#Arria formula

[terrorismvictimsday]

"Condemning Hostage-Taking in Israel on October 7 as a Psychological Tool of Terrorism" - UN Security Council Arria-Formula Meeting.

Permanent Missions of Albania, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Croatia, Czechia, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Romania, the United Kingdom to the United Nations.

Watch "Condemning Hostage-Taking in Israel on October 7 as a Psychological Tool of Terrorism" - UN Security Council Arria-Formula Meeting!

[internationalwomenday]

Leveraging the synergies between the CEDAW and the Women, Peace and Security Framework - UN Security Council Arria Formula Meeting

The Arria Formula Meeting will provide an opportunity to: 1) Identify best practice in leveraging the synergies between CEDAW and the WPS framework. 2) Strengthen accountability for implementation of the WPS framework and CEDAW. 3) Highlight the potential of CEDAW as a tool to support women's participation in peace processes.

Watch the Leveraging the synergies between the CEDAW and the Women, Peace and Security Framework - UN Security Council Arria Formula Meeting

[marsdenlee]

Location: Ryden's Apartment With: @wolfontheloose

By the time Marsden got back home after his night of work, he was a type of emotionally exhausted that he hadn’t been in a very long time. It had been a struggle to go through the rest of the day of work after what had happened, kept hearing whispers among the other dancers that fueled a rising flame of anxiety in the pit of his stomach, worried that someone would whisper to the wrong person that they had seen Marsden go into the office with a woman who was claiming to be his wife and that wrong person would whisper to another wrong person and the cycle of viscous gossip would sludge through different voices until the story convoluted into a wildfire he couldn’t control and the person who mattered most would hear about it from someone else before he could tell him himself. He’d ignored all the glances in his direction, diverted all the probing questions, dismissed it as if it was nothing because if he didn’t draw attention to it then maybe they’d think nothing of it and the gossip would die on its own. 

After Arria left Mars alone in the office, he had stared at his phone for a very long time, contemplating calling Ryden right then and there but this felt like something he needed to tell him in person. So all he did was send Ry a heart emoji and texted his usual baby sitter asking if she could stay until the morning, she could not, but that was not a deterrent this time like it might have normally been. He would just bring Maria Elena with him, simple as that. Hopefully she would not wake up along the way, she’d been pretty good at sleeping through the night and he’d been trying to train her to be able to sleep through various noises to avoid the times when a loud voice or unexpected sound would stir her awake. So he did just that, packed her up into her egg carrier, made sure her diaper bag was stocked with enough diapers, wet wipes, snacks, and formula for the following morning and then drove themselves to Ryden’s apartment. The walk up to the door felt like trudging through a swamp, his legs kept trying to drag him back down to a standstill and a soft hum of internal voices that weren’t his own were making themselves known in the back corners of his mind, enough to ignore, no more than static or white noise, like a radio station that didn’t quite know which channel to be playing and every once in a while he would hear his name ring out clearly only no one was there calling to him. 

Mars stared at the precious key in his palm and unlocked the door. He hadn’t texted Ry or called him to let him know he was showing up, he just did, and at this time of 2:47 in the morning, he wasn’t even sure if Ryden would be awake. It didn’t seem so, at least his familiar presence was not visible in the dimness of the entryway and living room area. Mars did his best to be as quiet as he could, setting the diaper bag down on the floor near the crib that Ryden had set up in the living room for Maria Elena’s use, a godsend of a man, too good for him in more ways than he knew. By luck or mercy, Maria Elena had remained asleep and barely stirred when he settled her into the crib. 

Now came the hard part. Carefully and silently still, Mars removed his shoes and padded lightly with his sock covered toes toward Ryden’s bedroom door, slipping through with his breath held tentatively in his chest. He’d removed most of his makeup at the club but as always when he was tired and in a rush to leave, traces of it remained between the dark strands of his lashes and glitter still flecked the tops of his cheeks and the bridge of his nose. He tugged on the sleeves of his sweater and pulled it over his head, dropping it quietly to the floor and pulled down his track pants leaving him only in his black boxer briefs and socks as he pulled back the covers to slip beneath them, immediately greeted with the intense warmth that emanated from the body already within. A soft touch as his arms wrapped around Ryden’s middle and his lips pressed gently against the top of the other man’s shoulder.

