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BEIJING, Dec. 31, 2021 /CNW/ — As China strides toward the second centenary goal of building a great modern socialist country in all respects, 2022 will be another important year.

“To ensure that everyone leads a better life, we must never rest on what we have achieved, and there is still a long way to go,” said Chinese President Xi Jinping on the last day of 2021.

CGTN: Looking forward to 2022, China vows never to rest on what it has achieved, ready for a long way ahead
CGTN: Looking forward to 2022, China vows never to rest on what it has achieved, ready for a long way ahead
Since the year 2014, Xi has delivered New Year addresses for nine consecutive years, leading the Chinese people to look back at achievements and looking to the journey ahead.

China fulfills responsibility to history

After sending greetings to the Chinese people, the president continued his address with describing the year 2021 as “exceptionally significant”.

“At the historical convergence of the Two Centenary Goals, we have set out on a new journey of building a modern socialist country in all respects and are making confident strides on the path toward the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,” he said.

In 2021, China realized the first centenary goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respect, the Communist Party of China (CPC) celebrated its centenary, and the resolution on major achievements and the historical experience of CPC over the past century was adopted.

He announced on July 1 that China has realized its first centenary goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects. Poverty eradication is considered the “bottom-line task” in attaining this milestone development goal.

Realization of a moderately prosperous society in all respects and elimination of extreme poverty is what the CPC has delivered to the Chinese people, and it is also a contribution to the world, Xi said on Friday.

China’s fight against COVID-19 and contribution to the global COVID-19 response is another highlight.

Reviewing phone calls and virtual meetings with foreign leaders and heads of international organizations, he said that only through unity, solidarity and cooperation can countries around the world write a new chapter in building a community with a shared future for mankind.

To date, China has provided two billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines to more than 120 countries and international organizations.

China ready for a long way ahead

“The world is turning its eyes to China, and China is ready,” Xi said when eyeing the coming year.

The Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games are about a month away, making Beijing the first city in the world to host both Summer and Winter Olympics.

Noting that realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation will be no easy task, he stressed the importance of carrying out “bold self-revolution so as to gain the historical initiative”.

The sixth plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee held in November reviewed the Party’s endeavors over the past century, setting a guideline for the Party to achieve national rejuvenation by learning from history.

The plenum also decided to convene the 20th CPC National Congress in the second half of 2022, a highly important event of great political significance for both the Party and the country.

“The concerns of the people are what I always care about, and the aspirations of the people are what I always strive for,” Xi said.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2021-12-31/China-vows-never-rest-on-the-achieved-ready-for-a-long-way-ahead-16rIxPSgxfq/index.html

SOURCE CGTN

CONTACT: Jiang Simin, +86-188-2655-3286, cgtn@cgtn.com

DALLAS, Dec. 9, 2021 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — Thomas J. Henry Law, one of Texas’s largest and most successful law firms, is actively seeking experienced Litigation Attorneys for its Dallas, San Antonio, Austin, Houston, and Corpus Christi, Texas offices. Qualified candidates will benefit from a generous base salary of $250,000 supported by Performance Based Compensation which allows top performers the ability to earn an income of seven figures annually.

Thomas J. Henry Law has experienced a large influx of high-value personal injury cases and is looking for experienced trial attorneys who are ready to secure multi-million-dollar verdicts and settlements. Cases with $1 Million or more in insurance coverage are available to be developed right now.

Recent verdicts, settlements, and judgments secured by the firm include:

$1.25 Billion for Sexual Assault Resulting in Injury to a Minor
$67 Million for a Company Vehicle Accident Resulting in a Spinal Cord and Back Injuries
$60 Million for a Drunk Driving Accident Resulting in Facial and Abdominal Injuries
$50 Million for a Trucking Accident Resulting in Wrongful Death
$35 Million for a Trucking Accident Resulting in Wrongful Death
$30.2 Million for an Accident Involving a Recalled Vehicle Resulting in Spinal Cord and Back Injuries
Ideal candidates will have first chair plaintiff personal injury trial experience and extensive deposition experience, including corporate defendants, liability and damage experts, and medical experts.

Thomas J. Henry Law Offers Industry-Leading Benefits

Thomas J. Henry Law prides itself on recruiting top legal talent by offering an industry-leading compensation and benefits package. This is why Thomas J. Henry Law was named a “Best Place to Work” in the country by Glassdoor two years in a row!

Benefits offered to experienced litigators include:

Performance based compensation with a generous base salary, an opportunity to earn $500,000 to Millions annually
Medical, Vision, and Dental Insurance
401K with Employer Matching (up to 4%)
Relocation Assistance
Continuing career growth with internal promotion paths
A built-in infrastructure of trained staff, top notch resources, and a state-of-the-art case management system to help you succeed
You also benefit from the Thomas J. Henry Law brand which is nationally recognized for its ability to take on big cases and big defendants! If you are looking for the opportunity to make the most of your experience, talents and work ethic, we have the cases, reputation, and resources to make your goals a reality.

About Thomas J. Henry Law

Thomas J. Henry Law, PLLC, is one of the nation’s leading personal injury firms. Since 1993, the firm has fought to secure justice and compensation for individuals who have lost loved ones due to the negligence of others and to prevent similar instances of wrongful death from occurring again. Over that time, Thomas J. Henry and his firm have been the recipients of numerous awards and recognitions.

In 2021, Thomas J. Henry Law was named “Law Firm of the Year” by the American Institute of Legal Professionals.

In 2020, the firm was named one of the Best Places to Work by Glassdoor for the second consecutive year. It was the only law firm to secure the accolade. Firm founder Thomas J. Henry was also named one of SA Scene Magazine’s Best San Antonio Lawyers in 2020 and was recognized in Texas Lawyer’s (an ALM Company) Southwest Top Verdicts and Settlements of 2020 for securing the #1 Gross Negligence Verdict for the year.

In 2019, Thomas J. Henry Law was recognized as one of the nation’s Premier Law Firms by Newsweek.com. That same year, Bloomberg Businessweek published a feature on Thomas J. Henry, highlighting his firm’s “clear commitment to client satisfaction.” Thomas J. Henry was also named the Best Attorney of San Antonio by the SA Current.

In 2018, Thomas J. Henry was named a Distinguished Lawyer by Lawyers of Distinction and was also recognized as one of the Best Personal Injury Attorneys in the nation by Newsweek.com. In 2017, Thomas J. Henry achieved one of the 10 largest verdicts recorded in Texas for the year (awarded to Thomas J. Henry by Texas Lawyer, an ALM company) as well as the #1 Texas Car Accident, Bus Accident, and Negligent Supervision Verdicts for the year (awarded to Thomas J. Henry by TopVerdict.com).

PR Contact: Norah Lawlor, Lawlor Media Group, Inc.

www.lawlormediagroup.com

Logo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1029508/Thomas_J_Henry_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Thomas J. Henry Law

BEIJING, Dec. 6, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — “There is no fixed model of democracy,” China said in an official document published on Saturday detailing its democratic endeavors, and whether a country is democratic “should be acknowledged by the international community, not arbitrarily decided by a few self-appointed judges.”

Democracy, the white paper titled “China: Democracy That Works” said, is “an ideal” that has always been cherished by the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Chinese people.

“Over the past hundred years, the Party has led the people in realizing people’s democracy in China. The Chinese people now truly hold in their hands their own future and that of society and the country,” the paper read.

China has termed its system “whole-process people’s democracy,” after President Xi Jinping proposed the concept two years ago in the city of Shanghai. That principle legitimates the people’s participation in day-to-day political activities at all levels, combining democratic elections, political consultation, decision-making and oversight.

The people’s status as masters of the country is the essence of people’s democracy, said the document released by China’s State Council Information Office.

‘China’s democracy has concrete, pragmatic practices’

“In China, the standard practice is to hear people’s voices, act on their needs, and pool their ideas and strength,” the document said.

According to official data, China has held 12 direct elections to people’s congresses at the township level and 11 direct elections to those at the county level, with a current participation rate of about 90 percent, since the initiation of reform and opening up.

Democratic consultation is a special feature of democracy in China. The Chinese people widely exercise their right to vote in elections and undertake extensive deliberations before major decisions are made.

The paper also stressed that the abuse of power for personal gain is eradicated by sound and effective democratic oversight.

Supervision of power extends across every area and into every corner, it said.

China’s own model of democracy

Instead of just simply copying others’ democratic models, China takes its “national conditions and realities” into consideration and manifests its own truth.

“China draws on each and every political achievement of other countries, but does not imitate any of their models of democracy,” the document said. “The model that suits best is always the most appropriate.”

Whole-process people’s democracy stands in line with the country’s distinctive features, reflecting at the same time “humanity’s universal desire for democracy.”

Humanity’s quest for and experiments with greater democracy will never end, the paper said.

The true barrier to democracy lies not in different models of democracy, but in arrogance, prejudice and hostility towards other countries’ attempts to explore their own paths to democracy, and in assumed superiority and the determination to impose one’s own model of democracy on others, it added.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2021-12-04/China-issues-white-paper-on-its-democracy-15IaQ4prtq8/index.html

SOURCE CGTN

CONTACT: Jiang Simin, +86-188-2655-3286, cgtn@cgtn.com

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www.cgtn.com

NEW YORK, Nov. 15, 2021 — Online sexual exploitation and abuse (OSEA) of women and girls is increasing at an alarming rate globally, but national and international laws are failing to effectively address the challenge because they are not keeping pace with advancing technology, finds a ground-breaking new report by international women’s rights organization Equality Now. Ending Online Sexual Exploitation and Abuse of Women and Girls: A Call for International Standards examines OSEA laws globally and was produced with legal research assistance from TrustLaw, the Thomson Reuters Foundation’s global pro bono service.

Offenders use digital services and platforms to identify victims, groom and entrap them, create and share online sexual exploitation and abuse material, and make and/or receive payments
Offenders use digital services and platforms to identify victims, groom and entrap them, create and share online sexual exploitation and abuse material, and make and/or receive payments
Ending online sexual exploitation and abuse of women and girls – a call for international standards
Ending online sexual exploitation and abuse of women and girls – a call for international standards
In light of mounting calls for greater regulation of social media platforms, this timely research gives a global overview of laws surrounding OSEA at international and regional levels, and scrutinizes national laws in India, Kenya, Nigeria, the USA, and UK (England and Wales). Gaps in laws and protections are identified and recommendations provided for the international community, governments, and digital service providers and platforms.

OSEA encompasses online grooming; live-streaming of sexual abuse; child sexual abuse material (CSAM); online sexual coercion and extortion; online sex trafficking; and image-based sexual abuse.

Onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with global expansion of inexpensive, high-speed internet and increased access to smartphones, tablets and laptops, has resulted in unprecedented numbers of people going online, and for longer time periods. This has made it easier to locate, groom, and sexually exploit women and girls with impunity.

Predators are increasingly using social media and online gaming platforms to target potential victims because these platforms offer anonymity and operate under very limited regulation.

Women and girls are particularly vulnerable as offenders take advantage of sex, gender, and structural discrimination, and the true scale of the problem is unknown because many cases go unreported.

The current patchwork of laws don’t give adequate protection, and regulations on digital service providers and platforms are inconsistent, meaning not enough is being done to keep people safe online.

Challenges highlighted in the report include:

Aspects of OSEA are addressed within the existing patchwork of international and national laws, but these do not adequately define OSEA or provide clear definitions of what constitutes “harmful content”, and commonly rely on community policing to identify perpetrators.
Many laws pre-date important technological advances, such as camera-ready technology, and don’t adequately respond to the internet’s global, ever-evolving nature.
Inconsistencies internationally and nationally in definitions of OSEA, and the application of digital service providers’ and platforms’ terms and conditions for use, make it difficult to identify and prosecute perpetrators.
Measures to prevent and detect OSEA have been mostly left to digital service providers and platforms because of the different contractual, criminal, and private law obligations placed on them in different countries. Consequently, there has been heavy reliance on voluntary measures implemented by digital service providers and platforms.
Inherent tensions exist between digital rights and freedoms and the right to protection and safety against OSEA.
Investigating and prosecuting OSEA is extremely challenging for law enforcement, partly because criminal activity is often not confined to one country or territory. Complex cases can involve multiple offenders and/or victims, various platforms, in different countries.
OSEA requires coordinated responses from the international community

Given that the internet is borderless and OSEA is global, gendered, and multi-dimensional, a global legal framework to address OSEA is required to provide standard definitions and laws for adoption, nationally and internationally. National endeavors must be supported by strong interconnected international efforts.

To holistically address OSEA, the report calls for the following:

Governments:

Review and update legislation and policies to fully protect people from OSEA;
Enact laws that clarify roles and responsibilities of digital service providers in protecting platforms users;
Strengthen national capacity to address OSEA;
Collaborate with key stakeholders including civil society organisations and digital service providers.
International community:

Develop and adopt binding international standards;
Review and update international and regional laws and instruments to ensure they align to the reality of the digital age;
Conduct up-to-date OSEA research and analysis;
Adopt legally binding standards that clarify the role, responsibility and accountability of digital service providers and platforms, in preventing, detecting and reporting OSEA on their platforms.
Digital service providers:

Apply a human rights approach in policies and practices to protect users from harm;
Collaborate with stakeholders, including law enforcement, civil society organisations, and governments.
Tsitsi Matekaire, Global Lead for Equality Now’s End Sexual Exploitation program and a lead author on the report, explains: “Online sexual exploitation and abuse is harming women and girls in every country and is growing at an alarming rate. To tackle ongoing advances in technology and cybercrime in the digital age, there is an urgent need to update national, regional and international laws to protect all at risk and punish offenders, regardless of where they are.”

“We need comprehensive laws that hold digital service provides legally accountable for sexual abuse and exploitation on their platforms. Governments must also ensure law enforcement agencies have enough expertise and resources to investigate and prosecute alleged crimes effectively.”

Carolina Henriquez- Schmitz, Director of TrustLaw, says: “Online sexual exploitation and abuse is a pressing global human rights issue in a rapidly changing digital world. TrustLaw, the Thomson Reuters Foundation’s global pro bono service, is proud to have worked with Equality Now to facilitate the pro bono legal research provided by our law firm members which led to the development of this important report.”

Media Contact:
Tara Carey
+44 07971556340
323685@email4pr.com

SOURCE Equality Now

LONDON, Nov. 15, 2021 — Investors have until 3 December 2021 to take advantage of the current EB-5 investor visa in the USA. The investment program allows applicants to obtain a green card by investing 500,000 USD in a qualifying business. On 3 December, Congress will be voting on the US budget, with many proponents pushing for a potential increase to 750,000 or 900,000 USD.

With the US passport ranked as the most powerful passport in the world, via the recently launched Global Passport Index, US citizenship is an important asset for any international investor. The Global Passport Index, created by the investment migration consultancy Global Citizen Solutions, provides a pioneering methodology that considers investment opportunities and quality of living alongside travel mobility.

“From limitless work opportunities and top-rated education to exceptional living standards, the USA is an easy choice for those looking beyond just a simple investment. While the approaching debate in Congress is something for us to keep an eye on, there is still time to take advantage of the current EB-5 investment cost. My only advice is if you’re considering an investor visa in the US, submit your application soon. There’s no telling what will happen next year” , points out Patricia Casaburi, Managing Director at Global Citizen Solutions.

Investing in an EB-5 visa grants applicants and their family members the right to permanently live in the United States, with the possibility to receive your contribution back after the investment project is completed.

To qualify for the EB-5, applicants must directly invest at least $500,000 into a US-based business in Targeted Employment Areas (TEA), which is classified as areas in need of economic stimulation. The respective investment must create at least ten full-time jobs for American workers. Alternatively, applicants can invest $1million in non-targeted areas. Other conditions for applicants include holding a clean criminal record and being in excellent health. A key perk of the EB5 scheme is that the investor can obtain citizenship after five years, provided they live for six months per year in the United States.

The EB-5 visa program was created in 1990 to encourage foreign direct investment in new business development in rural or areas with high levels of unemployment. Through the visa program, foreign nationals can qualify for green cards in exchange for qualifying investments.

