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UN Agent: IMF Must Focus on Economic Rights
December 07, 2017
In remarks to the UN General Assembly, UN Independent Expert on the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order Alfred de Zayas called on the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to abandon its "Wild West" policies seeking to limit social spending and encourage privatization in favor of lending policies focused on economic, social, and cultural rights.
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NGO: Drone Use Must Comply with Rights Standards
December 07, 2017
In a recent briefing to the UN General Assembly, Amnesty International called on countries including the US and the UK to bring their armed drone programs in line with international human rights standards, including through the public disclosure of the criteria they apply when using armed drones.
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Author Describes Impunity of UN Peacekeepers in Haiti
December 07, 2017
Author Edwidge Danticat writes in The New Yorker about the experience of Haitians with the impunity of UN peacekeeping forces that reportedly committed rape and murder in his country, as well as infecting its people with a cholera epidemic caused by contaminated water, under the flag of promoting "a secure and stable environment."
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Australian Official Rejects UN Group's Binding Authority
December 07, 2017
The Guardian reports that, at a recent UN Human Rights Committee hearing, Australia's permanent representative to the UN in Geneva, John Quinn, responded to the panel's extensive allegations of Australian rights violations, including the alleged failure to enforce the Committee's "authoritative" judgments, by asserting that the Committee's views are not legally binding.
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CoE Pushes UN Agenda on Human Rights Education
December 07, 2017
In an October update, the UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) highlights a Council of Europe (CoE) report finding the need for more consistent implementation of "democratic citizenship and human rights education" across all European countries.