Latest news on the Asia-Pacific region from the United Nations
- The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has expressed “deep revulsion” at the killing on Saturday night of at least 24 people, according to latest reports, and injuring of dozens of others in a suicide attack outside an education centre.
- A joint UN-hosted donor conference to rally international support behind Myanmar’s displaced Rohingya minority, ended on Thursday with a promise to continue engaging with concerned countries towards finding a long-term solution to their plight.
- Calling the latest imposition of a state of emergency in Thailand, a “draconian measure”, UN-appointed human rights experts on Thursday urged the Government there to guarantee the fundamental rights of peaceful assembly and free speech.
- The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered government lockdowns, collapsed consumer demand, and disrupted imports of raw materials, battering the Asia Pacific garment industry especially hard, according to a new report released on Wednesday by the International Labour Organization (ILO).
- At a time of global challenge and uncertainty, partnership between the United Nations and regional bodies remains indispensable, the UN Secretary-General told foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) during a virtual meeting on Wednesday.
- Highlighting that India has long had a strong civil society at the forefront of “groundbreaking human rights advocacy within the country and globally", the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, raised concerns on Tuesday that “vaguely defined laws are increasingly being used to stifle these voices”.
- The private sector in Thailand has a key role to play in helping the south-east Asian country to reach poverty reduction and sustainable development goals agreed by the international community. In this blog, Gita Sabharwal, the UN Resident Coordinator in Thailand and the Chairperson of the UN Global Compact Network Thailand, Suphachai Chearavanont, explain how, despite the global COVID-19 pandemic, progress is being made towards the goals.
- More than half the population of the vast Asia and Pacific region lack any social protection coverage, leaving populations vulnerable to ill-health, poverty, inequality and social exclusion, a new UN report has found.
- UN agencies in Myanmar have expressed ‘sadness’ and ‘shock’ over the killing of two boys, allegedly used as human shields by security forces in the country’s northern Rakhine province, earlier this month.
- Thousands of people have been displaced and critical health services interrupted, after fighting erupted last weekend between security forces and Taliban fighters in the southern Afghan province of Helmand, the UN humanitarian office has reported.
- More than 20 UN agencies in Myanmar have come together to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, and staff are putting their lives on the line to support the Organization’s efforts to protect lives and boost livelihoods.
- While the global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been staggering, the full impact on health has been far greater, according to the UN Population Fund (UNFPA). The agency said fear, isolation, grief, economic stress and shuttered support services have taken a toll on the mental well-being of people around the world.
- The UN Secretary-General said on Tuesday that he was “closely monitoring” the situation in the Kyrgyz Republic, where protests erupted a day earlier in the aftermath of Sunday’s parliamentary elections.