[stuartbramhall]

Migratory birds of mass destruction

Albatross, famous migratory bird, is also a love bird. It is known for being monogamous, forming long-term bond with one partner that is rarely broken. Mated pairs never split up until one bird dies.    M. K. BHADRAKUMAR Posted on April 21, 2022 The UN Security Council held an extraordinary event on April 6 under the rubric Arria Formula Meeting on Biological Security regarding the biological…

[mariacallous]

On March 20, for the second time in its history, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) convened an Arria-formula meeting that focused specifically on the integration of the human rights of LGBTI+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and other sexual and gender minorities) people in conflict into the work of the council.

Arria-formula meetings are informal, ad hoc gatherings that allow the convening member to invite parties outside the council’s membership to testify. The session’s chairperson, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield, stressed that this was the first time that Victor Madrigal-Borloz, the U.N. independent expert on sexual orientation and gender identity, had briefed the Security Council.

The significance of a Security Council meeting on LGBTI+ issues is not to be underplayed. Madrigal-Borloz and his office have created significant momentum since receiving the mandate to investigate these issues in 2016. The mandate has proved an important tool for engaging with national and local LGBTI+ civil society organizations, gathering on-ground insight during country visits about experiences of peace and conflict that have previously been absent from these international conversations. The U.N.’s most conservative organ is now moving toward entrenching and mainstreaming the protection of queer people as a mainstay of peace and security policymaking globally, as well as integrating attention to sexual orientation and gender identity in its work moving forward.

But there are still difficult questions around the future course of such measures. Is going down the UNSC route the right way to ensure the protection of queer people? How can the council ensure not just participation, but also leadership for deciding the next steps for international action from those outside the global north? How can actions account for the many diverse populations within the wide community of LGBTI+ people as a part of not only rethinking security responses, but also thinking about gender as a dimension of peacebuilding? What is the role that the broader U.N. LGBTI Core Group will take in bringing forward this agenda?

Speaking before the meeting, Thomas-Greenfield stated her desire to see momentum build toward the formal inclusion of LGBTI+ issues on the agenda. The potential integration of these issues and queer perspectives into future Security Council work could establish a UNSC-level mandate for the protection of queer communities.

We do not dispute that it is the UNSC’s responsibility to protect queer people globally. Indeed, we have each individually argued—in research on queering atrocity prevention and the responsibility to protect, and queering the women, peace and security agenda, as well as at the Arria-formula meeting—that the integration of queer people and perspectives into frameworks for peace and security is essential. For us, queering means not only highlighting the insecurity some people face because their gender and/or sexuality is constituted as abnormal or perverse by cisheteronormative standards, but also adhering to a queer political commitment of always interrogating dominant power structures and examining who benefits from the status quo. All people have a sexual orientation and gender identity. All people should, therefore, already fall under the work the council does to ensure international peace and security—regardless of their identity.

What troubles us, however, is that the United States and United Kingdom are leading the integration of LGBTI+ issues in the work of the UNSC while their domestic situations for queer people, especially transgender folks, are becoming increasingly fragile.

In the United States, there are an increasing number of legislative moves against queer people. Targeted legislation against the community includes what critics call the Don’t Say Gay law and the Stop WOKE Act, both passed in Florida and promoted vocally by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, as well as the rollback of federal guarantees for reproductive rights with the repeal of Roe v. Wade.

In the United Kingdom, reported violence against queer people doubled between 2016 and 2021. And the country has been seized by a narrative of transphobic panic pushed by both mainstream media and politicians of both parties, resulting in the U.K. government’s halting of nationwide reforms of legal gender recognition as well as the blocking of Scottish reforms to the Gender Recognition Act, despite broad support for reform amongst the public. In his end of mission statement following his U.K. country visit, Madrigal-Borloz stated that he has a “deep concern” about the rise in anti-LGBT harassment, threats, and violence in the country.

