As the UNFCCC moves towards new arrangements under the Durban Platform, facilitating trust among its Parties will be vital to enabling and encouraging States to stabilise their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and prevent dangerous levels of climate change. An effective and positive monitoring system can be an important part of building mutual trust between Parties to an international Convention, increasing confidence that all Members will fulfill their obligations by providing support for implementation while also identifying areas of non-compliance. This paper is a contribution by the Quaker United Nations Office to a discussion on what effective monitoring under the UNFCCC and its Protocols might look like, offering a small sample of approaches adopted by other international bodies and discussing some of the merits of each.
Conscientious Objection to Military Service in Wartime
In this QUNO briefing, Rachel Brett outlines the UNโs longstanding recognition of conscientious objection to military service as a universal right that must be upheld in all circumstances, including in wartime and national emergencies. Drawing on UN standards and the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion under Article 18 of the ICCPR, it explains that this protection is non-derogable and cannot be suspended, even in a national crisis. The paper also highlights the importance of ensuring that soldiers and reservists can access recognition as conscientious objectors at precisely the moments when normal routes out of military service are most likely to be restricted.