Gizane Campos
gizane@globalcitizensolutions.com
+44 7968563689

SOURCE Global Citizen Solutions

BEIJING, Oct. 24, 2021 /CNW/ — The notion of Chinese democracy is not the same as that in the West. The political system in China is more about consensus building within a greater voice rather than the protracted bargaining to arrive at decisions common in the West.

The country’s application of democratic principles follows an approach Chinese President Xi Jinping has termed “whole-process people’s democracy.” The concept was put forward about two years ago, during Xi’s visit to a civic center in Shanghai.

Based on people’s congress system, the “whole-process people’s democracy” enables the Chinese people to broadly and continuously participate in the day-to-day political activities at all levels, including democratic elections, political consultation, decision-making and oversight.

The story of Chinese lawmaker Liu Li gives a glimpse into how China’s whole-process democracy operates.

A foot masseuse’s way up to China’s top legislature

Liu, a deputy to the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) China’s top legislature, has fought her way to the influential position from the grassroots.

She was born in a poor rural family in Yingshang, a small county in east China’s Anhui Province. She quit school at the age of 14 and worked to support the education of her four siblings.

After leaving home penniless, she went to Wuhan in central China’s Hubei Province to work as a waitress and nanny before finding a job as an apprentice in a foot massage center in Xiamen, east China’s Fujian Province.

Her humble background didn’t stop her charitable giving. Liu dropped out of school, but she didn’t want others to be like her. From 2006 to 2010, she sponsored over 100 students.

Liu’s goodwill made her a national celebrity. She was called “the most beautiful foot masseuse in China” and later became a representative for migrant workers and the rural population in China’s top legislative body.

In 2012, Liu was elected as a deputy to the local legislature in Xiamen and became an NPC deputy in 2013. A year later, she moved back to Anhui, where she runs a foot massage parlor and a community center for seniors. She was elected as a deputy for the 13th NPC.

‘Democracy is not for decoration’

Unlike legislators in the West who make a career of politics, China’s NPC deputies, like Liu, work part-time, and many of them are ordinary citizens from all walks of life, including farmers, factory workers, craftsmen, and even street cleaners.

At the annual full session, NPC deputies review and vote on important legal documents and personnel changes, including electing China’s president and vice president every five years and submitting motions and proposals.

Liu’s proposals have focused on disadvantaged groups, such as the elderly, children and migrant workers. In 2018, Liu proposed establishing local “one-stop” help centers to investigate child sexual abuse cases to the NPC. Her proposal was addressed by the NPC and measures were adopted.

Prosecution authorities in Anhui’s Dingyuan County took the lead and set up a juvenile legal education center to handle such cases and minimize the negative impact on children during investigations. Now, there are 15 such centers in the province.

Liu’s suggestions originated from close contact with local communities. When the NPC is not in session, she visits fellow migrant workers’ homes and collects their opinions online. She also listens to comments on society from her clients who come from all walks of life.

Liu’s story is only one example of how grassroots deputies respond to people’s needs and how people’s congresses contribute to China’s “whole-process democracy.” As Xi observed, “Democracy is not an ornament to be used for decoration; it is to be used to solve the problems that the people want to solve.”

There are five levels of people’s congresses. The deputies are elected by their respective constituencies, either directly or indirectly. NPC deputies are elected by the people’s congresses of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities. At the lower levels of township and county, deputies to people’s congresses are elected directly by voters, accounting for a majority of deputies at all levels. They elect deputies to people’s congresses of cities, who in turn elect deputies at the provincial level.

In 2019, there were a total of 2.67 million deputies of people’s congresses of all levels, including 590,000 at the county-level, and 1.94 million at the township level. Deputies at the two levels accounted for 95 percent of the total number.

“If the people are awakened only for voting but enter a dormant period soon after, if they are given a song and dance during campaigning but have no say after the election, or if they are favored during canvassing but are left out in the cold after the election, such a democracy is not a true democracy,” Xi has said.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2021-10-24/A-glimpse-of-China-s-whole-process-democracy–14BX3wxFJCg/index.html

SOURCE CGTN

CONTACT: Jiang Simin, +86-188-2655-3286, cgtn@cgtn.com

BEIJING, Oct. 10, 2021 — One hundred and ten years ago, Chinese revolutionaries led by Dr. Sun Yat-sen launched the 1911 Revolution, marking a milestone in the long and arduous journey to realize the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

Speaking at a commemorative meeting on Saturday to mark the 110th anniversary of the Revolution, Chinese President Xi Jinping called for drawing lessons from the past when achieving China’s complete reunification and driving the great cause of national rejuvenation forward.

Xi Jinping says reunification a must for China’s rejuvenation on 1911 Revolution anniversary
Xi Jinping says reunification a must for China’s rejuvenation on 1911 Revolution anniversary
“For all Chinese people, achieving national rejuvenation is not only a shared honor but also a shared mission,” said Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission.

‘China must be, will be reunified’

Xi reiterated commitments to strive for national reunification by peaceful means, saying it is in the best interests of compatriots across the Taiwan Straits as well as the Chinese nation while warning that “Taiwan independence” goes against the trend of history and will lead to a dead end.

“The Taiwan question arose out of the weakness and chaos of our nation, and it will be resolved as national rejuvenation becomes a reality,” Xi said in his speech at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, adding that cross-Strait reunification is the common will of all Chinese people.

Xi recalled that the mainland adheres to the basic policies of peaceful reunification and One Country, Two Systems, upholds the one-China policy and the 1992 Consensus and works for the peaceful development of cross-Strait relations.

Noting that the Chinese nation has an honorable tradition of opposing division and safeguarding unity, he added that “secession aimed at ‘Taiwan independence’ is the greatest obstacle to national reunification and a grave danger to national rejuvenation.”

Underlining that the Taiwan question is China’s internal affairs and brooks no external interference, Xi expressed the confidence that “the complete reunification of our country will be and can be realized.”

A historical inevitability

Longing for a bright future for the Chinese nation, Sun once wrote: “If I believe something to be feasible, even if it may be as difficult as moving a mountain or draining the sea, I will one day bring it to pass.”

Recalling these words, Xi on Saturday said that after years of hard work, China’s national rejuvenation has become a historical inevitability, with stronger institutions, firmer material foundations and a more proactive mindset.

“The past 110 years have shown us that to realize national rejuvenation, the Chinese people must have a strong force to lead us forward, and that force is the Communist Party of China,” Xi added.

On the road to national rejuvenation, “socialism with Chinese characteristics has proven to be the only correct path,” he noted.

He also urged the Chinese people to rely on their own heroic efforts. “Through courage and skill, we will overcome all major risks and challenges that may impede our path to national rejuvenation and resolutely safeguard our national sovereignty, security, and development interests,” he said.

Xi urged the Chinese people and nation to learn the patriotic lessons from the 1911 Revolution, stick together through good times and bad and rely on strong unity to overcome risks and challenges on the road ahead.

Realizing national rejuvenation needs not only a stable and united domestic environment but also a peaceful and stable international environment, Xi said.

“Aggression and hegemony are not in the blood of the Chinese people,” he pointed out, adding that China will remain a champion of world peace, a contributor to global development, and a defender of the international order, and we will do our very best to make even greater contributions to humanity.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2021-10-09/Xi-delivers-speech-at-event-marking-1911-Revolution-anniversary-14ddra598o8/index.html

SOURCE CGTN

CONTACT: Simin Jiang, jiang.simin@cgtn.com

Related Links
www.cgtn.com

THE HAGUE, Netherlands, Aug. 30, 2021 /CNW/ — Hundreds of victims of the war in Yemen today submit evidence to the International Criminal Court – calling on the new Chief Prosecutor Karim A.A. Khan QC to open an investigation into War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity committed during the six-year conflict.

In their application – filed by their legal counsel Guernica37 International Justice Chambers of London – evidence is submitted by survivors, their relatives, and families of the deceased murdered in three, well-documented and already international NGO-investigated and global reported events:

– Against a school bus in August 2018, killing 34 and maiming dozens more in an attack so devastating many families could not recover any recognisable body parts of the child victims;

– In a double missile attack launched in October 2016 against the same funeral gathering which led to at least 110 deaths and over 600 life-changing injuries;

– Torture and murder of civilians in Aden, southern Yemen by Colombian mercenaries under the command of a US private military company contracted to the United Arab Emirates.

Since the Saudi-led war commenced in 2015, destroying a well-advanced UN-mediated peace and reconciliation process, it is estimated some quarter of a million have been killed and a further three million displaced.

Speaking of the attack on behalf of victims of the school-bus attack, Almudena Bernabeu co-founder of Guernica37 said:

“At the time of the attack the Coalition claimed they would investigate and hold the perpetrators to account. Of course, they did no such thing.

“As the court of last resort, victims and families have no choice but to call on the International Criminal Court to ensure justice is done”.

In 2017 the ICC opened an investigation into crimes allegedly perpetrated by British military personnel in Iraq. While the investigation did not proceed to trial, it set a precedent that it is possible to investigate and hold accountable citizens of countries that are members of the ICC for crimes committed in countries that are not.

Although neither Yemen nor key protagonists Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are State Parties to the Rome Statue – the international treaty that establishes the jurisdiction of the ICC – other members of their war coalition, namely Jordan, Senegal, and The Maldives, are.

In addition, evidence submitted that Colombian nationals were hired as mercenaries by a US private military company contracted to the United Arab Emirates means, when Colombia is a State Party to the ICC, they too could be investigated.

Speaking as the submission is made, Toby Cadman co-founder of Guernica37 and lead counsel to the applicants added:

“Three signatories to the Rome Statue – Jordan, Senegal, and The Maldives – were members of the Saudi-led coalition at the time of both the school bus and funeral attacks.

“Similarly, citizens of another ICC member Colombia were combatants in the war at the same time.

“The ICC can and must use its clear jurisdiction to investigate these undeniable and evidenced crimes”.

In addition to the submission before the ICC, counsel for the victims is considering other legal options to pursue political and military figures of ICC signatory states. These include the issuance of Universal Jurisdiction Arrest Warrants, and the launching of a class action suit in the United States of America, United Kingdom, and in other countries and jurisdictions worldwide.

Commenting on these other legal avenues, Toby Cadman of Guernica37 added:

“While our campaign begins at the International Criminal Court, we intend to fight our case using all and every legal avenue available. Those who perpetrate the worst crimes can and will be held accountable”.

SOURCE Guernica37 International Justice Chambers

CONTACT: For more information, and to arrange interviews with the legal team at Guernica37 and families of the victims, please contact: media@btpadvisers.com +1 (202) 933-5277

NEW YORK, July 5, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — The USAFIS Organization reports a significant improvement in the attitudes expressed by foreign nationals regarding U.S. immigration since Joseph Biden became President of the United States.

“The change to a more positive attitude about America and U.S. immigration is ‘like night and day’ now that Joe Biden is in The White House,” noted Elsie Crisman, Public Relations Manager at the USAFIS Organization.

“For the past two decades, USAFIS has been helping thousands of people around the world to correctly apply for various immigrant and non-immigrant U.S. visa programs,” she explained, “so we are quite familiar with the trends and definitely noticed a big difference between the attitudes indicated by many potential immigrants during the previous four years and the renewed enthusiasm foreign nationals are currently expressing.”

The USA is the top destination for immigrants, attracting over one million newcomers each year, and it also has the most foreign-born residents of any country (approximately 45 million).

Since the end of the Second World War, there has been an upward trend in the number of foreign nationals immigrating to the United States, even when taking into account the fluctuating peaks and valleys.

The Diversity Visa Lottery Program is one of the most popular and easiest ways to immigrate to the United States and receive a U.S. Permanent Resident Green Card, since it only has two key requirements to participate: be born in an eligible country and have at least a high school education or two years of full-time paid work experience in an eligible occupation.

There are also Employment-Based Green Cards, as well as temporary non-immigrant U.S. work visas (such as the H-1B), for different categories of foreign workers.

“At the USAFIS Organization, we help thousands of individuals and families to identify their best U.S. immigration option and use our expertise to make the application process easier for them to complete correctly and efficiently,” Crisman stated.

From 2013 to 2016, the number of people immigrating to the United States was increasing every year, but following the 2016 U.S. presidential election, it went in the opposite direction.

“We know from speaking with USAFIS clients that many potential immigrants had concerns about moving to America during the past four years,” Crisman commented. “Now, everything has turned around and they are excited and hopeful about immigration to the United States under the Biden-Harris Administration,” she said.

During the 2016 presidential campaign, former U.S. Senator Joe Biden had a pro-immigration platform and he chose as his running mate former U.S. Senator Kamala Harris, the daughter of immigrants, who is the first woman, and first American of Black and Asian heritage, to become Vice-President of the United States.

His first day in The White House, January 20, 2021, President Joe Biden signed an order ending the previous president’s travel ban for people from several mainly Muslim countries, plus he sent to the Congress his U.S. immigration reform bill which offers a pathway to American citizenship for millions of immigrants and would increase the number of Diversity Visas authorized to be granted through the Green Card Lottery from 55,000 to 80,000 per year.

Furthermore, President Biden signed another order on February 24, 2021, which cancelled the previous president’s temporary Green Card suspension.

Besides his pro-immigration rhetoric and actions, President Biden’s compassion has set a more positive tone in America, while his traditional style of governing and diplomacy has reassured parties at home and abroad.

Thus, the United States is once again viewed by potential immigrants as a country that welcomes newcomers and offers them freedom, equality, economic mobility and the opportunity to live the American Dream.

“The U.S. is not perfect by any means and has its strong points as well as areas for improvement,” Crisman of USAFIS declared. “Nonetheless, no other country gives immigrants the freedom and opportunities that are available in America.”

There is a growing sense of optimism in the United States as the world’s largest economy bounces back from the disruptions caused by the global pandemic and more Americans are vaccinated against Covid-19.

In a sign that the USA is returning to normal, there is once more a major shortage of workers who are needed to fill a record 9.3 million U.S. job vacancies, according to the Department of Labor.

Something that President Biden, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the CEOs of America’s largest corporations and the owners of its small and medium businesses know is that the United States needs immigrants of various skill levels to help fill and create new jobs in the USA.

The USAFIS Organization was established in 2001 as a private entity that provides beneficial services to thousands of people who want to immigrate to the United States through the Diversity Visa Program and other immigrant and non-immigrant U.S. visa programs.

For more details, visit our site.
For registration, apply here.

Contact:
Elsie Crisman
Public Relations
usafis_registration@usafis.org
+1-646-517-6786

We, the leaders of the Group of Seven, met in Cornwall on 11-13 June 2021 determined to beat COVID-19 and build back better. We remembered everyone who has been lost to the pandemic and paid tribute to those still striving to overcome it. Inspired by their example of collaboration and determination, we gathered united by the principle that brought us together originally, that shared beliefs and shared responsibilities are the bedrock of leadership and prosperity. Guided by this, our enduring ideals as free open societies and democracies, and by our commitment to multilateralism, we have agreed a shared G7 agenda for global action to:

End the pandemic and prepare for the future by driving an intensified international effort, starting immediately, to vaccinate the world by getting as many safe vaccines to as many people as possible as fast as possible. Total G7 commitments since the start of the pandemic provide for a total of over two billion vaccine doses, with the commitments since we last met in February 2021, including here in Carbis Bay, providing for one billion doses over the next year. At the same time we will create the appropriate frameworks to strengthen our collective defences against threats to global health by: increasing and coordinating on global manufacturing capacity on all continents; improving early warning systems; and support science in a mission to shorten the cycle for the development of safe and effective vaccines, treatments and tests from 300 to 100 days.
Reinvigorate our economies by advancing recovery plans that build on the $12 trillion of support we have put in place during the pandemic. We will continue to support our economies for as long as is necessary, shifting the focus of our support from crisis response to promoting growth into the future, with plans that create jobs, invest in infrastructure, drive innovation, support people, and level up so that no place or person, irrespective of age, ethnicity or gender is left behind. This has not been the case with past global crises, and we are determined that this time it will be different.
Secure our future prosperity by championing freer, fairer trade within a reformed trading system, a more resilient global economy, and a fairer global tax system that reverses the race to the bottom. We will collaborate to ensure future frontiers of the global economy and society, from cyber space to outer space, increase the prosperity and wellbeing of all people while upholding our values as open societies. We are convinced of the potential of technological transformation for the common good in accordance with our shared values.
Protect our planet by supporting a green revolution that creates jobs, cuts emissions and seeks to limit the rise in global temperatures to 1.5 degrees. We commit to net zero no later than 2050, halving our collective emissions over the two decades to 2030, increasing and improving climate finance to 2025; and to conserve or protect at least 30 percent of our land and oceans by 2030. We acknowledge our duty to safeguard the planet for future generations.
Strengthen our partnerships with others around the world. We will develop a new partnership to build back better for the world, through a step change in our approach to investment for infrastructure, including through an initiative for clean and green growth. We are resolved to deepen our current partnership to a new deal with Africa, including by magnifying support from the International Monetary Fund for countries most in need to support our aim to reach a total global ambition of $100 billion.
Embrace our values as an enduring foundation for success in an ever changing world. We will harness the power of democracy, freedom, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights to answer the biggest questions and overcome the greatest challenges. We will do this in a way that values the individual and promotes equality, especially gender equality, including by supporting a target to get 40 million more girls into education and with at least $2¾ billion for the Global Partnership for Education.
We shall seek to advance this open agenda in collaboration with other countries and within the multilateral rules-based system. In particular, we look forward to working alongside our G20 partners and with all relevant International Organisations to secure a cleaner, greener, freer, fairer and safer future for our people and planet.

