College of the Siskiyous Library Bans COS student

Nancy Shepard

COS Library

Nov 6th, 2012

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Well, my 4th amendment rights as a student and as an American citizen are still being systematically violated here at the COS

library and at the LRC.  Academically, you are CENSORING my ability as a student from using the internet.

It seems you have no problem upholding federal laws (probably sponsored by the US Dept of Homeland Security)

to justify the library's illegal electronic tracking and monitoring of student's internet use here at the college.

For your information, any federal law that violates our fundamental constitutional freedoms and liberties- known as

the US Bill of Rights (specifically, the 4th Amendment) is strictly illegal and against the law.

This situation is now further complicated by the fact that the COS administration has apparently "gagged" both the Tech

Services and Board representatives from responding to my complaint/grievance.  These are the very people i need to be able to work

with to collectively address and resolve this complaint/grievance i have with the college here.

Either my e-mails have been illegally intercepted or they are being told NOT to respond to my inquiries, which tells me

they have ALOT to hide.  This is a complete violation of both my rights as a student and the grievance process overall,

a practice more in line with communist china dictates rather than the free, open democratic decision making process

we are all too familiar with here in America.

So, that leaves me with the problem of how to proceed from here.  Despite the fact that i've dropped my formal

grievance, due to the fact that i am being prevented from working with the relevant parties involved and other more pressing global environmental concerns i have

right now, I am tempted to NOT allow the college to get away with these violations

of my personal privacy regarding internet access here at the college. 

In my opinion, the college needs to be taken to court and sued for these types of privacy violations, with the appropriate punative
financial damages awarded for every single day the college continues to engage in this type of unlawful activity.  Its an option I will
hold in the wings for the time being.  Thus said, the college is already paying a very heavy price for essentially "banning" me
from the library's internet access (and the LRC to a degree).  The price being paid is primarily on a global environmental level,
but even more so in ways that are completely beyond the purview of this current discussion.

Without the 4th amendment, we might as well be living in Nazi Germany, Nancy.  The US Dept of Homeland Security- whom i believe is

chiefly behind this move to restrict and control the internet here at COS- is a fascist, terrorist, criminal organization and

has absolutely NO PLACE in this country.  I publicly have called for its complete decommissioning and dismantlement and will

continue to do so until this institution is no longer in existence and its personnel are prosecuted and jailed for their crimes.

If you want to witness what life is like without the 4th amendment, just go to any airport today.  In the name of safety and security

(against so-called "bin laden terrorists"), the TSA is destroying our precious freedoms and liberties and our right to be free from any unreasonable searches and seizures.

I don't know if you know this or not, but they will soon be expanding out to the nations rail and bus terminals and have plans to set up random checkpoints on our interstates and highways soon.

Perhaps you will understand the value of the 4th amendment when, someday, you are pulled over at a checkpoint for no reason, are forcibly body scanned

(with harmful radiation), and groped and searched without your consent.  You may even have some of your personal belongings confiscated.  If you

resist in any way you may get handcuffed and shipped out to a re-education/concentration camp (they've already built them).  This is the world we are heading into, unfortunately.
Unless and until our freedoms and liberties are respected and upheld, America will be turned into a new 4th Reich/Nazi Germany.

Seriously, is this the kind of world you want to live in?

Regards,

Steve Jones

Computer Science Major

COS student 2012

Santa Cruz THRIVE MOVEMENT Meet-up CENSORS Local Activist

OPEN LETTER to The Thrive Movement-

(info@thrivemovement.com)

——————————————————————————————————————————————–

 

Hi folks,                                 november 15th, 2012

 

I have watched and supported the THRIVE movie and work these past many months.

I have sent your “you tube”  link out to THOUSANDS of people all over the world.

 

Its seems we have a problem though.

