Coke (cocaine): the high and... the harder the fall

Coke: the high and… the harder the fall

The beginning

Cocaine named from the Quechua “kúka” is a natural alkaloid synthezised by the coca plant (family of Erythroxylaceae) as a secondary metabolitefor its protection. It is extracted from the leaves to an amount of 0.3 to 1.5%. The use of the coca for religious, medicinal and stimulant purposes has been known since pre-Inca times. The people used to chew coca leaves for at least 8000 years to relieve hunger, to alleviate strenuous activities and also as a stimulant.

Dry leaves are also used for tea: the “mate de coca”. Initially starting on the Andean ridge (South America), the use of coca leaves has then spread to neighbour countries as Chile, Uruguay, Argentina and Brazil. From the 16^th Century it started to be exported and from the 19^th Century with its chemical extraction as the psychoactive cocaine powder form it reached the whole world with the development of the routes of communication. Nevertheless, Evo Morales, the President of Bolivia (2006 to 2019) used to say: “la coca no es cocaina” (the coca is not cocaine). 

Nowadays, the cocaine use although under the control of international Conventions, is a matter of public health due to its great addictive potential and toxicity. This is resulting in great psychological dependence, physical disorders  and side effects, producing harming impacts on the individual, the familial cell, the workplace, the society, and finally on the economy of the country. Usually available as an hydrochloride salt (formula: C17H22ClNO4) cocaine has limited medical use as an anaesthetic and vasoconstrictor. This contrasts with the increasing misuse of the cocaine as a central nervous system stimulant since the early years of the twentieth century. The cocaine became popular in the sixties through artists and mass media.

In illicit use and search of the “high”, the cocaine powder (Coke, Snow, etc.) is ritually sniffed/snorted by 69% of the users, from “lines” and absorbed through the nasal mucosa and less commonly (for 2%) intraveinuously injected. The free base, sometimes known as crack, a crystal form, is smokable or heated and inhalated as fumes (for 26%). The ingestion (2% of the users) leads to a loss of psychoactive activity due to enzymatic hydrolysis in the gut.

A typical dose of cocaine or crack for a shoot is 100–200 mg.

Historical points…

• In 1859, Dr. Paolo Mantegazza, (Italy) back from Peru, described the use of coca as medicine;
• In 1860, the chemist Albert Niemann (Germany) isolated and coined the name “cocaine”; 
• In 1863, Angelo Mariani French pharmacist, using coca leaves macerated in Bordeaux wine created the tonic drink “Vin Mariani”;
• In 1885, the U.S. manufacturer Parke-Davis sold cocaine in various forms, stating that cocaine products “supply the place of food, make the coward brave, the silent eloquent and render the sufferer insensitive to pain.”
• In 1886, John S. Pemberton (USA), pharmacist veteran of the Secession war and morphine user  changed his Pemberton’s French Wine Coca in a non-alcoholic then non-cocaine (replaced by caffeine) tonic beverage, inventing the famous “Coca-Cola”.

In Europe

Most of the cocaine available in Europe, using well-organized networks, continues to be smuggled into the largest container ports of the European Union (EU) located in Belgium (Antwerp), the Netherlands (Rotterdam) and Spain (Valencia and Algeciras). In addition to Hamburg (Germany), ports in France (Le Havre, Dunkerque, Marseille), Romania (Constanta), and Italy (Gioia Tauro) have also become significant cocaine entry points. The German authorities have attributed the recent increase in seizures in the port of Hamburg to the activities of Balkan and Albanian-speaking organised crime networks (BundesKriminalAmt, 2021). 

The Southeast European Law Enforcement Center (SELEC) reported that in this part of Europe alone, the cocaine seized in 2020 amounts to 5,821.9 kg, representing a 22.3% increase. The total estimated value (street price) in 2020 is more than 281 million EUR.                                                                                     

According to the European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA), the cocaine retail market concerns about 14.0 million adults in the European Union (aged 15-64), about 5 % of this age group. This market was worth at least EUR 10.5 billion in 2020; this represents about a third of the illicit market in all drugs and makes cocaine the second-largest market after cannabis. Since the mid-1990s the drug is more affordable for consumers than in the past so the overall cocaine usage in Europe has been on the rise.

Corruption at all levels is broadly used as a facilitator of drug trafficking activities and is a key threat in the EU according to the last EU Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment (SOCTA) report (Europol, 2021a).

In addition, the cocaine gotten from the streets could be prepared with variable proportions of caffeine, ammonia, solvents, industrial products such as battery acid, and even gasoline, kerosene and quicklime, increasing their toxicity but a greater profit.

EMCDDA report that cocaine seized at or destined for EU ports in 2020 (378 seizures) was smuggled within legitimate goods (132 tonnes), followed by the rip-on/rip-off method (108 tonnes). 

Cocaine trafficking concerns all EU Member States (Europol, 2021a) via diversified smuggling routes: roads for private cars and lorries, railways, maritime transports, commercial or passengers and light aircraft, and increasingly the post services (Council of Europe, 2021).

Effects and Risks

The cocaine psychoactive substance is a tropane alkaloid as for scopolamine used in World War II,  when the THC of the cannabis is a terpene.  Alkaloids are also present in the pine, citrus, lavender, poppy, etc. About a fifth of the total plant species is synthesizing alkaloids as secondary metabolites such as in plant families from the nightshade (Solanaceae), coca (Erythroxylaceae), bindweed (Convolvulaceae), cabbage/broccoli (Brassicaceae). Not all are psychoactive.    

As for the psychoactive substances, the liposoluble cocaine passes easily through the blood-brain barrier, reaching via the bloodstream and the Central nervous system (CNS) in about five seconds to produce the euphoric effect sought by the user.

In the mid-brain, the target of the cocaine is the Nucleus Accumbens located in the limbic system and  known to be the pleasure center or reward system (Lopez Hill et al. 2011).  In this area the cocaine inhibits the re-uptake from the synaptic cleft of the neurotransmitter dopamine by the presynaptic neurons by blocking their dopamine transporters. Thus, the artificial accumulation of dopamine in the synaptic cleft continuing to stimulate the receptors and the newly synthezised ones on the post-synaptic neurons is creating the lasting euphoric effects: the “high” from snorting may last about 15 to 30 minutes and from smoking 5 to 10 minutes. Injecting provides a quick, strong but short result.

