News headlines in May 2022, page 9

BANGKOK, Thailand, May 23 (IPS) - The Asia-Pacific region is at a crossroads today – to further breakdown or breakthrough to a greener, better, safer future.

LONDON, May 23 (IPS) - In the midst of what has been an incredibly turbulent period for Lebanon, the conclusion of elections last week ought to be hailed as a chance to focus on the future. This, the first election since the mass uprisings in 2019 against what was seen as a corrupt ruling elite, has shown some signs of the drive for change.

UNITED NATIONS, May 23 (IPS) - Michael Bloomberg, the three-term Mayor of New York city and a billionaire philanthropist, was once quoted as saying that by the time he dies, he would have given away all his wealth to charity – so that his cheque to the funeral undertaker will bounce for lack of funds in his bank account.

The Ukraine war and other conflicts pushed the number of people forced to flee conflict, violence, human rights violations and persecution over the staggering milestone of 100 million for the first time on record, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) informed on Sunday.

As a significant portion of the recently reported Monkeypox cases has been identified among gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) expressed concern on Sunday about some public media reporting and commentary reinforcing homophobic and racist stereotypes.  

The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) told global health Ministers on Sunday that although reported COVID-19 cases and deaths have declined significantly, it is not time to lower the guard.

Three-quarters of the land-based environment and about 66% of the marine environment have been significantly altered by human actions. On the International Day for Biological Diversity, the UN Secretary-General urged to end the ‘senseless and destructive war against nature’.

DURBAN, May 20 (IPS) - Governments of the world must focus on providing quality free education and prosecuting corrupt officials and people who siphon state and donor funds as crucial steps towards taking decisive action to fight child labour across the globe.

With a scorching summer fast approaching, food prices rising and access to water and electricity limited in many parts of Syria, donors must make good on $4.3 billion in humanitarian pledges committed at last week’s Brussels funding conference, the UN’s senior humanitarian official told the Security Council on Friday.

The World Health Organization (WHO) is working closely with countries where cases of the rare viral disease monkeypox have been reported, the UN agency said on Friday. The UN agency said in a statement that there were around 80 cases confirmed so far, across 11 countries, with a further 50 cases pending investigation.