The international community needs to be ambitious and work to solve the urgent global crisis of today. A "business as usual" process to update the agreed goals that expire in 2015 is not enough. That was the main message to the United Nations of the final panel held July 6 in New York as part of the Development Cooperation Forum, the first high level international debate after the Rio+20 Summit. Juan Somavía, director general of the International Labour Organization (ILO), and Roberto Bissio, coordinator of Social Watch, were among the speakers.

Photo: Association for the Prevention of Torture

The Tunisian League for Human Rights (LTDH), the Arab Human Rights Organization (Egypt) and the Libyan Human Rights League, among several organizations and activists, signed on Sunday an international Pact of Honour against torture in Tunis, reported TAP news agency.

Photo: Press TV

Amjad al-Shawwa of the Palestinian Non-Governmental Organizations Network (PNGO, focal point of Social Watch in the occupied territories) says the Israeli regime is responsible for the deteriorating sanitary conditions in the besieged Gaza Strip, Press TV reported.

“Children and poor families were left behind before the crisis, they have been severely affected by the multitude of global shocks since 2008, and that, although they were briefly supported during the first phase of the crisis (2008-09), they were again left behind in 2010 despite their significant needs and increasing vulnerability,” wrote Isabel Ortiz and Matthew Cummins in the first pages of “A recovery for all: Rethinking socio-economic policies for children and poor households”, a book recently edited by UNICEF.

Agnieszka Kozlowska-Rajewicz, plenipotentiary minister for equal treatment. (Photo: Polish government)

Homosexuality is equivalent to rape, according to official teaching materials for Poles studying to be nurses and midwives. Teaching books refer to homosexuality as a “pathology”, under the section of “sexual problems”. “This is a particularly dangerous incident of homophobia,” said Agata Chaber, the president of the Campaign Against Homophobia of Poland.