When the use is stopped,  the mechanisms of re-uptake of dopamine are re-activated so the stimulating effect disappears  giving the manifestations of anxiety, feeling of lack and depression. Cocaine interfers also with the activities of the receptors of serotonin (regulation of behaviors, anxiety, learning, etc.) and noradrenaline (alertness, excitment, attention, etc.).

Considering that the nerves of the limbic area (emotions and reward system) are in relation to the cortex pre-frontal (judgement and decision) this explains the compulsive urge for the user to seek for more drug to continue the “high”. This is explaining the overall and powerful addictive effect of cocaine.

Mental effects of cocaine use include an intense feeling of happiness, sexual arousal, loss of contact with reality, paranoia, and agitation (Pomara C., et al. 2012). But also it increases the physical risks of stroke, cardiac arrhythmia, lung injury for smokers, sweating, high blood pressure, body temperature, dilated pupils and sudden cardiac death. The withdrawal symptoms include depression, decreased libido and ability to feel pleasure and increased fatigue feeling.

Based on data from 20 European countries there were an estimated 473 cocaine-related deaths in 2020 or about 13.5 % of all drug-induced deaths. These results are underestimated.

In Fine…

At a time whenthe governmental debates on eventual drug decriminalization or legalization are gaining all the countries and neglecting the health consequences for their peoples, when the profits and corruption at high levels are taking over the population and youth safety, it is more than ever vital to remind the words of Ms. Johansson of the European Commission (31.3.2022): “The new EU Drugs Strategy 2020-2025 …[has] the aims to ensure a high level of health promotion, social stability and security and contribute to awareness raising”.

The “awareness raising” can be easily achieved through education. Indeed, as for any other subject,

“Education is the progressive discovery of our own ignorance” said William Durant (1885-1981). This ignorance of the drug effects is life endangering when not fatal for the cocaine and drug users!

To contribute to this drug preventive education of the youth (and parents) the Foundation for a Drug Free Europe and its hundred of associations and groups across Europe are delivering lectures, distributing informative booklets (14 booklets on most used drugs of 24 pages, in 17 languages, including on cocaine), educative audiovisual materials and a guide for lessons as part of the Foundation for a Drug-Free World campaign The Truth About Drugs.

Witness to the harming effects of drug use, let’s preventively educate the youth and people so they will be able to realize their full life potentials in a safer society and in a better world!

EVENT EuARe2022: "Italian Constitution and the New Religious Movements - 21 Jun 10:15"

Italian society is pluralist in its constitutional pattern and religions, even with their differences, require equal freedom and equal legal recognition. Further requests are also addressed to the civil law systems by the so-called New Religious Movements (NRM).

This event will take place tomorrow jun 21st 10:15h, at Plesso Belmeloro, Via Andreatta, 8 | Aula L, in Bologna, as part of the hundreds of conferences organized by the European Academy of Religion.

Chair: Alfonso Celotto (Università Roma Tre)

Speakers:

• Francesco Sorvillo (Università della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”), Religious denominations without agreement: Re-reading Article 8 of the Italian Constitution
• Ludovica Decimo (Università della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”), Religious organizations in the Article 20 of the Italian Constitution
• Miriam Abu Salem (Università della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”), The agreements between State and religious confessions: Present and future
• Federico Gravino (Università di Firenze), The principle of equal freedom in the new religious geography

The latter break in consolidated socio-cultural contexts as a result of migration flows, but also to satisfy new needs in the religious field, and therefore as a counteraction to traditional patterns of religious affiliation and participation.

In relation to these circumstances, the re-reading of the art. 8 of the Italian Constitution acquires a fundamental importance, since it provides guarantees to all religions, regardless of their structure, consistency, or adherence to “traditional” conceptual paradigms.

The panel is focused, therefore, on a re-reading of the constitutional protocols, as corollary of the aforementioned art. 8 and of the related process of institutionalization of religious groups within the Italian legal system. This point of view allows us to closely investigate the relationship between the State and religious groups of the most different provenance and traditions, but also to explore the limits and criticalities that spread from the system of recognition to the social context, with important highlights on modern plural, multi-religious and multicultural democracies.

New Research Shows Vitamin D Deficiency Leads to Dementia

Dementia is diminished cognitive functioning with a loss of ability to remember, think, solve problems, or make decisions — if it has progressed to the point that it interferes with doing everyday activities. It is a broad term, rather than a specific disease. Alzheimer’s disease is a specific type of dementia and the most common, with 6 million Americans afflicted according to the Alzheimer’s Association.

Dementia is not a normal sign of aging, even though it primarily affects older adults at least 65 years of age. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 14 million Americans will be suffering from dementia by 2060 and there is a link with vitamin D deficiency.

It is one of the major causes of disability and dependency among older people worldwide, affecting thinking and behaviors as you age. But what if you could stop this degenerative disease in its tracks?

A world-first study from the University of South Australia could make this a reality as new genetic research shows a direct link between dementia and a lack of vitamin D.

Investigating the association between vitamin D, neuroimaging features, and the risk of dementia and stroke, the study found:

• low levels of vitamin D were associated with lower brain volumes and an increased risk of dementia and stroke.
• genetic analyses supported a causal effect of vitamin D deficiency and dementia.
• in some populations, as much as 17 percent of dementia cases might be prevented by increasing everyone to normal levels of vitamin D (50 nmol/L).

Dementia is a chronic or progressive syndrome that leads to deterioration in cognitive function. About 487,500 Australians live with dementia and it is the country’s second leading cause of death. Globally, more than 55 million people have dementia with 10 million new cases diagnosed every year.

Supported by the National Health and Medical Research Council, the genetic study analyzed data from 294,514 participants from the UK Biobank, examining the impact of low levels of vitamin D (25 nmol/L) and the risk of dementia and stroke. Nonlinear Mendelian randomization (MR) – a method of using measured variation in genes to examine the causal effect of a modifiable exposure on disease — were used to test for underlying causality for neuroimaging outcomes, dementia, and stroke.

