The Transformation of the WHO

Eric Laroche, Director-General for Health Action in Crisis of the World Health Organization (WHO), spoke at United Nations headquarters in New York today regarding the gradual transformation of the WHO. 

According to Mr. Laroche, the WHO "has completely changed [personnel] over the past two or three months."  With the increased threat of climate change, Mr. Laroche spoke of how new priorities will result in an increased presence in countries affected by disaster, and more engagement in piratical and political solutions to disease.

The WHO seems to be looking beyond just climate change. In response to increased proliferation of disease, the Director-General expressed a desire to develop a "new framework" for all disasters, not just climate change.

At the forefront of the WHO's priorities are concerns about climate change and global food security.  The Director-General spoke bluntly about a foreseen increase in diseases like diarrhea, malaria, and asthma, and pledged to work with local governments and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO) in finding hyper-local solutions.  "We have to work with the institutions, for the institutions," stated Mr. Laroche. In it's renewed ambition to work with well-informed, on-the-ground actors, Mr. Laroche spoke of working with NGOs to "find the right policy."

Today at Talk Radio News

News Director Lovisa Frost will attending President Bush's press conference about the housing and financial markets. Correspondent Dawn Jones will be covering Missile Defense Agency director Lt. Gen. Henry A. "Trey" Obering III's briefing on missile defense. Chief United Nations correspondent Dan Patterson will be covering Sudan updates and a panel discussion on Small Arms Trade and Children and Armed Conflict.

The Washington Bureau will be covering Barack Obama's speech on Iraq and national security, a press conference where House and Senate Republican leaders will be accepting a petition signed by 1.3 million Americans, a Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee Aviation Operations, Safety, and Security Subcommittee hearing on "The Outlook for Summer Air Travel: Addressing Congestion and Delay", a discussion with astronauts the of the STS-124 Space Shuttle crew, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer's news briefing, a House Judiciary Committee hearing on "The Google-Yahoo Agreement and the Future of Internet Advertising", a Transportation Security and Infrastructure Protection Subcommittee hearing on "The Next Step in Aviation Security - Cargo Security: Is DHS Implementing the Requirements of the 9/11 Law Effectively", and The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe's hearing on "Guantanamo Detainees After Boumediene: Now What?"

Human rights is not a boutique issue

At the national conference of the Campus Progress organization of the Center for American Progress, hundreds of young college student gathered together to hear a discussion about the “forgotten factor” in foreign policy: human rights. Nancy Rubin, former U.S.ambassador to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights urged young adults to take action on human rights.

Rubin said that human rights is in all of our hands and is based on the inherent dignity of people. International human rights laws were created after World War II and we still need it, however the United States has not ratified many of the newer human rights conventions such as the Kyoto Protocol. Rubin said that human rights are fundamental to how we do business around the world.

The United States was a strong, bold, strategic leader in the fight for human rights, but lately “we have fallen behind on ratifications,” Rubin said. The U.S. is a leader in many other things and has a huge potential to create change if youth and others band together and fight for human rights.

Mallika Dutt, founder and executive director of Breakthrough, said that human rights is a complex, complicated issue that covers a myriad of issues from deportation, to immigration, HIV/AIDS, counterterrorism and national security. Dutt also called the youth to action to petition the government and the government of offending nations to respect human rights.

Children in Armed Conflict - UN Special Representative Speaks About Afghanistan

Radhika Coomaraswamy, United Nations Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, spoke today at the United Nations in New York about her recent visit to Afghanistan.  Ms Coomaraswamy, along with the Director of the Office of Emergency Programmes for UNICEF Louia-George Arsenault, visited Afghanistan for five days this past week to determine the extent to which children are being used in conflict zones.  Ms. Coomaraswamy explained that her role was to ensure that the UN monitoring presence in Afghanistan is correctly established and implemented. The team met with local religious and social leaders, leading NGOs, as well as Afghani President Hamid Karai.

Ms. Coomaraswamy stated that the UN as of yet has no hard figures on the number of children currently being used in armed conflict, and that the mission goal was to establish a UN presence.  She did, however, express that children are being detained by Americans, and recruited by the Taliban and other anti-government groups.  She also witnessed evidence of Talibani and tribal recruitment of young boys.  Ms. Coomaraswamy also stated that more sexual violence occurs against young boys than young women.  She reminded officials that it is against international law to recruit boys without facial hair to "war or quarters."

According to Ms. Coomaraswamy, all parties are aware of the fragile security situation in the country, and the impact violence has on children and society.  Ms. Coomaraswamy implored the government of the importance "to expand humanitarian space," and allow organizations to work to assist the civilian population.  In a statement issued last week, Ms. Coomarasawmy stated "the on-going attacks targeting schools, teachers and school children are a grim reminder that concerted efforts must be made by all parties to the conflict to ensure the safety of children ... we must take concrete actions now to better protect children and the future generations of the country."

Zimbabwe Electoral Crisis Update

This past week, both the United Nations Security Council and Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon have renounced violence surrounding the electoral stand-off in Zimbabwe.


On Monday, the Security Council dileberated late in to the evening.  Current Security Council president Zalmay Khalilzad, United States Ambassador to the UN, expressed his frustration at the on-going voilence, indicating that it would be almost impossible for a "free and fair" election to occur on schedule.  Mr. Ban stated earlier this week that an election held under such adverse conditions "would lack all legitimacy."

Additionally, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, B. Lynn Pascoe, renounced recent acts of violence and intimidation.  In a statement issued on 19 June, Pascoe called political intimidation "unacceptable" and noted that if violence continued it would be very difficult for the world community to recognize the results of this Friday's previously-scheduled run-off election.  Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai has been holed-up within the Dutch embassy after announcing his intention to pull out of his bid to unseat current President Robert Mugabe.  Tsvangirai's supporters have been targeted in attacks by Mugabe loyalists. 

For more information on the Zimbabwe electorial crisis, please visit the BBC's Zimbabwe Q&A, and the Guardian's Zimbabwe timeline.  Google News on the Zimbabwe electorial crisis.