By Katerina Hadjimatheou
Each week the Human Rights, Big Data & Technology Project, based at the University of Essex Human Rights Centre, prepares an overview of related news stories from the week. This summary contains news articles from 3 – 7 December 2018.
You can follow the HRBDT Project on twitter: @hrbdtNews.
By Besir Ozbek, Floriane Borel, and Anene Regassa
Each week students at the University of Essex Human Rights Centre prepare an overview of the past week’s human rights related news stories from around the world
International
In Marrakech, UN chief urges world leaders to ‘breathe life’ into historic global migration pact – UN News
Thousands March for Action on Global Warming at United Nations Climate Talks – TIME
Human rights in 2018 – ten issues that made headlines– The Conversation
By Amy Dickens
Each week the Human Rights, Big Data & Technology Project, based at the University of Essex Human Rights Centre, prepares an overview of related news stories from the week. This summary contains news articles from 16 – 23 November 2018.
You can follow the HRBDT Project on twitter: @hrbdtNews.
Big Data and artificial intelligence are, perhaps surprisingly, a featured highlight in the UN expert’s report on extreme poverty in the UK. Technology is frequently proffered as a solution to poverty and other social rights failings (see for example the recent Astana Declaration on Primary Health Care). However, Philip Alston, the UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, focuses instead on its potential to erode democracy.
By Sweekruthi Keshavamurthy, Ayushi Kalyan, Manon Clayette, Nina Giraudel
Each week students at the University of Essex Human Rights Centre prepare an overview of the past week’s human rights related news stories from around the world.
International
Statement by the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots to the Convention on Conventional Weapons, Geneva – Human Rights Watch
Joint Statement on International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women – 25 November – UNICEF
Revealed: faulty medical implants harm patients around world – The Guardian
Refugees Have Missed 1.5 Billion Days of School Since 2016, UN Says – Global Citizen
By Amy Dickens
On 29thOctober 2018, Philip Hammond delivered a Conservative Budget declaring an end to austerity and outlining plans for a post-Brexit economy. Amidst his speech was the announcement that the government will finally end the Private Finance Initiative (PFI/PF2) on the basis of ‘compelling evidence’ that it does not deliver value for money or transfer risk to the private sector, as proclaimed by the Conservatives and their political predecessors.
Hammond also stated the government’s commitment to honouring its existing contracts. What the Chancellor omitted is the scale of the legacy PFI leaves behind; the 700 existing PFI and PF2 deals will cost the taxpayer an estimated £199 billion by the 2040s. These staggering costs, and the political opacity surrounding PFI, have attracted expert criticism and public outrage. I argue, however, that the PFI saga amounts to more than just an administrative scandal; it is an egregious violation of the rights of UK citizens. Continue reading
Each week students at the University of Essex Human Rights Centre prepare an overview of the past week’s human rights related news stories from around the world.
International
World Diabetes Day: ‘What I wish people knew about my condition’– BBC News
Coral reefs can’t wait for world to take action, urges UN, as Biodiversity Conference gets underway– UN News
By Paul Hunt
This blog originally appeared on The Conversation
For 12 days, Philip Alston, the UN envoy on extreme poverty and human rights, and his tireless team, have travelled the length and breadth of the UK. They’ve listened to hundreds of people who have experienced poverty. Many of these stories were heartbreaking, as I witnessed when attending a public meeting in Jaywick, Essex, organised by Unite Community, for the international visitors.
By Amy Dickens
Each week the Human Rights, Big Data & Technology Project, based at the University of Essex Human Rights Centre, prepares an overview of related news stories from the week. This summary contains news articles from 2 – 9 November 2018.
You can follow the HRBDT Project on twitter: @hrbdtNews.