Most worryingly, even with the worsening U.S. and U.K. domestic records and international virtue-signaling on queer issues, many other countries—including fellow Security Council members—have adopted anti-queer politics in nationalist discourse and as a key feature of their challenge to liberal world order. Russia has marketed itself as the world’s defender of so-called traditional family values for more than a decade, positioning itself in opposition to Europe, which it has constituted as “Gayropa” in its foreign policy. Part of that foreign policy includes a gendered and sexualized element, in which Russia presents itself as the savior of the morally corrupt Gayropa. Promoting so-called traditional values in opposition to supporting LGBTI+ rights was also a remarkably successful tactic in Colombia leading up to the failed peace referendum in 2016, and the appeal of such values is gaining further international support.

In China, there are no explicit legal protections against discrimination or violence on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. Increasingly, groups that were established to support the LGBTI+ community are targeted and censored by the state, and there has been a resurgence in the propagation of the idea of queerness as correctable and foreign. This accompanies a shrinking space for advocacy, as the state’s censorship and security apparatus explicitly targets any positive queer representation and discourse. This has included a systematic campaign to eliminate “effeminate” men (niangpao) from mainstream media.

In Europe, countries such as Hungary and Poland have passed legislation that paints queer people as dangerous threats to order and the fabric of society. As we see the political currency of so-called traditional family values spread and harden internationally—along with a growing resistance to the imposition of “Western” queer values, Gayropean values, or so-called woke agendas—the UNSC adopting a queer agenda risks whipping up existing tensions about sexual morality, tradition, and culture in human rights debates, and adding fuel to the increasing attack on LGBTI+ people that is already underway.

Taking all of this together means that proponents of a queer agenda in peace and security chart a very cautious path forward when considering positioning the UNSC as a defender of queer people. Russia, a state actively perpetuating a discourse about the threat that queerness poses to international order and so-called tradition, and the United States and United Kingdom, states where there is significant and increasing polarization on LGBTI+ issues and gender more broadly, sit as permanent members of the UNSC. That means that there are huge risks in how Western, highly militarized states approach this move to, as Thomas-Greenfield put it, “institutionalize and regularize the Security Council’s approach to LGBTI+ issues.”

The often broad-strokes nature of UNSC resolutions leaves little room for the social and political nuance that is important when responding to queer people’s vulnerabilities. As such, a focus on the role of the UNSC, to some states and civil society actors, may end up reading as the imposition of Western values; an argument that already has incredible discursive traction among homophobic actors and often violent consequences for those targeted by anti-queer violence.

UNSC-led initiatives may also serve ends that are antithetical to its initial purpose: namely, justifying interventionism in a similar way to other interventions motivated to protect against gendered harms, such as the post-9/11 invasion of Afghanistan that was clad in colonial tropes concerning the subordination of Afghan women.

Language that dehumanizes and instills fear can quickly spread from traditional and social media, leading to the escalation of violence based on identity. Past instances of atrocity crimes, such as those perpetrated by the Nazis and those that drove the disintegration of former Yugoslavia, demonstrate that the persecution of LGBTI+ individuals and queer communities frequently serves as a precursor to the persecution of other marginalized groups. Lessons can be learned from organisations such as Colombia Diversa, which documented the integration of LGBTI+ folks in the Colombia peace process and is leading the way on queer approaches to peace and security.

Other research informed by LGBTI+ people working in conflict-affected societies can guide these next steps. The aforementioned study on queering atrocity prevention, funded by the U.K. government, called on states to engage in LGBTI+ inclusion and protection first and foremost at a domestic level and in a bottom-up, context-sensitive way, rather than adopting resolutions that may inadvertently make certain queer people in certain spaces more insecure and subject to targeting for persecution or eradication by actors seeking to use homophobia and transphobia for political gain.

