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Scoop
3 days ago
- Politics
- Scoop
‘We Are Women Like You': UN Honours Peacekeepers For Work In Gender Empowerment
28 May 2025 There, alongside civilian gender units, Ms. Syme met a group of local community members – both men and women. Partway through, she realised something was different. 'The women were not talking,' she told UN News. 'They were very quiet.' Then she remembered that local cultural norms dictated women do not speak in public. 'We are women like you. We want to be able to help, but we don't know how we can help you,' she told them in a separate meeting. 'Can you please tell us what your problem is so we can see how we can help?' It is for this sort of work founded in community trust building and a relentless belief in the importance of gender perspectives and empowerment in peacekeeping, that the UN will honour two exceptional women peacekeepers on Thursday as part of International Peacekeepers' Day. Ms. Syme is this year's winner of the UN Military Gender Advocate of 2024 Award. '[Ms. Syme's] dedication has not only improved the effectiveness of UNISFA's operations but also ensured that the mission is more reflective of and responsive to the communities it serves,' said Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix. The other honouree is Chief Superintendent Zainab Mbalu Gbla of Sierra Leone who has been named Woman Police Officer of the year for her work with UNISFA. 'Chief Superintendent Gbla embodies the work of the United Nations to improve lives and shape futures,' said Mr. Lacroix. Gender and peacekeeping The UN Woman Police Officer of the Year Award was established in 2011 and the UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award was first presented five years later. Both awards recognize peacekeepers whose work has substantially advanced the integration of gender perspectives and empowerment into peacekeeping. In 2000, the Security Council passed a resolution which affirmed the essential role women play in peacebuilding, peacekeeping and humanitarian responses. Since then, the United Nations has worked to fully integrate gender perspectives into peacekeeping. According to Ms. Syme, applying gender perspectives should be a 'daily task' for all peacekeepers. 'We need to understand the gender dynamics within our area of operation, otherwise, we might not be able to have the right intervention, we might not be able to carry out the right activities,' she said. Intergenerational legacy Ms. Gbla experienced the impact of peacekeeping herself as a civilian in Sierra Leone in the wake of a war that ravaged her country. 'I saw people coming from different parts of the world just to bring peace to my country… That's why I told myself that one day I'd love to be a peacekeeper – to help other people, to return the favour,' Ms. Gbla told UN News. As a UNISFA gender officer, not only did she create a school programme and female mentorship network where none had existed before, she also worked diligently to ensure that learning was fun, incorporating performing arts and visual aids. '[The women of Abyei] are ready to work, they are ready to do things for themselves if peace allows them. The children are ready to go to school, if peace allows them,' she said. A health campaign in Abyei Ms. Syme's meeting with the women of Sector North was the beginning of an enormously successful health campaign in the region which discussed harmful practices such as child marriage and female genital mutilation, the two issues which the community women had identified. The campaign engaged both men and women, and Ms. Syme said that she was deeply impressed and moved by the response of the male leaders who, through the campaign, realized the harm that practices of child marriage and female genital mutilation had caused. '[The leaders] promised that they are going to revise these cultural practices so that going forward, they will not do it again,' Ms. Syme said. This campaign happened in June 2024 and has driven Ms. Syme's work since then, work which includes training over 1,500 UNISFA officials in gender-responsive peacekeeping. 'It has motivated me,' Ms. Syme said. 'It has motivated me a lot.' The future of peacekeeping through gender Both Ms. Syme and Ms. Gbla will receive their awards on International Peacekeeping Day. This year, Member States and UN officials will be asked to consider the future of peacekeeping. For both Ms. Syme and Ms. Gbla, the future of peacekeeping and security cannot be disentangled from gender perspectives and empowerment. 'If you don't know the gender dynamics of the area, if you don't know who is in charge, if you don't know what will benefit who…you may think you are providing security, but you are not really providing security,' Ms. Syme said. Ms. Gbla, in discussing her award, paid homage to all the women who wear a UN uniform, underlining their tireless work in the pursuit of peace. 'Each of us [women] faces unique challenges in our respective missions, yet our collective goal remains the same – to foster peace and protect the vulnerable."
