Public information

Following is UN Secretary‑General António Guterres’ message for the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, observed on 2 November:

The World Health Organization (WHO) today released a report showing that an estimated 10.6 million people fell ill with tuberculosis in 2021, an increase of 4.5 per cent from 2020. According to the report, 1.6 million people died from tuberculosis in 2021, including 187,000 HIV-positive people.

The United Nations is concerned about the safety of journalists in Myanmar. According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), as of this week, at least 170 journalists have been arrested since the military takeover of that country in February of 2021.

Following is the text of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ video message to the International Conference on Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance, in Guimarães, Portugal, today:

The United Nations Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide welcomed the opening of the trial against Félicien Kabuga before the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals in The Hague.  Mr. Kabuga, among other offenses, is charged with genocide and crimes against humanity, committed in Rwanda in 1994.

Following is the text of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ video message for the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Plenipotentiary Conference 2022: Connect and Unite, in Bucharest today:

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed Miklos Gaspar of Hungary as Director of the United Nations Information Centre in Jakarta, Indonesia.  Mr. Gaspar assumed his duties on 2 September.

The United Nations Secretary-General has appointed 10 high-level and eminent persons to serve on his inaugural Internet Governance Forum Leadership Panel.

Today marks five years since the Minamata Convention on Mercury entered into force. The Convention protects human health and the environment from the adverse effects of mercury. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) administers the agreement, which has 137 parties.

The Secretary-General expressed his concern about legal actions being carried out against justice officials in Guatemala.  He is also following recent developments regarding the arrest of José Rubén Zamora, a journalist and founder of a newspaper that has played an important role in exposing corruption.