Historical Glimpse: It's March 8, 2021, and today we hold the 44th commemoration since the UN officially recognised International Women's Day (IWD) in 1977 to recognise achievements in the struggle for women's empowerment and gender equality. Since the historic UN Security Council Resolution of the 32nd regular session of the United Nations General Assembly in 1977, March 8 has become an important day in modern history when it comes to the struggle for gender justice. From its first commemoration in Uganda in 1984 (pioneered by then first lady Miria Obote) IWD has evolved considerably.

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Every 21st day of September, the World comes together to commemorate the International Day of Peace. As noted by the United Nations, this year it has been clearer than ever that we are not each other’s enemies. Rather, our common enemy is a tireless virus that threatens our health, security and very way of life. In 1981 the United Nations General Assembly established the International Day of Peace, and in 2001 it unanimously voted to designate the day as a period of non-violence and cease-fire. It is perhaps this spirit that prompted the Secretary General of the United Nations Antonio Guterres on the 23 March 2020 to appeal for a global ceasefire amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

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The Refugee Law Project joins the rest of the world to commemorate the World Mental Health Day on the theme ‘Mental Health for All; Greater Investment - Greater Access, Everyone, Everywhere’. The theme fits well with the current times when the world is facing COVID-19, a pandemic that continues to claim many lives and leave many in fear and anxiety.
While social distance plays a strong role in controlling the spread of the virus, it continues to have unintended psychological consequences as it alters our way of life as we know it. Additionally, social distancing heightens the risk of discrimination in instances where someone is suspected to have the infection or has been in an isolation centre or appears to be a foreigner. The long term impact of this requires thorough scrutiny and interventions to be put in place to deal with possible COVID-19 related trauma in homes, school, work and communities.

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In December 1998, the United Nations General Assembly (in its Resolution 53/111) established an open-ended and ad-hoc intergovernmental committee to develop a comprehensive international convention against transnational organised crime. Two years later, following eleven sessions and the participation of more than 120 states, the committee concluded its work with a solemn document that came to be known as the ‘United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime.’ Adopted by the UN General Assembly Resolution 55/25 of 15 November 2000, it was subsequently open for signature at a High-Level Intergovernmental Meeting convened in the city of Palermo,Italy, in December 2000.

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