 

My local “meet-up” group here in santa cruz, california has CENSORED my right to be part of the

local THRIVE group here locally.  Here is the response they gave me because they don’t agree with

my position on Agenda 21 and global warming:

 

———————————————————————————————————————

Hi Steve, I don’t see why you’re interested in being involved with our meetup. You certainly don’t agree with the conclusions our general consensus has reached after our diligent research.   (***Steve Jones reply: WRONG: I DO AGREE with MOST of the THRIVE MOVEMENT conclusions) I get that you think that you’ve done your research, and that you are right and those that disagree with you are wrong. (***Steve Jones: I have NEVER made this assertion and I DO welcome contrary feedback)  This is not the kind of approach that leads to a useful discussion.  (***Steve Jones: I couldn’t agree more)
So, I’m removing you as a member of this Meetup. I wish you the best in sharing your information and perspectives where they will be welcomed.
Best regards,
Bruce
Organizer

 

 ———————————————————————————————————————————————————-

 

Now, if we’re going to be successful building a global green society and securing a movement that survives and thrives in the future, we’re going to have

to be able to discuss things freely, openly and without censorship.  The person running this online meetup group is BRUCE TANNER, e-mail: brtanner@brucetanner.info

 

The meet-up website is: http://www.meetup.com/thrive-santa-cruz

 

We may disagree on certain aspects of the movement, but we ALL have a right to discuss things in a manner that respects our right to FREE SPEECH.

 

Our collective work to build a thriving society REQUIRES an open, uncensored, lively discussion if we’re going to ALL be successful in our quest to build a new world that works for all.

 

So, i hereby request that the THRIVE movement FORMALLY re-instate my ability to interact with the local community here in santa cruz so that we may all work together for the common vision and dream of a new world which we all seek.  I’m an ally, certainly not an enemy. 

 

sincerely,

 

steve jones

global environmentalist

UCSC graduate

Santa Cruz, California
USA

2001-2010: WARMEST DECADE ON RECORD

GENEVA —

Climate change has accelerated in the past decade, the U.N. weather agency said Friday, releasing data showing that 2001 to 2010 was the warmest decade on record.
The 10-year period was also marked by extreme levels of rain or snowfall, leading to significant flooding on all continents, while droughts affected parts of East Africa and North America.
“The decade 2001-2010 was the warmest since records began in 1850, with global land and sea surface temperatures estimated at 0.46 degrees Celsius above the long term average of 14.0 degrees Celsius (57.2 degrees Fahrenheit),” said the World Meteorological Organization.
Nine of the 10 years also counted among the 10 warmest on record, it added, noting that “climate change accelerated” during the first decade of the 21st century.
The trend continued in 2011, which was the warmest year on record despite La Nina—a weather pattern which has a cooling effect.
The average temperature in 2011 was 0.40 degrees Celsius above the long term average, said the WMO.
“This 2011 annual assessment confirms the findings of the previous WMO annual statements that climate change is happening now and is not some distant future threat,” said WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud.
“The world is warming because of human activities and this is resulting in far-reaching and potentially irreversible impacts on our Earth, atmosphere and oceans,” he added.
The U.N. weather agency noted that during the decade, “numerous weather and climate extremes affected almost every part of the globe with flooding, droughts, cyclones, heat waves and cold waves.”
Historical floods hit Eastern Europe in 2001 and 2005, Africa in 2008, Asia and Australia in 2010.Global precipitation—including rain or snow—reached the second highest average since 1901. The highest average was recorded for the decade 1951-1960.
Meanwhile for the North Atlantic basin, the 10 years marked the highest level of tropical cyclone activity, including Hurricane Katrina which struck the United States in 2005 and Cyclone Nargis which hit Myanmar in 2008.

Planet Earth Busting World Heat Records in 2012

First decade of 21st Century warmest on record; US locations break 7,000 temperature records in March

- Common Dreams staff

Accelarated climate change, driven by human activity, has led to soaring temperatures around the world and the decade between 2001 and 2010 was the warmest ever recorded in all continents of the globe, according to a new report released by the World Meteorological Organization.
Additionally, an 'unprecedented' heatwave in the United States "has set or tied more than 7,000 high temperature records" across the country, according to a report from Climate Central. "This heat wave is essentially unprecedented," said the media and research orgnanization's Heidi Cullen told Reuters. "It's hard to grasp how massive and significant this is."
The increase in global temperatures since 1971 has been “remarkable” according to the WHO's assessment. Atmospheric and oceanic phenomena such as La Niña events had a temporary cooling influence in some years, the report says, but did not halt the overriding warming trend.
The “dramatic and continuing sea ice decline in the Arctic” was one of the most prominent features of the changing state of the climate during the decade, according to the preliminary findings. Global average precipitation was the second highest since 1901 and flooding was reported as the most frequent extreme event, it said.
“This 2011 annual assessment confirms the findings of the previous WMO annual statements that climate change is happening now and is not some distant future threat. The world is warming because of human activities and this is resulting in far-reaching and potentially irreversible impacts on our Earth, atmosphere and oceans,” said WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud. "The world is warming because of human activities and this is resulting in far-reaching and potentially irreversible impacts on our Earth, atmosphere and oceans," he added.

