Showing posts with label United-Nations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label United-Nations. Show all posts

Sunday, November 20, 2016

Afghan Ambassador to UN Speaks to General Assembly


The Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the United Nations - H. E. Mahmoud Saikal - delivered a speech to the United Nations General Assembly during an assembly meeting regarding "The Situation in Afghanistan". The event took place on November 18, 2016. Watch his 30-minute presentation at the link below.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=er4fyHsePDc


Tuesday, April 21, 2015

UNAMA - Reforms Needed for Afghan Women

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) in conjunction with the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNOHCHR) has issued a report saying that reforms are needed to ensure women are protected in Afghanistan. The report says that access to justice for women victims of violence needs to be strengthened. It says that while there is a legal framework in place for such cases, there remain many factors hindering access to justice. The report identifies the factors that enable hindering the legal framework. The report provides several recommendations to improve the justice process for women. In the report historical cases are reviewed for how justice was achieved - in one study it was found that less than 5% of the cases brought before adjudication were resolved with punishment for the perpetrators.

UNAMA Press Release:
Reforms needed to ensure justice for women victims of violence, UNAMA, April 15, 2015.

UNAMA Report:
Justice Through the Eyes of Afghan Women: Cases of Violence against Women Addressed through Mediation and Court Adjudication, UNAMA, April 15,  2015.

Monday, March 16, 2015

Broadcast: UN Report on Afghanistan (Mar 16, 2015)

The UN Security Council is scheduled to discuss a recently published report by the United Nations on Afghanistan. "The Situation in Afghanistan" is published every three months detailing the activities of the United Nations in Afghanistan and related news on security, and development, human rights. It also discusses related regional events that affect Afghanistan. The discussion, to be held on March 16, 2015 at 10:00 am, will be broadcast of United Nations Web TV at the first link below. The report, published on February 27, 2015, is available to read on the UN Website at the second link below.


http://webtv.un.org/#

www.un.org/en/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=S/2015/151

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

UN Report on Afghanistan

The United Nations has published a report (dated 27 Feb 2015) entitled "The Situation in Afghanistan". This report is published every three months and presented to the UN Security Council and UN General Assembly. The report provides an update on the activities of the United Nations in Afghanistan, including significant humanitarian, development and human rights efforts. It also provides a summary of key political and security developments and regional and international events related to Afghanistan.

www.un.org/en/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=S/2015/151

Monday, December 29, 2014

UN Afghanistan Quarterly (Winter 2014)

The United Nations Afghanistan Quarterly most recent edition has been published. Some of the articles include comments from the UN Special Envoy, "Young Afghan activist wins UNDP peace award", "UN political chief urges new approach to Afghanistan", "Country's solutions are political and not military", "Campaign to eliminate violence against women", "Violence against Afghan women widespread", "UN: Universal Declaration for all people everywhere", "UN envoy, Afghan President decry rights violations", "Winter comes to Afghanistan, affecting most vulnerable", Information law hailed as press freedom milestone", and "UN urges reform to ensure country's security".

United Nations Afghanistan Quarterly, Volume 4, Issue 3, Winter 2014.

Saturday, December 27, 2014

Ghani Lights Fire Under UNDP

President Ghani has come strongly against the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). He is demanding that the agency turn over control of nearly $500 million in a fund that bankrolls the salaries of the Afghan police officers. The Law and Order Trust Fund of Afghanistan (LOTFA) is funded by western nations and the UNDP has done a poor job of administering it. It has come under the scrutiny of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) for a lack of oversight on the funds (see SIGAR letter). Of course, nobody really has a high degree of confidence that the Afghans can administer the fund any better than the United Nations. Read more in "Afghan Leader Tells U.N. Agency to Relinquish Control of Funds, Officials Say", The New York Times,  December 24, 2014.

