News headlines in 2021, page 153

NEW DELHI, India, Jul 02 (IPS) - Two Indian women, one Muslim and the other Dalit (former untouchables), separated by culture and geography, have found common ground in leading change in conflict-torn South Sudan.

Leading figures from government, business and civil society are preparing to take part in this year’s High Level Political Forum on sustainable development (HLPF), where they will discuss ways to recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and turn the deadly crisis into an opportunity for a major shift towards a more sustainable global economy.

The UN’s Pause campaign, which encourages social media and other news consumers to stop and check the validity of information they share, received a major endorsement on Thursday after a study from a leading research institute in the United States concluded that it has helped encourage the behavioural change needed to stop the spread of misinformation online.

Without an urgent injection of cash, billions globally risk still being without lifesaving access to safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene services by 2030, according to a new UN report published on Thursday. 

Although the COVID-19 pandemic had triggered the roll-out of an “unprecedented number” of new and often innovative social protection measures, it was unable to stem a widening gap between rich and poor countries, according to a new UN report released on Thursday.

With cases now doubling in Africa every three weeks, the Delta variant of COVID-19 has spread to 16 countries and it is present in three of the five nations reporting the highest caseloads. The variant is the most contagious yet - up to 60% more transmissible than other variants.

NEW DELHI, India, Jul 01 (IPS) - In 2020, French President Emmanuel Macron announced plans for tougher laws to tackle what he called, “Islamist Separatism”, and a crackdown on “radical Islamists” in France, which he said were materializing through repeated deviations from the Republic’s values. To counter this, President Macron announced his plans to create a “French Islam”, a practise of the faith which would be regulated by the state.

St David’s, Wales, Jul 01 (IPS) - Documented images of albatross chicks and marine turtles dying slow deaths from eating plastic bags and other waste are being seared into our consciences. And yet our mass pollution of Earth’s seas and oceans, fuelled by single-use plastics and throw-away consumerism, just gets worse.

HAMILTON, Ontario, Canada, Jul 01 (IPS) - The COVID-19 pandemic has undeniably amplified the existing vulnerabilities of billions of people worldwide. Marginalized communities in developing countries were excluded from social protection and support.

The practice of shutting down internet and mobile phone access to stifle dissent has become “entrenched” and more sophisticated in a growing number of countries as governments seek to retain power, a top UN-appointed independent rights expert said on Thursday.