A 2022 report titled Breaking the Binary, also funded by the U.K. government, recommended including LGBTI+ rights in national action plans; facilitating gender sensitivity training for international donors, international agencies, and civil society; developing LGBTI+ inclusive risk indicators and monitoring systems; investing in locally rooted organizations doing work to challenge heteropatriarchal gender norms and values; broadening the definition of “woman” used in Security Council resolutions 1325 and 1820; and undertaking “joint internal learning, planning and implementation across different teams working on LGBT+ rights, on the WPS [women, peace, and security] agenda, and on conflict.”

We see the greatest opportunity for success in the building of contextually sensitive and less broad-stroke approaches to queering peace and security by working through the U.N. Human Rights Council and the Joint Office for the Prevention of Genocide and the Responsibility to Protect. These U.N. organs are well-placed to work with states and local partners to build devolved mechanisms to protect queer people whose needs differ over space and time.

With a new independent expert taking up the mandate in October 2023, we urge them to make an unflinching effort to integrate queer people, queer perspectives, and LGBTI+ rights into peace and security practices, particularly through the aforementioned U.N. organs, but also through the Peacebuilding Support Office.

[criminaljusticeday]

25th Anniversary of the Rome Statute: The Contribution of the International Criminal Court to the Maintenance of International Peace and Security - Security Council, Arria-formula meeting.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC). This historic milestone was reached after many years of aspirations and efforts for the creation of a permanent international court to ensure justice for the most serious crimes. In cooperation with States, the Court contributes to the global fight against impunity and aims to hold those responsible accountable for their crimes and to prevent these crimes from happening again.

The Arria-formula meeting will be chaired by H.E. Ms. Corinne Cicéron Bühler, State Secretary, Federal Department of Foreign Affairs of Switzerland, and H.E. Mr. Kimihiro Ishikane, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations.

[romanationmovement]

UN Security Council Arria-formula meeting - Neo-nazism and radical nationalism: exploring root causes of the crisis in Ukraine"

[african-gate]

À l’approche de Zayed... Mary El Mehairi (l’eau n’est pas une marchandise mais une bouée de sauvetage)

À l’approche de Zayed... Mary El Mehairi (l’eau n’est pas une marchandise mais une bouée de sauvetage)À l’approche de Zayed... Mary El Mehairi (l’eau n’est pas une marchandise mais une bouée de sauvetage) En octobre de l’année dernière, les Émirats arabes unis ont remporté la conférence sur le climat "COP 28", en novembre 2023, dans une nouvelle étape qui souligne le leadership des Émirats arabes unis et l’appréciation du monde pour ses efforts de durabilité climatique. Le secrétariat de la Convention-cadre des Nations Unies sur les changements climatiques a annoncé officiellement que les Émirats arabes unis accueilleraient la vingt-huitième session de la COP 28 en 2023, qui est la plus importante et la plus importante conférence internationale sur l’action climatique avec la participation de dirigeants et de dirigeants mondiaux.   Dans le même ordre d’idées, lors de sa participation à la Conférence des Nations Unies sur l’eau 2023 à New York, Son Excellence Maryam bint Mohammed Al Muhairi, ministre du Changement climatique et de l’Environnement, a souligné que les Émirats arabes unis ont pris des mesures. . .une approche axée sur la durabilité de l’eau et son impact sur la sécurité nationale, et la feuille de route économique pour atteindre la carboneutralité.   Son Excellence a fait la déclaration des Émirats arabes unis à la Conférence des Nations Unies sur l’eau, soulignant que la gestion responsable de l’eau est une question d’une importance capitale pour un pays aux ressources limitées en eau douce, dont la population et l’économie sont en croissance.   "Nous avons appris du père fondateur des EAU, le défunt Cheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, que l’eau n’est pas seulement une marchandise, mais une bouée de sauvetage."   En accueillant la vingt-huitième session de la Conférence des Parties à la Convention-cadre des Nations Unies sur les changements climatiques, la COP28, en novembre à Dubaï, les Émirats arabes unis placeraient la sécurité et la durabilité de l’eau au premier rang du programme mondial d’action climatique.   D’autre part, Ses Excellences ont représenté les Émirats arabes unis à la réunion ministérielle "Arria Formula" du Conseil de sécurité, organisée par le Mozambique et la Suisse dans le cadre de la Journée mondiale de l’eau 2023.   La réunion a porté sur les services d’eau et d’infrastructure de base pour la population civile pendant les conflits armés. Ses Excellences ont appelé la communauté internationale à accroître son soutien à la protection des systèmes d’approvisionnement en eau et aux efforts humanitaires, soulignant la nécessité d’une action plus efficace et d’une réponse plus forte à ces défis. " #السودان #إفريقيا #الإمارات #مصر #المغرب # الاردن #الجزائر #السعودية #البحرين #الكويت Read the full article

