english

‘My shame, our shame’: Pope reacts to bombshell report of Catholic Church’s sexual abuse of thousands of children in France

Pope Francis has expressed shame on behalf of himself and the Roman Catholic Church over the scale of sexual abuse committed against children in France after a damming report found hundreds of thousands of minors had been abused. Speaking on Wednesday, the Pontiff said “it was a moment of shame” for the Church after a […]

english

Afghan refugee given 30 months in jail, only a third mandatory, after sexual abuse of 7-year-old in scandal that shocked Austria

A court in Austria has sentenced a teenage refugee from Afghanistan to 30 months in prison, of which he is only obliged to serve 10 months, after he sexually abused a girl, age seven. The victim was awarded €500 in compensation. On Wednesday a court in Ried, Upper Austria reached a verdict concerning the shocking […]

english

WHO officials ‘horrified’ after report blames Congo sex abuse claims on ‘structural failures’ at UN agency

An independent investigation into allegations of sexual abuse perpetrated by World Health Organization (WHO) staff in the Democratic Republic of Congo has criticized the agency for “clear structural failures” over the complaints. The report focused on allegations of abuses committed by WHO personnel who were hired locally, as well as some of its international staff […]

english

UN warns unchecked AI & machine-learning tech can ‘violate human rights, damage lives’ as it calls for safeguards against abuse

The UN’s human rights chief has called for a moratorium on the use of some artificial intelligence tech, such as bulk facial recognition, until there are “adequate safeguards” against its potentially “catastrophic” impact. In a statement on Wednesday, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet stressed the need for an outright ban on AI […]