UN

November 4, 2009 -- Washington– U.S. Senators Evan Bayh (D-IN) and George V. Voinovich (R-OH) led a bipartisan letter signed by 42 senators to President Obama calling on the president to protect American intellectual property (IP), jobs and innovation in the United Nations (U.N.) Framework Convention on climate change negotiation.

“Unless we take aggressive action to protect the intellectual property of our entrepreneurs and manufacturers, we will continue to watch profits and jobs migrate overseas,” Sen. Bayh said. “Protecting our innovations in international climate negotiations will encourage the development of more American technology and help us maintain the economic strength we will need to advance our efforts to reduce carbon emissions.”    » read more »

Oppose House Resolution on Goldstone Report

November 2, 2009 -- (Washington DC) - Members of the US House of Representatives should oppose a resolution that calls for the Obama administration to reject scrutiny of Israel and Hamas for laws-of-war violations in the recent Gaza conflict, Human Rights Watch said today.

House Resolution 867 calls on the US president and secretary of state to "oppose unequivocally any endorsement or further consideration of the ‘Report of the United Nations Fact-Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict' in multilateral fora." Debate on the non-binding resolution is scheduled for November 3, 2009.    » read more »

3 November 2009 -- On the eve of a United Nations General Assembly debate, Amnesty International has called on UN ambassadors in New York to grasp a unique opportunity to address accountability for war crimes in Gaza and southern Israel earlier in the year.

The General Assembly will convene on Wednesday to debate the comprehensive and authoritative report of the Fact Finding Mission led by Judge Richard Goldstone. The report found that the Israeli and Palestinian sides committed serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law, including war crimes and possibly crimes against humanity.

Amnesty International sent an open letter to all permanent representatives to the General Assembly and another to the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.    » read more »

October 29, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, DC -- Following an announcement by the U.N. Food Agency of a record one billion people in the world who go hungry, U.S. Senator Bob Casey today took to the Senate floor to urge his Senate colleagues to take action on global food security and pass the Global Food Security Act.

“This is a humanitarian crisis of immense proportions that we can go a long way towards solving,” Senator Casey said. “This crisis is solvable with a combination of assistance and emphasis on providing small farmers around the world with the know-how, technology and means to provide for themselves.”    » read more »

Seattle, WA - 10/13/2009 - Steve Kallick, director of Pew Environment Group’s International Boreal Conservation Campaign, issued the following statement today commending Premier Gary Doer and the Province of Manitoba, Canada, for creating a fund for a proposed World Heritage Site (WHS). The $10 million trust will support the establishment of Pimachiowin Aki, a WHS candidate area covering over 10 million acres of pristine boreal forest.    » read more »

Pledges U.S. will start process this week at meeting in Spain to re-list Everglades

June 23, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – After two years of pushing and with a change in U.S. administrations, Florida Democrat Bill Nelson has won the support of the nation’s lands czar for putting the Everglades back on a United Nation’s list of the world’s most treasured and endangered sites.    » read more »

May 26, 2009 -- I call on the Burmese government to release National League for Democracy Secretary General and Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi from detention immediately and unconditionally. I strongly condemn her house arrest and detention, which have also been condemned around the world.

The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has issued opinions affirming that the detention of Aung San Suu Kyi dating back to 2003 is arbitrary, unjustified, and in contravention of Burma’s own law, and the United Nations Security Council reaffirmed on May 22 their concern about the situation and called for the release of all political prisoners.    » read more »

May 25, 2009 -- "Today, North Korea said that it has conducted a nuclear test in violation of international law. It appears to also have attempted a short range missile launch. These actions, while not a surprise given its statements and actions to date, are a matter of grave concern to all nations. North Korea's attempts to develop nuclear weapons, as well as its ballistic missile program, constitute a threat to international peace and security.    » read more »

Geneva, 7 May 2009 – Chief executives from some of the world’s leading companies have called on governments to more effectively and robustly implement the United Nations Convention against Corruption.

In a letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the CEOs threw their support behind the world’s only universal anti-corruption instrument, stating that it “holds the promise of curbing corruption and creates a level playing field for all participants in the global economy”. They praised the Convention, describing it as “an essential instrument in the fight against corruption”, but they underlined the need for the establishment of an implementation review mechanism at the next Conference of States Parties to be held in Doha in November 2009.    » read more »

Washington, DC, March 31, 2009 -- Statement from Gordon Duguid, Acting Deputy Department Spokesman:
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and U.S. Permanent Representative to the U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice announce that the United States will seek a seat this year on the United Nations Human Rights Council with the goal of working to make it a more effective body to promote and protect human rights.

The decision is in keeping with the Obama Administration's "new era of engagement" with other nations to advance American security interests and meet the global challenges of the 21st century.    » read more »

March 4, 2009 -- (The Hague) - Today's decision by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue an arrest warrant for Sudanese president General Omar al-Bashir is a major step toward combating impunity associated with the horrific crimes in Darfur, said a coalition of 46 organizations from the Justice for Darfur campaign. President al-Bashir is wanted by the court for crimes against humanity and war crimes.

Justice for Darfur called on the international community to press Sudanese authorities to comply with their obligations to execute the warrant. The government of Sudan has failed to bring to justice any of those responsible for crimes under international law in Darfur, and has so far refused to cooperate with the ICC and to surrender any of the suspects.    » read more »

Obama Administration Reverses U.S. Position, Takes Leadership Role in Negotiations

WASHINGTON (February 20, 2009) – Representatives from more than 140 countries today committed to reduce global mercury pollution, which will help protect the world’s citizens from the dangerous neurotoxin. This agreement was propelled by the United States’ reversal in policy, which also influenced policy reversals of other countries, including China and India. The announcement is a historic step forward in the fight against mercury pollution, according to scientists and policy experts at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).    » read more »

Says ‘our goals are shared’, new era of strong partnership ahead

21 January 2009 -- The following statement by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was issued today in New York:

It is with great optimism that I congratulate Barack Obama on his inauguration as the forty-fourth President of the United States.

More than ever before, the challenges we face as a community of nations are global in scope. Economic uncertainty. Climate change. Pressing issues of peace and security, including disarmament and non-proliferation. The multiple crises of food, energy and human development. By their nature, these are issues that require strong and collective responses.    » read more »

June 16, 2008 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Barack Obama today released the following statement on Luol Deng being selected as the 2008 recipient of the UN Refugee Agency's Humanitarian of the Year Award:

"I want to congratulate Luol Deng on being honored with this award. In a world rife with conflict, one of our most important obligations is to look after the innocent victims of war, including those who are forced to flee their homes as refugees - and few understand this better than Luol.

"His dedication to bringing hope to millions of children living as refugees in Sudan and around the world is an inspiration, as is Luol's own life itself. Both on and off the court, Luol sets a standard of excellence and service that all Americans can look to for inspiration."    » read more »

15 June 2008 -- "Omar, a 69-year-old refugee from Baghdad, said he will die a 'slow death' if assistance is stopped. He and his family have depended on food and medical assistance since they fled to Syria in 2006." – UNHCR, May 2008.

Iraq remains one of the most dangerous places in the world. Its refugee crisis is worsening. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), since the US-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003, an estimated 4.7 million have been displaced both within and outside Iraq and for many the situation is desperate.    » read more »