INTRODUCTION

1. We, the Leaders of the Group of Seven, met together in Cornwall, United Kingdom on 11-13 June 2021 at a critical juncture for our people and planet.

2. We acknowledge the ongoing impacts of COVID-19 in our own societies and around the world, and that those impacts have not been felt evenly. We remember all those who have died as a result of the pandemic and pay tribute to all those continuing to work to overcome the virus.

3. United as open societies and economies and guided by our shared values of democracy, freedom, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, we commit to beating COVID-19 everywhere and building back better for all. We are firmly convinced that these values remain the best foundation for the social and economic advancement of all humanity. We affirm that by investing in our people, tackling inequalities, including gender inequality, promoting dignity and championing freedoms, we will release innovation capable of tackling the great challenges of our time.

4. Our agenda for global action is built on our commitment to international cooperation, multilateralism and an open, resilient, rules-based world order. As democratic societies we support global institutions in their efforts to protect human rights, respect the rule of law, advance gender equality, manage tensions between states, address conflict, instability and climate change, and share prosperity through trade and investment. That open and resilient international order is in turn the best guarantor of security and prosperity for our own citizens.

5. We were joined in Cornwall by the Leaders of Australia, India, the Republic of Korea and South Africa, with whom we have agreed a shared statement on the value and role of open societies. We will continue to work together with these and all our partners in tackling global challenges. We reaffirm our commitment to multilateralism and to working with the G20, UN and wider multilateral system to deliver a strong, sustainable, resilient and inclusive recovery.

HEALTH

6. Our immediate focus is beating COVID-19 and we set a collective goal of ending the pandemic in 2022. The COVID-19 pandemic is not under control anywhere until it is under control everywhere. In an interconnected world global health and health security threats respect no borders. We therefore commit both to strengthen global action now to fight COVID-19, and to take further tangible steps to improve our collective defences against future threats and to bolster global health and health security. This includes strengthening the World Health Organization (WHO) and supporting it in its leading and coordinating role in the global health system.

7. We recognise that the pandemic has left no one untouched, impacting not only physical health but also mental health and social wellbeing. We pay tribute to the extraordinary efforts of first responders, health workers, paid and unpaid care workers, scientists, and manufacturers who have developed and deployed COVID-19 medical tools at a pace few thought possible, opening up a path out of the pandemic. At the same time, we recognise that we have a long way to go to achieve global equitable access to these medical tools, and to manage the risks from new COVID-19 variants which have the potential to reverse our progress.

8. Recognising that ending the pandemic in 2022 will require vaccinating at least 60 per cent of the global population, we will intensify our action to save lives. Our international priority is to accelerate the rollout of safe and effective, accessible and affordable vaccines for the poorest countries, noting the role of extensive immunisation as a global public good. We reiterate our endorsement of the G20 Rome Declaration and the statement agreed by our Foreign and Development Ministers on equitable access. We will work together and with others, leveraging the full spectrum of the capability and capacity we can each deploy to support the global vaccination effort, through finance for and sharing of doses, science, ensuring accessibility through voluntary licensing, manufacturing and ensuring availability through exports, opening supply chains, and supporting final mile delivery.

9. We reaffirm our support for the ACT-A and its COVAX Facility as the primary route for providing vaccines to the poorest countries. Since the start of the pandemic, we have committed $8.6 billion to the vaccines pillar of ACT-A to finance the procurement of vaccines, including $1.9 billion since we last met in February. This provides for the equivalent of over one billion doses. We welcome the recent successful COVAX Summit co-hosted by Japan and Gavi which mobilised financing pledges exceeding the COVAX AMC target. Recognising the urgent need to speed up delivery of doses, we are committing to share at least 870 million doses directly over the next year. We will make these doses available as soon as possible and aim to deliver at least half by the end of 2021 primarily channelled through COVAX towards those in greatest need. Taken together, the dose equivalent of our financial contributions and our direct dose sharing mean that the G7’s commitments since the start of the pandemic provide for a total of over two billion vaccine doses. The commitments since we last met in February 2021 including here in Carbis Bay provide for one billion doses over the next year. We will work together with the private sector, the G20 and other countries to increase this contribution over the months to come.

10. These commitments build on our wider contributions to the global vaccination effort. These include exports from domestic production, with at least 700 million doses exported or to be exported this year, of which almost half have gone or will go to non-G7 countries, with a commitment to continue exporting in significant proportions; and the promotion of voluntary licensing and not-for-profit global production, which has so far accounted for over 95 per cent of the COVAX supply.

11. We reaffirm our support for all pillars of the ACT-A across, treatments, tests and strengthening public health systems as well as vaccines. As the G7, since our meeting in February, we have committed over $2 billion in total to the ACT-Accelerator (including vaccines), taking our collective commitment since the start of the pandemic to over $10 billion. We support discussions regarding the extension of the ACT-A mandate into 2022, noting the planned comprehensive review to optimise its effectiveness and accountability. Efforts on this scale require close monitoring of progress made by ACT-A with reliable, transparent, up-to-date and clear information on procurement and delivery to both donor and recipient countries in close partnership with regional organisations. Progress should be reported to the G20 in Rome.

12. In support of achieving our goal, we commit to an end-to-end approach to boost supply of COVID-19 tools, including vaccines, raw materials, tests, therapeutics, and personal protective equipment (PPE), through more production in more places to sustain a global supply network for this pandemic and the next. This will be based on the principles of open trade and transparency, including through terminating unnecessary trade restrictive measures and supporting open, diversified, secure and resilient supply chains. It will be backed up by a practical and pragmatic approach to breaking down bottlenecks that are holding back the efficient use of current production capacity, as well as promoting partnerships to increase capacity further. To this end, we will support the ACT-A Facilitation Council Working Group together with the World Health Organisation (WHO), the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), Gavi, UNICEF and other partners such as the Medicines Patent Pool and the private sector, to coordinate a global vaccine supply network to optimise manufacturing capacities for safe and effective vaccines and other pandemic tools, and to share information about supply chains. Emphasising the need for equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines, we will support manufacturing in low income countries and, noting the importance of intellectual property in this regard, we will engage constructively with discussions at the WTO on the role of intellectual property, including by working consistently within the TRIPS agreement and the 2001 Doha Declaration on the TRIPS agreement and Public Health. We note the positive impact that voluntary licensing and technology transfer on mutually agreed terms have already made to increasing global supply. We note the positive impact that voluntary licensing and technology transfer on mutually agreed terms have already made to increasing global supply. We will explore all options to ensure affordable and accessible COVID-19 tools for the poorest countries, including non-profit production, tiered and transparent pricing, and sharing by manufacturers of a proportion of production with COVAX, noting the previous precedent of the 10 per cent target in relation to influenza. We support efforts to accelerate manufacturing capacities of COVID-19 tools on all continents, encouraging new partnerships based on voluntary licensing and technology transfer on mutually agreed terms and in particular will strive to support African efforts to establish regional manufacturing hubs. We will continue to work with partners, regional organisations and recipient countries, including through COVAX, to boost country-readiness, and will maintain our efforts to support vaccine confidence.

13. To get and stay ahead of the virus, we commit to continue our investment in cutting edge research and innovation, seeking to ensure that global vaccines remain effective against variants of concern, and that effective tests and treatments are available. To this end, we will boost global surveillance and genomic sequencing and swift information sharing needed to enable the rapid detection to combat the virus and its emerging variants. G7 countries should extend every effort to achieve, wherever possible, a level of genomic sequencing of at least 10 per cent of all new positive COVID-19 samples during the pandemic phase and share genomic sequencing information with existing global databases.

14. Alongside the above, we will continue and enhance our commitments to support fragile countries in dealing with the pandemic and other health challenges. This includes supporting ACT-A partners such as The Global Fund and Unitaid which have played a crucial role in delivering lifesaving medical and other supplies, including oxygen, tests, therapeutics and PPE, and assisting countries together with WHO to strengthen their health systems, build capacity, manage outbreaks and prevent disease spread. We call on the World Bank Group and the other Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) to increase the speed of their financial support, and will continue to support ACT-A in this regard.

15. Alongside responding to the current pandemic, we must act now to strengthen the global health and health security system to be better prepared for future pandemics and to tackle long standing global health threats, including Antimicrobial Resistance. We welcome the Rome Declaration, the measures set out within the ‘Strengthening WHO preparedness for and response to health emergencies’ Resolution as adopted at the 74th World Health Assembly, acknowledge the bold recommendations of the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response (IPPPR), and the work of the International Health Regulations Review Committee (IHR Review Committee) and Independent Oversight and Advisory Committee (IOAC). We look forward to continuing to work with the G20, UN, WHO, WTO and other relevant international organisations, in accordance with their mandates and rules for decision making, to make progress in the swift implementation of recommendations, and to seek the necessary multilateral action, including exploring the potential value of a treaty. We look forward to the special session on pandemic preparedness in the Autumn, as agreed at the World Health Assembly.

16. As G7 countries, we acknowledge our particular role and responsibilities in international efforts to strengthen the global health system, and commit to harnessing our unique strengths to support this. We endorse the G7 Carbis Bay Health Declaration and the G7 Health Ministers’ Communique, and the concrete actions outlined to ensure all countries are better equipped to prevent, detect, respond to and recover from health crises including in alignment with the International Health Regulations (IHR). We place particular emphasis on:

Improving integration, by strengthening a “One Health” approach across all aspects of pandemic prevention and preparedness, recognising the critical links between human and animal health and the environment.
Strengthening transparency and accountability, including reiterating our commitment to the full implementation of, and improved compliance with, the International Health Regulations 2005. This includes investigating, reporting and responding to outbreaks of unknown origin. We also call for a timely, transparent, expert-led, and science-based WHO-convened Phase 2 COVID-19 Origins study including, as recommended by the experts’ report, in China.
Improving the speed of response by developing global protocols which trigger collective action in the event of a future pandemic.
Ensuring fairness, inclusion and equity, including the empowerment and leadership of women and minorities in the health and care sectors, and addressing the links between health crises and wider social determinants of health such as poverty and structural inequalities, and leaving no one behind by advancing the achievement of Universal Health Coverage.
Increasing the resilience of global health systems to deal with outbreaks of emerging and enduring pathogens, including by investing in the health and care workforce worldwide to build capacity and keep health care workers safe.
Strengthening financing models to support longer-term preparedness, sustainable global health and health security, in particular but not limited to the WHO. We will explore options for building consensus this year, around sustainable global health and health security financing, supported by robust financial reporting, increased and defined accountability, and oversight. We ask our Finance Ministers to work with others, the G20 and its High Level Independent Panel (HLIP) to make progress in this regard. We will explore options to strengthen global accountability, tracking and allocation of global health security financing, including the IPPPR recommendation toward a Global Health Threats Council.
17. The G7 has a leading role to play in deploying our collective scientific capabilities as part of an enhanced global health response. Data can play a transformative role in supporting effective early warning and rapid response to health crises. We therefore need to improve the quality and coverage of international, regional and national pathogen surveillance to enable us to gather, share and analyse data to identify new variants in our fight against the current pandemic, and to detect and monitor future pathogens with pandemic potential. We support the establishment of the international pathogen surveillance network – a global pandemic radar – and welcome the WHO’s commitment to work with experts and countries to help achieve this, based on a common framework, including standards and rules for sharing data, that builds on existing detection systems such as the influenza and polio programmes but with greater capacity for genomic sequencing and broader in coverage. We note the report to the Presidency on pathogen surveillance by Sir Jeremy Farrar. To this end we welcome the WHO’s Global Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence, as well as additional centres as part of this network. This will also need to be supported by capability building at the regional level, thereby increasing global sequencing and pathogen surveillance capacities across the world. We ask that the WHO reports back to Leaders on the progress of the network by the end of this year as part of the G20 process.

18. It is essential that we maintain and build upon the extraordinary innovation, scientific power, and collaboration that we have seen in the response to this pandemic, including the development of COVID-19 vaccines in just over 300 days. As G7 members we have a particular role to play in seeking to make safe and effective diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines even more quickly available in the future. Recognising the unpredictable nature of future health emergencies, in the event of a future pandemic we will seek to create an adequate framework to have safe and effective vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics available within 100 days, consistent with our core principles around trade and transparency of equitable access, and high regulatory standards. We thank the UK’s Chief Scientific Adviser and his G7 counterparts, the international organisations, industry representatives and expert advisers involved in the partnership on pandemic preparedness convened by the UK Presidency and note their practical proposals. We welcome the 100 Days Mission, and recognise that this will require continued, concerted collaboration between the public and private sectors, and the leadership of international health organisations, to make what has been exceptional during this crisis become routine in the future. We invite G7 Chief Scientific Advisers or equivalents to review progress and report to Leaders before the end of the year.

ECONOMIC RECOVERY AND JOBS

19. Our plans for the recovery from COVID-19 need to put us on a path to strong, sustainable, balanced, inclusive and resilient growth by not only addressing the immediate challenges arising from the pandemic, but also the long-term shifts in the global economy and society, including demographic, technological, and environmental trends, and inequalities between and within countries, many of which have been magnified by the COVID-19 pandemic. Recognising the interconnected nature of these global challenges, we are taking an integrated approach to our shared commitments.

20. To mitigate the impact of the pandemic, we have provided unprecedented support to citizens and businesses, including to retain jobs and support incomes and keep businesses afloat, totalling over $12 trillion including fiscal support and liquidity measures. We will continue to support our economies for as long as is necessary, shifting the focus of our support from crisis response to promoting strong, resilient, sustainable, balanced and inclusive growth into the future. Once the recovery is firmly established, we need to ensure the long-term sustainability of public finances to enable us to respond to future crises and address longer-term structural challenges, including for the benefit of future generations.

21. We share key priorities including protecting, supporting and creating decent jobs, and investing in quality infrastructure, innovation, training and skills and addressing inequalities. We will continue to exchange ideas and share best practices to ensure we learn from each other and update our approaches through different phases of the recovery. We thank Lord Nick Stern for his paper on “G7 leadership for sustainable, resilient and inclusive economic recovery and growth” as commissioned by the UK G7 Presidency. At the heart of our agenda for economic growth and recovery is a green and digital transformation that will increase productivity, create new decent and quality jobs, cut greenhouse gas emissions, improve our resilience, and protect people and the planet as we aim for net zero by 2050.

22. We need a tax system that is fair across the world. We endorse the historic commitment made by the G7 on 5 June. We will now continue the discussion to reach consensus on a global agreement on an equitable solution on the allocation of taxing rights and an ambitious global minimum tax of at least 15 per cent on a country-by-country basis, through the G20/OECD inclusive framework and look forward to reaching an agreement at the July meeting of G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors. With this, we have taken a significant step towards creating a fairer tax system fit for the 21st century, and reversing a 40-year race to the bottom. Our collaboration will create a stronger level playing field, and it will help raise more tax revenue to support investment and it will crack down on tax avoidance.

