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	UN Secretary-General calls for nuclear weapons-free world by UN News / Associated Press   31 May 2011 (UN News)   Urging stronger non-proliferation rules, Ban calls for nuclear weapons-free world.   Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has reiterated his call for a world free of nuclear weapons and called for the strengthening of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty as the cornerstone for global disarmament, and the bringing into force of the agreement banning nuclear arms tests.   “All Member States share a common interest in building a world in which the use of nuclear weapons is not simply improbable, but impossible,” Mr. Ban said when he addressed the Conference on Promoting the Global Instruments of Non-Proliferations and Disarmament,.   “I pledge my full commitment to liberating humanity from the terror of weapons of mass destruction,” Mr. Ban told the conference, which was hosted in New York by Japan, Poland and Turkey.   He said the UN has consistently been promoting the key goals of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) relating to disarmament, non-proliferation, and the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. The Secretary-General said he was encouraged by the entry into force of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (known as the New START Treaty) between Russia and the United States.   “If ‘global instruments’ are to truly deserve this designation, they must not only achieve universal membership, but full compliance by States Parties with their commitments,” said Mr. Ban.   “The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty [CTBT] should be brought into force without further delay. I have suggested next year, 2012, as a target date when we will be able to see the effect of the CTBT come into force,” he added.   He called for additional legal instruments to address the grave challenges posed by fissile materials and assurances to non-nuclear-weapon States that such arms will not be used against them.   “The international rule of law must also extend to conventional arms. And, of course, we cannot address rule of law issues without touching on the work of the Conference on Disarmament,” said Mr. Ban.   Mr. Ban said the Security Council should build on its September 2009 summit on nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament and discuss the topic every year, noting that sanctions imposed by the Council play a significant role in non-proliferation efforts.   The General Assembly, for its part, could forge closer links between disarmament and other challenges on its agenda, Mr. Ban said, adding that disarmament complemented efforts to tackle other important global challenges, including poverty and climate change.   April 30, 2011   10 Nations urge new push for Nuclear Non-Proliferation. (AP)   Japan, Canada, Germany and six other nations urged other countries in the international community Saturday to renew efforts to prevent the proliferation of nuclear material.   The goal of their initiative is to "work toward achieving nuclear disarmament and a strengthening of the international non-proliferation regime," the foreign ministers of the 10 countries said in a joint statement.   The group said it is urgent to reduce the "danger to humanity posed by the possibility of the use of nuclear weapons" and to achieve tangible results on the path toward a world free of nuclear weapons.   The production of fissile material for nuclear weapons should be banned internationally "to curb the risk of future nuclear arms races and reduce the danger of non-state actors getting such material into their hands," the ministers said.   German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle also told journalists in Berlin that the group agrees that the international treaty banning nuclear tests should be swiftly adopted by all countries. In addition, nuclear weapon states should show greater transparency regarding their arsenal, he said.   The treaty, which came into force in 1970, is one of the international communit"s main set of rules regarding nuclear disarmament and the prevention of proliferation. There are 190 states who are party to the treaty, but four nations that are known or believed to possess nuclear weapons - India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel - have not endorsed it.   The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, or CTBT, in turn, has been ratified by 153 nations, but it has not yet taken effect because several key countries - those listed above and others - refuse to sign and ratify the treaty.   "We call on all states which have not yet done so to sign and ratify the CTBT," the ministers in Berlin said.   "We believe that an effective end to nuclear testing will enhance and not weaken our national as well as global security and would significantly bolster the global non-proliferation and disarmament regime," the statement added.   The group stressed the important role played by the U.N. nuclear agency, the IAEA, in verifying countries compliance with their nuclear non-proliferation obligations, which should be further strengthened.   Japan"s foreign minister said he had briefed the group on the progress made in securing the crippled Fukushima Dai-Chi nuclear facility. "In the area of nuclear power, a consensus has been reached to further strengthen safety measures," Takeaki Matsumoto said.   The disarmament talks that were also attended by the foreign ministers from Chile, Mexico, the Netherlands, the United Arab Emirates, Poland and Turkey.   Mexican Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa stressed the importance of the group of 10 nations stretching across continents and political blocks, saying their joint effort reflects "the importance of this issue that has a direct impact of the future of humanity.".
