The International Day for the Right to the Truth Concerning Gross Human Rights Violations and for the Dignity of Victims pays tribute to the memory of Monsignor Óscar Arnulfo Romero who was murdered in 1980. It is to acknowledge also the right to the truth in the context of gross violations of human rights and […]
The Graça Machel report drew global attention to the devastating impact of armed conflict on children and led to the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, its Optional Protocol and the mandate of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict. Violations perpetrated against children have, in many conflict […]
Children are classified as child labourers when they are either too young to work, or are involved in hazardous activities that may compromise their physical, mental, social or educational development. In the least developed countries, slightly more than one in four children (ages 5 to 17) are engaged in labour that is considered detrimental to […]
World Humanitarian Day is to commemorate humanitarian workers killed and injured in the course of their work, and to honour all aid and health workers who provide life-saving support and protection to people most in need. The Day marks the 2003 bomb attack on the Canal Hotel in Baghdad, Iraq, which killed 22 people, including […]
An enforced (or forced) disappearance is when a person is secretly abducted or imprisoned by a state or political organisation, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the person's fate and whereabouts, with the intent of depriving them of all rights, including the right to: recognition as a person before the law; liberty and security of […]
Established in 1954 as Universal Children's Day, the now-named World Children's Day is to promote international togetherness and awareness among children worldwide, and to improve children's welfare. The date marks the adoption of both the 1959 Declaration of the Rights of the Child and the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child. World Children's […]
Volunteerism is vital for social, environmental and economic transformation and is underpinned by free will, commitment, equity, engagement, solidarity, compassion, empathy and respect for others. In 2019, there were 8,282 United Nations (UN) Volunteers who served in 54 UN missions, agencies, funds and programmes across the world - 29% were less than 29 years of […]
Corruption is dishonest behavior by those in positions of power and can include giving or accepting bribes or inappropriate gifts, double-dealing, under-the-table transactions, manipulating elections, diverting funds, laundering money, and defrauding investors. Corruption is a complex social, political and economic phenomenon that undermines democratic institutions, slows economic development and contributes to governmental instability. International Anti-Corruption […]