World Health Day 2021, April 7

Statement by Volkan Bozkir, President of 75th Session of the General Assembly, on World Health Day 2021, April 7th.

When COVID-19 brought the world to a standstill, most of us took to our homes for safety and comfort.
For millions of health and care workers, this was a luxury they could not afford.
These frontline workers stood and faced the unknown to help those who needed it most. They helped protect the scared, the confused, and the lonely.
We owe so much to the millions who risked their lives for the greater good.
We owe them gratitude.
We owe them recognition.
And we owe them support and the assurance of decent work environments, free from violence, stigma, and harassment, and equipped with the tools and resources needed to save lives.
2021 has been designated the International Year of Health and Care Workers.
As we mark World Health Day 2021, let us join together in celebrating – and supporting – the nurses and doctors, the midwives and EMTs, and all of the others who helped us feel safer and healthier.
And let us show them real, tangible support. As the World Health Organization has called for, let us work together to Protect, Invest, Together, so that our heroes are never forced to stand the line without the support and defences they need.

Thank you.

Five actions for World Health Day 2021;

The way forward: a fairer, healthier world,

World Health Day 2021 marks the start of WHO’s year-long campaign to place health equity centre stage of world attention. The campaign is timely, as it starts amid the colossal global effort to turn the tide on COVID-19, not least through international cooperation. Past global crises, such as in the aftermath of the Great Depression and the Second World War, triggered dramatic transformation in our societies, leading to wide-ranging improvements in health and social systems and reductions in inequalities. Those were deliberate choices made by global leaders at the time. We need such deliberate choices for the greater good again today. Our vision for World Health Day is to build afairer and healthier world, together. Prevailing over the pandemic can be the start of a new global compact that tackles poverty and health inequities, invests in health and wellbeing, promotes more equitable sharing of our resources, improves food security and nutrition, and finally turns the tide on climate change. Working together, we can build a healthier, greener, fairer world for all.

CAMPAIGN:

 This World Health Day, we urge everyone to join our campaign to make health equity areality through fairer, greener and healthiercommunities and economies.

International Day of Sport for Peace and Development 2021, April 6

 

Theme 2021: Only Together can we play or cheer again.

Between Wednesday, 31 March, through to, and on Tuesday, 6 April, we ask you share on your social media platforms a picture or video showing the value of sport in your life and highlight the importance of ensuring we are all protected from COVID-19 so we can return to moments like this in the future. 

                        

Sport can cross boundaries and defy stereotypes and inspire hope across nations, but we will only be able to get back to this, if we recover better and help end the pandemic by helping ensure everyone is protected from COVID-19.

Ahead of International #SportDay, join our call for solidarity to make sure everyone is protected against #COVID19 so we can get back to the things we love - like sport.

To raise awareness of sport,  6 April was declared as the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace (IDSDP) by the United Nations General Assembly. The adoption of this Day signifies the increasing recognition by the UN of the positive influence that sport can have on the advancement of human rights, and social and economic development.

International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action 2021; 4 April

 

"Perseverance, Partnership, Progress." is the theme chosen to observe the International Day for Mine Awareness & Assistance in Mine Action 2021 - 4 April

Millions of citizens around the world are still faced with the daily and deadly threat of unexploded landmines and IEDs in their communities. We would like to take this opportunity to honour and support our courageous deminers who are working tirelessly to clear their communities of these deadly threats.

Statement by the U.N.Secretary-General's Message International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action 2021; 4 April.


Today, on the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action, we reflect on how far we have come in raising awareness of the dangers posed by landmines, and recommit to our target of a mine-free world.  

 More than 160 states are party to the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention.  I call on those that have not yet acceded  to the Convention to do so without delay.

Landmines, explosive remnants of war and improvised explosive devices disproportionally affect the vulnerable, the forcibly displaced, the dispossessed, and children. They impede peaceful solutions, hinder humanitarian responses and are an obstacle to sustainable, inclusive development.

Unfortunately, we sometimes make progress on clearing mines only to see it rolled back. But we cannot be content simply with advocacy and campaigning to create awareness of the dangers posed by landmines.

The United Nations Charter calls us to complete the work: to survey, clear and destroy these deadly devices.

Let’s make this the last decade when we need to devote ourselves to this task.

António Guterres




Statement by David Graig Global Advocate on the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action 2021; 4 April



I am very pleased to add my voice today to that of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, and many other leaders, activists, and concerned citizens, to call on all nations to keep their eye on the end-goal of ridding the world of landmines and explosive remnants of war. It takes determination.