*  *  *

Reuters: US Heat 'Unprecedented,' 7,000 Records Set or Tied

An "unprecedented" March heat wave in much of the continental United States has set or tied more than 7,000 high temperature records, and signals a warming climate, health and weather experts said on Friday.
While natural climate variability plays a major role, it is the addition of human-spurred climate change that makes this particular hot spell extraordinary, the scientists said in a telephone and web briefing. [...]
Since March 12, more than 7,000 high temperature records have been equaled or exceeded, Cullen said, citing figures from the U.S. National Climatic Data Center.
These records include daytime high temperatures and record-high low temperatures overnight, which in some cases are higher than previous record highs for the day, Cullen said.
"When low temperatures are breaking previous record highs, that's when you see this is incredibly special," she said.

*  *  *

From Climate Central: State-by-State Look at How Early Spring Has Arrived:Click for access to interactive map at Climate Central.

For most of the country spring has sprung earlier this year, but is this anything more than a single warm year? It seems that it is. During the past several decades, with the exception of the Southeast, spring weather has, indeed, been arriving earlier.
In the interactive above, you can see how much earlier spring has arrived state-by-state, measured by the date of "first leaf." As you hover over any state, it'll display two boxes: a gray box that represents the day spring used to arrive (based on the 1951-1980 average) and a colored box that represents how much earlier spring has arrived in recent years (based on the 1981-2010 average).
Nationwide, the date of “first leaf” has clearly shifted — arriving roughly three days earlier now on March 17th (1981-2010 average) from March 20th (1951-1980 average). This shift affects all sorts of biological processes that are triggered by warmer temperatures — not just flowering, but animal migration and giving birth and the shedding of winter coats and the emergence from cocoons. How much will an earlier spring disrupt the intricate natural balance between the tens of thousands of species that depend on each other for food, reproduction and ultimately, survival? No one really knows.

*  *  *

AFP adds:

"Most likely the weird weather arises from natural variation on top of a warming climate," said Michael Oppenheimer, a geoscientist at Princeton and a veteran participant in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. "What we're seeing now is not surprising in the greenhouse world ... It's just the beginning of our experience with the new atmosphere."
Oppenheimer was a lead author of the panel's path-breaking 2007 report that analyzed research by hundreds of scientists and found there was a 90 percent probability that climate change is occurring and human activities contribute to it.
That report projected an increase in heat waves, droughts, floods, severe storms and extreme temperatures as a result of human-spurred global warming, caused in part by rising emissions of greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide emitted by fossil fuel burning.

*  *  *

The WMO report looks at the increased prevalence of extreme weather events around the world:

Numerous weather and climate extremes affected almost every part of the globe with flooding, droughts, cyclones, heat waves, and cold waves. Two exceptional heat waves hit Europe and Russia during summer 2003 and 2010 respectively with disastrous impacts and thousands of deaths and outbreaks of prolonged bush fires.
Flooding was the most reported extreme event during the decade with many parts of the world affected. Historical widespread and prolonged flooding affected Eastern Europe in 2001 and 2005, Africa in 2008, Asia (in particular Pakistan) in 2010 and India in 2005, and Australia in 2010.
A large number of countries reported extreme drought conditions, including Australia, eastern Africa, the Amazonia region and the western United States. Humanitarian consequences were significant in eastern Africa during the first half of the decade, with widespread shortage of food and loss of lives and livestock.
Forty-eight out of 102 countries (47 per cent) reported that their highest national maximum temperature was recorded in 2001-2010, compared to 20 per cent for 1991-2000 and around 10 per cent for the earlier decades.
The decade saw the highest level of tropical cyclone activity on record for the North Atlantic basin. In 2005 category 5 hurricane Katrina was the most costly hurricane to hit the United States, with a significant human toll of more than 1 800 deaths. In 2008, tropical cyclone Nargis was the worst natural disaster in Myanmar and the world’s deadliest tropical cyclone during the decade, killing more than 70 000 people.

