Number of People Facing Extreme Hunger Up More Than 50% In 3 Years

The number of people facing severe levels of hunger has surged by almost 57% to 25.3 million from 16.1 million since 2019 in the 8 worst affected countries amid an unprecedented global hunger crisis with increasing pockets of famine-like conditions, according to new Save the Children analysis.

The analysis, based on Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) data, found that Afghanistan, Central African Republic, DRC, Haiti, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, and Yemen had the highest numbers of people facing emergency and catastrophic levels of hunger and malnutrition, between 2019 and 2022.

The IPC is the global scale for classifying food insecurity and goes from 1 to 5, with IPC4 and IPC5 indicating emergency and catastrophic levels of hunger and even in some areas famine-like conditions.

The country with the highest number of people facing severe levels of hunger was Afghanistan where this number increased to 6.6 million in 2022 from 2.5 million in 2019. Child malnutrition has long been a problem in Afghanistan and this year there have been reports of caregivers resorting to desperate coping mechanisms, with some even forced to sell their own children.

Read more: Relief Web, https://rb.gy/xqfj2r

Mining Democratic Republic of Congo: Illicit Use of Child Labour

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the reply by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park on 8 December (HL Deb, col 252), what plans they have to hold discussions with major technology companies regarding the use of child labour in cobalt mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and in particular its role in the extraction of lithium for use in batteries.

Lord Goldsmith: Illicit mining in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the use of child labour remains a problem. We regularly raise the issue of child labour in DRC's mining sector both with the DRC government and through multilateral fora such as the Human Rights Council. With the DRC providing 70% of the global supply of cobalt, the UK remains committed to the urgency of addressing child forced and bonded labour in cobalt supply chains. The UK supports the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) which aims to improve transparency and governance in the mining sector. We are actively working with international partners and the Government of DRC to encourage responsible private sector activity and to address the governance and human rights issues linked to illicit mining. The UK provided funding to the "Effective Approaches to Ending the Worst Forms of Child Labour in Fragile Contexts", a multi-stakeholder consortium which develops innovative approaches to ending child labour in DRC.

Parliament: https://rb.gy/0x2pos

High Court Finds EU Settlement Scheme Breaches the Withdrawal Agreement

he Brexit fall out continues with the High Court finding in the case of Independent Monitoring Authority v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2022] EWHC 3274 (Admin) that the EU settlement scheme is unlawful. The scheme was set up by the British government to transition the lawful basis of residence for EU citizens from EU law to domestic UK law. The court found that the scheme breaches the Withdrawal Agreement between the UK and the EU because it fails properly to protect the rights of EU citizens.

In short, the court ruled that the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement mean that EU citizens issued with a form of temporary status called pre-settled status should not become unlawfully resident if they do not make a second, subsequent application for permanent status.

The judgment is being appealed by the Home Office so this is not necessarily the final word on the matter. If the outcome remains the same after appeals, though, it suggests either that the negotiators for the British government did a poor job of agreeing the draft Withdrawal Agreement. Or that the Home Office fundamentally misunderstood the agreement that had been negotiated.

Read more: Freemovement, https://rb.gy/wbnncp

UK Agricultural Sector Would "Collapse" Without Migrant Workers

Immigration for agriculture plays a pivotal role in the UK's production of food and directly contributes to the country's food security. A new report highlights that the agricultural sector says its industry would have "collapsed" without migrant workers. Since its introduction in 2019, over 66,000 people had come to the UK under the Seasonal Worker visa route as at the time of the ICIBI's inspection in August 2022.

New from David Neal, the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration (ICIBI), last month was an inspection report on the immigration system for the agricultural sector. Report considers effectiveness of Seasonal Worker and Skilled Worker visa routes for agriculture. As the ICIBI notes, immigration for agriculture plays a pivotal role in the UK's production of food and directly contributes to the country's food security. The report highlights that the agricultural sector says its industry would have "collapsed" without migrant workers.

Read more: Electronic Immigration Network (EIN), https://rb.gy/zzmcgk

Celebrating Women Fighting For Their Rights - 2022 Year In Review

It often takes considerable bravery to stand up for the rights of women. The UN, which is committed to empowering women and girls, works relentlessly with activists and organizations across the world, to protect women from abuse, support health initiatives, and improve lives.

