UN
Let's work together to defeat COVID-19: UN chief
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called for working together to defeat COVID-19 and ensuring that digital technologies are a force for good that help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
"On World Telecommunication and Information Society Day, let us commit to work together," he said adding that they should not leave anyone behind.
The United Nations, through a Roadmap for Digital Cooperation and the vital work of the International Telecommunication Union, aims to make the transformation equitable, safe, inclusive and affordable for all, with full respect for human rights.
Also read: Restore planet amid pandemic: UN chief
The UN chief made the remarks in a message marking the World Telecommunication and Information Society Day that falls on May 17.
Guterres said digital technologies sustain life, work, health and learning for billions of people.
Also read: Let's plant seeds for sustainable future: UN chief
In the face of COVID-19, he said, businesses, governments and the digital community have proven resilient and innovative, helping to protect lives and livelihoods. "These challenging times have accelerated the transformation everywhere."
Yet 3.7 billion people – nearly half the world’s population – remain unconnected to the Internet; and of these, the majority are women, said the UN chief.
Also read: UN chief lauds Bangladesh’s Covid mitigation efforts
"They, too, must be included if we are to make the possibilities of 5G, artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, digital health and other technologies truly transformative and sustainable," he said.
"We must also protect against the dangers of digital technologies, from the spread of hatred and misinformation to cyberattacks and the exploitation of our data," Guterres added.
Address Palestinian issue: Bangladesh to UN Security Council
Bangladesh has said the UN Security Council, as the principal organ of the UN charged with ensuring international peace and security, should take up the issue of violence and breach of security in the Al-Quds Al-Shareef and the entire occupied land of the State of Palestine.
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen said Bangladesh believes in a comprehensive and durable solution to the Palestinian issue in accordance with the relevant UN resolutions, the Arab Peace Initiative and the Quarter Roadmap.
He reiterated Bangladesh's position in the open-ended meeting of the OIC Executive Committee held on virtual platform on Sunday.
Ensure women’s participation in all peace initiatives: Shahriar
State Minister for Foreign Affairs M Shahriar Alam has said the UN and the international partners need to support national governments in their efforts to protect and advance the cause of women.
"During this trying time, let’s redouble our efforts to ensure women empowerment globally and their full, equal, and meaningful participation in all peace initiatives," he said.
He was addressing a webinar titled "Women, Security and Peacebuilding: A 21st Century Perspective" on Friday night.
Bangabandhu Centre for Bangladesh Studies in Canada - BCBS - in collaboration with the Bangladesh High Commission, Ottawa, Canada, organised the webinar.
Also read: Hungary, Bolivia want COVID-19 vaccine from Bangladesh: Shahriar Alam
Mobina SB Jaffer, Senator for British Columbia, Jacqueline O’Neill, Ambassador of Women, Peace and Security, Global Affairs Canada, Yasmin Ratansi, MP Don Valley East, Ontario, Major General (ret) Kristin Lund, Former Head of Mission UNTSO, Norway and Commander Carla Monteiro de Castro Araújo, MINUSCA, Military Gender Advisor for the Force spoke as panelists.
Dr Khalilur Rahman, the High Commissioner of Bangladesh in Canada and Chief Patron of BCBS, welcomed the panelists to the webinar and made his introductory remarks highlighting the importance of the issue as well as the role Bangladesh and Canada have been playing in promoting women’s empowerment, peace and security.
Shahriar said their investment in women and girls is paying dividends. "Our women are now a strong catalyst for our rapid socio-economic progress. They aren’t mere recipients, but active agents of our socio-economic changes," he said.
Also read: Bangladesh has lowest gender pay gap: Shahriar Alam
The panelists applauded Bangladesh’s role in the adoption of UN resolution 1325, its national implementation along with the related SDGs to empower women and engage them in peacekeeping.
Dhaka underscores need for adequate funding of UN peacekeeping missions
Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations Ambassador Rabab Fatima has underlined the need for adequate funding of peacekeeping missions to enable them carry out their diverse mandates effectively.
“It is imperative to ensure that the peacekeeping missions are sufficiently funded,” she said, emphasising that a “sufficient and sustained” budget is critical for the UN peacekeeping missions.
Read Also: Nature of peacekeeping has changed: FM
Ambassador Fatima was speaking during the UN peacekeeping budget session at the UN headquarters in New York on Monday.
Bangladesh is one of the top troops-contributing country in the UN peacekeeping operations, with nearly 7,000 personnel serving in seven missions, according to the Bangladesh Permanent Mission to the UN.