#  #  #

Greenpeace calls for zero deforestation globally by 2020

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/ecosystems/article/44169/printGreenpeace reiterated its call for an end to deforestation in Brazil by 2015 and globally by 2020 during its launch of an awareness-raising expedition down the Amazon River aboard the Rainbow Warrior.

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"Brazil is now the sixth largest economy in the world, the largest meat exporter and second largest grain exporter. Brazil's rise to become the world's sixth largest economy coincided with consecutive years of decline in deforestation in the Amazon," said Kumi Naidoo Greenpeace International Executive Director. "Brazil must lead as an example of sustainable development without forest destruction for other forest countries like Indonesia and the Congo."
The Greenpeace voyage is timed to end in Rio around the start of the Rio+20 conference on sustainable development. The conference is expected to attract thousands of business and political leaders, as well as scientists, activists, and academics.
While the annual deforestation rate in the Brazilian Amazon has fallen by nearly 80 percent since 2004, environmentalists fear the country's politicians may backslide on their commitment toward greener economic growth.
"Brazil could be the example of an economic super power that continues to grow without recklessly destroying the forests. However, actions over the past year by President Dilma and the Brazilian congress show that we are at risk of failing to achieve this," said Paulo Adario, Greenpeace Brazil's Amazon Campaign Director. "It will only be with a strong legal framework that Brazil will have the necessary tools to continue to fight deforestation."
Greenpeace has therefore launched a petition calling for a "zero deforestation" law in Brazil. It is seeking 1.4 million signatures of Brazilian voters for the initiative.
Article continues: http://news.mongabay.com/2012/0322-greenpeace_zero_deforestation.html#ixzz1pslslqUZ

Feeding The Homeless Banned In Major Cities All Over America

Michael Snyder, Contributor
Activist Post


What would you do if you came across someone on the street that had not had anything to eat for several days? Would you


Michael Snyder, Contributor
Activist Post


What would you do if you came across someone on the street that had not had anything to eat for several days? Would you give that person some food? Well, the next time you get that impulse you might want to check if it is still legal to feed the homeless where you live. Sadly, feeding the homeless has been banned in major cities all over America.


Other cities that have not banned it outright have put so many requirements on those that want to feed the homeless (acquiring expensive permits, taking food preparation courses, etc.) that feeding the homeless has become "out of reach" for most average people. Some cities are doing these things because they are concerned about the "health risks" of the food being distributed by ordinary "do-gooders". Other cities are passing these laws because they do not want homeless people congregating in city centers where they know that they will be fed. But at a time when poverty and government dependence are soaring to unprecedented levels, is it really a good idea to ban people from helping those that are hurting?


This is just another example that shows that our country is being taken over by control freaks. There seems to be this idea out there that it is the job of the government to take care of everyone and that nobody else should even try.


But do we really want to have a nation where you have to get the permission of the government before you do good to your fellow man?




It isn't as if the government has "rescued" these homeless people. Homeless shelters all over the nation are turning people away each night because they have no more room. There are many homeless people that are lucky just to make it through each night alive during the winter.


Sometimes a well-timed sandwich or a cup of warm soup can make a world of difference for a homeless person. But many U.S. cities have decided that feeding the homeless is such a threat that they had better devote law enforcement resources to making sure that it doesn't happen.


This is so twisted. In America today, you need a "permit" to do almost anything. We are supposed to be a land of liberty and freedom, but these days government bureaucrats have turned our rights into "privileges" that they can revoke at any time.


The following are some of the major U.S. cities that have attempted to ban feeding the homeless....


Philadelphia
Mayor Nutter recently banned feeding homeless people in many parts of Philadelphia where homeless people are known to congregate....

Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter has announced a ban on the feeding of large numbers of homeless and hungry people at sites on and near the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. 

Mayor Nutter is imposing the ban on all outdoor feedings of large numbers of people on city parkland, including Love Park and the Ben Franklin Parkway, where it is not uncommon for outreach groups to offer free food. 

Nutter says the feedings lack both sanitary conditions and dignity.

Orlando
Last June, a group of activists down in Orlando, Florida were arrested by police for feeding the homeless in defiance of a city ordinance....