Senior investigator and Director of UniSA’s Australian Centre for Precision Health, Professor Elina Hyppönen, says the findings are important for the prevention of dementia and appreciating the need to abolish vitamin D deficiency.

“Vitamin D is a hormone precursor that is increasingly recognized for widespread effects, including on brain health, but until now it has been very difficult to examine what would happen if we were able to prevent vitamin D deficiency,” Prof Hyppönen says.

“Our study is the first to examine the effect of very low levels of vitamin D on the risks of dementia and stroke, using robust genetic analyses among a large population.

“Our study is the first to examine the effect of very low levels of vitamin D on the risks of dementia and stroke, using robust genetic analyses among a large population.

“In some contexts, where vitamin D deficiency is relatively common, our findings have important implications for dementia risks. Indeed, in this UK population we observed that up to 17 percent of dementia cases might have been avoided by boosting vitamin D levels to be within a normal range.”

The findings are incredibly significant given the high prevalence of dementia around the world.

“Dementia is a progressive and debilitating disease that can devastate individuals and families alike,” Prof Hyppönen says.

“If we’re able to change this reality through ensuring that none of us is severely vitamin D deficient, it would also have further benefits and we could change the health and wellbeing for thousands.”

“Most of us are likely to be ok, but for anyone who for whatever reason may not receive enough vitamin D from the sun, modifications to diet may not be enough, and supplementation may well be needed.”

Read more

Longevity Secret: Major Gut Health Vitamin D

Do you know which vitamin supports vision?

Reference: “Vitamin D and brain health: an observational and Mendelian randomization study” by Shreeya S Navale, Anwar Mulugeta, Ang Zhou, David J Llewellyn and Elina Hyppönen, 22 April 2022, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.DOI: 10.1093/ajcn/nqac107

Hate speech ‘dehumanizes individuals and communities’: Guterres

UNESCO says that hate speech is on the rise worldwide.

Hate speech incites violence, undermines diversity and social cohesion and “threatens the common values and principles that bind us together,” the UN chief said in his message for the first-ever International Day for Countering Hate Speech.

“It promotes racism, xenophobia and misogyny; it dehumanizes individuals and communities; and it has a serious impact on our efforts to promote peace and security, human rights, and sustainable development,” underscored Secretary-General António Guterres.

Dangerous words

He explained that words can be weaponized and cause physical harm.

Ahead of the International Day for Countering Hate Speech and everyday, join UN Human Rights Chief @mbachelet and say #NoToHate. pic.twitter.com/czn8Pokmxf

— UN Human Rights (@UNHumanRights) June 17, 2022

The escalation from hate speech to violence, has played a significant role in the most horrific and tragic crimes of the modern age, from the antisemitism driving the Holocaust, to the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, he said. 

“The internet and social media have turbocharged hate speech, enabling it to spread like wildfire across borders,” added the UN chief.

Fighting back

The spread of hate speech against minorities during the COVID-19 pandemic has further shown that many societies are highly vulnerable to the stigma, discrimination and conspiracies it promotes.

In response to this growing threat, three years ago, Mr. Guterres launched the UN Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech – a new framework to support Member States in countering the scourge, while also managing to respect freedom of expression and opinion.

It was undertaken in collaboration with civil society, media, technology companies and social media platforms.

And last year, the UN General Assembly passed a resolution calling for inter-cultural and inter-religious dialogue to counter hate speech – and proclaimed the International Day.

“Hate speech is a danger to everyone and fighting it, is a job for everyone,” said the UN chief.

“This first International Day to Counter Hate Speech is a call to action. Let us recommit to doing everything in our power to prevent and end hate speech by promoting respect for diversity and inclusivity”.

Hate fuelling hostilities

In a sign of how the phenomenon is becoming an increasing problem, UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet and UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, Alice Nderitu, expressed their “deep alarm” on Friday, over the hate speech that is fuelling violence against civilians, in long-running clashes between the M23 rebel group and Government forces in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

The two top officials called for the uptick in attacks against civilians to stop immediately.

“We call on all parties to respect international human rights law and international humanitarian law,” they stressed.

The UN senior officials singled out that hate speech and “incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence nationwide” – directed specifically against Kinyarwanda speakers – was an important factor, as the DRC Government has accused Rwanda of supporting the M23.

“Hate speech fuels the conflict by exacerbating mistrust between communities,” they said.

“It focuses on aspects that have previously mattered less, incites a discourse of ‘us vs. them’, and corrodes social cohesion between communities that have previously lived together”.

Spreading hatred

So far, the UN has documented eight cases of hate speech and incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence and it has been spread by political party figures, community leaders, civil society actors, as well as the Congolese diaspora.

“Times of heightened political tensions and armed conflict tend to correlate with increased use of hate speech and incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence,” the two top officials stated.

“Hateful messages heighten the risk of violence, including atrocity crimes targeting specific groups of people [and] should be roundly condemned by the highest national authorities and curbed.”

Both women encouraged Parliament to expedite the adoption of the bill on “racism, xenophobia and tribalism” to strengthen the legal framework to address and counter hate speech.

 

War: what is it that religions really say about peace?

In a time where peace has become more than the lack of war, war has hit what is considered the “civilized” world, there are few who willingly misinterpret the time, context, and text to justify the killing of other human beings, forgetting all lessons learned from history.

What is religion?

Religion is a social and cultural system that includes predetermined behaviours and rituals, morals, world-views, books, holy locations, prophecies, ethics, and organizations. It connects humans to mystical or spiritual components of the supernatural world. Religion is a combination of religious attitudes, beliefs, and behaviours that can be personal or institutionalized.

The different types of religions

There are many religions in the world, but we will only discuss the six major religions in this text. Judaism, Islam, Christianity, Sikhism, Buddhism, Scientology and Hinduism are the 7 of the most known religions. We’ll look at each religion’s scriptural views about peace and the importance thereof.

Buddhism

Buddhism, unlike the first four religions, does not believe in an external God. Buddhists, on the other hand, seek personal enlightenment and adhere to the teachings of Buddha, a former prince who attained enlightenment after renouncing his life of luxury. According to Buddhists, the Four Noble Truths were discovered by Buddha.