Ambassador Fatima underscored the need for timely reimbursement to the troops-contributing countries for their personnel and equipment support.
The envoy also urged the member states to take into account the impact of Covid-19 on peacekeeping operations and ensure sufficient budgetary allocation to allow the peacekeepers cope with the challenges.
Read Also: Bangladesh reaffirms commitment to UN peacekeeping, peacebuilding
She praised the peacekeepers for their continued efforts to fulfill their mandates in maintaining peace, stability and security in the conflict-prone countries and regions, despite the challenges of the pandemic.
Highlighting Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her government’s endeavours in the context of female participation in peacekeeping operations, Ambassador Fatima said an increased participation of women in peacekeeping has been a key strategic objective of the National Action Plan on Women Peace and Security in Bangladesh.
She expressed concern at the low representation of women in the peacekeeping operations, especially in the senior leadership positions.
Read Also: Police contingent leaves for Mali to join UN peacekeeping
“We must continue to invest in our collective efforts towards full, effective and meaningful participation of women at all peacekeeping levels and positions,” said the Ambassador.
The Fifth Committee of the UN General Assembly sits in May every year to consider the budget of the UN peacekeeping missions.
UN calls for return to democracy in Myanmar, end to violence
The U.N. Security Council on Friday again demanded the restoration of democracy in Myanmar and the release of all detainees including Aung San Suu Kyi and strongly backed calls by Southeast Asian nations for an immediate cessation of violence and talks as a first step toward a solution following the Feb. 1 military coup.
The council’s press statement followed a briefing by the top U.N. envoy that the strong, united demand for democracy by the people of Myanmar who have been protesting since the coup has created “unexpected difficulties” for military leaders in consolidating power and risks bringing the administration of the nation to a standstill.
Also Read: UN Human Rights Office says 18 killed in Myanmar crackdown
Christine Schraner Burgener said in remarks to the closed council meeting obtained by The Associated Press that her discussions in the region “compounded” her concern that the situation in Myanmar is deteriorating in all areas. She pointed to a resurgence of fighting in ethnic areas, more poor people losing jobs, civil servants refusing to work to protest the coup and a brewing crisis of families in and around the main city Yangon “pushed to the edge” for food, going into debt and trying to survive.
Security Council members “reiterated their deep concern at the situation in Myanmar following the declaration of the state of emergency imposed by the military on Feb. 1 and reiterated their support for Myanmar’s democratic transition.”
The council also reiterated its previous statements which include strongly condemning the use of violence against peaceful protesters and the deaths of hundreds of civilians, calling for the restoration of democracy and release of detainees. Council members have also called on the military “to exercise utmost restraint” and “on all sides to refrain from violence,” and stressed “the need to fully respect human rights and to pursue dialogue and reconciliation.”
Schraner Burgener spoke by video from Bangkok where she returned after traveling to Jakarta to meet participants in the April 24 ministerial meeting of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations known as ASEAN which includes Myanmar and was attended by the junta’s military commander, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing.
The U.N. envoy said she met the commander-in-chief on the ASEAN sidelines and they agreed “to keep details of the exchange discreet to allow for continued frank and open discussions,” but she assured the council she “amplified” on the statements its 15 members had approved.
Based on her meeting with Gen. Hlaing, Schraner Burgener told the council that on Thursday she again requested to visit Myanmar. Her previous requests have been turned down by the military, which said the time was not right.
Also Read: Myanmar crackdown on protests, widely filmed, sparks outrage
“In the past three years, I have built constructive relations and confidence with key actors in Myanmar and this would allow me to get straight to substantive exchanges on how the current deadlock could be resolved, if given access to the country,” she said. “My presence could also help calm tensions.”
The Security Council expressed hope that Schraner Burgener would visit Myanmar “as soon as possible.”
Schraner Burgener said she plans to stay in the region in the coming weeks and will remain in close contact with ASEAN members to support “the timely and comprehensive implementation” of its “five-point consensus” on Myanmar’s crisis.
It calls for the immediate cessation of violence, a dialogue among all concerned parties, mediation of the dialogue process by an ASEAN special envoy, provision of humanitarian aid through ASEAN channels and a visit to Myanmar by the association’s special envoy to meet all concerned parties.
The Security Council reiterated its “strong support for ASEAN’s positive and constructive role in facilitating a peaceful solution in support of the people of Myanmar and commended ASEAN’s continued efforts to engage with all relevant parties in Myanmar.
Council members called for full implementation of the “five-point consensus” without delay, encouraged continued ASEAN leadership, and backed an early visit to Myanmar by an ASEAN envoy, who has not yet been appointed.