As we come out of the shadow of the pandemic, I want to praise the men and women who steadfastly stuck to their routines and cleared and destroyed hundreds of thousands of explosives in 2020, from landmines, to unexploded bombs and improvised explosive devices. Work continued because individuals, organizations and governments stuck to it.

A new Safe Ground was built in Cambodia, Chile declared its territory mine-free, and all states party to the Mine Ban Convention have declared their intention to clear their territories of anti-personnel landmines by the end of this decade.

But there is new contamination. Last month we marked the 10-year anniversary of the war in Syria, a conflict that has led to hundreds of thousands of deaths, millions displaced and thousands of tons of new explosive contamination. The fighting needs to stop. The clearance needs to begin in earnest and at scale.

And there is old contamination. The Viet Nam war officially ended more than 45 years ago, but landmines and explosive contamination still pollute wide swaths of territory.

One landmine can wreck a community: kill a father, a mother, and all too often a child.

The vision we must strive to attain is a world where individuals and communities live in safe homes, on safe ground, in safe environments. Where human rights, the right to life, liberty, personal security and basic needs are met and no one is left behind, including the survivors of explosive ordnance accidents, those wounded and disabled, who must be fully integrated as equal members of their societies.

April 4th is the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action, please do whatever you can, in whatever position you hold, to reach this vision. Let’s stay focused.

Daniel Craig, UN Global Advocate for the Elimination of Mines and Explosive Hazards

World Autism Awaress Day 2021, April 2

"Inclusion in the Workplace:Challenges and Opportunities in a Post-Pandemic World." is thetheme chosen to celebrate the World Autism Awareness Day; 2 April.

Statement by the U.N. Secretary-General on the World Austism Awareness Day 2021; April 2nd.


As we work together to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, one key goal must be to build a more inclusive and accessible world that recognizes the contributions of all people, including persons with disabilities.

The crisis has created new obstacles and challenges. But efforts to reignite the global economy offer an opportunity to reimagine the workplace to make diversity, inclusion and equity a reality.

Recovery is also a chance to rethink our systems of education and training to ensure that persons with autism are afforded opportunities for realizing their potential.

Breaking old habits will be crucial. For persons with autism, access to decent work on an equal basis requires creating an enabling environment, along with reasonable accommodation.

To truly leave no one behind in pursuit of the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development, we must realize the rights of all persons with disabilities, including persons with autism, ensuring their full participation in social, cultural and economic life.

Let us work together with all persons with disabilities and their representative organizations to find innovative solutions to recover better and build a better world for all.

— António Guterres.

Key actions for WHO in collaboration with partners to support capacity building in countries

International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members 2021; March 25

 

Statement by the U.N.Secretary-General on the International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members 2021.

On the International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members, we recognize the extreme dangers encountered by so many colleagues as they carry out the vital work of the United Nations.

The threats vary -- from deliberate and deadly ambushes to kidnappings, intimidation and unlawful detention.  But the thread is the same: these are unacceptable obstacles to fulfilling our mandates and advancing peace, sustainable development, human rights and humanitarian assistance around the globe.  National staff are often at particular risk.

As of 15 March of this year, 20 United Nations personnel are in detention, including six arrested this year, five in 2020 and the rest before that.

Meanwhile, peacekeeping operations continue to be targeted; at least 10 of our personnel have lost their lives this year to malicious attacks.

I urge all countries to support the 1994 Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel as well as its 2005 Optional Protocol.  To date, only 95 countries are party to the Convention, and only 33 to the Protocol.

The United Nations will continue its efforts to protect our personnel, and to pursue justice for the perpetrators of attacks.  I thank the Standing Committee on the Security and Independence of the International Civil Service of the United Nations Staff Union for its advocacy and vigilance.

Together, we must do everything we can to ensure that those who undertake lifesaving work around the world have the protection and conditions they need to fulfil their vital mission.

*****
À l’occasion de la Journée internationale de solidarité avec les membres du personnel détenus ou portés disparus, nous mesurons les dangers extrêmes auxquels tant de nos collègues sont exposés dans le travail essentiel qu’ils accomplissent au nom de l’Organisation.

Les menaces sont diverses – embuscades mortelles, enlèvements, actes d’intimidation et détention illégale – mais toutes font obstacle de manière inacceptable à l’accomplissement de nos mandats et à la promotion de la paix, du développement durable, des droits humains et de l’aide humanitaire dans le monde entier. Le personnel recruté sur le plan national est souvent le plus exposé.

Au 15 mars de cette année, 20 membres du personnel des Nations Unies sont en détention, dont 6 arrêtés cette année, 5 en 2020 et le reste avant cela.

Parallèlement, les opérations de maintien de la paix continuent d’être prises pour cibles ; au moins 10 membres du personnel ont perdu la vie cette année dans des attaques malveillantes.