Peace, according to Buddhism, is an inner condition of mental tranquillity that flows outward. Attaining a level of inner calm could serve as an example for everyone. Meditation helped Buddha achieve inner serenity, which encouraged him to work for world peace.

Christianity

Photo by Daniele Franchi

Christians adhere to the Christian faith. Christianity is one of the six major faiths. Christians, like Jews and Muslims, believe in one God: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. They study the Bible and attempt to follow Jesus Christ’s teachings. Churches are where the vast majority of Christians worship.

The Old Testament‘s definition of “peace” largely alludes to completeness, total health, and total welfare. It refers to the totality of God’s benefits bestowed on a member of the covenant community.

This is what the Bible says about peace in its verses. “I leave my peace with you; I give you my peace.” I do not give to you as the world does. Don’t let your hearts be worried, and don’t be terrified. “As a result, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, because we have been justified by faith.”

Hinduism

Hinduism, like Buddhism, is an Indian religion that is not monotheistic. Rather, it is based on a set of traditions and beliefs that were not established by a single person.

Hinduism emphasizes the importance of peace. Because of the eschatological implications, peace is not only necessary within oneself in Hinduism, but it is also extremely important to act peacefully toward others.

Islam

Muslims are people who adhere to the Islamic religion. They believe in the power of Allah, the Arabic word for God, which is another monotheistic faith. Muslims adhere to Islam’s five pillars, read the Qur’an, and pray in mosques.

Peace in Islam is defined as submission to Allah’s will through sharia, Allah’s holy and eternal rule, and the expansion of the Dar al-Islam, or ‘House of Islam,’ to encompass the entire globe. In the absence of sharia, there is no peace. Muslims believe that the only way to acquire inner peace is to completely surrender to Allah.

Judaism

The earliest religious group, Judaism, is the first of these world faiths. Jews believe in a single, all-powerful God who has made a specific deal with people, known as a covenant. To thank God for His protection and direction, Jews devote their lives to following God’s laws.

The Hebrew Bible mentions the well-known commandment to “love thy neighbour as thyself,” which is echoed throughout Judaism’s sacred literature. As a matter of fact, one of the primary concepts of Jewish law is the love of peace and the pursuit of peace.

In Judaism, peace is a very important belief. Jews will greet one another with the Hebrew phrase “Shalom,” which means “peace and happiness.” It evokes feelings of happiness and well-being. Within Judaism, peace between man and God, as well as between organizations and individuals, is highly valued and must be practised.

Scientology

The one that is considered probably the newest world religion due to its fast growth is Scientology, founded by American author L. Ron Hubbard, who is very well known also for his secular work in drug rehabilitation, values and education. It is in one of his fiction books (Battlefield Earth) that we find a very interesting call for Peace.

HEAR ME!! Out of a hell of shot and shell,// Out of this chaos of contention,// Let us bring peace to pointless fight.// Why do we court the whore called war?// Why make of Earth a shattered night?// There is no ecstasy in killing.// Love alone can make man willing.// So hear me warriors, hear me mothers.// There is no pay in slaughtered brothers.
Attention, if your sense is fair,// heed that which we now declare.// PEACE! You races far and wide. PEACE!// Abandon your blood-soaked suicide// and now abide in peace!// Echo me!// As in your hearts you yearn for love, not death!// PEACE, we have declared it.// Snarls and strife must be at end!// In peace alone can this Earth mend.// And now find ecstasy in love, love for Earth, for all.// The gods of peace have now spoken.// OBEY!

Sikhism

Sikhism, founded by Guru Nanak, is another religion that believes in a single God. Sikhs believe that there is only one God, who is present everywhere and in all things.

They don’t really believe that war is always sinful, but that it should only be used as a last resort. As Guru Nanak, Guru Arjan, and Guru Tegh Bahadur demonstrated, peaceful techniques include discussion and non-violence.

Conclusion

Religious tolerance is an important component of every peaceful community, and religious freedom is a global human right that all countries must protect. It is critical to respect one’s religion. No one should be judged because it is everyone’s right to worship whatever they believe in.

A Turkish farmer became a millionaire with purple stones from his field

Farmer Ali Aiden, who lives in the village of Akpanar in the Harmandzhik region, found unusual purple stones in his field. He became curious and brought them for expertise in the regional city of Bursa. As a result of their research, it was established that the stones found in his field were made of purple jade.

These purple colored stones are a mixture of the colors of basic jadeite, quartz, phlogopite, chlorotoid, epidote and six orthoclase minerals. They are known to occur only in this region.

In the past, villagers in the region were unaware of the value of the stones and sold them cheaply as a cladding material. Foreign traders bought them by truck, and some of them were even simply stolen or taken without money.

It turns out that purple stones are used in jewelry design. So Ali Aidan, who has about 1 ton of stone left, is really lucky. Now he is considering selling the stones for a large sum if he finds a buyer.

He complained to the Anatolian State Agency:

“It was too late until I realized the fact that the purple stones found in my field were the purple jade gemstone. I have missed a great fortune so far, but I now aim to make money with the last stones I have left.”

Aiden added: “I understand that this stone cost $ 1,600. He was known in Japan to bring happiness. He brought happiness to me too. It turned out that I have a treasure in my field. At first I couldn’t believe it. “

Although the green and white “jade” found in many regions of the world has been known since ancient times, the rich mineral deposit containing purple jade with the quality of precious stones has not been registered elsewhere. Therefore, the only known source of purple jade in the world is located in this geologically studied region. The most typical raw blocks of purple jade are obtained from the deposit near the village of Akpanar. This bulky material is known for its “very suitable for cutting various objects and gemstones”.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon looks ahead to the UK-hosted conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief

Minister of State Lord Ahmad looks forward to the UK hosting the International Ministerial Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief in London in July 2022.

The conference will bring together government, civil society, faith and belief groups to agree on actions to:

• prevent Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) violations and abuses
• protect and promote freedom of religion or belief internationally

The conference programme will be wide-ranging and inclusive, involving a diverse set of participants and speakers with the overarching aim of promoting respect for FoRB around the world.

