15 October 2014

SHARES News Items Overview: 16 September 2014-15 October 2014

This is our News Items Overview of 16 September 2014-15 October 2014, a summary of recent news relating to shared responsibility.

• Today’s crises demand urgent and collective action to stem atrocity crimes and protect civilians, UN officials said during the meeting of the General Assembly to discuss the ‘responsibility to protect’ adopted nearly 10 years ago.
• Asaib Ahl al-Haq (one of Iraq’s Iranian-backed militias and formerly identified as the biggest threat to US forces) and the US military are fighting on the same side against extremists of the Islamic State (IS), although both reportedly insists that they will not work together.
• President Obama urged states to accelerate the global response to the Ebola outbreak, saying that the world ‘has the responsibility to act, to step up and to do more. The US intends to do more.’
• The Security Council adopted a statement urging the international community to work with the new Iraqi government to implement the new Iraqi (political) agenda and combat militants.
• The High Commissioner for Human Rights urged Egypt, Greek, Maltese and Italian authorities to help bring to justice the people smugglers who allegedly deliberately sank a boat causing the deaths of hundreds of refugees and migrants in the Mediterranean.
• The US and five Arab countries (Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates) launched airstrikes on IS targets in Syria. Several Arab states promised they would ‘do their share’ to fight the IS militants.
• The UK government has pledged GBP 12m to help France tackle the problem of ‘illegal immigrants’ trying to enter Britain through Calais. The deal also facilitates increased cooperation between the two countries’ law enforcement agencies.
• Governments, investors and financial institutions pledged to mobilise USD 200 billion by the end of 2015 for low-carbon programmes in developing countries.
• Multinational oil and gas companies, major producing states and cities joined forces to slash methane emissions in a partnership that may immediately impact reducing global warming.
• At the UNGA the Chilean President noted that world leaders have a ‘collective duty to act’ in regard to climate change.
• The Amir of Qatar, reiterated his call on the Security Council to ‘shoulder its legal and humanitarian responsibility and support the Syrian people’ against terrorism and genocide.
• The UN Security Council adopted a resolution, calling on member states to cooperate in efforts to address the threat posed by foreign terrorist fighters.
• Governments, businesses, civil society, and indigenous peoples pledged to halve deforestation (a significant contributor to climate change) by 2020 in The New York Declaration on Forests.
• President Obama urged cooperation to tackle ‘violent extremism’ spread by groups such as the ISIL, noting that over 40 states have offered to join the US coalition against the extremist group.
• The President of Iran blamed Western and Arab states for sowing the seeds of extremism in the Middle East that gave rise to the IS and other groups, saying that ‘all those who have played a role in founding and supporting these terror groups must acknowledge their errors’ and apologise.
• The President of Ghana noted that just as Ebola was able to freely pass through West African borders, so could drugs, arms, human traffickers and terrorists, and called for greater cooperation and coordination to conquer common threats.
• The Portuguese Foreign Minister called for a boost in partnerships to counter the crises facing the world, saying ‘[u]niversality and shared responsibility are key concepts in this regard’.
• ‘The international community’s actions to address climate change are grossly inadequate’, the Samoan Prime Minister said at the UNGA.
• Australia’s Immigration Minister and Cambodia’s Interior Minister signed a controversial agreement, aimed at resettling asylum-seekers in Cambodia.
• Liberia (home to a significant part of West Africa’s remaining rainforest) is the first state in Africa that will stop cutting down its trees in return for development aid. Norway will pay USD 150m to stop deforestation by 2020.
• Cambodia’s Deputy Prime Minister underscored the need to further implement the UN principle of ‘Common but Differentiated Responsibilities’, because industrialised counties emit the largest amount of greenhouse gas, while developing countries become the main victims of climate change.
• The Foreign Minister of Burkina Faso said ‘plagues’ in the Sahel region ‘challenge us on our shared responsibility in the fight to eradicate them’, explaining the need to address the root causes of the emergence of criminal groups.
• The Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants urged EU member states to assist Europe’s beleaguered frontline countries, such as Italy, Malta, Greece and Spain, in managing search and rescue missions.
• A London-based organisation that collected evidence of weaponry used by the IS uncovered 21 states as sources of ISIS’s ammunition.
• UN officials warned that the Ebola virus is ‘far ahead’ of the global response as it is morphing to an international crisis requiring all countries to scale up efforts and financial commitments to bring an end to the scourge.
• The Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit-Sharing entered into force, enhancing the equitable sharing of benefits of the world’s genetic resources that can be used for pharmaceutical, agricultural and cosmetic purposes.
• During a visit to the Garamba National Park, Martin Kobler, head of the UN Organisation Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, urged national and international actors to step up efforts in preserving the natural resources and rich biodiversity of the park.