J’engage tous les pays à soutenir la Convention sur la sécurité du personnel des Nations Unies et du personnel associé de 1994 et son Protocole facultatif de 2005. À ce jour, seuls 95 pays sont parties à la Convention et 33 pays au Protocole.

L’ONU poursuivra ses efforts pour protéger les membres de son personnel et faire en sorte que les auteurs d’attaques soient traduits en justice. Je remercie le Comité permanent sur la sécurité et l’indépendance de la fonction publique internationale du Syndicat du personnel de l’Organisation des Nations Unies de ses activités de sensibilisation et de sa vigilance.

Ensemble, nous devons tout faire pour garantir que les personnes qui accomplissent des activités vitales dans le monde entier bénéficient de la protection dont elles ont besoin pour remplir leur mission essentielle dans des conditions appropriées.

International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade 2021, March 25

 Statement by the Secretary-General's at General Assembly on International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade 2021; March 25

Today we honour the memory of the millions of people of African descent who suffered immeasurably under the evil of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade.

We remember with humility the resilience of those who endured.

And we acknowledge the immense contributions slaves and their descendants have made to the economies and culture of the countries to which they were forcibly transported.

We must never forget the daily terror experienced by the enslaved peoples, the unthinkable acts of cruelty they endured, the daily reminder that they could lay claim to nothing, not even their own children.

But the slave traders and owners failed to rob the enslaved peoples of dignity and agency.

We remember the acts of resistance and the demands for justice of enslaved peoples.

We recall the courage of leaders like Queen Ana Nzinga of the Kingdom of Ndongo, now Angola, and Toussaint Louverture, of Saint-Domingue, now Haiti, and the peoples they led.

As we honour those whose names we know, we acknowledge the daily courage of the millions whom we will never know except as names on inventory lists drawn up by slave owners, traders and insurance agencies.

We support initiatives to reclaim, recover and reconstitute the history of those who were enslaved.

We also acknowledge that racism is both a cause and a legacy of slavery.

And we recognize that the impact of the slave trade remains visible in racial injustices and inequalities today.

Ending slavery’s legacy of racism is a global imperative for justice.

The transatlantic slave trade is a global history that continues to resonate.

It created and sustained a system of exploitation that existed for over 400 years.

It devastated the economies of those it enslaved.

And it strengthened the colonial project, enriching its multitude of beneficiaries at the expense of the lives of the enslaved.

The racism at the core of the system built on slavery condemned Africans to enduring second-class status.

To provide justification for the slave trade, Africans were consistently portrayed as less than human.

Racist tropes circulated widely, incorporated into sermons, pamphlets and cultural expressions, and given legitimacy by pseudo-science and legislation.

So, while the transatlantic slave trade ended over two centuries ago, the ideas that propelled it remain alive today.

In Europe, the United States and elsewhere, white supremacists are organizing and recruiting across borders.

According to the Anti-Defamation League, white supremacist propaganda reached an all-time high in 2020.

We must counter all lies of racial supremacy.

The irrefutable fact is that we are all equally part of one race – humankind.

When we forget this basic fact, we imperil ourselves.

Repeated acts of racism, by people and institutions, expose the impact of slavery’s legacy.

Last year, they helped to galvanize a worldwide movement for justice and an end to racism.

We must build on this momentum.

Our Organization is built on the demand for global justice and an end to racism and inequality.

This must include action to redress the wrongs of history.

We need to acknowledge and correct the long-lasting effects of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade.

By tackling inequities and inequalities, by building inclusive communities and economies, and by educating about history, we truly honour the memory of the victims of slavery.

 

United Nations Secretary-General

EVENTS:

International Day for the Right to the Truth Concerning Gross Human Rights Violations and for the Dignity of Victims 2021; March 24

 

Each year, on 24 March, the International Day for the Right to the Truth Concerning Gross Human Rights Violations and for the Dignity of Victims is observed.

FORUM: 2021 as International Year of Peace and Trust.

The purpose of the Day is to:

- Honor the memory of victims of gross and systematic human rights violations and promote the importance of the right to truth and justice;
- Pay tribute to those who have devoted their lives to, and lost their lives in, the struggle to promote and protect human rights for all;
- Recognize, in particular, the important work and values of Archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero, of El Salvador, who was assasinated on 24 March 1980, after denouncing violations of the human rights of the most vulnerable populations and defending the principles of protecting lives, promoting human dignity and opposition to all forms of violence. 

EVENTS: "Reimagining Restorative Justice" International Day for the Right to the Truth Concerning Gross Human Rights Violations and for the Dignity of Victims 2021; March 24.