Millions on the brink of starvation in Horn of Africa - UN
Six million people are on the brink of starvation in the Horn of Africa region due to severe drought, crop failure and depletion of livestock herds, the United Nations said on Friday. The U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said that in Somalia, Kenya, Djibouti and Ethiopia more than 11 million people are estimated to be in need of assistance. 1/16/2006

World Social Forum 2005 draws 155,000 participants
More than 150,000 people came together for the fifth annual World Social Forum, the massive gathering of international civil society, for discussion, debate and fun. Anti-globalization activists converged on southern Brazil for an annual meeting of opposition to corporate-sponsored capitalism and the divide between rich and poor nations. 1/29/2005

One in twelve of world’s children are forced into 'worst forms' of child labor
One child in 12 is forced into the "worst forms" of labor, including slavery, the sex trade and hazardous and illicit activities, the British branch of the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said in a report. UNICEF UK said that 350 million children aged five to 17 worked, and that 180 million of them were "involved in the worst forms of child labour. 3/8/2005

World Marks International Women's Day
Despite gains in women's rights and the increasing role of women in the workplace, female social and economic equality remained an elusive dream in many countries as the world marked international Women's Day. 3/8/2005

Tens of Thousands Said Raped in East Congo
Militiamen and renegade soldiers have raped and beaten tens of thousands of women and young girls in eastern Congo, and nearly all the crimes have gone unpunished by the country's broken judicial system, an international human rights group (Human Rights Watch) said Monday. 3/8/2005

80 million Africans may die from AIDS by 2025
More than 80 million Africans may die from AIDS by 2025, the United Nations said in a report released Friday, and infections could soar to 90 million — or more than 10 percent of the continent's population — if more isn't done soon to fight the disease. 3/4/2005

Women bear the brunt of war, Amnesty International says
Women and girls bear the brunt of armed conflicts fought today both as direct targets and as unrecognized "collateral damage". Despite promises, treaties and legal mechanisms, governments have failed to protect women and girls from violence. 12/10/2004

Poverty, war and HIV/AIDS threaten half the world’s children
More than one billion children, half of the world's population of children, suffer from poverty, violent conflict and the scourge of AIDS, the United Nations Children's Fund said in its annual report. 12/9/2004

45 Million Children To Die in Next Decade Due to Rich Countries' Failure
A new report from international agency Oxfam today reveals that 45 million more children will die needlessly by 2015, because rich countries are failing to provide the necessary resources they promised to overcome poverty. The report finds that rich countries' aid budgets are half what they were in 1960. 12/9/2004

The Bhopal Disaster: Still Avoiding Justice, Two Decades Later
Twenty years ago this week, an explosion at a chemical factory sent 27 tons of poisonous methyl isocyanate wafting over the slumbering residents of Bhopal, India. The aftermath was apocalyptic. Between 7,000 and 10,000 people died in the three days after the explosion and 15,000 more have died since. 12/9/2004

AIDS Day Is Observed Around the Globe
From Armenia to Zambia activists turned out by the thousands for World AIDS Day on Wednesday, singing in mighty cathedrals, lighting candles in city squares and playing sports. The United Nations has dedicated this year's observance to improving protection for women and girls. Nearly half of the 39.4 million people infected with HIV worldwide are female. 12/1/2004

World Living Beyond Its Environmental Means - WWF
The human race is plundering the planet at a pace that outstrips its capacity to support life, according to a report by WWF. The world is consuming some 20 percent more natural resources a year than the planet can produce. 10/22/2004