Over the past week, twelve members of food activist group Food Not Bombs have been arrested in Orlando for giving free food to groups of homeless people in a downtown park. They were acting in defiance of a controversial city ordinance that mandates permits for groups distributing food to large groups in parks within two miles of City Hall. Each group is allowed only two permits per park per year; Food Not Bombs has already exceeded their limit. They set up their meatless buffet in Lake Eola knowing that they would likely be arrested as a result.

Houston
Down in Houston, a group of Christians was recently banned from distributing food to the homeless, and they were told that they probably would not be granted a permit to do so in the future even if they applied for one....

Bobby and Amanda Herring spent more than a year providing food to homeless people in downtown Houston every day. They fed them, left behind no trash and doled out warm meals peacefully without a single crime being committed, Bobby Herring said. 

That ended two weeks ago when the city shut down their "Feed a Friend" effort for lack of a permit. And city officials say the couple most likely will not be able to obtain one. 

"We don't really know what they want, we just think that they don't want us down there feeding people," said Bobby Herring, a Christian rapper who goes by the stage name Tre9.

Dallas
Dallas has also adopted a law which greatly restricts the ability of individuals and ministries to feed the homeless....

A Dallas-area ministry is suing the city over a food ordinance that restricts the group from giving meals to the homeless. 

Courts dismissed Dallas’ request for a summary judgment last week, saying the case, brought up by pastor Don Hart (in video above) may indeed be a violation of free exercise of religion, as protected by the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act, the blog Religion Clause reported. 

In the court filing, the ministry leaders argue that their Christian faith requires them to share meals with the homeless (Jesus did!) and that the requirement that even churches and charities provide toilets, sinks, trained staff and consent of the city keeps them from doing so.

Las Vegas
A few years ago, Las Vegas became the first major U.S. city to specifically pass a law banning the feeding of homeless people....

Las Vegas, whose homeless population has doubled in the past decade to about 12,000 people in and around the city, joins several other cities across the country that have adopted or considered ordinances limiting the distribution of charitable meals in parks. Most have restricted the time and place of such handouts, hoping to discourage homeless people from congregating and, in the view of officials, ruining efforts to beautify downtowns and neighborhoods. 

But the Las Vegas ordinance is believed to be the first to explicitly make it an offense to feed “the indigent.”

That law has since been blocked by a federal judge, and since then many U.S. cities have been very careful not to mention "the indigent" or "the homeless" by name in the laws they pass that are intended to ban feeding the homeless.


New York City
New York City has banned all food donations to government-run homeless shelters because the bureaucrats there are concerned that the donated food will not be "nutritious" enough.


Yes, this is really true.


The following is from a recent Fox News article....

The Bloomberg administration is now taking the term “food police” to new depths, blocking food donations to all government-run facilities that serve the city’s homeless. 

In conjunction with a mayoral task force and the Health Department, the Department of Homeless Services recently started enforcing new nutritional rules for food served at city shelters. Since DHS can’t assess the nutritional content of donated food, shelters have to turn away good Samaritans.

Can you believe that?


The bureaucrats are officially out of control.


In America today, it seems like almost everything is illegal.


One church down in Louisiana was recently ordered to stop giving out water because it did not have a government permit.


Well, I don't know about you, but I sure am going to give a cup of cold water to someone if they need it whether I have a permit or not.


It is as if common sense has totally gone out the window in this nation.


Over in New Hampshire, a woman is being sued for planting flowers in her own front yard.


This is the kind of thing that makes me glad that I have moved to a much more rural location. People in the country tend to be much more relaxed.


Sadly, those that love to micro-manage others continue to get the upper hand in America. Back in January, 40,000 new laws went into effect all over America. The politicians continue to hit us with wave after wave of regulations and laws with no end in sight.


All of this is making America a very unpleasant place in which to live.


This article first appeared on the EconomicCollapseBlog. Michael Snyder is a writer, speaker and activist who writes and edits his own blogs The American Dream and Economic Collapse Blog. Follow him on Twitter here.

Palestinians Lose Water Access as Israelis Take Over Springs

GENEVA, Switzerland, March 21, 2012 (ENS) - Palestinians are losing access to water sources in the West Bank as Israeli settlers take over springs. The settlers use threats, intimidation and fences to ensure control of water sources near the settlements, finds a new United Nations survey released today.
Thirty of the springs were found to be under full settler control, with no Palestinian access to the area, according to the assessment carried by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs over the course of the past year.

