Human Rights | WPN World People News

The number of children accused of witchcraft in parts of Africa is increasing significantly, with orphans, street children and disabled mostly at risk, Unicef has said.

It's a practice so hidden, many don't realize it exists: the shackling of incarcerated women during childbirth.

Just under half of the US$9.5 billion the UN and NGOs have called for to respond to emergencies worldwide in 2010 was received by the end of June - more than was expected, given the dark economic climate, says the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Tens of thousands of Kenyan women and girls suffer from obstetric fistula, a childbirth injury causing leakage of urine and feces, a direct result of inadequate health services and failed government policies, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today.

The United States' long delay in ratifying the global women's rights treaty undermines fulfillment of the US commitment to women's rights at home and abroad, Human Rights Watch said today.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has emphasized the need to promote the concept of human security, noting that the challenges facing the world today threaten the lives of millions and undermine development efforts.

United Nations development chief Helen Clark has lauded the progress made by Ghana towards women’s empowerment and gender equality, one of the eight social and economic objectives known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that world leaders have pledged to achieve by 2015.

United Nations human rights experts today called for ensuring that measures to protect the rights of people affected by humanitarian emergencies are integrated in all stages of the response effort.

Argentina legalized same-sex marriage Thursday, becoming the first country in Latin America to give gays and lesbians all the legal rights that marriage brings to heterosexual couples.

John Holmes, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, today chaired the launch of the Humanitarian Appeal Mid- Year Review for 2010. The Permanent Representative of the Permanent Mission of the Philippines to the United Nations, Ambassador Libran N. Cabactulan, and the Chief Executive Officer and President of InterAction, Samuel Worthington, also participated. The revised appeals are now seeking a total of $9.5 billion to help 53 million people in 34 countries. Funding is now at 48 percent, leaving $4.9 billion still needed.