Statement from Lord Ahmad

I’m sincerely looking forward to welcoming our partners and friends from around the world to London in early July for the United Kingdom-hosted Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief.

This will be the first international ministerial conference on this theme since 2020 and the first to take place in person since 2019.

Together with our international partners we share a collective commitment to freedom of religion or belief for everyone, everywhere.

This is an issue that we all should care about. Although the right to freedom of religion or belief is enshrined in Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights it is regrettable, indeed tragic, that too many people around the world continue to live in fear of persecution on the basis of what they choose to believe or not to believe, or indeed how they choose to practice those beliefs.

Being denied the fundamental human right of freedom of religion or belief can be devastating for individuals and communities.

At the conference we’ll therefore hear from survivors directly on the impact that persecution has had upon them, on their lives, on their communities.

As individuals suffer from being denied this human right, societies, countries where survivors live suffer too. They become smaller, diminished culturally and spiritually by this lack of freedom. Therefore, let us strengthen all of our communities by driving forward the collective importance of not just promoting this important issue, but strengthening freedom of religion or belief for all.

This conference in London will bring together ministers, but also importantly other representatives from government, from faith and belief group leaders, and indeed importantly from civil society as well.

Alongside the official ministerial conference, an associated conference fringe will see a series of events organized directly by civil society.

These will be taking place around the United Kingdom and provide further opportunities for all to join this important debate and discussion and learn from each other about this important issue.

I therefore hope that you will take this opportunity to really get involved and share our collective commitment to promoting and protecting, and indeed strengthening freedom of religion or belief for everyone across the world.

Source

Video games for climate action: winning solutions for the planet

Video games for climate action with special features, pop-ups, and real-life tree-planting opportunities embedded within beloved classics like PAC-MAN or Angry Birds, the gaming industry is working with the United Nations to engage audiences like never before and inspire a new wave of climate action.

Sometime before the COVID-19 pandemic, Cassie Flynn was heading to work on a rush-hour packed New York City subway train.

As the Strategic Advisor on Climate Change for the UN Development Programme (UNDP), she often used the monotony of the commute to think of innovative ways to get ordinary people involved in the climate fight, and on this day, she noticed everyone around her busy doing something on their phones.

“I was a bit cheeky, and I started looking at what people were doing and I kind of peeked over this woman’s shoulder and saw she was playing Angry Birds, and then I looked over and this other guy was playing Candy Crush. All of these people were playing games on their phones,” she recalled while speaking to UN News.

A lightbulb went off, and Ms. Flynn thought: “What if we could meet people there?”

“You know how in [some] games they have these 30-second ads that pop up? What if we could use that? Instead of it being an advertisement for another game or something else, what if this is where we could talk to people about climate change?”

And that’s exactly what she and her team at UNDP did.

UNDP – The mobile game Mission 1.5 by UNDP and partners allows users to vote on climate solutions and actions they wat to see happen

Influencing global policy by playing a mobile game

Ms. Flynn’s momentous subway ride gave birth to UNDP’s Mission 1.5 mobile game, which allows people to learn about the climate crisis and at the same time communicate to governments about solutions that could be put in place to tackle it – all while they’re exploring virtual universes.

“More people play videogames on their phones than they [listen to] music and [watch] videos combined, it’s just massive,” says the expert.

Thanks to an inter-agency effort and a partnership with a gaming company, UNDP’s game – which challenges users to make the right decisions to keep the world on the path to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees –went online at the beginning of 2020.

“Fast forward [to today], we have about 6 million people that have played the game so far in 58 countries, with a 50 per cent completion rate. So, when people start it, they really play it, which is something that we’re really excited about,” Ms. Flynn adds.

But it goes beyond educating the users on climate solutions in 17 languages; the game asks them to cast a vote about which strategies, in their opinion, would be more successful to tackle the crisis.

These answers have become the source for what is now known as the ‘People’s climate vote,’ the largest survey of public opinion on climate change ever conducted.

“We took data from about 50 countries, and we were able to use the samples to cover over half of the world’s population in terms of their thinking on how they should solve the climate crisis,” Ms. Flynn explains.

That information has now been shared and discussed by parliamentarians all over the world and during major international meetings, such as the recent G20 summit and the latest UN Climate Conference, COP26. The results were even included in the latest series of reports issued by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which are very influential for intergovernmental negotiations.

Unsplash/Onur Binay- A young man plays famous mobile game Crash Bandicoot on his smartphone.

Reaching new populations: The Playing for the Planet Alliance

Mission 1.5’s success is only the tip of the iceberg if we think about the reach of today’s video gaming industry, which stretches beyond our smartphones onto the screens of at least 3 billion people in the world – or 1 in every 3 people in the planet.

“The video gaming industry is probably the most powerful medium in the world in terms of attention, reach and engagement,” says Sam Barratt, UN Environment’s Chief of Education, Youth & Advocacy.

Mr. Barratt is the Co-Founder of the first-of-its-kind group of private video game sector organizations that have made commitments to help protect people and the planet, with the support of the United Nations.

Launched during the pivotal 2019 UN Climate Action Summit, the Playing for the Planet Alliance has made headlines in recent years for including commitments from some of the major names in the gaming industry, such as Microsoft, Sony and Ubisoft, as well as dozens of other well-known videogame studios.

Mr. Barrat was inspired by watching his son spend time exploring, playing, and socializing on these platforms, and seeing how the games created incentives to keep the players engaged.

“[It was] an industry that hadn’t really thought about what difference it could make”, he explains to UN News.

Courtesy: SIE – Snapshot of the game “Dreams” by Media Molecule and Sony which is participating in the Green Jam 2021

Less carbon footprint, more action

The alliance aims to work with these companies on two fronts: First, reducing the carbon footprint of their industries; and second, harnessing the power of their platforms to include messages or steps they might take related to climate action.

“We’ve built a really strong community of practice on this agenda. We’ve doubled in size – for now, at least over 40 studios – with more coming on board. The way I see our role [as United Nations] is that we’re facilitating leadership, we’re here to help the industry… but in the end, it’s a voluntary initiative where the kind of leadership that they show is determined by them,” Mr. Barrat explains.

