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UN Chronicle - Volume 49, Issue 4, 2012
Volume 49, Issue 4, 2012
A must-read for every concerned world citizen, the United Nations Chronicle is a quarterly, easy-to-read report on the work of the United Nations and its agencies. Produced by the United Nations Department of Public Information, every issue covers a wide range of United Nations related activities: from fighting the drug war to fighting racial discrimination, from relief and development to nuclear disarmament, terrorism, and the worldwide environmental crisis.
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The role of the UN in promoting the rule of law: Challenges and new approaches
Author: Jan EliassonThe rule of law is the bedrock upon which the United Nations is built. On the international stage, it is fundamental to peace and stability. All States in the General Assembly have an obligation to abide by the Charter of the United Nations and the wider body of international law. All Member States are expected to be subject to these laws, to apply them in their international relations, and to be equal before them. Working to ensure this basic principle is the essence of our work to promote the rule of law at the international level.
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Establishing effective accountability mechanisms for human rights violations
Author: Navanethem PillayRule of law and institutional reform cannot start with a “clean slate”. Understanding the patterns of past human rights violations and ending impunity for the worst violations are indispensable for successful transformative processes. At the core of any effort to establish accountability are three indispensable and interlinked rights: the right to truth, the right to justice, and the right to an effective remedy and reparation. In order to implement these rights, a comprehensive strategy is required that involves governments and civil society and addresses gaps of knowledge, capacity and political commitment.
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The role of the International Criminal Court in ending impunity and establishing the rule of law
Author: Sang-Hyun SongOn 24 September 2012, the United Nations General Assembly held a High-level Meeting on the Rule of Law at the National and International Levels during which numerous delegates spoke about the importance of the International Criminal Court (ICC). In the Declaration adopted at the meeting, States recognized “the role of the International Criminal Court in a multilateral system that aims to end impunity and establish the rule of law”. In my remarks to the Assembly on 1 November 2012, I welcomed this statement, which echoed many earlier characterizations of the Court’s role.
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Increasing women’s access to justice in post-conflict societies
Author: Michelle BacheletFor centuries, sexual violence and other atrocities committed against women were considered inevitable during times of war. Today, legal frameworks and institutions are in place to provide justice to women affected by conflict and progress is being made.
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Delivering justice on the ground: The challenges of fighting corruption at the national and international levels
Author: Martin SajdikThe fight against corruption at the national and international levels is a topic of unabated relevance for the United Nations and its Member States, as intolerance of corruption is growing around the world.
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Meeting the challenges of delivering justice on the ground
Author: Dmitry TitovThe rule of law is like the laws of gravity: It holds our world and our societies together and ensures that order prevails over chaos. This is how the Secretary- General summarized the concept at the General Assembly’s High-level Meeting on the Rule of Law in September 2012.
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Justice and development: Challenges to the legal empowerment of the poor
Author: Magdy Martínez-SolimánWe have made great strides in reducing poverty and enabling human development. Ever since poverty trends began to be monitored, the number of people living in extreme poverty and poverty rates declined in every developing region, including in sub-Saharan Africa. The global poverty rate at $1.25 a day declined in 2010 by less than half the 1990 rate. The first target of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)—halving the extreme poverty rate to its 1990 level—will have been achieved at the global level well before 2015.
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Rule of law and democracy: Addressing the gap between policies and practices
Author: Massimo TommasoliThe Declaration adopted on 24 September 2012 by the United Nations General Assembly at the High-level Meeting on the Rule of Law at the National and International Levels reaffirmed that “human rights, the rule of law and democracy are interlinked and mutually reinforcing and that they belong to the universal and indivisible core values and principles of the United Nations”. Indeed, government responsiveness to the interests and needs of the greatest number of citizens is strictly associated with the capacity of democratic institutions and processes to bolster the dimensions of rights, equality and accountability.
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The international network to promote the rule of law: A platform to promote justice and security in conflict-affected states
Author: Christina MurtaughThe 24 September 2012 Declaration of the High-level Meeting of the General Assembly on the Rule of Law at the National and International Levels1 reaffirmed the importance of promoting rule of law, justice, and human security around the world.2 Rule of law promotion has been an intrinsic part of the work of the United Nations since its inception. Over the past six decades, in addition to advancing the international community’s strategy in how to best aid countries coming out of conflict in rebuilding their justice and security systems, the United Nations has expanded its view of rule of law, justice and human security as being more than just formal institutions and high-level government actors, but also encompassing local communities and their ability to access justice and security in their daily lives.
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Justice: What we need in a post-2015 world
Author: Tracey Gurd“Look around us”, instructed the village chief in Small Sefadu, a tiny community in the eastern reaches of Sierra Leone and home to some of the country’s biggest diamond mines. Together we survey the scene: a cratered dirt road is punctuated by burned-out houses, which is a signature reminder of the marauding rebels who took over the town during Sierra Leone’s 11-year civil war. Teenage boys, some of them former child soldiers, loiter listlessly on a veranda across the road. None have a job. No street lights and no other services exist. “This is the country’s breadbasket—the diamonds come from here—but we get no benefit”, the chief tells me. “Do you think the law can help us?”
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Upholding the rule of law at the international level: The role of the International Court of Justice
Author: Philippe CouvreurThe International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. Its seat is at the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands. It operates under a Statute, which is an integral part of the Charter of the United Nations and to which all Member States are ipso facto parties. The Court is composed of 15 judges elected to nine-year terms of office by the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council, sitting independently of each other, and may not include more than one judge of any nationality. The composition of the Court must reflect the main forms of civilization and the principal legal systems of the world. (For the current list of ICJ judges, see box No. 1.)
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