Ein Al Ariq spring near Nablus, a Palestinian city in the northern West Bank. Following its takeover by Eli settlers, the spring was renamed Ein Hagvura. (Photo courtesy OCHA)

The survey identified a total of 56 water springs close to the Israeli settlements, the majority of which are located in Area C - which represents over 60 percent of the West Bank where Israel retains control over security, planning and building - and on land parcels recorded by the Israeli Civil Administration as privately owned by Palestinians.
In 22 of the water sources, Palestinians have been deterred from accessing the springs by acts of intimidation, threats and violence perpetrated by Israeli settlers, while in the eight springs under full settler control, Palestinian access has been prevented by physical obstacles, including the fencing of the spring area, and its "de facto annexation" to the settlement.
"Despite the decline in their yield, springs have remained the single largest water source for irrigation and a significant source for watering livestock," the report says.
To a lesser extent, springs are also a source of water for domestic consumption for Palestinians
The survey also points out that the loss of access to springs and adjacent land reduced the income of affected farmers, who either stop cultivating the land or face a reduction in the productivity of their crops.
In Geneva, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said human rights challenges in the occupied Palestinian territory are linked to the continuing expansion of Israeli settlements, including violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians.

The U.S. nonprofit International Relief and Development delivered 120 miles of water pipes to the Palestinian Water Authority for water distribution networks in Palestinian communities to mark World Water Day 2012. These water projects will benefit about 100,000 Palestinians. (Photo courtesy IRD)

"The Israeli government must investigate all incidents of violence against Palestinians and ensure that the perpetrators are held accountable," Pillay told the UN Human Rights Council's general debate on the human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territory and other occupied Arab territories.
She also said that Israel's blockade of Gaza perpetuated poverty, unemployment and the deterioration of health care, education and water and sanitation facilities.
On the Palestinian side, Pillay voiced concern over arbitrary detention and ill-treatment of people, especially in Gaza, and urged Palestinian leaders to ensure credible allegations of abuse are investigated promptly and impartially.
She also decried the firing of indiscriminate projectiles toward Israel from Gaza, terming the actions "illegal and unjustifiable."
In a related development, a new report from the Office of the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process says that Palestinian state-building is threatened by financial pressure on the Palestinian Authority and the continued absence of a negotiated settlement to the conflict.
The report, prepared for the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee, the 15-member body that serves as the principal policy-level coordination mechanism for development assistance to the Palestinian people, states that in the past six months the Palestinian Authority has continued to realize progress in a range of different areas, including improving the capacity of the security forces in the West Bank and providing basic services.

A Palestinian man raises water from an ancient Roman cistern in the West Bank village of Burin. (Photo courtesy UNRWA)

However, the Palestinian Authority continues to face an immediate challenge in meeting its funding gap required to help it honor its obligations and avoid further arrears.
"I am very worried about the dire financial situation of the Palestinian Authority as described by the IMF [International Monetary Fund] and the World Bank in their reports," said UN Special Coordinator Robert Serry.
"Our immediate priority must be to ensure that the Palestinian Authority is able to address its budget shortfall, and I therefore call on donors to meet their commitments and also to front-load their contributions. I urge the speedy conclusion and implementation of technical agreements that will both strengthen revenue collection and minimize revenue leakage," Serry said.
The prolonged absence of a "credible political horizon" as a result of the continuing failure by the parties to engage in meaningful negotiations is also beginning to undermine the viability of the Palestinian state-building effort, Serry said.
Palestinian divisions and the unsustainable situation in the Gaza Strip, as highlighted by the recent upsurge of violence there, represent fundamental challenges which must also be addressed, he said.
Meanwhile, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today highlighted the work of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, UNRWA, noting that the generosity of donors has helped the agency empower countless refugees to seize and create opportunities for a better life.
"But what we owe above all to the youth of the Palestinian refugee camps is peace," Ban said in a message delivered by Serry to the UNRWA Stakeholder Conference in Brussels. "We must persist in our efforts to make progress towards a resolution of the Middle East conflict, including a just and agreed resolution of the refugee question as one of the core issues. It is the refugee's right, and it is our responsibility, to see this realized."