COVID-19
UNHCR welcomes Mexico’s reforms to protect rights of child refugees and asylum-seekers
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, applauds the entry into force of important new measures in Mexico to protect the rights of child refugees and asylum-seekers, including the end of immigration detention for boys and girls. Under the reforms, no children, either accompanied or unaccompanied, are to be held in immigration… »
No country is an island: collective approach to COVID-19 vaccines is the only way to go
As countries across the world begin to purchase and roll out COVID-19 vaccines, a key question is how far the vaccine is from reaching Africa and how accessible it will be for the continent. Moina Spooner, Commissioning Editor with The Conversation Africa, asked Mosoka Fallah, an expert on infectious diseases,… »
“More Courage to Assume Global Power”
The German foreign policy establishment debates EU plans for global power. Former EU commissioner cautions against “complete overconfidence.” BERLIN(Own report) – The German foreign policy establishment is entering the second year of the Covid-19 pandemic with new plans for EU global power. Whereas in particular western powers and their… »
The Nuclear Weapon States Urged to Advance Disarmament
By Bernhard Schell The upcoming Review Conference (postponed to August 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic) of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) is expected to be characterised by deep divisions among the nuclear-weapon states (NWS), and between them and the non-nuclear-weapon states (NNWS), which are deeply disappointed with the lack of… »
Six ways to ‘reboot your brain’ after a hard year of COVID-19 – according to science
There’s no doubt that 2020 was difficult for everyone and tragic for many. But now vaccines against COVID-19 are finally being administered – giving a much needed hope of a return to normality and a happy 2021. However, months of anxiety, grief and loneliness can easily create a spiral of… »
World: Positive news in the difficult year of the pandemic
Is there any positive news in this era that was accompanied by the outbreak of a pandemic? Here are some news and texts that, as human beings, fill us with pride. Because, they allow us to move forward, breaking down the walls… »
Let Us Make 2021 a Year of Healing!
The following is the text of 2021 United Nations New Year’s message delivered by Secretary-General António Guterres. 2020 has been a year of trials, tragedies and tears. COVID-19 upended our lives and plunged the world into suffering and grief. So many loved ones have been lost – and the pandemic… »
The virus that shut down the world: The yawning gulf between rich and poor
Inequality between the rich and poor worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic and poverty increased, for the first time in decades. In part two of our series on how the virus has changed the world, we look at the ways the pandemic has pushed back efforts to create more equitable societies. »
Coronavirus new variant – genomics researcher answers key questions
A new variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus which causes COVID-19, is thought to be driving increased transmission of the disease in parts of the UK. The government has placed some regions including London under new, stricter coronavirus restrictions, known as Tier 4. People in Tier 4 areas will… »
Intellectual Property Monopolies Block Vaccine Access
By Anis Chowdhury and Jomo Kwame Sundaram Just before the World Health Assembly (WHA), an 18 May open letter by world leaders and experts urged governments to ensure that all COVID-19 vaccines, treatments and tests are patent-free, fairly distributed and available… »