The Quaker United Nations Office (QUNO) believes in the inherent worth of every individual and is committed to working for migration justice. This includes the promotion and protection of the human rights of migrants, regardless of migration status. Migration has been an integral component of our societies throughout history; however, migrants continue to face hostility, criminalization and violence which underlines what the High Commissioner of Human Rights has described as a lethal disregard for migrant’s lives. This is further exacerbated by the Covid-19 global pandemic which is disproportionately impacting on those in situations of marginalization and vulnerability.

The Human Rights Council has an important role to play in the promotion and protection of the human rights of migrants and should contribute both to preventing violations and responding to human rights violations. This report provides a thorough collection of relevant elements from thematic reports, panels, debates, dialogues and resolutions and identifies potential entry points through activities mandated in resolutions adopted at this session.

There is growing international concern regarding the many children associated with designated terrorist organizations, one specific group of whom are children of parents suspected, accused or convicted of association with a designated terrorist group. Upholding the rights of these children is both a legal requirement and a moral imperative, yet they remain exposed to numerous, systemic violations of their rights. 

This paper is a supplement to QUNO’s Briefing Paper: Key Human Rights Considerations for Children of Parents Suspected, Accused or Convicted of Association with Designated Terrorist Groups, which is linked below. 

This analysis is a work in progress that has been prepared as a working document by QUNO’s Sustainable and Just Economic Systems programme to help us better understand our theory of change and our actions in the multilateral sphere. It is a synthesis of the present state of QUNO’s insights, aided by the sources that are referenced at the end of the document. Failures and distortions in our economic systems are also among the root causes of problems handled by QUNO’s other three programmes: Human Rights & Refugees; Peace & Disarmament; and Human Impacts of Climate Change.

In collaboration with the Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC), QUNO’s New York Director, Andrew Tomlinson, participated in FWCC’s second session of, Quaker Conversations, FWCC’s monthly webinar series with Friends around the world. In preparation for the discussion, Andrew wrote a brief blog reflecting on the work of Quakers at the UN in New York. Key to his reflections is the role the United Nations has served in an ever-changing world after World War II, and the work that must be done going forward to affect positive change.

QUNO Geneva’s Director, Jonathan Woolley, will be participating this fall in another Quaker Conversations with FWCC.

Every five years the UN undertakes a review of the Peacebuilding Architecture (PBA) to assess the system’s progress towards peacebuilding and sustaining peace as well as to outline priority areas for the coming years. QUNO, drawing upon its long-standing history of exploring the topic of reconciliation in peacebuilding, submitted a thematic paper, Building Peace through Reconciliation, to contribute to the 2020 PBA review. The document focuses on three key areas, namely: the definitional challenges of reconciliation; reconciliation and the Peacebuilding Architecture; and key messages on reconciliation.

The Child Rights Connect Working Group on Children of Incarcerated Parents, of which QUNO is co-convenor, produced this Briefing Paper on the Rights of Children of Parents who are Incarcerated in the context of Covid-19, with the support of Penal Reform International. 

On 16 April, the Quaker United Nations Office (QUNO), in partnership with the United Nations (UN) Peacebuilding Support Office (PBSO), convened an off-the-record virtual discussion with peacebuilding organization representatives from throughout the world. The discussion addressed two interrelated themes: firstly, the Peacebuilding Fund’s (PBF) annual Gender and Youth Promotion Initiative (GYPI) funding calls; and, secondly, the impacts of COVID-19 on peacebuilding. This document provides an overview of the key themes, issues and ideas that emerged during the discussion, with no attribution to participants given the off-the-record nature of the meeting.

Children of incarcerated parents continue to face a range of challenges to the full respect for and enjoyment of their rights. This Briefing Paper provides an update to QUNO’s previous publication, offering an overview of the international legal standards applicable to these children. The paper incorporates information from legal instruments, treaty bodies, and other guidance from the United Nations and regional systems in both human rights and criminal justice fields. The paper is designed to promote the rights of these children, to aid States and other actors in ensuring that these rights are protected in practice, and to contribute to contribute to improving standards.