Scoop
3 days ago
- Politics
- Scoop
INTERVIEW: Time's Being Wasted On Politics Of Aid While Deaths Mount In Gaza, Warns Senior Official
The UN already has a proven system to deliver assistance to people in Gaza and will not take part in any plan that does not uphold universally established humanitarian principles, a spokesperson for aid coordination office OCHA affirmed on Friday. ' There's been so much time wasted talking about the various proposals and the various plans. In the meantime, people are dying and are left without aid,' Olga Cherevko said in an exclusive interview with UN News. This week, UN agencies were able to bring limited amounts of food, flour and other items into Gaza after Israel lifted a nearly three-month aid blockade. Ms. Cherevko said humanitarians were told this was a temporary measure until aid distribution is implemented through the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an initiative backed by Israel and the United States. The plan sees aid dispersed from four points south of the Netzarim Corridor, which is under Israeli military control, and involves the use of private US contractors. She discussed this development, the positive impact of the trickle of aid allowed into Gaza, and the need to scale up efforts. ' There is a sense that some people feel like this is the end and that there is no turning back – and that they are just waiting to die,' she said. This interview has been edited for length and clarity Olga Cherevko: We've been speaking about this and other proposals and plans. Our concerns are that any distribution of aid, any system that exists, needs to be in line with globally established humanitarian principles. And if it isn't, it's not something that we can be involved in. We have concerns about the scalability of this proposed plan, and about various other parts of it. The biggest issue is that we have a plan, and we have a system that we are using as we speak, and the system has been tried over various crises across the world. It has been proven to work, it has mechanisms to mitigate theft, to mitigate diversion and it ensures that it reaches people wherever they are. So, there's been so much time wasted talking about the various proposals and the various plans. In the meantime, people are dying and are left without aid. The volume of aid is literally a drop in the ocean of what is needed UN News: The UN definitely will not be taking part in this plan, but did you receive any indications that you will be able to proceed with the work that you've been doing over the past couple of days? Olga Cherevko: For the time being it's unclear because obviously the resumption of limited volumes of aid entering that the Israeli authorities have approved as of a few days ago, we were obviously assured that we would be using our mechanisms – so the ones that we're using now, the ones that are already in place. We were informed that this would be an interim measure until this Foundation starts working. At this point, we really don't have more details and again, it will have to be seen on the ground how things will develop. UN News: Were any trucks allowed in today and was more aid distributed? Olga Cherevko: There have been batches of trucks coming in since this decision to allow them was approved. We have already been able to get some of the aid to the people in need, including getting flour to bakeries, and a number of bakeries have resumed their operations and fired up their ovens. We also had some partners who picked up the bread for direct distribution. A field hospital also received a batch of medical supplies. These are obviously very positive steps and positive developments in the right direction, but the volume of this aid is literally a drop in the ocean compared to the extent of needs on the ground. UN News: We heard that most, if not all, of the supplies that were allowed in yesterday were nutritional and food aid. Is this a new development that some medical supplies were allowed in today? How many people can be served with these food items and medical supplies? Olga Cherevko: The medical supplies were always part of the agreement to be included. But again, this is something that in itself is limiting because at the moment what is being allowed is things like nutrition, flour, some medicines and a few other things. It has to be a full range of things for us to be able to really deliver assistance at scale. In terms of how many people it will serve, you can compare the kind of volumes that we were having during the ceasefire to what we have now and you will see that it's woefully insufficient. But we have enough food alone to feed people for several months waiting at the crossings. UN News: The World Food Programme (WFP) said 15 of its trucks were looted. Can you tell us what's being done to prevent looting? Olga Cherevko: Regarding looting and break-ins or whatever to try to divert or take aid – if you look at the numbers of these kinds of incidents before the ceasefire and during the ceasefire you will see a huge change. There were barely any such incidents during the weeks of the ceasefire when we were able to bring in these large volumes (of aid). When the ceasefire broke down and the crossings were closed for the entry of any cargo, and we got to the point where we were really in a desperate situation and we were running low on everything, that is when they started again. UN News: Let's go back to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. As the four distribution points are going to be south of the Netzarim Corridor– reportedly one in Middle Gaza and