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UN Condemns Armed Invasion of High Court of Uganda

Armed men in police uniform surrounded the High Court of Uganda following the adjournment of bail proceedings and re-arrested those who had been released on bail. In response to this incident, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Uganda called for the government to respect the independence of the judiciary, and stressed the importance of an independent judiciary in maintaining the rule of law in a democratic society.

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=21781&Cr=uganda&Cr1=

Digest

State Department Releases Human Rights Reports

The U.S. State Department has issued its 2006 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. The reports, released annually, are intended to “describe the performance of governments in putting into practice their international commitments on human rights.”

The reports are available online at: http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2006/

Digest

UN Security Council Reaffirms Role of Women in Preventing and Resolving Conflict

In a statement today, the United Nations Security Council urged countries throughout the the world to increase efforts to empower women in decision-making processes with regard to conflict prevention and resolution. Such empowerment would include increasing the representation of women in the decision-making process. The statement also indicated the Security Council’s deep concern with the extensive violence against women and girls in armed conflict, reiterating the Council’s desire that international humanitarian and human rights laws protecting women and girls during and after conflicts should be more closely implemented.

For more information and a link to the presidential statement, see here.

Digest

Japanese Aid to Africa

Japan has agreed to extend $2.1 million ($US) to the Republic of Congo, $1.9 million to the Central African Republic, and $2.8 million to Sierra Leone. In the Republic of Congo and the Central African Republic, the grants will contribute to conflict prevention and peace-building, focused specifically on preventing the spread of small arms. In Sierra Leone, the grants will be used to provide support for elections.

http://content.undp.org/go/newsroom/march-2007/japan-africa-20070302.en

See http://www.mofa.go.jp/announce/announce/2007/3/0302-2.html and http://www.mofa.go.jp/announce/announce/2007/2/0223.html for further information regarding other recent development grants by the Government of Japan.

Digest

UNHCR to Convene Conference on Iraqi Refugees

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, praised Arab states this week for welcoming Iraqi refugees. He also expressed his concern over rising intolerance, racism, and xenophobia and the effect this could have on Muslim refugees. Guterres announced that UNHCR will hold an international conference on the humanitarian needs of Iraqi refugees and internally displaced persons from April 17-18 in Geneva.

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=21753&Cr=iraq&Cr1=

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