The briefing of October 12 highlighted environmental issues and sustainable development, and human rights issues. Stephane Dujarric was a spokesman for the secretary-general, leading a dialogue.
Dujarric first mentioned how the Secretary-General was disappointed to receive reports of ceasefire violations from Nagorno-Karabakh and expressed regret at the loss of life and injuries. In order to prevent another incident like this, Dujarric urged that all parties comply with their agreements to a humanitarian ceasefire and other commitments.
In regards to Libya, he announced that the Lybian Political Dialogue Forum will be held both in person and online. Through the meeting, the Secretary-General hopes to come up with a solid, unified governance framework that will help restore Libya’s sovereignty. According to Dujarric, following dozens of recent wildfires in coastal regions of Lattakia, people have either died or been injured. His colleagues at the Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs will help develop a contingency response plan.
The Secretary-General also said, “The world needs finance ministers to align COVID recovery and stimulus plans with the goals of the Paris Agreement, to end fossil fuel subsidies, invest in green jobs and not bail out polluting industries.” He also raised concerns about a dramatic rise in disasters over the last 20 years. It is our reality that more people are dying from the changing climate.
Mentioning that yesterday was the International Day of the Girl, he said we should “amplify the voices of adolescent girls and put their needs at the forefront of laws, policies and practices in every country and community around the world.”
After taking questions people asking about many different countries that require immediate attention, Dujjaric asked Dr.Agnes Kalibata, the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Food Systems Summit, to brief on the launch of World Food Day, which is on 16 October. Dr. Kalibata started talking about challenges with our food systems that are closely linked to greenhouse gas emissions. In order to challenge issues that come from our food systems, Dr. Kalibata with her colleagues will start a global dialogue that will lead to the summit in 2021. After Dr.Kalibata laid out the plan, she took questions. One of the questions was from Edie. She asked, “Will there be any document coming out of this? How do you envision this?” Dr.Kalibata answered that although there will not be a declaration coming out right away, she hopes world leaders would come forward and take action after several dialogues and provide her with a couple of recommendations.
Watching the briefing, there is one thing I’ve learned. Despite many efforts that are still not enough, a number of countries and people are still suffering. This is part of Warsan Shire’s poem:
later that night
i held an atlas in my lap
ran my fingers across the whole world
and whispered
where does it hurt?
it answered
everywhere
everywhere
everywhere.
What I’ve learned after watching the briefing is that “it hurts everywhere.” Just because I’m okay does not mean that things are okay on the other side of the world. I’m both grateful and regretful to learn about the UN briefing now. I’ll try to be more updated on news, especially world news that is packed with pain.