the others in the south – are you already starting to see movements towards those areas? What are your concerns about displacement? People are sleeping in the streets because there's nowhere for them to go Olga Cherevko: Our concerns about displacement are what they have always been. Obviously, we would never support any sort of forced displacement, or any type of ethnic cleansing, or anything that would forcibly drive people from the areas where they are. Before the ceasefire, more than 90 per cent of people were forcibly displaced across Gaza and they were being squeezed into an increasingly smaller piece of land. When the ceasefire happened a lot of them went back. They tried to restart their lives and they kind of had a bit of time to process what's been happening. When the ceasefire broke down again on 18 March, we saw another 610,000 people displaced again. These types of displacement are getting more and more dangerous and desperate because people are coming with nothing. People are fleeing with just the shirt on their back. We're now hearing and seeing people sleeping in the streets because there's nowhere for them to go. As we've said time and time again, there is no safe place in Gaza, and this has been proven time and time again. UN News: You've been back and forth to Gaza for quite some time now, and you've seen the suffering first-hand. Can you give our audience an idea of what it means in real-life terms when aid is prevented from reaching those in need? Olga Cherevko: Something that has always stuck me about the Palestinians in Gaza is their resilience and their strength, and the spirit that they have kept throughout these months of war. I knew Gaza well before because I used to work there for several years starting from 2014, and knowing how people have endured so much suffering and despite that they find the strength to go, they find the strength to smile at you and to offer you tea or anything that they might still have. Now when I speak to people, the thing that is most devastating is that there is a sense that some people feel like this is the end and that there is no turning back and that they are just waiting to die. Before this limited aid was allowed to enter, the remaining operating community kitchens would have hundreds of people huddled around them waiting for hours with empty pots. Many were told to turn back because there's no food for them. People were telling me that they weren't eating for several days at a time. I saw children that are being malnourished, and suffering from malnutrition. These kinds of things are very preventable, and preventable deaths are happening all around us because of this intentional crisis imposed on Gaza by closing the crossings. And that is the most frustrating thing for me – knowing that we can quickly address these issues if only we were given the opportunity – because we have everything waiting outside of Gaza to come in.
Scoop
3 days ago
- Politics
- Scoop
INTERVIEW: Time's Being Wasted On Politics Of Aid While Deaths Mount In Gaza, Warns Senior Official
' There's been so much time wasted talking about the various proposals and the various plans. In the meantime, people are dying and are left without aid,' Olga Cherevko said in an exclusive interview with UN News. This week, UN agencies were able to bring limited amounts of food, flour and other items into Gaza after Israel lifted a nearly three-month aid blockade. Ms. Cherevko said humanitarians were told this was a temporary measure until aid distribution is implemented through the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an initiative backed by Israel and the United States. The plan sees aid dispersed from four points south of the Netzarim Corridor, which is under Israeli military control, and involves the use of private US contractors. She discussed this development, the positive impact of the trickle of aid allowed into Gaza, and the need to scale up efforts. ' There is a sense that some people feel like this is the end and that there is no turning back – and that they are just waiting to die,' she said. This interview has been edited for length and clarity Olga Cherevko: We've been speaking about this and other proposals and plans. Our concerns are that any distribution of aid, any system that exists, needs to be in line with globally established humanitarian principles. And if it isn't, it's not something that we can be involved in. We have concerns about the scalability of this proposed plan, and about various other parts of it. The biggest issue is that we have a plan, and we have a system that we are using as we speak, and the system has been tried over various crises across the world. It has been proven to work, it has mechanisms to mitigate theft, to mitigate diversion and it ensures that it reaches people wherever they are. So, there's been so much time wasted talking about the various proposals and the various plans. In the meantime, people are dying and are left without aid. The volume of aid is literally a drop in the ocean of what is needed UN News: The UN definitely will not be taking part in this plan, but did you receive any indications that you will be able to proceed with the work that you've been doing over the past couple of days? Olga Cherevko: For the time being it's unclear because obviously the resumption of limited volumes of aid entering that the Israeli authorities have approved as of a few days ago, we were obviously assured that we would be using our mechanisms - so the ones that we're using now, the ones that are already in place. We were informed that this would