Less work and less paid
A new report from the International Labor Organization highlights that the current global economic slowdown would force more workers to accept lower-quality jobs, poorly paid and lacking labor guarantees and social protection, thus accentuating the inequalities caused by the COVID-19 crisis.
The study forecasts a slight increase of 1% in employment worldwide, less than half that registered last year. This phenomenon is largely due to the low labor supply in high-income countries. Global unemployment would grow slightly and amount to some 208 million unemployed.
The participation rate of women in the labor force in relation to men is lower by almost 25%, a situation that implies that there are two economically inactive women for every man.
The youth unemployment rate is three times higher than that of adults and more than 23% neither work, nor study, nor participate in any training program.
Annual employment growth in Latin America and the Caribbean would be around 1%, while in North America the increase will be little or nil and unemployment will pick up.
86 journalists were killed during 2022
After several years of consecutive declines, 86 journalists and media workers were killed worldwide in 2022, one every four days, the United Nations Organization for Human Rights reported today. Education, Science and Culture.
Latin America and the Caribbean was the deadliest region for journalists in 2022, with 44 homicides, more than half of all those killed in the world.
Mexico tops the list of countries that registered the highest number of homicides with 19 murders, followed by Ukraine with 19 and Haiti with nine.
Almost half of the deceased informants were traveling, at home, in parking lots and other public places outside their workplace.
The main causes of these murders were reprisals for reporting on organized crime, armed conflicts, or coverage of compromising issues such as corruption, crimes against the environment, abuse of power, and protests.
Despite some progress over the past five years, the impunity rate for murders of journalists remains extremely high, at 86%.
The general director of the UnescoAudrey Azoulay, urged the authorities to “redouble their efforts to put an end to these crimes and ensure that their perpetrators are punished, because indifference is an important factor in this climate of violence,”
Pakistan: Experts call for action against religious conversions and child marriage
A group of UN human rights experts today expressed concern about the rise in kidnappings, forced marriages and conversions of Pakistani girls and young women belonging to religious minorities, calling for immediate action to end these practices and ensure justice for the victims.
The specialists were concerned about “hearing that girls as young as 13 are being kidnapped from their families, taken to places far from their homes, forced to marry men who are sometimes twice their age, and coerced into converting to Islam.” a set of actions that “represent a violation of international human rights law”.
They also regretted the continued lack of access to justice suffered by the victims and their families. Reports suggest that these alleged marriages and conversions take place with the involvement of religious authorities and the complicity of security forces and the judicial system.
The specialists urged the Pakistani government to take immediate steps to prevent and thoroughly investigate these events, stating that it is imperative that all victims have access to justice and equal protection under the law, regardless of their religious background.
António Guterres condemns the attack on a church in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The General secretary The UN categorically condemned the attack carried out this Sunday in a church in Kasindi, in the Congolese province of North Kivu.
According to preliminary reports, the attack left at least 12 civilians dead and another 50 injured when an explosive device was detonated during church service on Sunday.
The United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo facilitated medical evacuation of the wounded, in coordination with the Congolese authorities.
António Guterres stressed the need to hold the perpetrators of this attack accountable and noted that the United Nations Mine Action Service supports the Congolese authorities in the investigation into the causes of the incident.
The head of the UN expressed his deepest condolences to the affected families and to the people and government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and wished a speedy recovery to the injured.