23. We recognise the importance to the global economy of safely restarting international travel, by land, air and sea, and multilateral efforts to achieve this, including new public health guidance on international travel by the WHO, International Civil Aviation Organisation and International Maritime Organisation. We recognise that this will need a set of common standards for travel including interoperability and mutual recognition of digital applications, testing requirements, recognition of vaccination status including exemptions and comparable criteria for when responsive measures may be required. We welcome G7 Transport and Health Ministers’ ongoing discussions and ask them to deepen cooperation to support a safe reopening.

24. As leaders accountable to all our citizens, we are determined to ensure our plans for recovery build back better for all including by strengthening education and upskilling, and facilitating labour market participation and transitions to ‘level up’ our economies so that no geographic region or person, irrespective of their gender, age, disability, ethnicity, sexual orientation or economic status, is left behind. We recognise this has not always been the case with recoveries from previous global crises, and are together united in our resolve that this time our response should continue to be different.

25. While our support during the pandemic has helped to keep millions of people in employment, the crisis has meant that many have still lost their jobs, and the impact has not been felt equally, including with respect to young people, women and disadvantaged groups, as well as atypical and low-skilled workers. The crisis has also shown the importance of social protection systems and the critical role and incredible contribution of caregivers in our societies, often unpaid and often disproportionately women, and the importance of improving decent working conditions for these caregivers as part of our recovery plans. At the same time, technological change is profoundly changing our labour markets. We welcome the contributions of the G7 Employment Taskforce on building back better, greener and more inclusively, including their discussions with social partners and G7 Engagement Groups, including Labour 7, Youth 7, Women 7 and Business 7 covering how we can prepare our labour markets for the future. One of the highest priorities for our ongoing cooperation will be ensuring our labour markets continue to evolve to respond to these changes and deliver decent jobs and equal opportunities for everyone, while fully respecting the ILO Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, and taking into account relevant international labour standards.

26. The COVID-19 pandemic has illustrated the risk to economic resilience posed by global crises and shocks. These can manifest from acute shocks, for example as a result of pandemics, and chronically, from challenges such as market imbalances and distortions. Our recoveries must ensure we build back more resilient. As we recover, these risks need addressing in a more coordinated way. We will collaborate more strongly between us and with allies on a new approach to economic resilience. We recognise climate change and growing inequalities as key risks for the global economy. We will consider mechanisms and share best practices to address risks to the resilience of the critical global supply chains, in areas such as critical minerals and semiconductors, reflecting on models used elsewhere such as stress-testing. We will also enhance our cooperation on investment security within our G7 Investment Screening Expert Group, to ensure we are resilient in our openness to all, able to tackle risks in keeping with our shared principles of open markets, transparency and competition. Our solutions will be built on our shared principles of openness, sustainability, inclusion, innovation and competition will help retain and reinforce the benefits of open markets; without them, we risk a future of normalised volatility and fragmentation in the global economy. To this end we appreciate the work by the G7 Panel on Economic Resilience, and thank the OECD for its work in support, and we will continue to work on the issues highlighted by the Panel.

FREE AND FAIR TRADE

27. We stand united in our commitment to free and fair trade as foundational principles and objectives of the rules-based multilateral system. We agree on the need for the world’s leading democratic nations to unite behind a shared vision to ensure the multilateral trading system is reformed, with a modernised rulebook and a reformed World Trade Organization (WTO) at its centre, to be free and fair for all, more sustainable, resilient and responsive to the needs of global citizens. We will maintain a particular focus on ensuring that the prosperity trade can bring is felt in all parts of our countries and by all peoples across the globe, especially the poor.

28. We support multilateral and plurilateral agendas to address issues in the global trading system itself and shared global challenges. We support G7 Trade Ministers’ efforts in this regard, and look forward to further work in the G20. Looking ahead to the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC12) in November, we will work with other WTO members to make progress on immediate issues, including reaching a meaningful conclusion to the multilateral negotiation on fisheries subsidies and advancing negotiations on e-commerce. We also welcome the work undertaken towards the conclusion of the negotiations under the Joint Statement Initiative on Services Domestic Regulation by its participants. We support G7 Trade Ministers’ commitments to review our trade policy to ensure it supports women’s economic empowerment, and recognise the importance of developing a strong evidence base of gender-disaggregated data and analysis. We invite Trade Ministers to support the wider WTO membership to deliver an ambitious outcome at MC12 to bolster women’s participation in trade and economic empowerment. We endorse the conclusions of G7 Trade Ministers on promoting the transition to sustainable supply chains, and acknowledge the risk of carbon leakage, and will work collaboratively to address this risk and to align our trading practices with our commitments under the Paris agreement. We also welcome G7 Trade Ministers’ call to work in the WTO to formulate pragmatic, effective and holistic solutions to support trade in health, as well as their support for open, diversified, secure, and resilient supply chains in the manufacture of COVID-19 critical goods and vaccines and their components.

29. We are concerned by the use of all forms of forced labour in global supply chains, including state-sponsored forced labour of vulnerable groups and minorities, including in the agricultural, solar, and garment sectors. We agree on the importance of upholding human rights and of international labour standards, including those deriving from International Labour Organisation membership, throughout global supply chains and tackling instances of forced labour. We commit to continue to work together including through our own available domestic means and multilateral institutions to protect individuals from forced labour and to ensure that global supply chains are free from the use of forced labour. We therefore task G7 Trade Ministers to identify areas for strengthened cooperation and collective efforts towards eradicating the use of all forms of forced labour in global supply chains, ahead of the G7 Trade Ministers’ meeting in October 2021.

30. We will provide the sustained effort and momentum necessary to ensure progress is made in the modernisation of the WTO to promote fair competition and help secure shared prosperity for all. We will work together at the WTO and with the wider WTO membership ahead of MC12 to advance the following points:

modernisation of the global trade rulebook so that it both better reflects, with new rules, the transformations underway in the global economy, such as digitalisation and the green transition; and strengthens rules to protect against unfair practices, such as forced technology transfer, intellectual property theft, lowering of labour and environmental standards to gain competitive advantage, market-distorting actions of state owned enterprises, and harmful industrial subsidies, including those that lead to excess capacity;
stronger adherence to the existing and modernised rulebook, including through greater respect for and compliance with transparency obligations, and a strengthened WTO monitoring and deliberating function;
a fairer approach to countries’ different responsibilities under the rulebook, including through addressing the arrangements for special and differential treatment so they reflect developments in the global economy but continue to account for the special needs of the least developed and low-income developing countries;
proper functioning of the WTO’s negotiating function and dispute settlement system, requiring addressing long-standing issues; and,
support for the interests of the least developed and low-income developing countries, including in the full implementation of WTO rules to integrate into the world trading system, so that any modernisation of the global trading system supports the social and economic growth and development of these countries.
FUTURE FRONTIERS

31. Future frontiers of the global economy and society – from cyber space to outer space – will determine the future prosperity and wellbeing of people all over the world in the decades ahead. As we are witnessing an increasing divergence of models, this transformation raises important questions about the interaction between economic opportunity, security, ethics, and human rights, and the balance between the role of the state, businesses and individuals.

32. We will work together as part of an ongoing agenda towards a trusted, values-driven digital ecosystem for the common good that enhances prosperity in a way that is sustainable, inclusive, transparent and human-centric. In doing so we will make it a sustained strategic priority to update our regulatory frameworks and work together with other relevant stakeholders, including young people, to ensure digital ecosystems evolve in a way that reflects our shared values. We commit to preserve an open, interoperable, reliable and secure internet, one that is unfragmented, supports freedom, innovation and trust which empowers people. If used properly, technologies can help us strengthen health capacities, tackle environmental threats, widen access to education and open new economic opportunities. We will leverage these technologies to advance tech for the common good and promote digital literacy worldwide. We will strengthen coordination on and support for the implementation and development of global norms and standards to ensure that the use and evolution of new technologies reflects our shared democratic values and commitment to open and competitive markets, strong safeguards including for human rights and fundamental freedoms. We also affirm our opposition to measures which may undermine these democratic values, such as government-imposed internet shutdowns and network restrictions. We support the development of harmonised principles of data collection which encourage public and private organisations to act to address bias in their own systems, noting new forms of decision-making have surfaced examples where algorithms have entrenched or amplified historic biases, or even created new forms of bias or unfairness.

33. We call on the private sector to join us in our efforts and reaffirm our support for industry-led inclusive multi-stakeholder approaches to standard setting, in line with our values and principles which underpin these standards. As such, we welcome the Presidency’s initiative of a ‘Future Tech Forum’ in September 2021 with the support of the OECD. The Forum will convene like-minded democratic partners to discuss the role of technology in supporting open societies and tackling global challenges. The Forum will support efforts to mitigate the risk of regulatory fragmentation and to facilitate coherency of our emerging technology ecosystems, and it will invite proposals for Leaders to consider in appropriate global fora. We support the aim to facilitate dialogue between governments, industry, academia, civil society and other key stakeholders. As such we will continue to take bold action to build more transparency in our technologies, building on the Open Government Partnership. Building on the work of the Global Partnership for Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) advanced by the Canadian and French G7 Presidencies in 2018 and 2019, we will aim to rally all partners around our open and human centric approach to artificial intelligence looking forward to the GPAI Summit in Paris in November 2021. To support effective standard-setting that reflects our core values and principles, we will strengthen our coordination, including by consulting with industry, with regards to engagement with and appointments to Standard Developing Organisations, where appropriate. We commit to better sharing of information and best practice, including between our national standards bodies, enhanced capacity building and support for multi-stakeholder participation in standard-setting. To this end, we endorse the Framework for G7 Collaboration on Digital Technical Standards.

34. We will support cooperation on specific areas in relation to the evolution of future frontiers. Based on the work of our Digital and Technology Ministers, we agree the focus of our cooperation for this year will be a structured dialogue around specific areas:

Championing data free flow with trust, to better leverage the potential of valuable data-driven technologies while continuing to address challenges related to data protection. To that end we endorse our Digital Ministers’ Roadmap for Cooperation on Data Free Flow with Trust.
Enabling businesses to use electronic transferable records in order to generate efficiencies and economic savings to support the global economic recovery. In support of this aim we endorse the Framework for G7 Collaboration on Electronic Transferable Records.
Taking further steps to improve internet safety and counter hate speech, while protecting human rights and fundamental freedoms, including free expression. We will protect our citizens online and offline, including children and vulnerable at-risk groups, and especially women and girls. We therefore endorse our Digital Ministers’ Internet Safety Principles which aim to set out common approaches to improving online safety. We invite Interior Ministers to work on a G7 agreement on sharing of information and best practice on tackling existing and emerging online forms of gender-based violence, including forms of online abuse. We affirm our support of the Christchurch Call, emphasising the need for respecting freedoms of speech and peoples’ reasonable expectation of privacy and further invite G7 Interior Ministers to continue work on preventing and countering Violent Extremist and Terrorist Use of the Internet begun in Ischia in 2017 and continued in Toronto in 2018 and Paris in 2019. We commit to work together to further a common understanding of how existing international law applies to cyberspace and welcome the work of our Foreign Ministers to promote this approach at the UN and other international fora. We also commit to work together to urgently address the escalating shared threat from criminal ransomware networks. We call on all states to urgently identify and disrupt ransomware criminal networks operating from within their borders, and hold those networks accountable for their actions.
Securing supply chains. Recognising the foundational role that telecommunications infrastructure, including 5G and future communication technologies, plays and will play in underpinning our wider digital and ICT infrastructure we will promote secure, resilient, competitive, transparent and sustainable and diverse digital, telecoms, and ICT infrastructure supply chains.
Deepening cooperation on Digital Competition in order to drive innovation across the global economy, enhancing consumer choice. We recognise that there is increasing international consensus that participants with significant market power can exploit their power to hold back digital markets and the wider economy. Therefore, building on the 2019 French G7 Presidency’s common understanding on ‘Competition and the Digital Economy’, we will work together through existing international and multilateral fora to find a coherent way to encourage competition and support innovation in digital markets.
35. Beyond these priorities, we will review whether other areas of collaboration with respect to future frontiers are appropriate. We are committed to the safe and sustainable use of space to support humanity’s ambition now and in the future. We recognise the importance of developing common standards, best practices and guidelines related to sustainable space operations alongside the need for a collaborative approach for space traffic management and coordination. We call on all nations to work together, through groups like the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, the International Organization for Standardization and the Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee, to preserve the space environment for future generations.

36. Underpinning all of these future frontiers, and wider challenges of the coming century, is the importance of scientific discovery and its deployment. We will therefore work together to promote stronger collaboration on research and development, and promote principles of research security and integrity and open science building off the historical levels of collaboration seen in the past year to internationally beneficial results. Central to this should be building a diverse and resilient science and research community, inclusive for all groups including women. Domestically we will seek to redress the imbalance in women’s and girls’ under-representation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) which acts as a barrier to access to these growing industries. We will explore how existing and potential new mechanisms and initiatives can support risk reduction, prevention and response to future systemic crises, natural disasters and pace of technological change. As such we endorse the G7 Compact on Research Collaboration and its commitment to: support policies, legal frameworks and programmes to promote research collaboration; promote sharing of research data; explore enhancements to research assessment and rewards for collaboration and knowledge sharing; and develop a common set of principles which will help protect research and innovation ecosystem across the G7 to open and reciprocal research collaboration.

CLIMATE AND ENVIRONMENT

37. The unprecedented and interdependent crises of climate change and biodiversity loss pose an existential threat to people, prosperity, security, and nature. Through global action and concerted leadership, 2021 should be a turning point for our planet as we commit to a green transition that cuts emissions, increases adaptation action worldwide, halts and reverses biodiversity loss, and, through policy and technological transformation, creates new high quality jobs and increases prosperity and wellbeing. Ahead of the 15th Conference of the Parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP15), the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (UNFCCC COP26) and the fifteenth session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (CCD COP15), we commit to accelerating efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions and keep the 1.5°C global warming threshold within reach, strengthening adaptation and resilience to protect people from the impacts of climate change, halting and reversing biodiversity loss, mobilising finance and leveraging innovation to reach these goals. We welcome and encourage business, civil society and regional commitments to global climate and biodiversity ambition through science based targets, including the Race to Resilience and Race to Zero campaigns. Together we welcome the active role and participation of vulnerable communities, underrepresented groups and will work towards achieving equality, including gender equality, in the climate and environment sector. We will continue our efforts to progress the Equal by 30 Campaign for gender equality in the energy sector.

38. As G7 members, we all reaffirm our commitment to the Paris Agreement and to strengthening and accelerating its implementation through robust national policies and measures and scaled up international cooperation. To this end we collectively commit to ambitious and accelerated efforts to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible and by 2050 at the latest, recognising the importance of significant action this decade. In line with this goal, we have each committed to increased 2030 targets and, where not done already, commit to submit aligned Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) as soon as possible ahead of COP26, which will cut our collective emissions by around half compared to 2010 or over half compared to 2005. We also commit to submit 2050 Long Term Strategies (LTSs) by COP26 and to regularly update these as needed in line with the Paris agreement to reflect the latest science, technological advances and market developments. Recognising the importance of adaptation in our own national planning, we also commit to submitting adaptation communications as soon as possible, and if feasible by COP26. In fulfilling these commitments we will continue to increase our efforts to keep a limit of 1.5°C temperature rise within reach and chart a G7 pathway towards Net Zero economies. We call on all countries, in particular major emitting economies, to join us in these goals as part of a global effort, stepping up their commitments to reflect the highest possible ambition and transparency on implementation under the Paris Agreement. We also note the value of supporting international initiatives such as the OECD’s International Programme for Action on Climate Mechanism (IPAC).