be an interim measure until this Foundation starts working. At this point, we really don't have more details and again, it will have to be seen on the ground how things will develop. UN News: Were any trucks allowed in today and was more aid distributed? Olga Cherevko: There have been batches of trucks coming in since this decision to allow them was approved. We have already been able to get some of the aid to the people in need, including getting flour to bakeries, and a number of bakeries have resumed their operations and fired up their ovens. We also had some partners who picked up the bread for direct distribution. A field hospital also received a batch of medical supplies. These are obviously very positive steps and positive developments in the right direction, but the volume of this aid is literally a drop in the ocean compared to the extent of needs on the ground. UN News: We heard that most, if not all, of the supplies that were allowed in yesterday were nutritional and food aid. Is this a new development that some medical supplies were allowed in today? How many people can be served with these food items and medical supplies? Olga Cherevko: The medical supplies were always part of the agreement to be included. But again, this is something that in itself is limiting because at the moment what is being allowed is things like nutrition, flour, some medicines and a few other things. It has to be a full range of things for us to be able to really deliver assistance at scale. In terms of how many people it will serve, you can compare the kind of volumes that we were having during the ceasefire to what we have now and you will see that it's woefully insufficient. But we have enough food alone to feed people for several months waiting at the crossings. UN News: The World Food Programme (WFP) said 15 of its trucks were looted. Can you tell us what's being done to prevent looting? Olga Cherevko: Regarding looting and break-ins or whatever to try to divert or take aid - if you look at the numbers of these kinds of incidents before the ceasefire and during the ceasefire you will see a huge change. There were barely any such incidents during the weeks of the ceasefire when we were able to bring in these large volumes (of aid). When the ceasefire broke down and the crossings were closed for the entry of any cargo, and we got to the point where we were really in a desperate situation and we were running low on everything, that is when they started again. UN News: Let's go back to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. As the four distribution points are going to be south of the Netzarim Corridor– reportedly one in Middle Gaza and the others in the south – are you already starting to see movements towards those areas? What are your concerns about displacement? People are sleeping in the streets because there's nowhere for them to go Olga Cherevko: Our concerns about displacement are what they have always been. Obviously, we would never support any sort of forced displacement, or any type of ethnic cleansing, or anything that would forcibly drive people from the areas where they are. Before the ceasefire, more than 90 per cent of people were forcibly displaced across Gaza and they were being squeezed into an increasingly smaller piece of land. When the ceasefire happened a lot of them went back. They tried to restart their lives and they kind of had a bit of time to process what's been happening. When the ceasefire broke down again on 18 March, we saw another 610,000 people displaced again. These types of displacement are getting more and more dangerous and desperate because people are coming with nothing. People are fleeing with just the shirt on their back. We're now hearing and seeing people sleeping in the streets because there's nowhere for them to go. As we've said time and time again, there is no safe place in Gaza, and this has been proven time and time again. UN News: You've been back and forth to Gaza for quite some time now, and you've seen the suffering first-hand. Can you give our audience an idea of what it means in real-life terms when aid is prevented from reaching those in need? Olga Cherevko: Something that has always stuck me about the Palestinians in Gaza is their resilience and their strength, and the spirit that they have kept throughout these months of war. I knew Gaza well before because I used to work there for several years starting from 2014, and knowing how people have endured so much suffering and despite that they find the strength to go, they find the strength to smile at you and to offer you tea or anything that they might still have. Now when I speak to people, the thing that is most devastating is that there is a sense that some people feel like this is the end and that there is no turning back and that they are just waiting to die. Before this limited aid was allowed to enter, the remaining operating community kitchens would have hundreds of people huddled around them waiting for hours with empty pots. Many were told to turn back because there's no food for them. People were telling me that they weren't eating for several days at a time. I saw children that are being malnourished, and suffering from malnutrition. These kinds of things are very preventable, and preventable deaths are happening all around us because of this intentional crisis imposed on Gaza by closing the crossings. And that is the most frustrating thing for me - knowing that we can quickly address these issues if only we were given the opportunity – because we have everything waiting outside of Gaza to come in.