[widowsday]

Closing the protection gap for widows in conflict and post-conflict settings.

The Permanent Missions of Niger, the African Union, and European Union, as co-Chairs of the Group of Friends of Women of the Sahel, jointly with Estonia, Ireland, Kenya, Mexico, Norway, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Tunisia and Vietnam willco-host an Arria-Formula meeting to explore how to close the protection gap forwidows in conflict and post-conflict settings.

There are an estimated 350 million widows worldwide, many of which are collectivelyresponsible for 540 million children. Despite comprising approximately 13% of theworld's population, widows are under-researched and under-supported. The scale andunique risks of widowhood are amplified in conflict and post-conflict zones.The rate of widowhood in conflict zones can be greater than 50% of the femalepopulation, due to the higher rate at which men are killed or made victim to enforced disappearances. In different parts of the world, widowhood can exacerbatevulnerabilities. Owing inter alia to negative social norms and gender stereotypes,discriminatory legislations and structural inequalities confining women to their maritalstatus and to traditional gender roles, in many cases, when women become widows,they are made disproportionately vulnerable, subject to widespread forms ofdiscrimination, including disinheritance, and in some cases violence, including harmfulpractices. Very often, with limited or no access to previous assets, financial resources,or inheritance and, without, legal documents, widows may face exclusion in society aswell as significant obstacles to claiming their rights and accessing support, and bedeprived of their basic rights. This creates a particularly dire situation, in particular inlight of the COVID-19 pandemic and given that current humanitarian responses inconflict and post-conflict settings are currently under-addressing this issue, particularlyin displacement contexts.

[terrorismvictimsday]

 The impact of unilateral coercive measures on global counter-terrorism efforts.

Unilateral Coercive Measures (UCMs) are widely imposed by Western powers in violation of international law to exert political pressure.

The purpose of this meeting is to critically examine contribution of UCMs to exacerbating insecurity, fostering resentment, radicalization, and hostility among affected populations.

[alwaysfirst]

India reaffirms its unflinching support to the people of Colombia at UNSC

Jul 15, 2022 07:06 IST New York , July 15 (Always First): India on Thursday reaffirmed its unwavering support to Colombia and also urged the international community to continue to support the government and people of Colombia in their journey to sustain peace at the UNSC Arria-formula meeting on Colombia. "The peace process in Columbia continues to be a source of inspiration to the world, the international community needs to continue to support the government and people of Columbia in their journey to consolidate & sustain peace," India's Permanent Mission to UN, Pratik Mathur said. The recent release of the final report of the truth commission highlighted a major watershed in the modern history of Columbia, he said stressing that the peace process in Columbia continues to be a source of inspiration to the world. Calling out the international community to continue to support the government and people of Columbia in their journey to sustain peace, Pratik Mathur said that the final report of the truth commission will contribute to building a more peaceful, secure & prosperous future for all Colombians. India also reiterated the call for enhanced and effective humanitarian assistance to all Syrians throughout the country without discrimination, politicization and preconditions on Tuesday. "While cross-border operations are predictable and important, they cannot continue to exist in perpetuity. Concrete steps need to be taken to address the hurdles that are obstructing the functioning of cross-line operations," India's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador R. Ravindra said. Moreover, India also expressed deep concern over the situation in Ukraine on Monday and called for a cessation of all hostilities while backing efforts to alleviate the sufferings of the people of Ukraine especially encouraging talks between Kyiv and Moscow.(Always First) Read the full article