39. To be credible, ambitions need to be supported by tangible actions in all sectors of our economies and societies. We will lead a technology-driven transition to Net Zero, supported by relevant policies, noting the clear roadmap provided by the International Energy Agency and prioritising the most urgent and polluting sectors and activities:

In our energy sectors, we will increase energy efficiency, accelerate renewable and other zero emissions energy deployment, reduce wasteful consumption, leverage innovation all whilst maintaining energy security. Domestically, we commit to achieve an overwhelmingly decarbonised power system in the 2030s and to actions to accelerate this. Internationally, we commit to aligning official international financing with the global achievement of net zero GHG emissions no later than 2050 and for deep emissions reductions in the 2020s. We will phase out new direct government support for international carbon-intensive fossil fuel energy as soon as possible, with limited exceptions consistent with an ambitious climate neutrality pathway, the Paris Agreement, 1.5°C goal and best available science. To be credible, ambitions need to be supported by tangible actions in all sectors of our economies and societies. We will lead a technology-driven transition to Net Zero, noting the clear roadmap provided by the International Energy Agency and prioritising the most urgent and polluting sectors and activities.
Recognising that coal power generation is the single biggest cause of greenhouse gas emissions, and consistent with this overall approach and our strengthened NDCs, domestically we have committed to rapidly scale-up technologies and policies that further accelerate the transition away from unabated coal capacity, consistent with our 2030 NDCs and net zero commitments. This transition must go hand in hand with policies and support for a just transition for affected workers, and sectors so that no person, group or geographic region is left behind. To accelerate the international transition away from coal, recognising that continued global investment in unabated coal power generation is incompatible with keeping 1.5°C within reach we stress that international investments in unabated coal must stop now and we commit now to an end to new direct government support for unabated international thermal coal power generation by the end of 2021, including through Official Development Assistance, export finance, investment, and financial and trade promotion support. This transition must also be complemented by support to deliver this, including coordinating through the Energy Transition Council. We welcome the work by the Climate Investment Funds (CIFs) and donors plan to commit up to $2 billion in the coming year to its Accelerating the Coal Transition and Integrating Renewable Energy programs. These concessional resources are expected to mobilize up to $10 billion in co-financing, including from the private sector, to support renewable energy deployment in developing and emerging economies. We call on other major economies to adopt such commitments and join us in phasing out the most polluting energy sources, and scaling up investment in the technology and infrastructure to facilitate the clean, green transition. More broadly, we reaffirm our existing commitment to eliminating inefficient fossil fuel subsidies by 2025, and call on all countries to join us, recognising the substantial financial resource this could unlock globally to support the transition and the need to commit to a clear timeline.
In our transport sectors, we commit to sustainable, decarbonised mobility and to scaling up zero emission vehicle technologies, including buses, trains, shipping and aviation. We recognise that this will require dramatically increasing the pace of the global decarbonisation of the road transport sector throughout the 2020s, and beyond. This includes support for accelerating the roll out of necessary infrastructure, such as charging and fueling infrastructure and enhancing the offer of more sustainable transport modes, including public transport, shared mobility, cycling and walking. We commit to accelerate the transition away from new sales of diesel and petrol cars to promote the uptake of zero emission vehicles.
In our industrial and innovation sectors we will take action to decarbonise areas such as iron and steel, cement, chemicals, and petrochemicals, in order to reach net zero emissions across the whole economy. To this end, we will harness our collective strengths in science, technological innovation, policy design, financing, and regulation including through our launch of the G7 Industrial Decarbonisation Agenda to complement, support and amplify ambition of existing initiatives. This includes further action on public procurement, standards and industrial efforts to define and stimulate demand for green products and enhance energy and resource efficiency in industry. We will focus on accelerating progress on electrification and batteries, hydrogen, carbon capture, usage and storage, zero emission aviation and shipping, and for those countries that opt to use it, nuclear power. We therefore fully support launching Mission Innovation phase two and the Clean Energy Ministerial third phase.
In our homes and buildings, and also industry, we recognise the need for an urgent step change in the deployment of renewable heating and cooling and reduction in energy demand. This complements required shifts in building design, sustainable materials and retrofits. We therefore welcome the Super-Efficient Equipment and Appliance Deployment (SEAD) initiative’s goal of doubling the efficiency of lighting, cooling, refrigeration and motor systems sold globally by 2030.
In our agricultural, forestry and other land use sectors, we commit to ensuring our policies encourage sustainable production, the protection, conservation, and regeneration of ecosystems, and the sequestration of carbon. We welcome the opportunity to discuss these issues at the COP26 Transition to Sustainable Agriculture Policy Dialogue and UN Food Systems Summit in September.
40. Achieving our collective ambitions of a global green and resilient recovery offers the greatest economic opportunity of our time to boost income, innovation, jobs, productivity and growth while also accelerating action to tackle the existential threat of climate change and environmental degradation. To close the gap between the funds needed and actual finance flows requires mobilising and aligning finance and investment at scale towards the technologies, infrastructure, ecosystems, businesses, jobs and economies that will underpin a net-zero emissions resilient future that leaves no one behind. This includes the deployment and alignment of all sources of finance: public and private, national and multilateral. We recognise the particular challenges of financing the transition to net zero economies poses for developing countries and stand by our bilateral and multilateral commitments to support these partners, in the context of meaningful and transparent decarbonisation efforts. We reaffirm the collective developed country goal to jointly mobilise $100 billion per year from public and private sources, through to 2025 in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation. Towards this end, we commit to each increase and improve our overall international public climate finance contributions for this period and call on other developed countries to join and enhance their contributions to this effort. We welcome the commitments already made by some of the G7 to increase climate finance and look forward to new commitments from others well ahead of COP26 in Glasgow. This increase in quantity and predictability is complemented by improved effectiveness and accessibility, and includes more finance contributing to adaptation and resilience, disaster risk and insurance, as well as support for nature and nature-based solutions. We are committed to further enhance synergies between finance for climate and biodiversity and to promote funding that has co-benefits for climate and nature and are working intensively towards increasing the quantity of finance to nature and nature-based solutions. We welcome efforts of the MDBs to scale up their climate and nature finance, urge them to mobilise increased finance including from the private sector, and call on them, Development Finance Institutions (DFIs), multilateral funds, public banks and relevant agencies to publish before COP26 a high-level plan and date by which all their operations will be fully aligned with and support the objectives of the Paris Agreement and the multilateral environmental agreements we support.

41. We also support the transformation underway to mobilise further private capital towards these objectives in particular to support developing countries and emerging markets in making the most of the opportunities in the transition; whilst mitigating and adapting to climate change. We call upon the MDBs and our DFIs to prioritise capital mobilization strategies, initiatives and incentives within their operations. The G7 commits to leverage different types of blended finance vehicles including through our greater strategic approach to development finance, greater collaboration between our DFIs and billions worth of planned commitments towards CIF and Green Climate Fund, all of which will mobilise billions more in private finance. We also encourage further development of disaster risk finance markets. Towards this, G7 members have committed hundreds of millions worth of new financing for early action, disaster risk and insurance in line with the InsuResilience Global Partnership and Risk-Informed Early Action Partnership (REAP). We commit to establishing the necessary market infrastructure for private finance to support and incentivise the net zero transition. Developing the global green finance market will help mobilise private sector finance, and reinforce government policy to meet our net zero commitments. We support the recently launched Glasgow Finance Alliance for Net Zero, and call on swift, robust delivery of their commitments to reduce real economy emissions. We emphasise the need to green the global financial system so that financial decisions take climate considerations into account. We support moving towards mandatory climate-related financial disclosures that provide consistent and decision-useful information for market participants and that are based on the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) framework, in line with domestic regulatory frameworks. We also look forward to the establishment of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures and its recommendations. These initiatives will help mobilise the trillions of dollars of private sector finance needed, and reinforce government policy to meet our net zero commitments. We recognise the potential of high integrity carbon markets and carbon pricing to foster cost-efficient reductions in emission levels, drive innovation and enable a transformation to net zero, through the optimal use of a range of policy levers to price carbon. We underline their importance towards the establishment of a fair and efficient carbon pricing trajectory to accelerate the decarbonisation of our economies, to achieve a net zero global emissions pathway. In all this, we will develop gender-responsive approaches to climate and nature financing, investment and policies, so that women and girls can participate fully in the future green economy.

42. Biodiversity loss is an intrinsically linked, mutually reinforcing, and equally important existential threat to our planet and our people alongside climate change. In this context, we acknowledge as the G7 our contribution to the decline of biodiversity and pledge to play our part in its restoration and conservation. We support an ambitious post-2020 global biodiversity framework to be adopted by parties at CBD COP15 which sets ambitious goals, strengthens implementation, and enhances regular reporting and review. We acknowledge our responsibility to support the world in reversing the trajectory of the loss of biodiversity and the natural environments that support it, alongside ensuring that the impact on nature is fully taken into account in our policy decision making.

43. In support of strong outcomes for nature at the Convention on Biological Diversity COP-15 in Kunming and COP26 this year, and noting the Leaders’ Pledge for Nature launched at the 75th session of the UN General Assembly 2020, we adopt the G7 2030 Nature Compact in support of the global mission to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030. The Nature Compact commits us to take action across four key pillars:

First, we commit to champion ambitious and effective global biodiversity targets, including conserving or protecting at least 30 per cent of global land and at least 30 per cent of the global ocean by 2030. We will contribute by conserving or protecting at least 30 per cent of our own land, including terrestrial and inland waters, and coastal and marine areas by 2030 according to national circumstances and approaches. These actions will help stem the extinction crisis, safeguard water and food supplies, absorb carbon pollution, and reduce the risks of future pandemics. We also fully support the commitment of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) to develop a representative system of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in the Convention area in the Southern Ocean based on the best available scientific evidence.
Second, we will support the transition to sustainable management and use of natural resources, and use appropriate levers to address unsustainable and illegal activities negatively impacting nature, and therefore livelihoods. This includes stepping up action to tackle increasing levels of plastic pollution in the ocean, including working through the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) on options including strengthening existing instruments and a potential new agreement or other instrument to address marine plastic litter, including at UNEA-5.2.
Third, we will work intensively towards increasing investment in the protection, conservation and restoration of nature, including committing to increase finance for nature based solutions through to 2025, maximising synergies of climate and biodiversity finance, and ensuring prominence of nature in both policy and economic decision-making.
Finally, we will prioritise strengthened accountability and implementation mechanisms of Multilateral Environmental Agreements to which we are parties. We will implement the Compact and review our progress against it regularly through existing G7 mechanisms, including at the G7 Leaders’ Summit in five years when we will review options to ratchet up our action and ambition, as needed, to ensure delivery of our 2030 vision. Those G7 members party to the CBD will also champion successful implementation of the post-2020 global biodiversity framework to be agreed at COP15.
GENDER EQUALITY

44. Gender equality is at the heart of an open, inclusive, and just society. Persistent gaps in gender equality affect access to basic services as well as decent work, equal pay, social protection, education, technology and many other areas. Unequal division of unpaid care responsibilities in the home and low pay for paid care work also limits women’s empowerment, social and economic participation and leadership. Gender equality intersects with other characteristics and our actions need to take account of these intersections in a meaningful way, including tackling racism in all forms and violence and discrimination against LGBQTI+ populations. We recognise the devastating and disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on women and girls, which risks reversing hard-won gains especially with regards to gender-based violence, sexual and reproductive health and rights, education and jobs.

45. The advancement of gender equity and equality are a central pillar of our plans and policies to build back better, informed by three key priorities: educating girls, empowering women and ending violence against women and girls. Achieving gender equality needs to be underpinned by the full, equal and meaningful participation of women in all aspects of decision-making. We are committed to close alignment with the Generation Equality Forum (GEF) and commend the organisation of the first G20 Ministerial Conference on women’s empowerment. We thank the Gender Equality Advisory Council (GEAC) for its work and recommendations, and look forward to receiving the GEAC’s full report in the Autumn. We agree to a consistent and sustained focus on gender equality to project our global leadership on this issue, and intend to convene the GEAC as a standing feature of all G7 Presidencies. We know that we cannot make true progress towards gender equality without robust data and a way to track it over time. We invite the GEAC to work with existing accountability mechanisms such as the Accountability Working Group and the Taormina Roadmap to monitor G7 commitments to achieve gender equality on an annual basis.

46. We reaffirm our full commitment to promote and protect the sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) of all individuals, and recognise the essential and transformative role they play in gender equality and women’s and girls’ empowerment, and in supporting diversity, including of sexual orientations and gender identities. We commit to working together to prevent and address the negative impacts on access to SRHR from the COVID-19 pandemic, with specific attention to the most at risk, marginalised and inadequately served groups. In recognition of increased violence against women and girls during the COVID-19 crisis, we commit to preventing, responding to and eliminating all forms of sexual and gender-based violence (GBV). We will achieve this through women’s empowerment and by scaling-up implementation of evidence-based, accessible survivor and victim-centred policies, prevention and support programmes, including through our pandemic response and recovery at home, in partner countries and in conflict zones. We acknowledge our collective responsibility to beneficiaries and partners, their communities, and survivors to do more to address sexual exploitation and abuse in international aid. We condemn GBV against women and girls and denounce the use of sexual violence in conflict situations and underscore that such acts may constitute crimes against humanity or war crimes. We note the varied legal and institutional frameworks which currently address conflict and invite Foreign and Development Ministers to consider how best to strengthen international architecture around conflict-related sexual violence.

47. COVID-19 has exacerbated underlying inequalities, leading to one of the worst education crises in history for children around the world, but especially for the most marginalised and at risk girls. Around 11 million girls from pre-primary to secondary school are at risk of not returning to school. We commit to two new global SDG4 milestone girls’ education targets: 40 million more girls in education by 2026 in low and lower-middle income countries; and 20 million more girls reading by age 10 or the end of primary school by 2026, in low and lower-middle income countries. We endorse the G7 Foreign and Development Ministers’ Girls Education Declaration. These targets should be underpinned by sustainable financing and so today G7 members commit to a combined total pledge of at least $2¾ billion funding over the next 5 years for the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) ahead of its replenishment in July. We call on others to join with the G7 and make ambitious pledges to a fully funded GPE.

GLOBAL RESPONSIBILITY AND INTERNATIONAL ACTION

48. We will work together to promote our shared values as open societies in the international system, as reflected in the Statement on Open Societies signed with the Leaders of countries from the Indo-Pacific region and Africa, who have joined us at Carbis Bay, namely, Australia, India, South Africa and the Republic of Korea. Further to this, we commit to: increase cooperation on supporting democracy, including through strengthening the G7 Rapid Response Mechanism to counter foreign threats to democracy including disinformation; strengthen media freedom and ensure the protection of journalists; support freedom of religion or belief; condemn racism in all its forms; address human rights abuses, including the failure to protect civilians in conflict; oppose the practice of arbitrary detention, including by amplifying the Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention in State-to-State Relations and welcoming its Partnership Action Plan; and recognise the need for action on corruption, including by sharing information on illicit financial activities, tackling the misuse of shell companies, and curtailing the ability of illicit actors to hide wealth, including in real estate. We support the growth of peaceful, just and inclusive societies by ensuring safe and vibrant civic spaces. For our own part, our discussions have benefited from input from the perspectives and expertise of external engagement groups representing all sectors of society, including the Business 7, Civil Society 7, Labour 7, Science 7, Women 7 and Youth 7. We thank them for their consideration and recommendations across the breadth of our policy priorities.

49. We recognise the particular responsibility of the largest countries and economies in upholding the rules-based international system and international law. We commit to play our role in this, working with all partners and as members of the G20, UN and wider international community, and encourage others to do the same. We will do this based on our shared agenda and democratic values. With regard to China, and competition in the global economy, we will continue to consult on collective approaches to challenging non-market policies and practices which undermine the fair and transparent operation of the global economy. In the context of our respective responsibilities in the multilateral system, we will cooperate where it is in our mutual interest on shared global challenges, in particular addressing climate change and biodiversity loss in the context of COP26 and other multilateral discussions. At the same time and in so doing, we will promote our values, including by calling on China to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms, especially in relation to Xinjiang and those rights, freedoms and high degree of autonomy for Hong Kong enshrined in the Sino-British Joint Declaration and the Basic Law.

50. We endorse the statement made by our Foreign and Development Ministers in May. Building on this, in particular to reflect recent developments, we have reviewed the following live issues.