The Security Council and Schraner Burgener made clear that they see the roles of the Security Council and ASEAN as complementary — the U.N.’s most powerful body as the critical international player and the Southeast Asian organization as the critical regional player.
Schraner Burgener said she held “important discussions” with the foreign ministers of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam and Thailand as well as ASEAN’s secretary general Lim Jock Hoi, calling these meetings “a testament to the commitment of the United Nations to support ASEAN and ensure complementarity.”
The Security Council also “encouraged complementarity of her work to the work of ASEAN.”
Britain’s acting ambassador James Roscoe called the ASEAN demand for the immediate cessation of violence an “unconditional requirement” agreed by the Myanmar junta.
He expressed concern that general Hlaing said after the ASEAN meeting he would only consider its five points “recommended steps for solving the crisis after the situation stabilizes.”
The Feb. 1 coup reversed years of slow progress toward democracy in Myanmar, which for five decades had languished under strict military rule that led to international isolation and sanctions. As the generals loosened their grip, culminating in Suu Kyi’s rise to leadership in 2015 elections, the international community responded by lifting most sanctions and pouring investment into the country. The coup took place following November elections, which Suu Kyi’s party won overwhelmingly and the military contests.
Since the ASEAN summit, demonstrations have continued in many parts of Myanmar against the junta, as have arrests and beatings by security forces, despite an apparent agreement by Hlaing to end the violence. Many demonstrators expressed discontent at the ASEAN meeting’s outcome, especially its failure to demand the release of political leaders. Suu Kyi was arrested in the coup and is among an estimated 3,400 people still being held.
Schraner Burgener told the council: “The release of all political prisoners and other detainees as well as full respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms will be paramount.”
She warned that “ongoing reports of lethal force, arrests and mistreatment since, risk undermining momentum generated from the ASEAN leaders’ meeting.”
Schraner Burgener cited “a resurgence of fighting in ethnic areas ... with reports of continued airstrikes displacing thousands and killing innocent civilians.”
The U.N. envoy also noted “the reported use of improvised explosive devices” and “concerning reports that civilians, mostly students from the urban areas, are now receiving training in the use of weapons in the regions of the ethnic armed organizations.”
“Confidence-building measures are urgently required,” she said, expressing hope that her visit will take place “as it could help provide space to move ahead on the consensus points.”
Schraner Burgener said fatalities are rising every day, citing the latest figures from the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners that more than 756 people have been killed and 3,450 arrested, charged or sentenced.
The United Nations estimates that around 20,000 people have fled their home and remain internally displaced in Myanmar while almost 10,000 have fled to neighboring countries, the U.N. envoy said, and the World Food Program says preexisting poverty, COVID-19 and the political crisis are likely to lead 3.4 million more people to suffer from hunger within the next six months.
UN report says Myanmar poverty could double from coup chaos
Political turmoil and disruptions following the coup in Myanmar could undo years of progress and double the number of its people living in poverty to nearly half the population, a United Nations report said Friday.
The report by the U.N. Development Program, or UNDP, said 12 million people could fall into dire economic straits as businesses remain shuttered in a standoff between the junta and a mass civil disobedience movement.
“The hardest hit will be poor urban populations and the worst affected will be female heads of household,” Kanni Wignaraja, the UNDP’s assistant secretary-general for the region, told The Associated Press via a Zoom recording.
The Feb. 1 coup wrested power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been detained along with more than 3,400 other people. Since then, the military has severely restricted internet access and gradually stepped up violent repression of protests.
Many factories, offices, banks and other facilities have closed and trade has been disrupted by work stoppages and other disruptions at ports, economists and others familiar with the situation inside Myanmar say. That has worsened already bleak conditions due to the pandemic.
Also read: Myanmar airstrikes target ethnic forces on 2 fronts
The UNDP said conditions could deteriorate by early 2022 to a level of poverty last seen in 2005.
The economy grew rapidly after a previous military regime initiated a partial transition to a civilian government, while keeping control of key ministries and industries and seats in parliament.
Foreign investment in garment manufacturing, tourism and other industries helped create millions of jobs, providing a lifeline of support for many families living in rural areas.
But that progress has ground to a halt as the coup added to troubles from the pandemic.
“With the effects of the political crisis, we could see these gains removed in just a few months,” Wignaraja said.
The research agency Fitch Solutions has forecast that the economy will contract 20% in the current fiscal year, which ends in September. In a report released last week, economist Jason Yek noted that food insecurity is rising due to hoarding and inflation, while people struggle to access cash to pay for necessities due to the closure and cash limits put on ATMs.
