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#ILO; #KidsUnitedNewGeneration, #FrenchMusicalGroup; #EndChildLabour; #ChildRights ILO/Canadian-Media: The French musical group, Kids United New Generation, have joined the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) campaign to end child labour, ILO reports said.  Image credit: Twitter handle The singers have dedicated their latest song, Take a Stand, to the UN International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour , scheduled for 2021. The new song highlights the urgent need to take action to address the problem and calls on governments and organizations around the world to do more. The lyrics focus on a message of hope, that child labour can end if we all work together. “We all must do our part To give these lives a brand-new start On us, their futures depend Bring child labour to an end.” KIDS UNITED New Generation consists of five children, Dylan, Gloria, Ilyana, Nathan and Valentina. As part of their efforts to promote children’s rights they are UNICEF messengers and are also supporters of the global Music Against Child Labour Initiative (MACLI), which was launched in 2013 by the ILO and some of the world's greatest musicians. MACLI calls on musicians to dedicate a concert or song to the struggle against child labour and to empower children through music education. Kids United “Support for ending child labour has never been more important because the COVID-19 crisis threatens to reverse years of progress,” said Francesco d’Ovidio, ILO Officer in Charge, Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work Branch. “It is thrilling to see these young singing stars joining the cause because this initiative is also about empowering children, including those who were formerly in child labour, and joining forces to make change.” The ILO estimates that 152 million children are currently in child labour, of whom 73 million are in hazardous forms of work. The international community has set a goal of ending child labour in all its forms by 2025, in Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 8.7 . The global partnership Alliance 8.7 supports this work and brings together 230 partners and 22 Pathfinder Countries to coordinate action and drive progress. The new song is partially funded by the United States Department of Labor, under the MAP16 Project . A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the song will be donated to the ILO’s work in supporting countries to tackle child labour.
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#UN; #Covid19DataCollection; #MobilityData Geneva/UN/Canadian-Media: Mobility data derived from phones, emails and social media, for example, can assist in both monitoring the spread of the virus and in implementing activities the UN is mandated to carry out, according to their joint statement issued on Thursday.  A coronavirus trace and track app is displayed on a mobile phone screen. Image credit: Unsplash/Pascal Brändle However, they warned that vast amounts of sensitive data, both personal and non-personal, can be collected through digital contact tracing and general health surveillance. “This could have significant effects beyond the initial crisis response phase, including, if such measures are applied for purposes not directly or specifically related to the COVID-19 response, potentially leading to the infringement of fundamental human rights and freedoms”, they said. “This concern is especially pressing if some emergency measures introduced to address the pandemic, such as digital contact tracing, are turned into standard practice.” Critical role of human rights In May, the UN Secretary-General issued a policy brief highlighting how human rights are critical to shaping pandemic response, as they put people “centre-stage” while also preserving human dignity. The UN entities stressed that in the context of the pandemic, any data collection by the UN system should be rooted in human rights and applicable international law, data protection and privacy principles. “Any measures taken to address the COVID-19 pandemic should also be consistent with the mandates of the respective UN System Organizations and take into account the balancing of relevant rights, including the right to health and life and the right to economic and social development”, they said. Data collection precedent In this regard, they outlined five points, including that data collection should be lawful, limited in scope and time, and necessary to specified legitimate purposes for pandemic response. They also underscored the need to ensure confidentiality, security and proper destruction or deletion of any data. “A coordinated and inclusive global UN-wide response rooted in solidarity is necessary to contain the pandemic and minimize its negative impact across the world,” the UN partners said. Although the statement addressed the challenges of the current pandemic, they suggested that it may serve as a precedent for using data to respond to any future crises. |
