Iraq: Security Council ends war-related mandates in 'milestone' session
The Security Council ended United Nations mandates on Iraq stemming from the 1991 and 2003 wars, including those on weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), in a move that United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called a "milestone" on the country's path to normality.
 "Its people have known tremendous hardship," Ban said in his speech to the 15-member body on December 15.
Citing "the difficult history" on WMDs in Iraq, he hailed the lifting of its remaining obligations on the issue in the wake of its pledge to remain free of such weapons, enshrined in its constitution, and its accession to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Biological Weapons Convention, Chemical Weapons Convention and Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.
Presiding over the session, Vice-President Joe Biden of the United States, which holds the Council's monthly presidency, paid tribute to the UN Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI), with particular homage to the first UNAMI chief in Iraq, Sergio Vieira de Mello, who was killed in the massive terrorist bombing of the UN headquarters in Baghdad in August 2003.
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UN in Washington
Izumi Nakamitsu, director of the UN's Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) Policy Division, was in Washington to address a Council on Foreign Relations workshop titled, The U.S. and the Future of Peacekeeping. DPKO Spokesperson Nick Birnback, was also in Washington to speak to the Partnership for Effective Peacekeeping at an event titled, UN Peacekeeping: 2011 Priorities and Challenges.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon gave a keynote address on strengthening collaboration among US civil society and the United Nations on important challenges facing the world today ranging from climate change, nuclear non-proliferation and human rights. He told the prominent civil society leaders gathered by the Connect U.S. Fund, a foundation/NGO initiative headed by former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Nancy Soderberg, that civil society in the United States has played a crucial role in advancing the human condition and the values of the UN Charter by pressuring governments to do the right thing by their citizens. "Your governments, the United Nations and this planet need your voice and your work more than ever," he said.
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UN announces creation of panel of experts to probe origin of cholera in Haiti
United Nations Secretary-General today announced the creation of an international scientific panel to investigate the source of the cholera epidemic in Haiti, about which remain fair questions and legitimate concerns that demand the best answer that science can provide.
 The panel, he said, will be completely independent and have full access to all UN premises and personnel. Details on the panel will be provided when finalized.
"We want to make the best effort to get to the bottom of this and find answers that the people of Haitideserve," he said at his end-of-year press conference.
And with respect to the cholera challenge, he said, "our first priority continues to be saving lives. We are working to reassure the population that the disease can be managed through early treatment and some clear and simple steps."
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UN warns of risks ahead of independence vote in southern Sudan
The peace process that ended two decades of war between northern and southern Sudan, culminating in next month's referendum on independence for the country's south, risks unraveling unless both sides reach agreement on the disputed oil-rich Abyei region, the United Nations peacekeeping chief warned on December 16.
 "We are confronting the most critical period of the peace process," the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Alain Le Roy, said in a briefing to the Security Council. "The days and weeks to come will determine the future of Sudan for the next decades."
However, while hailing the successful conclusion of voter registration in southern Sudan ahead of the January 9 vote, Mr. Le Roy voiced deep concern over the lack of accord on the terms of a simultaneous referendum on the final status of Abyei, a region which straddles northern and southern Sudan.
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UN forms commission on use of resources for women's and children's health
The United Nations is establishing a high-level commission charged with developing an accountability framework that will link resources committed to women and children's health with the results they are intended to achieve.
 "Strengthening accountability is critical if we are to save the lives of more women and children," said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, on the establishment of the Commission on December 16.
The new body - the Commission on Information and Accountability for Women's and Children's Health - will develop an accountability framework to help countries monitor where resources go and how they are spent, and will provide the evidence needed to show which programs are most effective to save the lives of women and children.
The Commission will be co-chaired by the President of Tanzania, Jakaya Kikwete, and the Prime Minister of Canada, Stephen Harper.
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UN urges restraint in Cote d'Ivoire amidst reports of growing violence
Noting the situation in Cote d'Ivoire has taken a dangerous turn, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, at his year-end press conference today, said "any attempt to obstruct UN operations or blockade the Golf Hotel is totally unacceptable. Any attack on UN forces will be an attack on the international community. I emphasize: those responsible for the loss of civilian lives will be held accountable."
 Ban went on to say, "The results of the election are known. There was a clear winner. There is no other option. The efforts of Laurent Gbagbo and his supporters to retain power and flout the public will cannot be allowed to stand."
He called on Gbagbo to step down and allow his elected successor to assume office without further hindrance.
"Any other outcome would make a mockery of democracy and the rule of law," Ban said.
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Week in Pictures
Council Hears Briefing from Iran Sanctions Committee
 December 10, 2010 - Susan Rice (center) chats with Konstantin K. Dolgov (left of Ms. Rice), Deputy Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN; Mark Lyall Grant (second from right), Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the UN; and Ivan Barbalić (right), Permanent Representative of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the UN; prior to the Council's meeting on nuclear non-proliferation. At the meeting, members heard a briefing from the chairman of the committee dealing with sanctions on Iran regarding its nuclear programme, known as the Committee established pursuant to resolution 1737 (2006). UN Photo/Paulo Filgueiras _______________________________
2010 Human Rights Day in Geneva
December 10, 2010 - A wide view of the 2010 Human Rights Day event inside the Human Rights Council Chamber, in Geneva, Switzerland. UN Photo/Jean-Marc Ferre |
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Week in Numbers
1.4 BILLION
The financial and economic crisis cut global wage growth by half in 2008 and 2009, according to a new United Nations report. Analyzing data from 115 countries and territories covering 94 percent of the approximately 1.4 billion wage earners worldwide, the "Global Wage Report 2010/11 - Wage policies in times of crisis" shows that growth in average monthly wages globally slowed to 1.6 percent in 2009. Read more
$358 MILLION
Donors have pledged a total of $358 million in contributions to the United Nations-managed humanitarian fund created five years ago to ensure rapid and reliable assistance for people affected by conflict and natural disasters. Fifty-nine member states, several private sector firms and a Turkish non-governmental organization (NGO) made pledges in New York at the replenishment conference of the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), which is managed by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Read more
578 MILLION
A massive scale-up in malaria control programs between 2008 and 2010 has resulted in the provision of enough insecticide-treated mosquito nets to protect more than 578 million people at risk in sub-Saharan Africa, according to the World Malaria Report 2010. Read more
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