Citizens for Justice and Peace
Rohingya repatriation to Myanmar is delayed
24-Jan-2018
Abul Kalam, Bangladesh’s refugee relief and rehabilitation commissioner told Reuters that the repatriation of Rohingya refugees, currently in camps in Bangladesh, would have to be delayed, since there are tasks yet to be completed, including compiling and verifying the list of those to be sent back, and establishing transit camps. The repatriation was scheduled to begin on…
Study: North Korea is the world’s most ignored humanitarian crisis
24-Jan-2018
The Guardian reported that a study that scrutinised media coverage of the world’s crises found that the worsening humanitarian crisis in North Korea saw the least news coverage. North Korea is struggling with acute food shortages, resulting in an estimated two of five people in the country being undernourished. Around 18 million North Koreans–70% of the country’s…
New law permits roads to pass through Amazon rain forest in Peru
24-Jan-2018
The Guardian reported that Peru’s congress has passed a law that would permit roads to be constructed in the most remote and unspoiled region of its Amazon rainforest, an area abundant in mahogany trees and “a haven for isolated indigenous groups”. The area includes four national parks, and could impact five reserves that are home to indigenous…
Sex trafficking in American massage parlours is a $2.5 billion industry: Polaris Study
23-Jan-2018
The Thomson Reuters Foundation reported that, according to a study by anti-slavery organisation Polaris, traffickers make $2.5 billion forcing women to have sex in massage parlours in the United States. The study revealed that these women are usually recent immigrant mothers from China or South Korea who struggle with debt and know little or no English. They…
Technology will exacerbate gender pay gap and impact women more than men: WEF Report
23-Jan-2018
The Guardian reported that researchers at the upcoming World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland said that the gap between women and men at work, “in both pay and status” will likely increase unless steps are taken to deal with inequality in high-growth fields like technology. A new WEF report on the future of jobs reveals that…
Widespread sexual harassment and assault at the United Nations
23-Jan-2018
A Guardian investigation has found that “the United Nations has allowed sexual harassment and assault to flourish in its offices around the world, with accusers ignored and perpetrators free to act with impunity,” with “a culture of silence and a flawed grievance system that is stacked against victims”. The Guardian spoke to UN staffers working in more than ten…
Drug-related violence fuelled record 29,168 murders in Mexico in 2017
22-Jan-2018
The Guardian reported that Mexico recorded 29,168 murders in 2017, the highest such number in decades, according to government data. The number of murders for 2017 is higher than the homicide rate at the height of the drug war in Mexico in 2011; in that year, the number of murders was 27,213. The murder rate in 2017…
Saudi-led coalition to give $1.5 billion in aid to Yemen
22-Jan-2018
Reuters reported that a Saudi Arabia-led military coalition said that it would give $1.5 billion in new humanitarian aid in Yemen, which is home to the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, according to the United Nations. The UN has said that 8.3 million people in Yemen are wholly dependent on outside food aid, with 400,000 children afflicted with…
India’s wealthiest 1% received 73% wealth created in 2017
22-Jan-2018
An Oxfam survey found that the wealthiest 1% in India received 73% of the wealth that was created in the country in 2017, according to BloombergQuint. Meanwhile, the wealth of 67 crore Indians making up the country’s poorest half increased by just 1%. Worldwide, 82% of the wealth created in 2017 went to the wealthiest 1% of…
UNHCR responds on plan to repatriate Rohingya refugees
20-Jan-2018
Andrej Mahecic, spokesperson for the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR), said at press briefing that UNHCR had noted the meeting between Bangladesh and Myanmar, which involved discussing the implementation of the bilateral agreement for the repatriation of Rohingya refugees who have taken shelter in Bangladesh. “To ensure that the refugees are heard and their protection guaranteed in…