Playing for the Planet also does a yearly ‘Green Game Jam’, which is an opportunity for videogame studios to get extra creative and integrate green activations within their popular games or create new ones.

This means including environmentally themed features and messages, educating users and inviting them to donate or to participate in UN conservation and restoration campaigns.

Courtesy: Ustwo Games – Cover of the game Alba, which teaches users about sustainability.

It’s not all fun and games

Over the past two years there has already been an array of cool initiatives and games that have made a difference outside of the screens.

For instance, different activations in games during the Jams have contributed to the planting of over 266,000 trees, with this number likely to increase.

Another remarkable example is the popular video game Alba: A Wildlife Adventure by the English studio Ustwo, which is a member of the Alliance.

The game features a girl protagonist who tries to prevent the construction of a resort on a beautiful Mediterranean Island. It teaches the importance of conservation and restoration to PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, PC and iOS users, while devoting some of the proceeds from every download to support tree-planting as a strategy to reduce greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

Alba has so far led to a remarkable 1 million trees planted and 3 habitats restored, with this number set to grow.

During the last Green Game Jam in 2021, UN Environment invited participant studios to support campaigns such as Play4Forests, a petition to demand action from world leaders in protecting forests; and Glowing Glowing Gone, to accelerate ocean protection and climate action.

Studios with a combined reach of 1 billion players participated in the 2021 Jam, and they were able to engage 130 million players around the world with some 60,000 pledges signed for the UN campaigns, and $800,000 in donations to different charities working with environmental causes.

And of course, it was also fun. Just to give you a few examples:

PAC-MAN players were able to play a forest-themed ‘Adventure Mode’ with six stages, an album filled with collectibles and a skin [a download which changes the appearance of characters in the game] as the reward for the event completion.

Minecraft, a 3-D computer game where players can build anything, added an additional lesson plan on ‘Radical Recycling’ to player maps, and therefore was able to make a $100,000 donation to The Nature Conservancy.

Pokémon Go created the first-of-its-kind avatar item to give players a new way to voice their support for sustainability efforts.

Angry Birds fans were able to collect a special Mariner Hat Set for participating in a Sea Adventure, and the campaign reached over 280,000 people.

Meanwhile, for Anno 1800, a city-building real-time strategy video game, PC players usually grow settlements and create massive production chains in a world with infinite resources. This time, they learned how, in the real world, their decisions affect the environment and could end up destroying it.

Players start out on an untouched island with a small population and are required to create a sustainable city. If they don’t keep in mind the downsides of population growth and find measures to counter them, the island’s ecosystem and the city will ultimately collapse.

For example, building monocultures depletes island fertility, over-fishing destroys food supplies for future generations, and deforestation leads to deserted islands.

This last game initiative won the Jam’s UNEP’s choice award for 2021.

Courtesy: Ubisoft – Settlement in the PC game Anno 1800 supporting the Play4Forest UN campaign.

Decarbonizing the industry

Speaking about change in the real world, according to the latest report of the Playing for the Planet Alliance, 60 per cent of its members are now committed to becoming net zero or carbon negative by 2030 at the latest.

“So, we do know that for many gaming companies, most of the carbon is produced through games that play on devices. Mainly through mobile and all through other parts of that scope. But we still don’t have a full picture. We are working this year to get the whole industry to come up with a methodology so they can understand how they can recall that carbon impact,” Alliance co-founder Sam Barrat, explains.

He adds that while gaming seems to have a lesser carbon footprint when compared with other leisure activities, it all depends on how long users play and what media they use for it.

“When you’re playing on a CD ROM and playing that game a lot, the carbon consequence of its life cycle approach is less than streaming lots of small games,” Mr. Barrat says, highlighting that the Alliance is working together to figure out ways to measure their emissions better.  

Unsplash/Mika Baumeister – A young person holds a cell phone with the game Minecraft Earth.

Big companies are already starting to take the lead

Last year, Microsoft conducted a report that details the amount of energy in Watt-hours that mobile devices use while playing mobile video games in a 30-minute period of gameplay.

The previous study that was being used for calculation was from 2012, so this new dataset will allow companies to make more accurate calculations of gamers’ energy use through mobile gaming.

Meanwhile, Sony created a carbon footprint tool on the carbon impacts of the gaming sector and made substantial improvements in the energy efficiency of their Play Station 4 and 5 consoles. 

“We also recognize the impact we have on climate change as an industry – and we are taking steps to address it… We’ve achieved an estimated avoided energy use for PS4 and PS5 consoles of 57.4 TWh [Terawatt-hour] and 0.8 TWh respectively from energy efficiency improvements we’ve made to date, such as efficient chipsets, power supplies, and low power rest mode,” Ross Townsend, Sony PlayStation Corporate Communication Manager, tells UN News.

He adds that for this year’s Earth Day, Sony Interactive Entertainment invested in high-quality projects and was able to offset carbon emissions equivalent to 100 million hours of average console electricity during gameplay.

Gameloft, a giant mobile game developer, has also made moves to reduce its carbon footprint.

“We have the ambitious project to become Net Zero Carbon with a long-term work consisting in focusing on Scopes 1 [direct greenhouse emissions associated with fuel combustion] & 2 [Indirect emissions associated with electricity, steam, cooling etc.] and by reducing our energy and electricity footprint by 80 per cent and onboarding our providers in our decarbonization’s journey,” emphasizes Stephanie Cazaux-Moutou, Gameloft Communications Manager.

Videogames being the biggest entertainment industry, the impact is real: there is a room to lead rather than follow

Since 2019, the company is also reducing its business travel and compensating the remaining emissions.

Other Alliance members are also working on a new protocol to reduce the use of plastics within the industry to be launched sometime in 2022.

“Three quarters of the consumers around the world expect brands to be actively involved in solving social and environmental changes. Videogames being the biggest entertainment industry, the impact is real: there is a room to lead rather than follow,” adds Ms. Cazaux-Moutou.

Gameloft/Lotus – The racing electric car Lotus Evija as it appears in the green activation of videogame Asphalt 9.