[truthaholics]

#CounterNarrative: #UNSC Arria Formula Meeting on Biological Security: #Ukraine #BioWarfare: 36 country #BIOLABS Research NETWORK: Migratory Birds of Mass Destruction!

#CounterNarrative: #UNSC Arria Formula Meeting on Biological Security: #Ukraine #BioWarfare: 36 country #BIOLABS Research NETWORK: Migratory Birds of Mass Destruction!

Migratory birds of mass destruction | M. K. BHADRAKUMAR | Indian Punchline | APRIL 21, 2022 The UN Security Council held an extraordinary event on April 6 under the rubric Arria Formula Meeting on Biological Security regarding the biological activities in countries including Ukraine. Predictably, the US and UK representatives didn’t show up at the event and the western media also blacked out the…

[osarothomprince]

Russia submits ‘proof’ of Zelensky’s war crimes at UN; Ukraine scoffs at ‘lies’

In a rather turn of events at the United Nations Security Council, Russia has accused Ukraine of war crimes. Submitting evidence backing its claims during the Arria-Formula meeting at the UN, Russia blamed Ukraine of using its own civilians as human shields to block humanitarian corridors. As part of ‘proof’, Russian diplomats presented interviews with […]Russia submits ‘proof’ of Zelensky’s war…

[bbcbreakingnews]

At UN, India defends ‘pre-emptive’ hits

Stating that some states are resorting to proxy war by supporting non-state actors such as terrorist groups to evade international censure, India said at the UN on Wednesday that a country would be compelled to undertake “pre-emptive strike” when confronted by an “imminent armed attack” from a non-state actor operating in a third state. The government also highlighted several proxy cross-border terror attacks, including Pulwama and Pathankot, perpetrated against India from its neighbourhood, even though it didn’t name Pakistan. India’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN K Nagaraj Naidu said at an Arria-Formula meeting organised by Mexico that non-state actors such as terrorist groups often attack states from remote locations within other host states, using the sovereignty of that host state as a “smokescreen”. On this, a growing number of states believe that the use of force in self-defence against a non-state actor operating in the territory of another host state can be undertaken if the “non-state actor has repeatedly undertaken armed attacks against the state; the host state is unwilling to address the threat posed by the non-state actor; the host state is actively supporting and sponsoring the attack by the non-state actor,” ambassador Naidu said. “In other words, a state would be compelled to undertake a pre-emptive strike when it is confronted by an imminent armed attack from a non-state actor operating in a third state,” he said on Wednesday. “This state of affairs exonerates the affected state from the duty to respect, vis-a-vis the aggressor, the general obligation to refrain from the use of force,” Naidu said. Arria Formula meetings are informal meetings of the Security Council, on ‘upholding the collective security system of the UN Charter: the use of force in international law, non-state actors and legitimate self-defence’. Naidu told the meeting that India has been subject to cross-border terrorist attacks perpetrated by non-state actors with the active complicity of “another host state”, a clear reference to Pakistan. He stressed that exercising self-defence is a nation’s primary right when a situation demands “immediate and proportionate action” and applies also to attacks by non-state actors. “Some states are resorting to proxy war by supporting non-state actors such as terrorist groups to evade international censure. Such support to non-state actors has ranged from providing and equipping the terrorist groups with training, financing, intelligence and weapons to logistics and recruitment facilitation,” he said.

source https://bbcbreakingnews.com/2021/02/26/at-un-india-defends-pre-emptive-hits/