Monday, December 22, 2014

Interview - UN Official Talks about Aid

A United Nations offical - Haoliang Xu, assistant secretary-general for Asia and the Pacific and director of the UN Development Program's regional bureau - is interviewed by Corinne Podger about Afghanistan, the recent London Conference, and whether aid should be "on-budget" or "off-budge". Read "A critical moment for Afghanistan's decade of transformation", DEVEX, December 11, 2014.

Sunday, December 14, 2014

UN Security Council Backs NATO Mission

The United Nations Security Council has backed a resolution to establish a NATO mission to remain in Afghanistan to train and assist Afghan security forces in January 2015 and beyond. The resolution was approved by all 15 members. Read more in "UN Security Council Backs Continued NATO Afghan Mission", Gandhara Blog (Radio Free Europe), December 13, 2014.


Friday, October 17, 2014

UNDP Can't Find $200 Million for LOTFA

The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) is responsible for administering the Law and Order Trust Fund for Afghanistan (LOTFA). A recent investigation by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) finds that there is $200 million that was taken from the LOFTA fund by the Ministry of Interior that is unaccounted for. SIGAR has sent a letter to Helen Clark (admistrator of the UNDP) asking for clarification. The UNDP has had a troubled past in administering and providing oversight on the billions of dollars given by member nations to LOFTA; and it seems that poor performance is continuing . . . as well as Afghan corruption. The Law and Order Trust Fund for Afghanistan is used to support police remunerations, police infrastructure, and police capacity development. The money is provided by the international community - funneled through the UNDP into the LOFTA fund - and then given to the Afghans for "national execution". That means we give the money to the Afghans so they can develop their programs, budgets and execution plans. Sure . . . that sounds good . . . it helps develop "institutional capacity" and "organizational capability". But there is a "BIG BUT"; there should be some rigorous oversight to ensure the Afghan crooks don't run off with the money. And that is something that the United Nations, the international community at large, and ISAF have failed at miserably through the years. There is a horrendous lack of oversight to ensure that crooks (like Karzai) don't run off to Dubai with suitcases filled with greenbacks. Read more in this story in "UN agency blamed after hundreds of millions diverted from Afghan fund", Fox News, October 16, 2014.

Tuesday, September 30, 2014

United Nations Appoints New Head of UNAMA

The United Nations has appointed Nicholas Haysom as the head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA). Haysom is a South African national and has spent considerable time in Afghanistan. According to a UN press release "He is a lawyer with a long international career focused on democratic governance, constitutional and electoral reforms, and reconciliation and peace processes". Read more in a UNAMA press release dated September 26, 2014.

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

United Nations Threatens Withdrawal

Amid a growing state of uncertainty and insecurity the United Nations is contemplating withdrawal of its staff either whole or in part from Afghanistan. The inability of the Afghan people to conduct a fair election has resulted in a disputed election process with no clear winner. Although the votes tallied indicate that Ghani has won; Abdullah states it was with thousands of fraudulent votes. Abdullah has threatened to form his own government and loyal supporters have taken to the streets in protest. The United Nations is worried about the safety of its staff. Read more in "In Afghanistan, U.N. fears for the safety of its staff amid growing threats of violence", The Washington Post, September 14, 2014 at this link.

Saturday, March 24, 2012

UN Security Council Extends Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA)

The United Nations Security Council extended in an unanimous vote Resolution 2041 (2012).  The vote extends the assistance mission in Afghanistan until 23 March 2013. As a result of the resolution the Security Council decided that the Mission would continue to lead and coordinate international civilian efforts in the country in accordance with the results of international conferences. The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) "would continue to lead the international effort to strengthen the role of Afghan institutions in democratic governance, the rule of law, control of drugs, human rights, humanitarian assistance and related areas". Read the full text of the resolution here in a news release dated 22 March 2012.

Monday, December 27, 2010

United Nation Maps Depict Worsening Security Situation in Afghanistan

The Wall Street Journal published an article citing two United Nations maps of Afghanistan that depict a worsening security situation in Afghanistan.  Read more in "Afghan Security Deteriorates", The Wall Street Journal, December 27, 2010.