Scoop
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Scam Centres Are A ‘Human Rights Crisis', Independent Experts Warn
21 May 2025 It's believed that hundreds of thousands of trafficked individuals of various nationalities are forced to carry out fraud in the centres located across Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, the Philippines and Malaysia. ' The situation has reached the level of a humanitarian and human rights crisis,' said right experts Tomoya Obokata, Siobhán Mullally and Vitit Muntarbhorn. They stressed that thousands of released victims remain stranded in inhumane conditions at the Myanmar-Thailand border. The underground operations are often linked to criminal networks that recruit victims globally, putting them to work in facilities principally in Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, the Philippines and Malaysia. Many victims are kidnapped and sold to other fraudulent operations, said the rights experts who are known as Special Rapporteurs, reporting to the Human Rights Council. They are not UN staff and work in an independent capacity. They noted that workers are not freed unless a ransom is paid by their families and that if they try to escape, they are often tortured or killed with total impunity and with corrupt government officials complicit. 'Once trafficked, victims are deprived of their liberty and subjected to torture, ill treatment, severe violence and abuse including beatings, electrocution, solitary confinement and sexual violence,' the Special Rapporteurs said. 'Address the drivers of cyber-criminality' The rights experts added that access to food and clean water is limited and that living conditions are often cramped and unsanitary. The experts urged Southeast Asian countries, as well as the countries of origin of the trafficked workers,to provide help more quickly and increase efforts to protect victims and prevent the scams from taking place. This should include efforts that 'go beyond surface-level public awareness campaigns' and which address the drivers of forced cyber-criminality - poverty, lack of access to reasonable work conditions, education and healthcare. Other recommendations to governments included addressing the insufficient regular migration options that push people into the arms of people traffickers. Tomoya Obokata, Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences; Siobhán Mullally, Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, and Vitit Muntarbhorn, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia, are neither staff members of the UN nor paid by the global organization. Proliferation of scam farms post-pandemic The dark inner workings of scam farms were revealed in a UN News investigationlast year which found that they had proliferated following the COVID-19 pandemic. 'Southeast Asia is the ground zero for the global scamming industry,' said Benedikt Hofmann, from the UN agency to combat drugs and crime, UNODC. 'Transnational organised criminal groups that are based in this region are masterminding these operations and profiting most from them,' said Mr. Hofmann, Deputy Regional Representative for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, at a Philippines scam farm that was shut down by the authorities in March 2024. When UN News gained access to the compound, it was found to have housed 700 workers who were 'basically fenced off from the outside world,' Mr. Hofmann explained. 'All their daily necessities are met. There are restaurants, dormitories, barbershops and even a karaoke bar. So, people don't actually have to leave and can stay here for months.' Escaping was a near-impossible task and came at a hefty price. 'Some have been tortured and been subjected to unimaginable violence on a daily basis as punishment for wanting to leave or for failing to reach their daily quota in terms of money scammed from victims,' the UNODC official insisted. 'There are multiple types of victims, the people who are being scammed around the world, but also the people who are trafficked here held against their will and who are exposed to violence.'