51. We reiterate our interest in stable and predictable relations with Russia, and will continue to engage where there are areas of mutual interest. We reaffirm our call on Russia to stop its destabilising behaviour and malign activities, including its interference in other countries’ democratic systems, and to fulfil its international human rights obligations and commitments. In particular, we call on Russia to urgently investigate and credibly explain the use of a chemical weapon on its soil, to end its systematic crackdown on independent civil society and media, and to identify, disrupt, and hold to account those within its borders who conduct ransomware attacks, abuse virtual currency to launder ransoms, and other cybercrimes.

52. We reiterate our support for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders. We call on Russia to alleviate tensions and act in accordance with its international obligations, and to withdraw the Russian military troops and materiel at the eastern border of Ukraine and on the Crimean peninsula. We remain firmly of the view that Russia is a party to the conflict in Eastern Ukraine, not a mediator. We affirm our support for the Normandy Process to secure the implementation of the Minsk agreements, and call on Russia and the armed formations it backs to engage constructively and recommit to the ceasefire. We reaffirm our efforts to strengthen Ukraine’s democracy and institutions, encouraging further progress on reform.

53. We are deeply concerned by the Belarusian authorities’ continuing attacks on human rights, fundamental freedoms and international law, as exemplified by the forced landing of flight FR4978 and the arrest of an independent journalist and his partner. We will work together to hold those responsible to account, including through imposing sanctions, and to continue to support civil society, independent media and human rights in Belarus. We call on the regime to: change course and implement all the recommendations of the independent expert mission under the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s (OSCE) Moscow Mechanism; enter into meaningful dialogue with all sectors of society; and hold new free and fair elections.

54. We are deeply concerned by the ongoing conflict in Ethiopia’s Tigray region and reports of an unfolding major humanitarian tragedy, including potentially hundreds of thousands in famine conditions. We condemn ongoing atrocities, including widespread sexual violence, and we welcome the ongoing Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) investigations and call for full accountability for reported human rights violations in Tigray and for the perpetrators to be brought to justice. We call for an immediate cessation of hostilities, unimpeded humanitarian access to all areas and the immediate withdrawal of Eritrean forces. We urge all parties to pursue a credible political process, which is the only solution to the crisis. We further call upon Ethiopia’s leaders to advance a broader inclusive political process to foster national reconciliation and consensus toward a future based on respect for the human and political rights of all Ethiopians.

55. While acknowledging the increased international mobilisation and the progress in the fight against terrorism in the Sahel, we express our concern about the continuing attacks targeting civilian populations, and the deepening humanitarian crisis. We urge all actors to respect human rights and international humanitarian law. We will deliver on our commitments to renew efforts to address drivers of instability, with a focus on political and civilian dimensions of the “civil surge” agreed upon by the governments of the G5 Sahel and their partners, gathered in the Sahel coalition, at the N’Djamena summit in February 2021. We support the efforts of the African Union and Economic Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in response to recent events in Chad and Mali. We reiterate the necessity to create the conditions for timely civilian-led transitions to democratic, constitutional rule in both countries.

56. We confirm our full support for the interim executive authority as it pursues Libyan-led and Libyan-owned stabilisation, facilitated by the UN in the framework of the Berlin Process. We reaffirm the importance of free, fair and inclusive elections to be held on 24 December. We reiterate the urgent need to implement in full the 23 October ceasefire agreement, including through the withdrawal of all foreign fighters and mercenaries from Libya. All states must comply with UN Security Council Resolutions 2570 and 2571.

57. We call on all Afghan parties to reduce violence and agree on steps that enable the successful implementation of a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire and to engage fully with the peace process. In Afghanistan, a sustainable, inclusive political settlement is the only way to achieve a just and durable peace that benefits all Afghans. We are determined to maintain our support for the Afghan government to address the country’s urgent security and humanitarian needs, and to help the people of Afghanistan, including women, young people and minority groups, as they seek to preserve hard-won rights and freedoms.

58. We call for the complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula and the verifiable and irreversible abandonment of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programmes in accordance with all relevant UN Security Council resolutions. We call on all states to fully implement these resolutions and their associated sanctions. We welcome the readiness of the United States to continue its diplomatic efforts in coordination with all relevant partners and call on the DPRK to engage and resume dialogue. We once again call on DPRK to respect human rights for all and to resolve the issue of abductions immediately.

59. We condemn in the strongest terms the military coup in Myanmar, and the violence committed by Myanmar’s security forces, and we call for the immediate release of those detained arbitrarily. We pledge our support to those advocating peacefully for a stable and inclusive democracy. Recalling ASEAN’s central role, we welcome its Five Point Consensus and urge swift implementation. We reiterate our commitment to ensuring that neither development assistance nor the sale of arms will benefit the military, and urge businesses to exercise due diligence in their trade and investment in the same vein. We reaffirm G7 unity on pursuing additional measures should they prove necessary. We are also deeply concerned by the humanitarian situation, call for unfettered humanitarian access to vulnerable and displaced populations, support the Humanitarian Response Plan, and encourage others to contribute.

60. We reiterate the importance of maintaining a free and open Indo Pacific, which is inclusive and based on the rule of law. We underscore the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, and encourage the peaceful resolution of cross-Strait issues. We remain seriously concerned about the situation in the East and South China Seas and strongly oppose any unilateral attempts to change the status quo and increase tensions.

61. We are committed to ensuring that Iran will never develop a nuclear weapon. We welcome the substantive discussions between Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA) participants, and separately with the United States, to accomplish a return of the United States and Iran to their JCPoA commitments. We support the goal of restoring the nonproliferation benefits of the JCPoA and of ensuring the exclusively peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear programme. We urge Iran to stop and reverse all measures that reduce transparency and to ensure full and timely cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency. A restored and fully-implemented JCPoA could also pave the way to further address regional and security concerns. We condemn Iran’s support to proxy forces and non-state armed actors, including through financing, training and the proliferation of missile technology and weapons. We call on Iran to stop all ballistic missile activities and proliferation inconsistent with UNSCR 2231 and other relevant resolutions, refrain from destabilising actions and play a constructive role in fostering regional stability and peace. We support efforts to pursue transparency, accountability and justice for the victims of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, shot down by Iran in January 2020. We reiterate our deep concern over the continued human rights violations and abuses in Iran.

62. We commend the Iraqi Security Forces, including the Kurdish Peshmerga, and Government of Iraq in their success against ISIS and affirm continuing support for those efforts, including stabilisation in liberated areas. We also affirm our support for Iraq’s sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity. We fully endorse UNSCR 2576 and its call for election monitors to help ensure free and fair elections in October, and encourage all Iraqis to participate in those elections. Finally, we welcome the efforts of the Government of Iraq to hold illegal armed groups accountable for attacks against Iraqi citizens and Coalition personnel who are in Iraq at its invitation solely to train and advise Iraqi forces in their fight against ISIS.

63. We acknowledge the far-reaching impacts of COVID-19 on the poorest countries who already were grappling with the effects of conflict, climate change, socio-economic shocks and a chronic lack of resources and infrastructure. As we advance recovery plans to support our economies and build back better, in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including through innovative measures and massive budgetary support, developing partner countries, especially in Africa, cannot be left behind. We are deeply concerned that the pandemic has set back progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals and continues to exacerbate global inequalities, and therefore recommit to enhance our efforts to achieve the SDGs by 2030, including by supporting the Addis Ababa Action Agenda (AAAA) and aligning financial flows with the SDGs. We take note of the policy options developed through the Financing for Development in the Era of COVID-19 and Beyond Initiative.

64. The IMF estimates that, between now and 2025, low income countries will need around $200 billion to respond to the pandemic and $250 billion in investment spending for convergence with advanced economies. We reiterate our commitment to implement the G20 and Paris Club Common Framework for Debt Treatments beyond the Debt Service Suspension Initiative. We support fair and open lending practices, and call on all creditors to adhere to these. We underline the importance of information sharing, and reiterate the need for comparability of treatment for private and other official bilateral creditors in debt treatments. We urge the MDBs to explore all options to unlock additional financing for developing countries, including more efficient and effective use of their resources, further work on balance sheet optimisation and further analysis of their capital adequacy frameworks.

65. We welcome the agreement by G7 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors to support a new $650 billion allocation of IMF Special Drawing Rights, urging implementation by the end of August 2021 accompanied by transparency and accountability measures. We encourage the IMF to work quickly with all relevant stakeholders to explore a menu of options for channelling SDRs to further support health needs, including vaccinations, and to help enable greener, more robust recoveries in the most affected countries, supporting the poorest and most vulnerable countries in tackling these urgent challenges. G7 countries are actively considering options that we can take as part of a global effort to magnify the impact of this general allocation for countries most in need, especially in Africa, including through voluntarily channelling SDRs and/or budget loans, in line with national circumstances and legal requirements. This includes scaling up financing to the IMF’s Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust and the IMF’s review of concessional financing and policies to strengthen its capacity to support low income countries. To support our aim to reach a total global ambition of $100 billion, we call for contributions from other countries able to do so, alongside the G7. We task G7 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors to urgently consider the detail of this, including by working with the G20 and other stakeholders.

66. We note with grave concern that the world faces an unprecedented humanitarian crisis as the UN reports that over 34 million people are already facing emergency levels of food insecurity and are one step from catastrophe or famine. In this light, we endorse the G7 Famine Prevention and Humanitarian Crises Compact committed to by G7 Foreign and Development Ministers. We reaffirm our commitment to provide $7 billion in humanitarian assistance, take diplomatic action to promote humanitarian access and the protection of civilians, including women and girls, and strengthen anticipatory and early action in partnership with the UN and World Bank Group. We call attention to the rise in poverty, hunger and malnutrition globally, noting the exacerbating role of the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, economic shocks, biodiversity loss and increased conflict, and agree further action is needed to reverse these trends and strengthen global food systems. We reaffirm our commitment to the Broad Food Security and Nutrition Development Approach made at Elmau in 2015, and note that responsible investments in food security, food systems, and nutrition are essential to support SDG2 and World Health Assembly nutrition targets. We further encourage strong commitments in these areas to be announced at the G20, the UN Food Systems Summit, COP26 and the Tokyo Nutrition for Growth Summit later this year.

67. We recognise the significant infrastructure needs across low and middle income countries, which have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Reflecting our shared values and shared vision, we will aim for a step change in our approach to infrastructure financing, notably on quality infrastructure and investment, to strengthen partnerships with developing countries and help meet their infrastructure needs. Working together and with others, and by building on and going beyond our existing action, we will develop a partnership to build back better for the world with the aim of maximising impact on the ground to meet the needs of our partners, and to ensure our collective effort is greater than the sum of its parts. This partnership will orient development finance tools toward the range of challenges faced by developing countries, including in resilient infrastructure and technologies to address the impacts of climate change; health systems and security; developing digital solutions; and advancing gender equality and education. A particular priority will be an initiative for clean and green growth to drive a sustainable and green transition in line with the Paris Agreement and Agenda 2030. Underpinning our approach will be the following key principles:

values-driven vision: we believe that infrastructure development, implementation and maintenance – carried out in a transparent and financially, environmentally, and socially sustainable manner – will lead to beneficial outcomes for recipient countries and communities.
intensive collaboration: we will each pursue the necessary actions through our own DFIs, and other relevant bodies, while strengthening collaboration to determine how we can increase the scale and scope of our collective offer to developing partner countries.
market-led: we believe current funding and financing approaches are not adequate to address the infrastructure financing gap and are committed to enhancing the development finance tools at our disposal, including by mobilising private sector capital and expertise, through a strengthened and more integrated approach across the public and private sector, to reduce risk, strengthen local capacities, and support and catalyse a significant increase in responsible and market-based private capital in sectors with anticipated returns, and to strengthen local capacities, in a sustainable manner, in line with the Addis Ababa Action Agenda on Financing for Development.
strong standards: to ensure our approach and values are upheld, and to drive a race to the top, we will make high standards – across environmental, social, financial, labour, governance and transparency – a central plank of our approach, including by building on multilateral agreed standards on quality infrastructure such as the G20 Principles for Quality Infrastructure Investment. This will help to provide citizens of recipient communities with the long-run benefits they expect and deserve. We emphasise the importance of transparent, open, economically efficient, fair and competitive standards for lending and procurement, also in line with debt sustainability, and the adherence of international rules and standards for major creditor countries.
enhanced multilateral finance: we recognise that many MDBs and other International Financial Institutions (IFIs) have evolved to embody the highest standards for project planning, implementation, social and environmental safeguards, and analytical capability. We will work with the IFIs to enhance their catalytic impact and increase the mobilisation of capital needed for impactful and sustainable infrastructure investment, and ensure that the pace of project development and disbursement meets the needs of partner countries.
strategic partnerships: we will ground this initiative in strategic and substantial partnerships between countries, to support innovation and technological development, focused on the most pressing needs.
We will work together to take forward an agenda based on these principles and work closely with others, including developing country partners, to ensure that it is developed in an open and collaborative way. We will establish a taskforce to develop practical proposals and report back to us in the Autumn.

68. A central focus of our new strategic approach will be supporting sustainable growth in Africa. Building on the conclusions of the Summit on Financing African Economies that was held in Paris on 18 May 2021 and on the needs expressed by our African partners, we are resolved to deepen our current partnership to a new deal with the African continent, with African states, institutions and expertise at its core. In line with these ambitions, our DFIs and multilateral partners intend to invest at least $80 billion into the private sector in Africa over the next five years to support sustainable economic recovery and growth in line with the AAAA. This builds on the 2X Challenge partnership between G7 DFIs launched in 2018 and the target of an additional $15 billion of new funding for this as announced by G7 Foreign and Development Ministers in May 2021 to help address the disproportionate barriers that women face to access capital, leadership roles, quality employment and affordable care. We welcome the Alliance for entrepreneurship in Africa that was launched on May 18 and look forward to its first meeting by the end of the year, under the auspices of the International Financing Corporation and in full partnership with all public and private partners willing to invest more in Africa’s future and to leverage its growth opportunities. We ask the MDBs and especially the World Bank to mobilise more private financing into Africa by developing and reinforcing the relevant risk sharing instruments for the benefit of African small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). We reiterate our support to the G20 Compact with Africa as a key framework to enhance the business environment in Africa and call on reform orientated partners to join and strengthen this initiative. We invite G7 Foreign and Development ministers to continue to work with developing country partners and DFIs at the second Foreign and Development Ministers meeting.

69. As open societies we are committed to accountability and transparency, and to upholding the promises we have made. In this spirit, we endorse the 2021 Carbis Bay Progress Report from the G7 Accountability Working Group, reporting on G7 commitments to strengthen health systems to advance universal health coverage and global health. We look forward to the next Comprehensive Progress Report from the G7 Accountability working group in 2022.

CONCLUSION
70. In Cornwall we have revitalised our G7 partnership. Our Shared Agenda for Global Action is a statement of our shared vision and ambition as we continue to collaborate this year and under future Presidencies. As we do so we look forward to joining with others to ensure we build back better, in particular at the G20 Summit, COP26, and CBD15 and the UN General Assembly, and reiterate our support for the holding of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020 in a safe and secure manner as a symbol of global unity in overcoming COVID-19.

ARLINGTON, Va., April 28, 2021 — Today, the Project on Fair Representation sent a letter to Monica Howard Douglas, Coca-Cola’s new General Counsel, urging the company to rescind the recently announced policy that requires all outside law firms hired by the company to meet racial quotas in staffing Coca-Cola matters.

The law firm of Boyden Gray & Associates, a Washington D.C.-based litigation and public policy boutique, authored the letter. The letter is attached.

The current Coca-Cola company policy states that if a law firm fails to comply with meeting the quotas, it faces a non-refundable 30% reduction in fees and may be shut out entirely.

Coca-Cola’s stated goal is that the legal teams it hires “be representative of the population it serves,” and the policy’s minimum racial quotas therefore roughly track the racial distribution of the American population at large, rather than the labor market for attorneys.

The abrupt departure last week of Bradley Gayton after less than a year as General Counsel suggests that Coca-Cola is already aware that its racial quota requirements on outside firms are indefensible. Coca-Cola should act swiftly to publicly undo this unfair, polarizing, and illegal policy. Without a public statement forthcoming from Coca-Cola reversing these quotas, it must be assumed that the policy is still in effect and legal challenges may be forthcoming.