	Violence accounts for over 1.5 million deaths per year by UN News / World Health Organization   Oct 2011   New UN study shows murder rates highest in parts of the Americas and Africa.   Young men in Central and South America and Southern and Central Africa are most at risk of being killed in cases of homicide, while women face an increased likelihood of being murdered in domestic violence, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said in a recently released report.   Evidence points to rising homicide rates in Central America and the Caribbean, which are “near crisis point,” according to UNODC’s Global Study on Homicide, which blames firearms for the rising murder rates in those two regions, where almost three quarters of all homicides are committed with guns, compared to 21 per cent in Europe.   Men face a much higher risk of violent death (11.9 per 100,000) than women (2.6 per 100,000), although there are variations between countries and regions.   “The results of the report show the importance of the UN firearm protocol and the importance for countries to ratify and adopt the protocol to try to control the use of firearms, and their use in fuelling street crime.   “It also highlights the importance of preventive measures and in the case of women, of measures to protect them from domestic crime.”   In countries with high murder rates, especially involving firearms, such as in Central America, one in 50 males aged 20 will be killed before they reach the age of 31 – several hundred times higher than in some parts of Asia.   Worldwide, 468,000 homicides occurred last year. Some 36 per cent of all homicides take place in Africa, 31 per cent in the Americas, 27 per cent in Asia, 5 per cent in Europe, and 1 per cent in Oceania.   Countries with wide income disparities are four times more likely to be afflicted by violent crime than more equitable societies. Conversely, economic growth seems to stem that tide, as the past 15 years in South America have shown.   Chronic crime is both a major cause and result of poverty, insecurity and under-development, the study points out. Crime drives away business, erodes human capital and destabilizes society.   “To achieve the Millennium Development Goals [MDGs], crime prevention policies should be combined with economic and social development and democratic governance based on the rule of law,” said Yury Fedotov, UNODC Executive Director.   Sudden dips in the economy can drive up homicide rates. In selected countries, more murders occurred during the financial crisis of 2008-09, coinciding with declining gross domestic product (GDP), higher consumer price index and more unemployment.   Last year, 42 per cent of homicides were committed with firearms – 74 per cent of them in the Americas and 21 per cent in Europe. Gun crime is driving violent crime in Central America and the Caribbean – the only region where the evidence points to rising homicide rates.   “It is crucial that measures to prevent crime should include policies towards the ratification and implementation of the Firearms Protocol,” said Mr. Fedotov. He stressed that although 89 States are parties to the Protocol, which supplements the UN Convention on Transnational Organized Crime, many more countries could accede to that legal instrument.   Organized crime – especially drug trafficking – accounted for a quarter of deaths caused by firearms in the Americas, compared to only 5 per cent of homicides in Asia and Europe. That does not mean, however, that organized crime groups are not active in those two regions, but rather that they may be operating in ways that do not employ lethal violence to the same extent.   Crime and violence are also strongly associated with large youthful populations, especially in developing countries. While 6.9 persons per 100,000 are killed each year globally, the rate for young male victims is three times higher (21.1 per 100,000). Young men are more likely to own weapons and engage in street crime, take part in gang warfare and commit drug-related offences, according to the study.   Globally, some 80 per cent of homicide victims and perpetrators are men. But, whereas men are more likely to be killed in a public places, women are mainly murdered at home, as in Europe where half of all female victims were killed by a family member. In Europe, women comprised almost 80 per cent of all people killed by a current or former partner in 2008.   “The results of the report show the importance of the UN firearm protocol and the importance for countries to ratify and adopt the protocol to try to control the use of firearms, and their use in fuelling street crime,” said Angela Me, chief of the statistics and surveys section at UNODC.   “It also highlights the importance of preventive measures and in the case of women, legal measures to protect them from domestic crime,” she told UN Radio.   Violence accounts for over 1.5 million deaths per year. (World Health Organization)   This corresponds to more than 4,000 people killed every day. Violence is a significant public health, human rights and human development problem.   Suicide and homicide account for more than 80% of violence-related deaths.   Of those killed by violence, just over half die by their own hand, over 35% because of injuries inflicted intentionally by another person, and over 11% as a direct result of war or some other form of collective violence.   90% of deaths due to violence occur in low- and middle-income countries.   Countries with higher levels of economic inequality tend to have higher rates of death due to violence. Within countries, the highest death rates occur among people living in the poorest communities.   Violence mainly impacts young, economically productive people.   Homicide and suicide are heavy contributors to global death rates among men aged 15–44 years. For every young person killed by violence, an estimated 20–40 receive injuries that require hospital treatment. Among people under 25 years, for every suicide, 100 young people attempt to take their own lives.   The health impact of violence is not limited to physical injury.   Long-term effects can include depression, mental disorders, suicide attempts, chronic pain syndromes, unwanted pregnancy, HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections.   Children who are victims of violence have a higher risk of alcohol and drug misuse, smoking, and high-risk sexual behaviour. This may lead, even decades later, to chronic diseases such as heart disease and cancer and sexually-transmitted infections.   Violence is preventable and its impacts can be reduced.   Proven and promising violence prevention strategies address underlying causes such as low levels of education, harsh and inconsistent parenting, concentrated poverty, unemployment and social norms supportive of violence. Outcome evaluation research is needed to test these strategies in low- and middle-income countries.   Individuals can benefit from violence prevention programmes in schools.   Proven and promising violence prevention strategies focused on individuals include pre-school enrichment programmes during early childhood (ages 3-5 years), life skills training and social development programmes for children aged 6-18 years, and assisting high-risk adolescents and young adults to complete schooling and pursue courses of higher education and vocational training.   Promoting positive, nurturing relationships within families can prevent violence.   Proven and promising violence prevention strategies focused on families include providing training for parents on child development, non-violent discipline and problem-solving skills; promoting parental involvement in the lives of children and adolescents through programmes to develop home-school partnerships; and mentoring programmes to develop attachments between high risk youth and caring adults in order to build social skills and provide a sustained relationship.   Community programmes can play a role in preventing violence.   Proven and promising violence prevention strategies focused on communities include increasing the availability and quality of childcare facilities, school-based programmes to address gender norms and attitudes, and improving school settings, including teacher practices, school policies and security.   Societies can prevent violence by reducing risks such as alcohol, guns, and economic and gender inequality.   Proven and promising violence prevention strategies that address societal factors include reducing alcohol availability and misuse through enactment and enforcement of liquor licensing laws, taxation and pricing; reducing access to lethal means, including guns, knives and pesticides; and promoting gender equality by for instance supporting the economic empowerment of women.
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