Scoop
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Historic Shifts Offer Syria A Path Forward
Press Release – UN News After years of stalemate and suffering, Syria is beginning to see renewed international engagement. 21 May 2025 The United States, European Union and United Kingdom have taken steps to ease long-standing sanctions – moves that, according to UN officials, could pave the way for long-overdue progress on the political and humanitarian front, provided they are sustained and inclusive. Speaking to the Security Council from the capital Damascus on Wednesday, UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen called the developments 'historic,' highlighting their potential to improve conditions on the ground and allow a successful transition. 'They hold major potential to improve living conditions across the country and to support the Syrian political transition, giving Syrian people a chance to grapple with the legacy of misrule, conflict, abuses and poverty,' he said. The sanctions, imposed mostly during the Assad era, have long been blamed for hindering economic recovery. Regional powers including Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Qatar are supporting renewed engagement, offering support to fund public salaries, energy infrastructure and Syria's obligations to international financial institutions. National political movements The easing of sanctions comes amid significant domestic developments, with Syria's interim government announcing last week the formation of two key bodies: the National Commission for Transitional Justice and the National Commission for Missing Persons. Both are seen as essential to rebuilding trust and addressing the legacy of enforced disappearances and war crimes that have scarred nearly every Syrian household, Mr. Pedersen said. He urged continued steps to ensure that the new People's Assembly is truly representative and that the rights and aspirations of women and girls are protected. 'Syrians also continue to look ahead to the envisaged future constitutional process, which needs to be inclusive of all social and political components in shaping a new social contract and paving the way for the free and fair elections as called for by [Interim Prime Minister] Ahmed al-Sharaa from the outset.' Crisis on the ground Despite political momentum, Syria's humanitarian crisis remains dire. Over 16 million people need aid and over half the population faces hunger, senior UN humanitarian Ramesh Rajasingham warned ambassadors. Sectarian violence has deepened the crisis, displacing more than 670,000 people since November, among them 15,000 during a recent flare-up in Druze-majority areas of rural Damascus. The situation has been further complicated by Israeli airstrikes, including near the presidential palace and during the unrest in Druze-majority neighbourhoods. UN agencies meanwhile face a severe funding shortfall, having received only 10 per cent of a $2 billion appeal for the first half of 2025. Dozens of hospitals, community support centres and safe spaces for women – especially in the northeast and northwest – have already closed. 'The consequences are already visible and will become more so as time passes and as funding cuts take hold,' said Mr. Rajasingham, who is the Director of Coordination at the UN relief wing, OCHA. Seize the moment Both officials stressed that lifting sanctions must lead to tangible progress in recovery and stability. 'The Syrian people have taken heart from the fact that the decisions to lift sanctions give them a better chance than before to succeed against great odds,' Mr. Pedersen said. 'They are looking to the interim authorities to seize this moment and push towards a fully inclusive transition…and to all of us to do our part as genuine partners in support.' US implementing sanctions relief Speaking for the United States, John Kelley, Political Coordinator at the US mission, said government agencies are beginning the process of sanctions relief and restoring diplomatic ties with Syria. He called on Syrian authorities to take bold steps and show sustained progress on the clear expectations the US has communicated. This includes, removing foreign terrorist fighters, cooperate with the US and partners to prevent resurgence of ISIS detention facilities, and making peace with Israel through the Abraham Accords. 'We continue to urge the new government to choose policies that will reinforce stability, protect human rights of all Syrians, ensure peace with Syria's neighbours, develop Syria's economy and become at long last a responsible member of the international community.' Syrians uniting for future prosperity Riyad Khaddour, Syria's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, told ambassadors in New York that his country is committed to becoming a nation of peace and partnership – not a battleground for conflict or foreign ambitions. 'As countries in the region and beyond extend their hands to Syria, Syrians themselves are uniting across all factions, rejecting extremism, terrorism, and hate speech,' he said. Mr. Khaddour noted that Syrian institutions are committed to international standards, working to improve the investment climate and advancing economic reforms. He hailed the lifting of sanctions as a long-awaited turning point, adding that it offers 'real prospects' to alleviate the humanitarian crisis and accelerate recovery. 'Syrians have welcomed it with great hope, seeing it as a first step towards restoring normal life, reviving the economy, ensuring food security and returning to the path of sustainable development.'