A weakening of the Myanmar kyat to about 1,600 kyat per dollar from about 1,350 kyat before the coup also hinders the country’s ability to import much needed medicines and other supplies.
“We really cannot rule out any worst-case scenario,” Yek said in an online briefing.
So far, foreign governments and businesses have sought to levy pressure on Gen. Min Aung Hlaing and others in the junta through targeted sanctions meant to cut off financial support to the army, or Tatmadaw.
The UNDP report’s findings suggest that ordinary people already are suffering regardless of sanctions.
Also read: Myanmar guerrillas capture gov't base; airstrikes follow
The magazine Nikkei Asia Review said Thursday that the group Independent Economists for Myanmar issued a report urging the targeting of sources of foreign exchange, such as Myanmar’s exports of natural gas, its biggest revenue earner, and of gems and jade.
Sanctions could freeze deposits linked to the state-owned Myanmar Foreign Trade Bank and Myanmar Investment and Commercial Bank, it said.
It said targeting the junta’s sources of hard currency with international sanctions could reduce its revenues by roughly $2 billion annually.
It said the military was prioritizing spending on weapons and security operations over providing desperately needed public services.
Also read: ASEAN leaders demand Myanmar coup leaders end killings
The U.S. recently ordered sanctions against the company that controls most of Myanmar’s gems, pearls and jade sales, though a huge share of that trade is done illicitly.
So far, foreign energy companies involved in Myanmar’s natural gas industry have resisted calls for them to stop paying revenues to the government, saying such moves might endanger their employees and hurt access to already scarce electricity.
Bangladesh elected member of UN's central drug policy-making body
Bangladesh has been elected member of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), the UN’s central drug policy-making body, for a three-year term beginning from January 2022.
The "highly competitive" election of the CND, also a subsidiary body of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), was held on Tuesday at the ECOSOC Management meeting.
Along with Bangladesh, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Republic of Korea and Iran have also been elected to this body from the Asia Pacific Group.
“The election was highly competitive but Bangladesh managed to secure second highest (43) votes. This demonstrates the trust that the international community reposes on Bangladesh in the multilateral fora,” said Ambassador Rabab Fatima, the Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the UN after the election.
She said Bangladesh attaches high importance to addressing the global drug problem in all its dimensions.
Under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the government has been taking strong measures at the national level, and working closely with others at the regional and international levels to address illicit drug trading, said the envoy.
Also read: Govt’s proper initiatives applauded globally: Hasan Mahmud
“As a member of the Commission, we would make every effort to foster international cooperation in combating the menace of drugs," said Ambassador Fatima.
Also read: UN chief lauds Bangladesh’s Covid mitigation efforts
Based in Vienna, the CND is a 53-member body that reviews and analyses the global drug situation, considering supply and demand reduction, and takes action through resolutions and decisions.
Bangladesh has also been re-elected member of the Executive Board of UNICEF and the Executive Board of UN Women for another term starting from January 2022 in the elections held at the ECOSOC Management meeting. The elections were also held on Tuesday.
Bangladesh is currently serving each of the two bodies as member.
The executive boards of these two important UN organisations are the main governing bodies.
India objects to Bangladesh's submission to amend continental shelf limits in line with judgements
India has lodged its objection with the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) over Bangladesh’s claim requesting the Commission not to "consider and qualify" the amended submission made by Bangladesh.
“The consideration and qualification by the Commission on the limits of the Continental Shelf of the amended submission by Bangladesh would prejudice the rights of India over the parts of the continental shelf,” reads a written communication made by the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations drawing attention to the relevant wing of the UN.
The document dated April 16 was posted on the website of CLCS. The “note verbale” is supposed to be circulated to the members of the Commission and Member States of the UN.
Bangladesh submitted the amended submission on the Continental Shelf to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) of the United Nations on October 22, 2020.
Realise rights of all persons with disabilities: UN
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said all must realize the rights of all persons with disabilities, including persons with autism, ensuring their full participation in social, cultural and economic life to truly leave no one behind in pursuit of the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development.
"Let us work together with all persons with disabilities and their representative organizations to find innovative solutions to recover better and build a better world for all," he said in a message marking the World Autism Awareness Day that falls on April 2.
Also read: Researchers 'successfully test' drug for children with autism
Guterres said as they work together to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, one key goal must be to build a more inclusive and accessible world that recognizes the contributions of all people, including persons with disabilities.
He said the crisis has created new obstacles and challenges. "But efforts to reignite the global economy offer an opportunity to reimagine the workplace to make diversity, inclusion and equity a reality."