Edward Blum, president of the Project on Fair Representation, said, “It is obvious to all observers that Coca-Cola’s recently enacted law firm contracting policies are illegal. The company should publicly withdraw these racial quota requirements immediately.”

The Project on Fair Representation is a nonprofit legal defense foundation based in Arlington, Virginia. The mission of POFR is to provide legal support to individuals and jurisdictions that wish to challenge governmental distinctions based on race and ethnicity. Established in 2005, POFR has provided counsel in dozens of lawsuits, five of which were argued before the U.S. Supreme Court including Fisher v. Univ of Texas, Shelby Co. Ala. v. Holder and Evenwel v. Abbott.

Contact: Edward Blum 703-505-1922
edwardjayblum@gmail.com

SOURCE The Project on Fair Representation

Related Links
https://www.projectonfairrepresentation.org/g/

Launching today, the COVID-19 Law Lab initiative gathers and shares legal documents from over 190 countries across the world to help states establish and implement strong legal frameworks to manage the pandemic. The goal is to ensure that laws protect the health and wellbeing of individuals and communities and that they adhere to international human rights standards.

The new Lab (at www.COVIDLawLab.org) is a joint project of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the World Health Organization (WHO), the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University.

Well-designed laws can help build strong health systems; evaluate and approve safe and effective drugs and vaccines; and enforce actions to create healthier and safer public spaces and workplaces. Critically, they are key to effective implementation of the WHO International Health Regulations: surveillance; infection prevention and control; management of travel and trade; and implementation of measures to maintain essential health services.

“Laws and policies that are grounded in science, evidence and human rights can enable people to access health services, protect themselves from COVID-19 and live free from stigma, discrimination and violence,” says Achim Steiner, UNDP Administrator. “The COVID-19 Law Lab is an important tool for sharing good practices on laws and policies.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has seen a vast increase in urgent legislative action to control and reduce the pandemic.

“Strong legal frameworks are critical for national COVID-19 responses,” said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “Laws that impact health often fall outside the health sector. As health is global, legal frameworks should be aligned with international commitments to respond to current and emerging public health risks. A strong foundation of law for health is more important now than ever before.”

However, laws that are poorly designed, implemented, or enforced can harm marginalized populations, entrench stigma and discrimination, and hinder efforts to end the pandemic.

“Harmful laws can exacerbate stigma and discrimination, infringe on people’s rights and undermine public health responses,” according to Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “To ensure responses to the pandemic are effective, humane and sustainable, governments must use the law as a tool to uphold the human rights and dignity of people affected by COVID-19.”

The COVID-19 Law Lab is a database of laws that countries have implemented in response to the pandemic. It includes state of emergency declarations, quarantine measures, disease surveillance, legal measures relating to mask-wearing, social distancing, and access to medication and vaccines. The database will continue to grow as more countries and themes are added.

It will also feature research on different legal frameworks for COVID-19. These analyses will focus on the human rights impacts of public health laws and help countries identify best practices to guide their immediate responses to COVID-19 and socioeconomic recovery efforts once the pandemic is under control. It builds off the work of the UHC Legal Solutions Network, which was established to help countries achieve universal health coverage through the implementation of rights-based legal frameworks.

“We need to track and evaluate how laws and policies are being used during the Pandemic to understand what works,” said Dr. Matthew M. Kavanagh, faculty in Georgetown University’s Department of International Health. Katie Gottschalk, Executive Director of the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University Law Center added, “We must learn lessons from the early stage of pandemic policies to implement the most effective laws going forward – the COVID-19 Law Lab allows us to do just that.”

About UNDP
UNDP is the leading United Nations organization fighting to end the injustice of poverty, inequality, and climate change. Working with our broad network of experts and partners in 170 countries, we help nations to build integrated, lasting solutions for people and planet.

Learn more at undp.org or follow at @UNDP.

About WHO
The World Health Organization provides global leadership in public health within the United Nations system. Founded in 1948, WHO works with 194 Member States, across six regions and from more than 150 offices, to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable. Our goal for 2019-2023 is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, to protect a billion more people from health emergencies, and provide a further billion people with better health and wellbeing. For updates on COVID-19 and public health advice to protect yourself from coronavirus, visit www.who.int and follow WHO on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, Pinterest, Snapchat, YouTube

About UNAIDS
The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law and Georgetown University
The O’Neill Institute, housed at Georgetown University, was established to create innovative solutions to the most pressing national and international health concerns, with the essential vision that the law has been, and will remain, a fundamental tool for solving critical health problems. The Georgetown University Department of International Health is home to scholarship in public health, economics, political science, and medicine. Georgetown’s Global Health Initiative serves as a university-wide platform for developing concrete solutions to the health challenges facing families and communities throughout the world. Read more at oneillinstitute.org and connect with us on Twitter and Facebook.

About the UHC Legal Solutions Network
The COVID-19 Law lab is a product of the UHC Legal Solutions Network is a collaboration between the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS), the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), and the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University. The initiative aims to support countries to achieve universal health coverage by working with policymakers, civil society groups and other stakeholders to craft laws ensure that all people and communities have the right to access the promotive, preventive, curative, rehabilitative and palliative health services they need, of sufficient quality to be effective, while also ensuring that the use of these services does not expose the user to financial hardship.

FIFA, WHO, and the European Commission have joined forces, to launch the #SafeHome campaign to support women and children at risk of domestic violence. The campaign is a joint response from the three institutions to the recent spikes in reports of domestic violence as stay-at-home measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 have put women and children experiencing abuse at greater risk.

Almost one in three women worldwide experience physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner or sexual violence by someone else in their lifetime. In a majority of cases, that violence is committed by a partner in their home – indeed, up to 38% of all murders of women are committed by an intimate partner. It is also estimated that one billion children aged between two and seventeen years (or half the world’s children) have experienced physical, sexual, or emotional violence or neglect in the past year.

There are many reasons why people perpetrate domestic violence, including gender inequality and social norms that condone violence, childhood experiences of abuse or exposure to violence and coercive control growing up. Harmful use of alcohol can also trigger violence. Stressful situations, such as those being experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic and economic instability, exacerbate the risk. Moreover, the current distancing measures in place in many countries make it harder for women and children to reach out to family, friends and health workers who could otherwise provide support and protection.

“Just as physical, sexual or psychological violence has no place in football, it has no place in the home.” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization. “We are so pleased that our partners today are joining us to draw attention to this critical issue. As people are isolated at home because of COVID-19, the risks of domestic violence have tragically been exacerbated.”.

“Together with the World Health Organization and the European Commission, we are asking the football community to raise awareness to this intolerable situation that threatens particularly women and children in their own home, a place where they should feel happy, safe and secure,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino. “We cannot stay silent on this issue that negatively affects so many people. Violence has no place in homes, just as it has no place in sports. Football has the power to relay important social messages, and through the #SafeHome campaign, we want to ensure that those people experiencing violence have access to the necessary support services they need.”

“Violence has no place in our societies,” said Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth. “Women’s rights are human rights and should be protected. Often abused women and children are afraid to talk because of fear or shame. This ‘window’ to speak-up and seek help is, during confinement, even more restricted. As a matter of fact , in some countries, we have seen an increase in reports of domestic violence since the outbreak of COVID-19. It is our responsibility as a society, as institutions to speak up for these women. To give them trust and support them. This is the purpose of this joint campaign which I am honoured to be part of.”

“We call upon our member associations to actively publish details of national or local helplines and support services that can help victims and anyone feeling threatened by violence in their locality,” added the FIFA President. “We also call upon our members to review their own safeguarding measures using the FIFA Guardians toolkit to ensure that football is fun and safe for everyone in our game, especially the youngest members of the football family.”

The five-part video awareness campaign features 15 past and present footballers – Álvaro Arbeloa, Rosana Augusto, Vítor Baía, Khalilou Fadiga, Matthias Ginter, David James, Annike Krahn, Marco Materazzi, Milagros Menéndez, Noemi Pascotto, Graham Potter, Mikaël Silvestre, Kelly Smith, Óliver Torres and Clementine Touré – who have stressed their support to addressing this critical issue. The campaign is being published on various FIFA digital channels, with #SafeHome also being supported with multimedia toolkits for the 211 FIFA member associations and for various media agencies to help facilitate additional localisation and to further amplify the message worldwide.

WHO, the United Nations’ specialised health agency, and FIFA, football’s world governing body, collaborate closely to promote healthy lifestyles, which includes being free of violence, through football globally. The two organisations jointly launched the “Pass the message to kick out coronavirus” campaign in March 2020 to share advice on effective measures to protect people from COVID-19. This was followed by the #BeActive campaign in April 2020 to encourage people to stay healthy at home during the pandemic.

Factsheet
According to WHO, violence is a pervasive public health and human rights problem around the world. It affects women, men, boys and girls in all countries and cuts across boundaries of age, race, religion, ethnicity, disability, culture and wealth. Statistically, women and children (both boys and girls) are most affected by violence in the home and it is often perpetrated by men they know and trust.

Data (Source: WHO and others)

Almost one in three women worldwide have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner or sexual violence, not including sexual harassment, by any perpetrator
Globally, 30% of women have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime
Globally up to 38% of murders of women are committed by intimate partners
Adolescent girls, young women, women belonging to ethnic and other minorities, transwomen, and women with disabilities face a higher risk of different forms of violence
The majority (55% to 95%) of women survivors of intimate partner violence or sexual violence do not disclose or seek any type of help or services
Being abused as a child or exposed to violence in the family when growing up, attitudes accepting of violence and gender inequality including gender norms increase the risk of perpetrating violence against a partner; in some settings violence is associated with excessive use of alcohol
Globally, over one billion children – over half of all boys and girls aged 2–17 years – experience some form of emotional, physical or sexual violence every year
The lifetime prevalence of childhood sexual abuse is 18% for girls and 8% for boys
Homicide is among the top five causes of death in adolescents, with boys comprising over 80% of victims and perpetrators
Regional statistics also exist. For example in Europe, it is estimated that one in five (20%) children have experienced sexual abuse, and in the WHO European region, a quarter of women (15-49 years) have experienced intimate partner violence in their lifetime. In Latin America and the Caribbean, it is estimated that 58% of children experience sexual, physical or emotional violence each year, and 30% of women have experienced intimate partner violence in their lifetime.

BOSTON – August 15, 2019 – GE (NYSE:GE) today issued the following statement in response to allegations made in a report by Harry Markopolos:

“The claims made by Mr. Markopolos are meritless. The Company has never met, spoken to or had contact with Mr. Markopolos, and we are extremely disappointed that an individual with no direct knowledge of GE would choose to make such serious and unsubstantiated claims. GE operates at the highest level of integrity and stands behind its financial reporting. We remain focused on running our businesses every day, following the strategic path we have laid out.

“Mr. Markopolos openly acknowledges that he is compensated by unnamed hedge funds. Such funds are financially motivated to attempt to generate short selling in a company’s stock to create unnecessary volatility. The report states that his company ‘entered into an agreement with a third-party entity to review an advanced copy of the Report in exchange for later-provided compensation….those positions taken by the third-party entity are designed to generate profits should the price of GE securities decrease’ and ‘members of the Company are personally in possession of securities, derivatives, and/or other financial instruments of, and/or relating to, GE, which may generate profits should the price of GE securities decrease.’”

Addressing Mr. Markopolos’ allegations:

GE Insurance: We believe that our current reserves are well-supported for our portfolio characteristics, and we undertake rigorous reserve adequacy testing every year. The future implementation of the GAAP insurance accounting standard does not align GAAP and statutory reserves as Mr. Markopolos alleges, but rather will be dependent on a number of variables that will not affect statutory accounting, which drives our funding requirements.

BHGE accounting: As a majority shareholder of BHGE, we are required to report BHGE on a consolidated basis under U.S. GAAP, contrary to what Mr. Markopolos alleges. Further, consolidation of BHGE by GE includes additional disclosure of BHGE’s results made through BHGE segment results reporting in the notes to GE’s consolidated financial statements. BHGE is also a stand-alone SEC registrant with its own separate SEC filings under Form 10-Q and 10-K as a separate company. In the most recent 10Q, GE disclosed the loss upon deconsolidation of BHGE from a sale of our interest (taking us below our current majority position) would be approximately $7.4B as of July 26, 2019.

GE’s liquidity: Contrary to Mr. Markopolos’ allegations, GE continues to maintain a strong liquidity position, committed credit lines, and several executable options to monetize assets. The Company ended the second quarter with $16.9B of Industrial Cash excluding BHGE, $12.5B of liquidity at GE Capital and access to $35B of credit facilities. As it relates to GE’s leverage targets, as the Company has previously stated during 2Q earnings, it expects to make significant progress towards these goals by the end of 2020.

About GE
GE (NYSE:GE) drives the world forward by tackling its biggest challenges. By combining world-class engineering with software and analytics, GE helps the world work more efficiently, reliably, and safely. For more than 125 years, GE has invented the future of industry, and today it leads new paradigms in additive manufacturing, materials science, and data analytics. GE people are global, diverse and dedicated, operating with the highest integrity and passion to fulfill GE’s mission and deliver for our customers. www.ge.com

We’ve formally reached a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission about privacy. We’ve agreed to pay a historic fine, but even more important, we’re going to make some major structural changes to how we build products and run this company.

We have a responsibility to protect people’s privacy. We already work hard to live up to this responsibility, but now we’re going to set a completely new standard for our industry.

As part of this settlement, we’re bringing our privacy controls more in line with our financial controls under the Sarbanes-Oxley legislation. Our executives, including me, will have to certify that all of the work we oversee meets our privacy commitments. Just as we have an audit committee of our board to oversee our financial controls, we’ll set up a new privacy committee of our board that will oversee our privacy program. We’ve also asked one of our most experienced product leaders to take on the role of Chief Privacy Officer for Products.

To implement this, we’ll have to review our technical systems to document any privacy risks and how we’re handling them. Going forward, when we ship a new feature that uses data, or modify an existing feature to use data in new ways, we’ll have to document any risks and the steps we’re taking to mitigate them. We expect it will take hundreds of engineers and more than a thousand people across our company to do this important work. And we expect it will take longer to build new products following this process going forward.

Overall, these changes go beyond anything required under US law today. The reason I support them is that I believe they will reduce the number of mistakes we make and help us deliver stronger privacy protections for everyone.

As we build our privacy-focused vision for the future of social networking that I outlined earlier this year, it’s critical we get this right. The next focus for our company is to build privacy protections as strong as the best services we provide. I’m committed to doing this well and delivering the best private social platform for our community.

Multiannual financial framework
The European Council welcomed the work done under the Romanian Presidency and took note of the various elements of the MFF package. It called on Finland’s Presidency to pursue the work and to develop the Negotiating Box. On that basis the European Council will hold an exchange of views in October 2019, aiming for an agreement before the end of the year.

Climate change
The European Council emphasises the importance of the United Nations Secretary General’s Climate Action Summit in September for stepping up global climate action so as to achieve the objective of the Paris Agreement, including by pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. It welcomes the active involvement of Member States and the Commission in the preparations.

Following the sectoral discussions held over recent months, the European Council invites the Council and the Commission to advance work on the conditions, the incentives and the enabling framework to be put in place so as to ensure a transition to a climate-neutral EU in line with the Paris Agreement [1] that will preserve European competitiveness, be just and socially balanced, take account of Member States’ national circumstances and respect their right to decide on their own energy mix, while building on the measures already agreed to achieve the 2030 reduction target. The European Council will finalise its guidance before the end of the year with a view to the adoption and submission of the EU’s long-term strategy to the UNFCCC in early 2020. In this context, the European Council invites the European Investment Bank to step up its activities in support of climate action.

The EU and its Member States remain committed to scaling up the mobilisation of international climate finance from a wide variety of private and public sources and to working towards a timely, well-managed and successful replenishment process for the Green Climate Fund.

Disinformation and hybrid threats
Further to the Presidency report and the contributions from the Commission and the High Representative on lessons learnt with regard to disinformation and securing free and fair elections, the European Council calls for sustained efforts to raise awareness, increase preparedness and strengthen the resilience of our democracies to disinformation. It welcomes the Commission’s intention to conduct an in-depth evaluation of the implementation of commitments undertaken by online platforms and other signatories under the Code of Practice. The evolving nature of the threats and the growing risk of malicious interference and online manipulation associated with the development of Artificial Intelligence and data-gathering techniques require continuous assessment and an appropriate response.

