UNRIC Library Newsletter – September 2006

NEW WEBSITES WITHIN THE UN SYSTEM

UN in General

General Assembly website for the 61st session
English: http://www.un.org/ga/61/
French: http://www.un.org/french/ga/61/
Spanish: http://www.un.org/spanish/aboutun/organs/ga/61/
This website is the main source of information related to the work of the General Assembly and its committees during its 61st session, which will last until mid-September 2007, as well as links to webcasts, press releases, documentation and much more.

New site on the High-level Dialogue on Migration and Development
English: http://www.un.org/migration/
French: http://www.un.org/french/migration/
Spanish: http://www.un.org/spanish/migration/

Organization Chart of the UN System – new version
English: http://www.un.org/aboutun/chart.html
French: http://www.un.org/french/aboutun/organigramme.html

The United Nations and the Inter-Parliamentary Union
English: http://www.ipu.org/strct-e/un.htm
French: http://www.ipu.org/strct-f/un.htm

Peace & Security

UN Action to Counter Terrorism
http://www.un.org/terrorism/strategy/

White paper on Targeted Sanctions
English, French, Spanish: http://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=A/60/887
According to a white paper by Watson Institute for International Studies of Brown University, "since the early 1990s, the United Nations has increasingly targeted sanctions to improve their effectiveness and reduce humanitarian costs. While targeted sanctions significantly improve upon comprehensive sanctions in reducing humanitarian impact, the move from sanctions against states to sanctions targeted against individuals and non-state entities has generated new issues, particularly regarding the rights and standing of parties that might be listed wrongly. While political and administrative in nature, targeted sanctions can affect peoples’ lives in a manner comparable to criminal proceedings."
This white paper has been transmitted by the commissioning governments as a UN document, A/60/887 - S/2006/331. According to the letter of transmittal, the governments of Switzerland, Germany and Sweden, "would like to make this document available to the General Assembly, as a contribution to the current deliberations on the follow-up to the outcome of the 2005 World Summit, and with the Security Council with a view to supporting the latter’s ongoing efforts to strengthen the instrument of targeted sanctions. The Watson Institute is responsible for the contents of the white paper. "

Economic & Social Development

The Crisis in Lebanon: Environmental Impact (UNEP)
http://www.unep.org/lebanon/

Let Our Children Teach Us! A review of the Role of Education and Knowledge in Disaster Risk Reduction
http://www.unisdr.org/eng/task%20force/working%20groups/knowledge-education/
docs/Let-our-Children-Teach-Us.pdf
In conjunction with the International Disaster Reduction Conference in Davos, Switzerland (27 August – 1 September 2005), the UN's International Strategy for Disaster Reduction has announced a new publication. This review examines good practices to reduce disaster risk through education, knowledge and innovation. It looks critically and strategically at current activities in order to identify gaps, opportunities in the form of synergism and partnerships.

Meeting the MDG drinking-water and sanitation target: the urban and rural challenge of the decade (WHO & UNICEF report)
http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/monitoring/jmpfinal.pdf
The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have pledged to reduce by half the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation. Entering the International Decade for Action, Water for Life, 2005–2015, this report looks at the challenge of meeting the MDG target for drinking water and sanitation.

UNDP's Early Recovery Efforts in Lebanon
http://www.undp.org/lebanon/ 

Water for Life Decade, 2005-2015: International Decade for Action [new site]
English: http://www.un.org/waterforlifedecade/index.html
French: http://www.un.org/french/waterforlifedecade/
Spanish: http://www.un.org/spanish/waterforlifedecade/

International Law

Publications of the Permanent Court of International Justice (1922-1946)
English & French: http://www.icj-cij.org/icjwww/idecisions/icpij/