political (momentum) and guidelines" for a major meeting in Bali, Indonesia in December on a new global climate pact.
More.
The first, big step towards North Korean disarmament was confirmed by IAEA inspectors today. The plutonium producing facility in Yongbyon is now closed—the result of a diplomatic breakthrough acheived through the Six Party talks in February.
So what does this mean? For one, it shows just how impractical refusing to negotiate with one's enemies can be. From December 2002 to February 2007 -- when direct diplomacy was shunned -- the North Korean government is estimated to have produced enough plutonium for ten nuclear weapons (and of course, actually detonated a nuclear weapon last October.) But more to the point, the recent progress shows that Security Council unanimity, combined with focused regional diplomacy and direct bilateral engagement with the United States can achieve desirable non-proliferation outcomes.