Sexual Minorities Fight for Health Services In Uganda

At an unremarkable office on Bukoto Street in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, health workers and civil society activists attend a regular meeting to offer information and advice on living with HIV and AIDS. What is unusual is that these information sessions cater to a group of around 50 transgender women.

Member States Urged to Collaborate in Efforts to Protect Journalists

Efforts to improve and implement international legal provisions for the protection of journalists across the globe was the main focus of a meeting held at the UN Security Council Friday.

When Nelson Mandela Addressed the UN…

Former Deputy Director-General of the UN Office in Vienna, Dr. Nandasiri Jasenthuliyana recalls listening to Nelson Mandela on his first visit to the UN shortly after his release from prison when a Special Session of the Committee on Apartheid was convened for him to address a UN gathering.

Italian Mafia Up To Dirty Business

The beauty of the Bay of Naples under a setting sun, the romance of Sorrento and the scenic splendour of the Amalfi coastline pull thousands of visitors to southern Italy. But the region is also home to an ugly truth.

Doctor Abductions Leave Patients Helpless

How Malawi’s President Joyce Banda Lives Mandela’s Legacy

As South Africa’s first black president, Nelson Mandela, was laid to rest at his childhood home of Qunu in the Eastern Cape, Malawi’s President Joyce Banda told mourners that it was Mandela who taught her how to forgive those who tried to keep her from becoming southern Africa’s first female head of state.

Refugees Struggle in Ruined Camp

As the Syrian war intensifies sectarian clashes in Lebanon’s northern coastal city Tripoli, Palestinians in the area worriedly watch the violence from the sidelines.

Citizen Journalists Take the Lead on Gender Issues

Twenty-five-year-old Ragae Hammidi of Casa Blanca, Morocco wears two hats. Five days a week, she attends a business school. But on weekends, she is a journalist who goes out on the street with a small camera, shooting videos of people and issues that go untold by professional media outlets.

Kremlin Tightens Grip on Media

Russia is set to lose one of its few relatively objective news outlets as the Kremlin moves to tighten its grip on the country’s media.

Native Americans Seek Equal Access to Voting Precincts

In a lawsuit that could have nationwide implications for ballot-box access for tribes across the United States, Native Americans from Montana are pushing for early voting precincts to be placed closer to the locations of three tribal reservations - the Crow, Northern Cheyenne, and Fort Belknap reservations.   

Zero Garbage Plan Tied to Fate of Ousted Bogotá Mayor

The ousted left-wing mayor of the Colombian capital, Gustavo Petro, is a casualty of the battle over the introduction of a Zero Garbage programme, which had included thousands of informal recyclers in the waste disposal business.

India Re-imposes Criminal Sanctions for Same-Sex Relationships

India takes two significant steps into backwardness and gives human rights a heavy blow by re-instating one of the rules in its Penal Code that has been over-turned since 2009, according to a United Nations press release.

Indian Gays Prepare to Fight Again

Human rights have taken a step back in India, activists say after the Supreme Court overturned a ruling of the High Court that had earlier lifted the ban on gay sex.

Climate Makes Refugees Out of Young Ghanaians

It was 20-year-old Fizer Boa who first migrated south to Ghana’s capital, Accra, to work in the local Abobloshie market as a porter or “Kayayei”.

Illicit Capital Leaving Developing Countries Up by 14 Percent

Developing countries are likely losing more than a trillion dollars a year in "illicit financial flows" stemming from crime and corruption, according to new estimates. This fast-rising figure is already 10 times the total amount of foreign aid these countries are receiving.

U.S. Urged to Change Policy on Support to Victims of Sexual Violence

The U.S. government is being urged to roll back a longstanding policy that has banned foreign aid funding from being used for health care services for victims of sexual violence in conflict situations.

Mundurukú Indians in Brazil Protest Tapajós Dams

It took them three days to make the 2,000-km journey by bus from their Amazon jungle villages.

“Birth Registration is More Than Just a Right” Says UNICEF

On the 67^th anniversary of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) --   and in an effort to raise awareness around a growing problem-- the organisation released a new report  on the inequalities of birth registration. It is estimated that one in three children under the age of five might lose the right to celebrate their own birthdays because their birth was not recorded—and nearly 230 million children under five have not been registered. “Birth registration is more than just a right. It’s how societies first recognize and acknowledge a child’s identity and existence,” said Geeta Rao Gupta, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director. “Birth registration is also key to guaranteeing that children are not forgotten, denied their rights or hidden from the progress of their nations.” The report aptly titled Every Child’s Birth Right: Inequities and trends in birth registration, places importance around birth registration as a passport to protection. Without legal registration, children are excluded from accessing education, medical assistance, social security and are often more vulnerable to child labour, forced conscription, child marriage and trafficking. The registration rates vary significantly across regions with the lowest found in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. Among the 161 countries that were analysed in 2012 the 10 countries with the lowest birth registration levels were Somalia (3%), Liberia (4%), Ethiopia (7%), Zambia (14%), Chad (16%), United Republic of Tanzania (16%), Yemen (17%), Guinea-Bissau (24%), Pakistan (27%) and Democratic Republic of the Congo (28%).  India had the most unregistered children in 2012—71 million are living anonymously. According to the report, even when a child is registered this does not guarantee the accredited documents proving so—one in seven registered children do not have a valid birth certificate. The implications of not registering a child go far and beyond just having accredited documents because the social, educational and developmental future of the new-born are dependent on a valid record of birth. In Gambia, a father is primarily responsible for registering a child, and in Indonesia, a marriage certificate is a must for birth registration—which means that the children born to a single mother cannot hold the nationality of the country—a barrier to accessing education or any other social rights. There are many additional factors that prohibit a child from being registered at birth, for instance, being unaware of relevant laws and processes, not understanding cultural barriers to facing social discrimination are just a few challenges new parents face.  Natural disasters and on-going conflicts also hinder registration because given each respective crisis, registering children is the last thing on a health workers mind. In Chad, children from Muslim and Christian are more likely to be registered than religious minorities. The list goes on, warily hinting at the inequalities that both women and babies face after childbirth. As time changes and more and more people are turning to technology, organizations like UNICEF are able to tackle birth registration in an efficient way.  By embracing innovative approaches that support governments and grassroots communities in simplifying birth registration process and data collection, slowly, children are being counted. In Uganda, using mobile phone technology, parents can complete the registration procedures in minutes—a process that normally takes months. According to Gupta, “Societies will never be equitable and inclusive until all children are counted.” For the countries that have no data available or have issues registering children at birth, it’s the emphasis placed on technological support that really makes a difference, and which will eventually be one of the determining factors in a child’s future.

OP-ED: Schools Bring Hope in Devastated Philippines

Last Sunday, I bought a bouquet of 45 small fresh yellow chrysanthemums. They cost me three dollars – not cheap for these parts. They were in a bucket in front of a tiny shop crammed with workers and customers in the heart of Tacloban City.

In Home Gardens, Income and Food for Urban Poor

Flowers burst out of old tires and rows of pepper plants fill recycled plastic tubs as herbs pop out of old pipes. As utilitarian as it is cheery, this rooftop array is one of several urban agriculture projects that are significantly improving livelihoods for the urban poor in this sprawling city.

Reaching Quietly for the ‘Solidarity Basket’

In the early morning hours, as hundreds of people grab their breakfast at a busy bakery in Beogradska Street in the Serbian capital, a very special basket quickly fills up with croissants, rolls and breads. It is the ‘solidarity basket’.