Latest news on the Asia-Pacific region from the United Nations
- A revival of Taliban-ordered public executions by gunfire taking place in sports stadiums in several cities in Afghanistan “must cease immediately”, the UN human rights office (OHCHR) said on Wednesday.
- Myanmar’s military government is becoming an even greater threat to civilians following the imposition of a mandatory draft this month, the UN independent expert on human rights in the country said on Wednesday.
- Today’s multilateral arrangements – global and regional organizations and major development banks – are “not up to the job” of helping countries achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the deputy UN chief said on Tuesday.
- The UN Secretary-General on Monday highlighted the urgent need for an end to restrictions imposed by the Taliban de facto authorities on women and girls in Afghanistan.
- Afghan women fear arrest, harassment and further punishment whenever a new Taliban decree is announced, according to a new multi-agency UN report issued on Friday based on an extensive survey of women across the country.
- A new UN report has revealed a concerning trajectory for the Asia Pacific region, projecting a delay until 2062 to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), overshooting the schedule by a staggering 32 years.
- The ongoing “white and iron” dzud in Mongolia has reached a “critical” level, with over 90 per cent of the country facing high levels of risk from the unique weather phenomenon, UN agencies have reported.
- The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has strongly condemned Monday’s deadly airstrike on two schools in eastern Myanmar resulting in the deaths of at least four children and two teachers, with many more left injured.
- UN Human Rights High Commissioner Volker Türk has urged authorities in Pakistan to ensure that parliamentary elections this week are free and fair, his office, OHCHR, said on Tuesday.
- UN independent human rights experts on Friday expressed profound concern over multiple reports detailing arbitrary arrests, detention and ill-treatment of women and girls in Afghanistan.
- On the third anniversary of the military coup in Myanmar, UN Secretary-General António Guterres voiced grave concern over the deteriorating situation in the country.
- Three years after the military deposed the elected Government in Myanmar, the ever-deteriorating human rights crisis in the country is now in freefall, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said on Tuesday, appealing for greater attention from the international community.
- UN independent human rights experts on Wednesday urged the Government of Bangladesh to undertake key reforms to reverse “repressive trends” and restore dialogue.