Mahsa Amini: Inspiration For Widespread Iranian Protests
In November, The UN human rights office, OHCHR, condemned the response of the Iranian regime to protestors demonstrating against the government, in the wake of the death of Mahsa Amini, a young woman who died in police custody in September, after being detained for wearing her hijab incorrectly, according to the so-called morality police.

Her death led to demonstrations in many Iranian cities, including protest by high-school age girls. The Iranian government responded by arresting thousands of protestors, including women, children, youth, and journalists.

Women Living Under Taliban Rule in Afghanistan
August marked one year since the Taliban seized control once more, of Afghanistan, sparking widespread fears for women’s rights there, which were severely eroded during the regime’s previous time in power during the late 1990s. Twelve months on, UN Women announced that the agency was committed to continue the struggle for women’s rights in Afghanistan, the only country in the world where girls are banned from going to high school, and effectively barred from political participation.

Women Tackling the Climate Crisis
The climate crisis has been shown to disproportionately affect women and girls. In the weeks leading up to International Women’s Day, which is celebrated on 6 March, we highlighted the ways in which women activists improve their local environment, and help their community to adapt to an increasingly hostile climate.
They include Mexican violinist Martha Corzo, who led and inspired a group of some 17,000 local environmental activists, devoted to protecting the remote and beautiful Sierra Gorda; a group of women in Niger who have integrated refugees and migrants in their bid to stave off desertification by creating a thriving market garden; and a mechanical engineer in Kenya who had to fight gender discrimination to develop practical and affordable energy solutions.

In May, Cameroonian activist Cécile Ndjebet’s efforts to improve the lives of those who depend on forests were recognized, when she was awarded the 2022 Wangari Maathai Forest Champions Award, which is chaired by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). In Cameroon, roughly 70 per cent of women live in rural areas and are dependent at least in part on harvesting wild forest products for their livelihoods. However, in some communities, women cannot own forest land, inherit it if their husband dies, or even plant trees on degraded land. “Men generally recognize the great role women play in improving?families’ living standards,” she said at the ceremony, “but it is important for them also to agree that, for women to continue to play that role, and even improve in that role, they need secure access to land and forests”.

Women in Blue
UN women peacekeepers and police, continued to serve with distinction in some of the most dangerous postings in the world, facing challenges such as threats from terrorist attacks, and violence fuelled by a COVID-era surge in misinformation and disinformation, amid increasing political tensions, and deteriorating security situations.

On the International Day of UN Peacekeepers, in May, Major Winnet Zharare of Zimbabwe was presented with the Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award, in recognition of her work with the UN Mission in South Sudan, where she was a strong champion for gender equality and women as decision-makers and leaders. “Her diligence and diplomatic skills quickly gained the trust of local military commanders who sought her advice on women’s rights and protection”, said UN Secretary-General António Guterres at the ceremony. “Her approach helped UNMISS strengthen bonds with local communities and deliver on its mandate.”

In July, at a historic ceremony in South Sudan, members of the first-ever deployment of UN Peacekeepers from Liberia, including several women, were honoured with the prestigious UN Medal.

Source: UN News, https://rb.gy/lch4do

Social Media and the Duty of Candour in Age Assessment Proceedings

The standard directions made by the Upper Tribunal in age assessment proceedings required the asylum seeker to give access to their social media accounts, including their usernames and passwords, for local authority respondents to inspect. Where the applicant had a Facebook account, their “full timeline of activities” and “locations of access” should be given.

BG challenged those directions as being contrary to his rights to private life and freedom of expression under Articles 8 and 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights. This is because they were too broad and ill-defined to be proportionate, sufficiently clear and specific to be capable of fair and effective compliance, or consistent with the duty of candour.

He submitted that directions for specific disclosure should be made on the application of a party and for proper reasons. They should not be made as a matter “of course”. The proper test was whether disclosure was necessary to resolve the matter fairly and justly.

The Tribunal said that an applicant’s duty of candour in judicial review extends not only to disclosing documents adverse to his claim, but also to drawing the significance of those documents to the attention of the judge considering the application.

Read more: Freemovement, https://rb.gy/lpihrp