The EU must ensure a coordinated response to hybrid and cyber threats and strengthen its cooperation with relevant international actors. The European Council welcomes the adoption of a new framework for targeted restrictive measures, and the work on coordinated attribution at EU level in the context of the cyber diplomacy toolbox, to better deter and respond to cyber-attacks. It invites the EU institutions, together with the Member States, to work on measures to enhance the resilience and improve the security culture of the EU against cyber and hybrid threats from outside the EU, and to better protect the EU’s information and communication networks, and its decision-making processes, from malicious activities of all kinds.

External relations
8. On the occasion of the Eastern Partnership’s 10th anniversary, the European Council reaffirms the importance of this strategic partnership and invites the Commission and the High Representative to evaluate existing instruments and measures and, on the basis of appropriate consultations, to present by early 2020, with a view to the next Eastern Partnership Summit, a further set of long-term policy objectives.

The European Council welcomes the peaceful transfer of power in the Republic of Moldova and invites the European Commission and the High Representative to work on a set of concrete measures to support the Republic of Moldova, based on its sustained implementation of reforms under the Association Agreement / DCFTA.

The European Council underlines the crucial importance of the EU’s strategic partnership with Africa. We are committed to developing it further with a shared ambition to face together common and global challenges.

The stability, security and prosperity of the countries on the southern shore of the Mediterranean are of crucial importance for the EU. In this context, peace and long-term stability in Libya are a common priority. The EU reiterates its support for the UN-led process for the cessation of hostilities and an inclusive political solution.

The European Council welcomes the renewed impetus in EU-Morocco relations and looks forward to the upcoming EU-Morocco Association Council.

The European Council reiterates its call on Russia to release the captured Ukrainian sailors unconditionally, return the seized vessels and ensure free passage of all ships through the Kerch Straits, in accordance with international law.

The European Council expresses its utmost concern about the Russian presidential decree of 24 April, enabling the simplified issuing of passports in certain areas of Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions, which runs counter to the spirit and the objectives of the Minsk agreements.

The European Council will continue to monitor the situation in eastern Ukraine and stands ready to consider further options, including non-recognition of Russian passports issued in contradiction to the Minsk agreements, in close coordination with its international partners. The European Council calls for an urgent resumption of negotiating efforts with a view to the implementation of the Minsk agreements and for measures aimed at rebuilding confidence among the parties.

17 July will mark five years since the downing of flight MH17, which claimed 298 lives. The European Council reiterates its full support for all efforts to establish truth, justice and accountability for the victims and their next of kin, in accordance with UNSC Resolution 2166. In this context, it welcomes the announcement by the Joint Investigation Team on 19 June 2019 that criminal charges will be brought in the Netherlands against four individuals, calls on Russia to cooperate fully with the ongoing investigation, and expresses its full confidence in the independence and professionalism of the legal procedures that lie ahead.

The European Council recalls and reaffirms previous Council and European Council conclusions, including the European Council conclusions of 22 March 2018 strongly condemning Turkey’s continued illegal actions in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Aegean Sea. The European Council expresses serious concerns over Turkey’s current illegal drilling activities in the Eastern Mediterranean and deplores that Turkey has not yet responded to the EU’s repeated calls to cease such activities. The European Council underlines the serious immediate negative impact that such illegal actions have across the range of EU-Turkey relations. The European Council calls on Turkey to show restraint, respect the sovereign rights of Cyprus and refrain from any such actions. The European Council endorses the invitation to the Commission and the EEAS to submit options for appropriate measures without delay, including targeted measures. The EU will continue to closely monitor developments and stands ready to respond appropriately and in full solidarity with Cyprus. The European Council will remain seized of the matter and will revert accordingly.

Other items
The European Council endorses the conclusions on enlargement and stabilisation and association process adopted by the Council on 18 June 2019.

In the context of the European Semester, the European Council held a discussion on the basis of a horizontal report on Country-Specific Recommendations.

For a large majority of Member States, climate neutrality must be achieved by 2050.

A home health services company owner and a co-conspirator, both Miami, Florida residents, were sentenced to prison today for their roles in a $8.6 million health care fraud scheme.

Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Shimon R. Richmond of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Miami Regional Office and Miami Air and Marine Branch Director Martin G. Wade of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Air and Marine Operations made the announcement.

Alexander Ros Lazo (Ros Lazo), 54, the owner of T.L.C. Health Services of Miami, was sentenced to serve 87 months in prison. Misleady Ibarra, 46, who performed home health therapy services without a license, was sentenced to serve 24 months in prison. The defendants were sentenced by U.S. Circuit Judge Adalberto Jordan sitting in the Southern District of Florida. Judge Jordan also ordered Ros Lazo to pay $8,603,859 in restitution and to forfeit the same amount, and Ibarra to pay restitution in an amount to be determined. Ibarra and Ros Lazo pleaded guilty in December 2018 to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. Both defendants were charged in an indictment returned on June 21, 2018.

As part of his guilty plea, Ros Lazo admitted that he paid kickbacks and bribes to his co-conspirators in exchange for home health services prescriptions and the referral of Medicare beneficiaries to T.L.C. Health Services. He further admitted that he and Ibarra agreed with their co-conspirators to commit health care fraud by billing Medicare for physical therapy services performed by Ibarra on behalf of licensed therapists despite knowing that she was not licensed to render those services to the Medicare beneficiaries. Ros Lazo admitted that as a result of the fraudulent claims, Medicare paid $8.6 million in benefits that it otherwise would not have.

As part of her guilty plea, Ibarra admitted to conspiring with Ros Lazo to commit health care fraud by rendering home health therapy services to Medicare beneficiaries when Ibarra was not licensed to provide these services.

The case was investigated by the FBI, HHS-OIG and CBP Air and Marine Operations. Trial Attorneys Alexander Kramer and Sara Clingan of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Yisel Valdes of the Southern District of Florida prosecuted the case.

The Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which is part of a joint initiative between the Department of Justice and HHS to focus their efforts to prevent and deter fraud and enforce current anti-fraud laws around the country. Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 14 strike forces operating in 23 districts, has charged nearly 4,000 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $14 billion.

Good afternoon and thank you all for being here.

I especially want to thank everyone on stage from the Departments of Homeland Security and Commerce, the FBI and from our U.S. Attorney’s offices in both the Western District of Washington State and the Eastern District of New York.

Before I get to today’s announcements, I want to remind everyone that the defendants in these cases—as in every case—are innocent until proven guilty and they deserve the due process of law.

First, I am announcing that a grand jury in Seattle has returned an indictment that alleges 10 federal crimes by two affiliates of telecommunications corporation Huawei Technologies. According to the indictment, in 2012 Huawei began a concerted effort to steal information about a robot that T-Mobile used to test mobile phones. In an effort to build their own robot, Huawei’s engineers allegedly violated confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements with T-Mobile by secretly taking photos of the robot, measuring it, and even stealing a piece of it.

I am also announcing that a grand jury in New York has returned an indictment alleging 13 additional crimes committed by Huawei, its CFO, its affiliate in Iran, and one of its subsidiaries here in the United States. The criminal activity alleged in this indictment goes back at least 10 years and goes all the way to the top of the company.

As early as 2007, Huawei employees allegedly began to misrepresent the company’s relationship with its Iranian affiliate, which is called Skycom. Huawei employees allegedly told banking partners that Huawei had sold its ownership interest in Skycom—but these claims were false. In reality, Huawei sold Skycom to itself.

By claiming that Skycom was a separate company—and not an affiliate which Huawei controlled—Huawei allegedly asserted that all of its Iran business was in compliance with American sanctions. These alleged false claims led banks to do business with the company and, therefore, to unknowingly violate our laws. One bank facilitated more than $100 million worth of Skycom transactions through the United States and in just four years.

Huawei allegedly lied about other relationships, as well. In 2017, when one bank decided to terminate its global banking relationship with Huawei over concern about risk, the company allegedly told other banks that Huawei was distancing itself from the bank—not the other way around. Huawei allegedly did this in an attempt to, among other things, manipulate those other banks into expanding and maintaining their banking relationships with Huawei.

There are additional troubling allegations in the indictment as well, including that Huawei lied to the federal government, and attempted to obstruct justice by concealing and destroying evidence and by moving potential government witnesses back to China.

As has been widely reported, in December 2018, Canadian authorities arrested Huawei’s CFO in Vancouver, in compliance with our request for her provisional arrest pursuant to our extradition treaty with Canada. The United States is currently seeking her extradition. We are deeply grateful to the Government of Canada for its assistance and for its steadfast commitment to the rule of law.

I want to repeat that the charges in today’s indictments are only allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

And I want to thank everyone who made these indictments possible—especially the agencies represented behind me and to all of the New York, Dallas, and Seattle law enforcement agents who investigated these cases. They are continuing their work to investigate these matters.

I also want to thank our attorneys in the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section, our Office of International Affairs, and our AUSAs in the Eastern District of New York and the Western District of Washington.

The cases we are announcing today have truly been a team effort across multiple U.S. Cabinet agencies and across multiple Divisions and U.S. Attorneys’ offices within the Department of Justice. For more than a year, the agencies represented behind me followed the evidence wherever it led. They have done great work already—and I am confident that this team is going to finish the job and bring this case to a successful conclusion.

In a few moments, U.S. Attorney Donoghue and First Assistant Hayes will provide more details on today’s indictments. But let me just say two more things.

First, when a bank’s customers lie to it about their sanctions-related business, that exposes the bank to the risk of violating the law, especially when they continue to provide those bad actors access to our U.S. financial system. Our sanctions on Iran are the law of the land in this country—and we’re going to enforce the law, with both civil and criminal penalties.

Second: as I told high-level Chinese law enforcement officials in August—we need more law enforcement cooperation with China. China should be concerned about criminal activities by Chinese companies—and China should take action.

We are proud that the United States has the strongest economy in the world. I believe that is in no small part due to our respect for the rule of law. Criminals and bad actors can be certain that they will not get away with criminal activity. But those who do business in the United States can also be certain the

Department of Justice will protect them from criminals, no matter how powerful or influential they are. I think we have shown that today—and we will show that as these cases move forward.

Washington – The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) today lifted sanctions imposed on En+ Group plc (“En+”), UC Rusal plc (“Rusal”), and JSC EuroSibEnergo (“ESE”), following an earlier notification submitted to Congress on December 19, 2018.

Under the terms of their removal from OFAC’s List of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (“SDN List”), En+, Rusal, and ESE have reduced Oleg Deripaska’s direct and indirect shareholding stake in these companies and severed his control. This action ensures that the majority of directors on the En+ and Rusal boards will be independent directors – including U.S. and European persons – who have no business, professional, or family ties to Deripaska or any other SDN, and that independent U.S. persons vote a significant bloc of the shares of En+.

The companies have also agreed to unprecedented transparency for Treasury into their operations by undertaking extensive, ongoing auditing, certification, and reporting requirements. All sanctions on Deripaska continue in force.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin issued the following statement today in advance of a bipartisan, classified briefing for Members of the House of Representatives on the sanctions against Russian oligarch and Specially Designated National Oleg Deripaska and three companies he controlled at the time sanctions were imposed, En+ Group PLC (En+), United Company RUSAL PLC (Rusal), and EuroSibEnergo (ESE):

“I was pleased to accept the invitation from Speaker Pelosi and several committee chairs to discuss our Russia sanctions program with the new Congress. It is my hope that today’s briefing will provide lawmakers with an overview of Treasury’s proposed actions with respect to these sanctions targets.

“This Administration has sanctioned 272 Russian-related individuals and entities, of which 256 are subject to sanctions administered by Treasury. This includes 150 individuals and entities under Ukraine/Russia-related sanctions authorities codified by the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).

“Oleg Deripaska will remain sanctioned, his property and interests remain blocked, and any companies he controls are also sanctioned. Treasury recently designated Viktor Boyarkin, one of Deripaska’s close business associates. Under CAATSA, any person who knowingly facilitates a significant transaction for or on behalf of Deripaska faces secondary sanctions.

“En+, Rusal, and ESE were designated for sanctions solely because they were majority-owned or controlled by Deripaska. These entities are undergoing significant restructuring and governance changes that sever Deripaska’s control and significantly diminish his ownership. They have committed to provide Treasury with an unprecedented level of transparency into their dealings to ensure that Deripaska does not reassert control. As a result, these entities will no longer be designated for sanctions.

“Treasury will be vigilant in ensuring that En+ and Rusal meet these commitments. If these companies fail to comply with the terms, they will face very real and swift consequences, including the reimposition of sanctions.

“One of the goals of sanctions is to change behavior, and the proposed delistings of companies that Deripaska will no longer control show that sanctions can result in positive change.

“I appreciate Members’ interest in these important national security issues. I am committed to providing a full briefing, answering their questions, and hearing their concerns. I look forward to working closely with both the House and Senate.”

WASHINGTON —
Last month, in tribute to the 77th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, a group of 12 World War II veterans journeyed from Austin, Texas, to the nation’s capital to join their brethren in remembering the fallen and honoring those who served.

The Honor Flight veterans represented a tapestry of war experiences, battles and services. They included noncommissioned and commissioned officers; sailors, soldiers and airmen; and those who fought in the Pacific Theater and on the European front.

The veterans were treated to a hero’s send-off in Austin and a joyous welcome in Washington.

“I think it’s just humbling. I couldn’t get over it,” said David Fleming, who served in the Army Air Corps in England and France. “It brought me to tears, all the applause going through the airport in Austin and again here in Washington.”

Honoring Sacrifices and Service

The Honor Flight Network’s mission is to bring veterans to the nation’s capital, at no charge to the honorees, so those who served can see the memorials that honor their service and sacrifice.

“To me this is a privilege. It’s an honor to be on the Honor Flight,” former sailor Buddy Sutton said, adding, “I think they’re great people and I hope every vet can have the same experience.”

Billy Watkins was 14 years old when the Pearl Harbor attack occurred; he joined the Navy just after his 17th birthday and served in the Pacific Theater as a radar operator.

“I’m certainly no hero,” he said. “But the way people just put themselves out to do this for us, it’s hard to take in. It’s very emotional.”

The trip culminated with the Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day event at the national World War II Memorial.

“I was 16 when Pearl Harbor was bombed and couldn’t wait to get in the service when I turned 18 years old,” retired Air Force Lt. Col. Raymond Schaaf said. The B-17 pilot in the Army Air Corps recalled serving as a tail gunner in a particularly harrowing mission where four German ME-109s attacked — a mission for which he earned the Air Medal.

“The first thing I saw was that big black swastika,” he said. “A chill went through me from my heels clear to the roots of my hair.”

At the commemoration, each veteran was recognized for his service. The veterans placed wreaths at the memorial’s Freedom Wall in tribute to the more than 2,400 people killed Dec. 7, 1941, in Japan’s surprise attack on the Hawaiian island of Oahu.

Frederick Clinton, a veteran of World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, was 14 years old when Pearl Harbor was attacked. Two years later, he dropped out of school, lied about his age and joined the Army.

He has no regrets, he said, pointing out he traveled the world, earned a college education and rose to the rank of colonel. He retired from the military in 1974.

“Everybody comes up and says, ‘Well, thank you for your service,’” said Clinton, who served as an infantryman in France and Germany with the 254th Infantry Regiment, 63rd Infantry Division during the war. “I really should be thanking them for letting me serve.”

Andrew Abugelis, who enlisted in the Navy in 1942 and was assigned to the crew of the aircraft USS Yorktown, serving in the Pacific Theater, has a singular reason for serving: “I decided to join the Navy because of my country,” he said. “I love my country.”

(Editor’s note: Retired Air Force Lt. Col. Raymond Schaaf died Dec. 17, 2018, at age 93. We are grateful that he took the time to share his experiences with the Defense Department during his visit to Washington. The Defense.gov staff offers its condolences to his family and friends.)

MISSION
The mission of the Department of Defense is to provide a lethal Joint Force to defend the security of our country and sustain American influence abroad.