Protecting Afghan civilians means protecting journalists too and monitoring their safety, according to the deputy head of the UN Mission in the country (UNAMA).
Pernille Dahler Kardel, was speaking on the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists, marked each 2 November, and said it was time for the government to follow through on its pledges to protect media workers.
Media workers in Afghanistan “self-censor” their work due to a lack of safety according to a senior Afghan journalist speaking on the UN’s International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists.
Deadly threats are commonplace in the South Asian country, making it one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a media worker.
Mohammad Hamed Haleemi has been speaking to the Director of the Afghan Journalists Safety Committee, Najib Sharifi.
Duration: 2’23”
A photography project which aims to give refugees and migrants their identity back has opened at UN Headquarters in New York.
The photographs in the “I AM with them” exhibition were taken by Anne A-R as she walked alongside people from Sudan, Iraq, Syria and Afganisatn across Europe over a period of three months.
Isabelle Dupuis has been speaking to Anne A-R about “I AM them.”
Duration: 4’20”
A free mobile app which guides visitors around more than 65 art and architectural works on display at UN Headquarters has been launched.
According to Vincenzo Pugliese, Chief of UN Guided Tours, the app will “enhance visitors’ experience” and give insight into the artworks donated by Member States.
More than 1,000 visitors take a tour around UN Headquarters in New York every day.
The app provides historical background on the artworks, and the people who donated them.
Films, videos and sound recordings are a means to tell stories about the world’s people while also reflecting their diversity.
That’s according to the UN cultural agency, UNESCO, which highlights their value on the World Day for Audiovisual Heritage, observed on 27 October.
The celebrations this year include a film festival in Myanmar that pays tribute to the rich audiovisual heritage in South-East Asia.
Misako Ito is UNESCO’s Regional Adviser for Communications and Information, based in Bangkok.
A Ugandan woman has been speaking at the UN about how education has turned her life around, from being condemned by some as a “useless person” to becoming a successful entrepreneur.
Beatrice Ayuru is the founder of Lira Integrated School, whose mission is to educate impoverished children in northern Uganda.
Ms Ayuru, who at age 17 was selling cassava for a living, believes that education is the answer to eradicate poverty.
Andita Listyarini spoke to Ms Ayuru and began by asking why she thinks youth empowerment is crucial.
Duration: 4’43”
Afghanistan is being asked to intensify efforts to meet the needs of hundreds of thousands of its citizens who have been displaced due to ongoing insecurity in the country.
That recommendation has been made by the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of Internally Displace People (IDPs).
Chaloka Beyani has also urged the international community not to “turn its back” on the country and to remain a strong partner, particularly in areas such as humanitarian support and development.
The risk of “outright violence” against the LGBT community is growing in cities but hopes are high that a newly-adopted agenda for future urban living will create more “safe spaces”.
That’s the view of Cicely-Belle Blain, a Canadian youth worker, who was one of the delegates to the recent Habitat III conference on the future of cities, which took place in Quito, Ecuador.
Violence against women is “pervasive” in the Asia-Pacific region despite laws to prevent it, according to a senior official from the United Nations gender agency, UN Women.
Many countries in the region have found it difficult to implement laws due to impunity for the perpetrators of crimes.
UN Women is working with the authorities in those countries to enforce legislation.
Julia Dean has been speaking to UN Women’s Deputy Regional Director Anna-Karin Jatfors who is based in Thailand.
Duration: 5'14"
“Saying something” is the first step to fight child bullying, says author and activist Aija Mayrock, who recently spoke at the UN.
The 21-year-old was motivated by her own experience as a victim of this aggressive and coercive behavior in school to write a book entitled “The Survival Guide to Bullying”.
Ms Mayrock said that she decided to stand up for herself because no one at school, including the teachers, defended her.
She hopes that the UN can work together with schools to train teachers to “recognize and end” bullying.