Into the Future

The 2022 Green Game Jam has included the participation of over 50 studios that have been launching their activations since April, and has a focus on ‘Food, Forests and Our Future’.

Gameloft, for example, integrated into Asphalt 9, a key racing game, the opportunity for players to drive stunning electric cars, including the luxurious Lotus Evija, and race for the planet.

“Gaming is no longer solely for younger generations. Considering the adverse impact climate change will have on communities across the globe, it is important to educate, inspire and engage as many people as possible,” highlights Mr. Townsend from Sony, which is also participating in the latest Jam with their game “Dreams”, inviting users to create Sustainable Farming community games, and planting up to 130,000 real world trees.

Competing videogame companies working and learning together, and collaborating with each other, might have been hard to imagine a few years ago, but today, it is a reality.

Because the truth is, if we don’t come together to end the climate crisis, no one is going to be a winner.

“There’s a real opportunity here to use this for good and to help ignite conversations around some of the world’s challenges that people may want to be engaged with and talk about, but haven’t had the opportunity… I think through video games and through the gaming industry, we can reach entirely new populations and help to engage people in new ways that we haven’t been able to before,” highlights UNDP’s Cassie Flynn.

In 2022, Mission 1.5 will launch a new series of questions to include in the game, while the Alliance will be holding several events, including a virtual climate march and a Green Game Jam student edition.

“I think this medium has got unprecedented agency and influence in the world, and it’s very young and to some extent maybe misunderstood… we’ve got no choice but to work with this industry because their kind of ability to influence behaviour is potentially exponential,” concludes Mr. Barret.

Champions League: Madrid clinch the Decimocuarta (14th)!

Real Madrid overcame Liverpool in Paris courtesy of a goal from Vini Jr. to enhance their legendary status in Europe.

RM. The Decimocuarta (14th) Champions League has arrived, as Real Madrid enhanced their legendary status in the European Cup. The kings of the competition defeated Liverpool in Paris to cap a memorable campaign which has seen the side produce several epic moments that will be remembered for a very long time.

A goal by Vini Jr. in the second half decided an evenly matched final, with Courtois coming to his side’s rescue and the travelling Madrid fans driving their side on at the Stade de France.

The most repeated final in the competition’s history kicked off 36 minutes late due to access issues for supporters outside the stadium. Liverpool began on the front foot and looked to press high up the pitch, while Real Madrid sat deep and tried to play on the counter and get behind the Reds’ defence.

The early stages of the game saw the madridistas pinned back in their area and in the 16^th minute Courtois was called into action when he got down well to deny Salah. Jurgen Klopp’s men grew in confidence and Salah and Thiago both went close from the edge of the area, while Mané came within a whisker of opening the scoring when the Madrid shotstopper somehow turned his drive onto the post (21’).

🇧🇷 Vinícius Júnior writes his name into history 🙌#UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/0hGh9JFeUO

— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) May 28, 2022

Madrid gradually managed to evade the Liverpool pressure and enjoy a bit more of the ball as the minutes ticked by. Vini Jr. continued to try his luck down the left-hand side, but without ever really troubling Alisson in the Liverpool goal. Up the other end, Salah’s headed effort found the gloves of Courtois once again (34’) and Henderson connected with a fierce drive from the edge of the box which flew well wide of the target (41’). Shortly afterwards, our team had the ball in the back of the net, but to no avail.

Valverde challenged for a ball alongside Benzema in the box and a deflection off Fabinho saw it fall back at the feet of the French forward, who swept it home past Alisson. The referee immediately turned to VAR and opted to chalk the goal off, meaning the match remained goalless at the break.

Photo:Antonio Villalba

VIDEO.0-1: Madrid clinch the Decimocuarta!

Madrid made the brighter start after the break as they asserted their tempo on proceedings and it wasn’t long before this approach reaped its rewards. Fede Valverde burst down the right and picked out Vini Jr. at the far post for the Brazilian to tap the ball into an unguarded net with 59 minutes on the clock. After having fallen behind, Liverpool pushed higher up the pitch and on 64’, a well-directed Salah effort drew a fine diving save from Courtois. Four minutes later, the Belgian shot-stopper once again came to the rescue to deny the Egyptian attacker.

As the contest entered the final stages, the outcome was still very much in the air. Liverpool continued to search for an equaliser, but Madrid had the chances to have put the result beyond the Reds’ reach.

Courtois pulled off another stunning save to deny Salah in a one-on-one and conserve the Whites’ lead. Ceballos and Camavinga, who were introduced to offer some fresh legs, could have both doubled Madrid’s money.

Meanwhile, Liverpool continued to hang balls up into the box, but there was no change to the scoreline. The final whistle was greeted with wild celebrations on the pitch and in the stands. The club’s 14th European Cup crown brings the curtain down on an impressive season that has seen our team triumph in the Champions League, LaLiga and the Spanish Super Cup.

(source)

Council of Europe finalizing stand on deinstitutionalisation of persons with disabilities

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in the end of April approved a Recommendation and a Resolution on the deinstitutionalisation of persons with disabilities. These are providing important guidelines in the process of implementing human rights in this field for the years to come. The senior decision-making body of the Council of Europe, the Committee of Ministers, as part of the final process now asked three of its committees to review the Assembly Recommendation and provide possible comments by mid-June. The Committee of Ministers is then to finalize its and thereby the Council of Europe’s stand on the deinstitutionalisation of persons with disabilities.

The Parliamentary Assembly reiterated in its Recommendation the urgent need for the Council of Europe, “to fully integrate the paradigm shift initiated by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) into its work.”

Assembly Recommendation

The Assembly specifically requested support for member States “in their development, in co-operation with organisations of persons with disabilities, of adequately funded, human-rights compliant strategies for deinstitutionalisation”. The parliamentarians stressed this should be done with clear time frames and benchmarks with a view to a genuine transition to independent living for persons with disabilities. And that this should be in accordance with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Article 19 on living independently and being included in the community.

The Assembly secondly recommended the Committee of Ministers to “prioritise support to member States to immediately start transitioning to the abolition of coercive practices in mental health settings.” And the parliamentarians further stressed that in dealing with children, who has been placed in mental health settings, one has to ensure that the transmission is child-centred and human-rights compliant.

