Most Clicked UN Wire Stories
1. Ban reacts to Lieberman leak
UN Wire | Mar 17, 2010
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon criticized Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman for releasing information about a confidential conversation between the two of them to the media -- a release that both figures would typically need to agree to beforehand, according to Ban. Ban condemned Israeli plans to build some 1,600 new homes on land claimed by Palestinians; during their conversation, Lieberman defended Israel's role in promoting peace, saying that he expected more objectivity from the international community. Washington Post, The (03/16)
2. Clinton recommends more top women hires for UN
UN Wire | Mar 15, 2010
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told a UN gathering in New York that the world body must appoint more women to top jobs in order to raise the profile and understanding of women's equality issues. Clinton also endorsed a UN program to field a "super-agency" that will consolidate four bodies focused on disparate issues affecting women into one. UN Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro and UN Development Program chief Helen Clark are among the highest-ranking women serving in the UN. Clinton made her remarks on the 15th anniversary of her own landmark speech on women's rights given at the World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995. Reuters (03/12) Christian Science Monitor, The (03/12)
3. Planned reconciliation with Taliban alarms Afghan women
UN Wire | Mar 16, 2010
The Afghan government's plan to make peace with the Taliban is alarming some women who value the gains in women's rights made in the years since the fundamentalist group was deposed. Women's groups have reportedly not been asked to participate in negotiations. "We don't want them to stop us from getting an education or working in an office," said Malalay Jan, 18, who attended a girls school that was burned by suspected Taliban militants. Washington Post, The (03/16)
4. U.S. to undergo UN Human Rights Council review
UN Wire | Mar 18, 2010
This fall, the UN Human Rights Council will have the opportunity to review the U.S. human-rights record for the first time, as part of the universal periodic review process, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said. The State Department argued that a strong review would give the U.S. high ground from which to pursue human-rights violators, though others warned that a poor review could undermine U.S. efforts. Washington Post, The (03/18)
5. Ban names Lake as choice to head UNICEF
UN Wire | Mar 17, 2010
American Anthony Lake is United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's choice to head UNICEF when current executive director Ann Veneman leaves the office April 30. The UNICEF board of directors is expected to endorse the selection of Lake, who was a national security adviser in the administration of U.S. President Bill Clinton. Google (03/16) AlertNet.org (03/16)
6. UN's Kai Eide: "Of course I met Taliban leaders"
UN Wire | Mar 19, 2010
Former UN Special Representative to Afghanistan Kai Eide, who argued against Pakistani arrests of Taliban officials, said he had held discussions with Taliban leaders until the arrests had triggered a communication breakdown. In an interview, Eide suggested that the arrests may have been designed to cut off those channels of communications. Guardian (London), The (03/18) BBC (03/19)
7. British couple runs afoul of Dubai decency standards
UN Wire | Mar 15, 2010
Reuters (03/14)
8. Cruelty-free soccer balls come with a hidden cost
UN Wire | Mar 17, 2010
Efforts to end child labor in the factories that produce millions of soccer balls every year have translated into a marked absence of children stitching product for the upcoming FIFA World Cup. Instead, families are sending their children to work in area brick kilns and metal factories where there is no international scrutiny. Der Spiegel (Germany) (English online version) (03/16)
9. Ancient Persian celebration remains popular despite clerical opposition
UN Wire | Mar 17, 2010
TIME (03/16)
10. Is the aid process helping the wrong people?
UN Wire | Mar 15, 2010
Current norms for providing aid, particularly during times of conflict, encourage corruption and often result in the aid diverted from intended recipients, some NGOs and observers warn. Governments, armed militias and businessmen seek to use the aid for their own financial benefit, and a movement endorsing an end to such aid is growing in response. TIME (03/13)
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