| Calendar |
October 17
International Day for the Eradication of Poverty is observed. United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Administrator Helen Clark will celebrate the Day at an event in Beijing.
The Security Council holds consultations on the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO).
October 18
Washington Event: The Brookings Institute hosts an event titled, United Nations Peacekeeping Operations: Fit for Purpose? featuring Anthony Banbury, UN assistant secretary general for field support, beginning at 4:30 p.m. To RSVP, call 202.797.6105 or register online.
A high-level Symposium of the United Nations Development Cooperation Forum (DCF) on "Working together to increase the development impact of aid" begins in Luxembourg. Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro and ECOSOC President Lazaroud Kapambwe will speak at the event and take part in a press conference at 10.a.m. The Symposium will conclude on October 19.
UNDP Administrator Helen Clark begins her first official visit to Mongolia, where she will co-host an international conference with Prime Minister Sukhbaataryn Batbold on managing extractive industries for human development. She will also host an event marking the 50th anniversary of the United Nations in Mongolia.
October 19
The Security Council is briefed on piracy in the Gulf of Guinea.
A panel discussion on the theme, "Women of African descent," in observance of the International Year for People of African Descent, is held at UN headquarters. The discussion is being organized by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
October 20
The Security Council holds consultations on the Côte d'Ivoire.
A roundtable on the theme, "Human Rights in Central Africa: Challenges and opportunities," is held at UN headquarters.It is being organized by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
October 21
The Security Council holds elections.
*****
Watch live coverage of many of the events listed above at www.un.org/webcast
| |
| UN Reports | |
Secretary-General Reports to the Security Council
Report of the Secretary-General on the situation in Abyei
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
The State of Food Insecurity in the World 2011
United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
Treatment of Conflict Related Detainees in Afghan Custody
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), co-authored with the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
Climate Change and Tourism Policy in OECD Countries
United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)
Tourism Toward 2030
World Health Organization (WHO)
WHO 2011 global tuberculosis control report
| |
| UN News Center - New York | 
|
|
|
|
 |
October 13, 2011, White House, Washington, DC - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is recognized by US President Barack Obama during a state dinner for South Korean President Lee Myung-bak Thursday night. Photo courtesy of Jonathan Ernst/Reuters and The Washington Post |
|
|
|
UN human rights chief urges immediate action on Syria as death toll passes 3,000
The United Nations human rights chief has urged the international community to act immediately to protect lives in Syria, where the number of people killed since the violence started in March has now exceeded 3,000, including over 180 children.
 | |
October 7, 2011, Geneva, Switzerland - Laura Dupuy Lasserre, President of the Human Rights Council, opens a meeting on the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Syria, during the Council's 12th UPR session. Each of the UN's 193 member states undergoes a review of its human rights record under the UPR mechanism. UN Photo/Jean-Marc Ferré
|
"Since the start of the uprising in Syria, the government has consistently used excessive force to crush peaceful protests," High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said in a news release on October 14.
"Sniping from rooftops, and indiscriminate use of force against peaceful protestors - including the use of live ammunition and the shelling of residential neighborhoods - have become routine occurrences in many Syrian cities."
This has resulted in a "devastatingly remorseless toll of human lives," she added, noting that more than 3,000 people have been killed since the government began its crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in March, including at least 187 children. More than 100 people have been reported killed in the last 10 days alone.
Read more
Related press releases
Security Council, in Statement, Condemns Syrian Authorities for 'Widespread Violations of Human Rights, Use of Force against Civilians'
Calling Events in Syria 'Brutally Shocking', Secretary-General Welcomes Security Council Statement, Urging Compliance with Demand for Full Humanitarian Access
|
Security Council extends mandate of international force in Afghanistan
The Security Council has extended the authorization of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan for another year, welcoming the agreement between the country and troop-contributing states to gradually transfer key security responsibilities to the Afghan government by the end of 2014.
 | |
October 12, 2011, United Nations, New York - U. Joy Ogwu, Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the UN and President of the Security Council for October, chairs a meeting of the Council at which members unanimously decided to extend authorization of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan until October 13, 2012. UN Photo/Paulo Filgueiras
|
In a unanimous resolution on October 12, the Council urged United Nations member states to contribute personnel, equipment and other resources to ISAF, and to continue to support security and stability in Afghanistan.
The Council also welcomed the Enduring Partnership Declaration signed by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the Afghan government in Lisbon last year, particularly the intention to provide sustained support to improve Afghanistan's capacity to tackle continued threats to its security, stability and integrity.
The 15-member UN body encouraged ISAF and other partners to continue training, mentoring and empowering the Afghan national security forces to accelerate progress towards "self-sufficient, sustainable, accountable and ethnically balanced Afghan security forces providing security and ensuring the rule of law throughout the country."
Read more
Related headlines
Afghanistan: UN-backed survey shows increase in opium production
Related press briefings
Press Conference on United Nations Humanitarian Efforts in Afghanistan, Pakistan
Press Conference to Launch Report 'Setting the Right Priorities: Protecting Children Affected by Armed Conflict in Afghanistan'
Press Conference by Permanent Representative of Afghanistan on Security Council Reform
Related press releases
Approving Extension of International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, Security Council Welcomes Agreement to Transfer Security Lead to Afghan Forces
Secretary-General Appoints Farid Zarif of Afghanistan His Special Representative for Kosovo
Peace Broker's Assassination Will Not Derail Gains in Afghanistan's Reconciliation Efforts, Secretary-General's Special Representative Tells Security Council
|
World must welcome 7 billionth citizen with sustainable future, says Secretary-General
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon kept up his drum beat for sustainable development, warning a high-level public-private forum in Denmark that the world must do much more than sing "Happy Birthday" when its 7 billionth citizen is born later this month.
 "We have to give this child - and its whole generation - a sustainable future," he told the 3G Global Green Forum on October 11, bringing together leaders from government, business, finance and civil society to accelerate 'bottom up' country- and business-led progress on climate change and other environmental challenges.
According to UN estimates, the world's 7 billionth citizen will be born on 31 October.
The October 11 forum in Copenhagen, initiated by the Danish government, and organized by The 3G Global Green Growth Institute, aims to create new and expand existing public-private partnerships in areas including energy efficiency, renewable resources, sustainable transport and water.
Read more
Related headlines
|
|
Week in Pictures
Secretary-General Visits Hammarskjöld Gravesite in Uppsala, Sweden
 | |
October 12, 2011, Uppsala, Sweden - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon lays a wreath at the tombstone of former UN chief Dag Hammarskjöld, who passed away fifty years ago in a plane crash, while en route to negotiate peace in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Pictured with Mr. Ban are Swedish former peacekeepers who worked in the Congo at the time of Mr. Hammarskjöld's death. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe
|
_______________________________
Liberians Go to Polls for Second Presidential Election since 2003 |
October 11, 2011, Buchanan, Liberia - A woman holds up her ink-stained finger, proof of having voted in Liberia's national elections. Nearly two million Liberians, half of whom, women, registered to vote in their country's second presidential contest since the end of civil war in 2003. Read more about the UN mission in Liberia. UN Photo/Staton Winter |
|
|
|
About the United Nations in Washington
As the United Nations office in Washington, D.C, the UN Information Center serves as the focal point for UN news and information to advance understanding of the UN and its work, and to serve as a resource for United States government officials, NGOs, civil-society organizations and the American people.
United Nations. It's your world.
|
|
|
The joint program launched by the