The Assembly as a final point recommended that in line with the unanimously adopted Assembly Recommendation 2158 (2019), Ending coercion in mental health: the need for a human rights-based approach that the Council of Europe and its member states “refrain from endorsing or adopting draft legal texts which would make successful and meaningful deinstitutionalisation, as well as the abolition of coercive practices in mental health settings more difficult, and which go against the spirit and the letter of the CRPD.”

With this final point the Assembly pointed to the controversial drafted possible new legal instrument regulating the protection of persons during the use of coercive measures in psychiatry. This is a text which the Council of Europe’s Committee on Bioethics has drafted in extension of the Council of Europe Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine. The convention’s article 7, which is the main relevant text in question as well as its reference text, the European Convention on Human Rights article 5 (1)(e), contain viewpoints based on outdated discriminatory policies from the first part of the 1900s.

Prevention versus ban

The drafted possible new legal instrument has been severely criticized as despite its stated seemingly important intend of protecting victims of coercive brutalities in psychiatry potentially amounting to torture it in effect perpetuate a Eugenics ghost in Europe. The viewpoint of regulating and preventing as much as possible such harmful practices is in stark opposition to the requirements of modern human rights, that simply ban them.

The Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers following the receipt of the Assembly Recommendation communicated it to its Steering Committee for Human Rights in the fields of Biomedicine and Health (CDBIO), for information and possible comments by 17 June 2022. It is noted that this is the very committee, though with a new name, that had drafted the controversial possible new legal instrument regulating the protection of persons during the use of coercive measures in psychiatry.

The Committee of Ministers also sent the Recommendation to the Steering Committee for the Rights of the Child (CDENF) and the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) for comments. The CPT had earlier expressed a support of the need to protect persons subjected to coercive measures in psychiatry, as clearly these measures may be degrading and inhumane. It is noted that the CPT, like other bodies within the Council of Europe has been bound by its own conventions including the outdated text of the European Convention on Human Rights article 5.

The Committee of Ministers based on the possible comments from the three committees will then prepare its stand and a reply “at an early date”. It is to be seen if the Committee of Ministers will go beyond the outdated texts of their own conventions to actually implement modern human rights in all of Europe. Only the Committee of Ministers has the full authority to set the direction for the Council of Europe.

Resolution

The Committee of Ministers in addition to reviewing the Assembly’s Recommendation also took note of the Assembly’s Resolution, that address Council of Europe member States.

The Assembly is recommending the European states – in line with their obligations under international law, and inspired by the work of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities – to implement human-rights compliant strategies for deinstitutionalisation. The resolution also calls on national parliaments to take the necessary steps to progressively repeal legislation authorising institutionalisation of persons with disabilities, as well as mental health legislation allowing for treatment without consent and detention based on impairment, with a view to ending coercion in mental health.

Russia: A Danish Jehovah’s Witness released after five years in prison

After five years spent in prison, Dennis Christensen was released this Tuesday 24^th May. He is expected to be deported to Denmark on Wednesday morning.

Dennis Christensen has served 5 years of his 6-year sentence. This is because his two years in pretrial detention counts as three years towards his sentence.

He was the first to be arrested and sentenced to prison following the April 2017 Russian Supreme Court ruling that liquidated the Witnesses legal entities. He has been in prison the longest, although in recent years others have been sentenced to longer terms, as much as eight years.

Dennis Christensen was born in Copenhagen (Denmark) in 1972 into a family of Jehovah’s Witnesses.

In 1991 he graduated from the courses of carpentry and in 1993 he received a diploma of construction technician at the Higher School of Craftsmen in Haslev (Denmark).

In 1995 he went to St. Petersburg to volunteer in the construction of Jehovah’s Witnesses buildings in Solnechnoye. In 1999 he moved to Murmansk where he met his future wife Irina, who by then had become a Jehovah’s Witness relatively recently. They got married in 2002, and in 2006 decided to move south to Oryol.

On February 6, 2019, the Zheleznodorozhny District Court found Christensen guilty of extremism. He was sentenced to 6 years in prison to be served in a penal colony located in Lgov (Kursk region). On May 23, 2019, the Court of Appeal upheld this verdict.

Christensen Timeline

• May 25, 2017, he was arrested and detained when heavily armed police officers and Federal Security Service (FSB) raided a peaceful weekly religious service of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Oryol, Russia.
• May 26, 2017, he was ordered to be held in pretrial detention.
• February 6, 2019, he was convicted and sentenced to six years in prison.
• May 23, 2019, he lost his appeal.

2017 Russian Supreme Court Ruling

·         The April 20, 2022, Supreme Court ruling, albeit grossly unjust, simply liquidated all of the Witnesses’ legal entities, Local Religious Organizations (LROs), in Russia and Crimea, declaring them “extremist”. During the 2017 Supreme Court hearing, the Russian government claimed that individual Witnesses would be free to practice their faith. However, the government’s claim of allowing freedom to worship has been inconsistent with its actions.

o   Additional references (link1; link2)

Home Raids, Criminal Cases, and Imprisonment (Russia + Crimea)

1755 homes raided, almost one per day, since the 2017 Supreme Court ruling

625 JWs involved in 292 criminal cases

91 total in prison, over 325 have spent some time behind bars

o   23 convicted and sentenced to prison

o   68 in pretrial detention facilities awaiting conviction or have been convicted but awaiting results of first appeal

Longest, harshest prison sentence

§  Male: 8 years—Aleksey Berchuk, Rustam Diarov, Yevgeniy Ivanov, and Sergey Klikunov

§  Female: 6 years—Anna Safronova

§  In comparison, according to Article 111 Part 1 of the Criminal Code, grievous bodily harm draws a maximum of 8 years sentence; Article 126 Part 1 of the Criminal Code, kidnapping leads to up to 5 years in prison; Article 131 Part 1 of the Criminal Code, rape is punishable with 3 to 6 years in 

§  The terms escalated in 2021.  Previous years the maximum sentence was 6.5, but in 2021 it jumped to 8 years, as noted above

§  Number of prison sentences annually steadily increased: 2019-2, 2020—4, 2021—27