SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
The World Health Organization revoked a title it had given Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe earlier this week, infuriating the international community which has accused him of human rights abuses. (Photo: Al Jazeera English/Flickr/cc)
Following Outcry by Human Rights Groups, Mugabe Removed as WHO Ambassador
"Sanity restored," but Human Rights Watch calls for WHO to go further in fighting corruption in healthcare
Oct 22, 2017
Heeding the international outcry that resulted from the appointment of Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe as a goodwill ambassador last week, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced on Sunday that Mugabe's title would be rescinded.
The decision by WHO's director general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, was commended by Human Rights Watch, which had been sharply critical of Mugabe's appointment.
WHO's ambassador roles are honorary and are meant to draw global attention to health issues; Mugabe's was focused on non-communicable diseases. Critics called the appointment "deeply disappointing," "offensive," and "bizarre" due to widespread reports his human rights abuses in Zimbabwe as well as his government's decimation to the country's economy, impacting its healthcare system.
In a 2008 report, Physicians for Human Rights found that "The government of Robert Mugabe presided over the dramatic reversal of its population's access to food, clean water, basic sanitation and health care. Mugabe's policies led directly to "the shuttering of hospitals and clinics, the closing of its medical school and the beatings of health workers."
Mugabe has been accused of intentionally suppressing reports of a cholera epidemic in the country and blocking delivery of food and humanitarian aid in poverty-stricken areas.
As the Guardian reported, the Zimbabwean leader was head of the African Union when it endorsed Tedros's appointment as director-general of WHO earlier this year, leading some in the international medical community to believe he was returning the favor.
Human Rights Watch head Kenneth Roth called on the WHO to go beyond simply revoking Mugabe's title and fight abuses like those of his government.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Heeding the international outcry that resulted from the appointment of Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe as a goodwill ambassador last week, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced on Sunday that Mugabe's title would be rescinded.
The decision by WHO's director general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, was commended by Human Rights Watch, which had been sharply critical of Mugabe's appointment.
WHO's ambassador roles are honorary and are meant to draw global attention to health issues; Mugabe's was focused on non-communicable diseases. Critics called the appointment "deeply disappointing," "offensive," and "bizarre" due to widespread reports his human rights abuses in Zimbabwe as well as his government's decimation to the country's economy, impacting its healthcare system.
In a 2008 report, Physicians for Human Rights found that "The government of Robert Mugabe presided over the dramatic reversal of its population's access to food, clean water, basic sanitation and health care. Mugabe's policies led directly to "the shuttering of hospitals and clinics, the closing of its medical school and the beatings of health workers."
Mugabe has been accused of intentionally suppressing reports of a cholera epidemic in the country and blocking delivery of food and humanitarian aid in poverty-stricken areas.
As the Guardian reported, the Zimbabwean leader was head of the African Union when it endorsed Tedros's appointment as director-general of WHO earlier this year, leading some in the international medical community to believe he was returning the favor.
Human Rights Watch head Kenneth Roth called on the WHO to go beyond simply revoking Mugabe's title and fight abuses like those of his government.
Heeding the international outcry that resulted from the appointment of Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe as a goodwill ambassador last week, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced on Sunday that Mugabe's title would be rescinded.
The decision by WHO's director general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, was commended by Human Rights Watch, which had been sharply critical of Mugabe's appointment.
WHO's ambassador roles are honorary and are meant to draw global attention to health issues; Mugabe's was focused on non-communicable diseases. Critics called the appointment "deeply disappointing," "offensive," and "bizarre" due to widespread reports his human rights abuses in Zimbabwe as well as his government's decimation to the country's economy, impacting its healthcare system.
In a 2008 report, Physicians for Human Rights found that "The government of Robert Mugabe presided over the dramatic reversal of its population's access to food, clean water, basic sanitation and health care. Mugabe's policies led directly to "the shuttering of hospitals and clinics, the closing of its medical school and the beatings of health workers."
Mugabe has been accused of intentionally suppressing reports of a cholera epidemic in the country and blocking delivery of food and humanitarian aid in poverty-stricken areas.
As the Guardian reported, the Zimbabwean leader was head of the African Union when it endorsed Tedros's appointment as director-general of WHO earlier this year, leading some in the international medical community to believe he was returning the favor.
Human Rights Watch head Kenneth Roth called on the WHO to go beyond simply revoking Mugabe's title and fight abuses like those of his government.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.