Also read: 50,500 children with autism in country: Zahid Maleque
Guterres said recovery is also a chance to rethink the systems of education and training to ensure that persons with autism are afforded opportunities for realizing their potential.
"Breaking old habits will be crucial. For persons with autism, access to decent work on an equal basis requires creating an enabling environment, along with reasonable accommodation," he said.
Guterres urges ‘decisive action’ to avoid debt crisis in developing world
Though significant steps have been taken to prevent debt crises across the world sparked by the COVID-19 crisis, they have not been sufficient to restore economic stability in many developing countries, according to a policy brief issued by the UN Secretary-General on Monday.
More than a year into the pandemic, the fiscal impacts of the crisis are triggering debt distress in a growing number of countries and is severely limiting the ability of many, to invest in recovery and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including urgently needed climate action, Secretary-General António Guterres said.
Also read: Let's plant seeds for sustainable future: UN chief
According to the policy brief, 42 economies borrowing from capital markets have experienced sovereign downgrades since the start of the pandemic, including 6 developed countries, 27 emerging market economies, and 9 least developed countries.
Sovereign downgrades cause borrowing costs to rise, especially for developing countries, which can, in turn, increase the risk of more nations taking on unsustainable debt – especially if the Covid-19 pandemic is more protracted and deeper than expected.
“Unless we take decisive action on debt and liquidity challenges, we risk another ‘lost decade’ for many developing countries, putting the achievement of the SDGs by the 2030 deadline definitively out of reach,” Guterres said.
The policy brief, entitled Liquidity and Debt Solutions to Invest in the SDGs, takes stock of the global policy response since April last year, assess remaining gaps and challenges for their implementation, as well as propose updates to the recommendations, presented last year, in light of developments over the past 12 months.
Need for debt relief
The brief highlights the need for debt relief to create space for investments in recovery and for achieving the SDGs.
Even in the cases of elevated debt, new borrowing can lead to improved creditworthiness if it finances productive investments, it noted, adding that debt relief can also free up resources, create conditions under which countries can return to voluntary market access, and may lower a country’s overall borrowing costs, with positive impacts across the whole economy.
Assistance for small island states
The Secretary-General also urged governments to provide fresh concessional financing for developing countries, especially least developed countries and small island developing States, recapitalise multilateral development banks and accelerate the timetable for replenishing the funds, meet official development assistance (ODA) commitments and provide long-term financing to developing countries for investment in long-term growth.
In support of recent endorsements from the G7, the document also called for a new general allocation of special drawing rights reiterating the need to combine a voluntary reallocation of the rights from developed to developing countries.
The brief also urged the G20 to extend the World Bank’s Debt Suspension Initiative (DSSI) until the end of June 2022 and include middle-income countries, notably small island developing States that have been gravely affected by the crisis.
It also urged the bloc to extend the eligibility for debt relief under its Common Framework for Debt Treatment Beyond the DSSI to other vulnerable countries on a case-by-case basis, as well as consider other mechanisms that would allow countries to access the framework, without compromising the credit rating.
Also read: UN chief lauds Bangladesh’s Covid mitigation efforts
Financing the 2030 Agenda
The policy brief was released to coincide with the high-level meeting of Heads of State and Government on ‘Financing for Development in the era of COVID-19 and Beyond’.
The virtual meeting on Tuesday, followed up on a series of meetings and last year to mobilise action to assist the economic recovery from the pandemic.
The high-level meeting is convened jointly by the Secretary-General Prime Minister Andrew Holness of Jamaica, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada.
‘Liquidity is vital’
Addressing the high-level meeting, Guterres called for urgent assistance for developing countries so they have the financial liquidity they need to respond to the pandemic as well as invest in recovery, or risk a “lost decade” in development terms.
“I’m encouraged to see that our insistence on the necessity for a new allocation of Special Drawing Rights by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the reallocation of unused SDRs to support vulnerable countries, including middle income ones, is now winning widespread acceptance … let us make sure it happens – and is properly managed to the benefit of the developing world”, he said.
Also read: UN Chief for ensuring equitable distribution of Covid-19 vaccine
The Secretary-General urged a “three-phase” approach to debt, including a moratorium on debt payments, targeted debt relief, and reforms to the international debt architecture.
He also called for more responsible borrowing and lending, accepted by debtor and creditor countries, investors, market participants, credit rating agencies and international organisations, highlighting the need for a time-bound, open dialogue to build trust and transparency in a systematic, inclusive way.
“Together, with collective resolve, we can help all countries invest in response, recovery, and a more sustainable, resilient future.”