Every 18 December, the UN celebrates International Migrants Day to recognise the efforts, contributions, and rights of migrants worldwide. A perfect moment to speak with Arjen Leerkes, who was appointed Professor of ‘Migration, Securitisation and Social Cohesion’ at Maastricht University and UNU-MERIT last month, about the position of immigrants in our societies. Where can asylum seekers go when they are trying to flee their country? Should they stay in the same region, or can they go else...
A UN Day 2018 message from UNU Rector and UN Under-Secretary-General David M. Malone. ••• The United Nations of 2018 exists in a world that is more interconnected than ever before. Countries are no longer insulated from the setbacks and challenges of other nations, and all profit in some way from each other’s innovation and success. Global paths to shared progress, however, seem increasingly elusive among bitter social divides and growing inequality. Our success in overcoming these and other bar...
On average in 2017, a person became displaced every two seconds. Figures further indicate that a staggering 68.5 million people were displaced by the end of that year — and of that number 25.4 million were refugees. The majority of refugees flee to neighbouring countries; which tend to be among the low to lower middle income countries....
Anniversaries always present an opportunity to look back. But today, as we commemorate the establishment of the United Nations on 24 October 1945, we must not focus solely on past lessons and progress. We must also consider the potential of a UN that is being revitalised to respond to a world vastly different than it was 72 years ago. The world now faces myriad problems, from climate change, conflict, and terrorism to migration, rapid urbanisation, and growing inequality. The current pace of glo...
“We should… recognize the United Nations for what it is – an admittedly imperfect but indispensable instrument of nations working for a peaceful evolution towards a more just and secure world order.” These words, written over half a century ago by Former UN Secretary-General, Dag Hammarskjöld, remain as true today – on UN Day 2016 – as they were back in 1957. On 24 October we celebrate ‘UN Day’ which commemorates that fateful day in 1945 when the UN Charter entered into force. For the last 71 ye...
A joint post by Kristjana Sigurbjörnsdóttir, UNU-GEST and Ortrun Merkle, UNU-MERIT. On 19 June we mark the first anniversary of the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict. Established in 2015 the day aims to “raise awareness of the need to end conflict-related sexual violence and urge the international community to stand in solidarity with the survivors of sexual violence around the world”. Sexualised violence continues to be rampant in many conflicts, p...
Every March 8th the international community honours women for their many and various achievements in the struggle for gender equality. For centuries women’s movements have fought for the rights and freedoms of women and girls – but not in a zero-sum game. Already in 1792 British author and activist Mary Wollstonecraft wrote: “I do not wish them [women] to have power over men; but over themselves.” The movement has seen many successes, even in the last few months. In December 2015, Saudi Arabia b...
In honour of International Migrants Day on 18 December, the UNU Migration Network has released the following very compelling statement highlighting some of the most important migration concerns that must be addressed by future policies. The events of 2015 have brought unprecedented media and political attention to migration. With the rise of migration across the world and the difficulties that governments encounter in integrating migrants successfully and guaranteeing them dignity, a parallel, u...
“The one thing all children have in common is their rights. Every child has the right to survive and thrive, to be educated, to be free from violence and abuse, to participate and to be heard.” UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for Universal Children’s Day, 20 November. Alan Kurdi was three when his body, lying face down on a Turkish beach, became one of the defining images of the recent “refugee crisis”. Like so many other Syrians caught up in the conflict between Islamic State...
June 20th is World Refugee Day; a day intended to draw attention to the plight of refugees worldwide. This year attention is likely to focus on Syria. Within just three years Syria has become the single largest origin country for refugees worldwide. Over three million refugees have fled the country, including perhaps one million children. Most are in camps or settlements in neighbouring Lebanon, Jordan, and Turkey; relatively poor countries which are struggling to cope. A further six million Syr...