As a member of the @UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent, it has been a privilege to participate in the second session this week in New York. Here is a🧵of key points I heard made (note: this is NOT the forum’s official report)
#PFPAD #UN #HumanRights #AfricanDescent 1/ An insistence on robust civil society participation and a call for the removal of structural and bureaucratic barriers to those attending annual sessions, including accommodations for language, disability, and event capacity

Shakahola. Many people are very vulnerable to cults. Years ago, as I wrote my thesis, and later as we built a national disengagement & reintegration system for violent extremists, I found Professor Robert Jay Liston’s work on cult manipulation useful. Here are his 8 criteria. A🧵 The 8 criteria work in combination.
1 Milieu Control: control of the access to information and social support for the targeted individual. He or she is isolated from their friends and family. You experience this as a friend/relative suddenly becoming scarce and avoiding contact

It was a pleasure being back to a much changed Addis Ababa & the @_AfricanUnion to feedback on lessons we learned in the UNSC. A special thank you to @JeanKamau and @KenyaEmbAddis for organising the event which I hope becomes a tradition for all A3 members. A wonky thread: 1/ Kenya’s commitment to Africa went beyond our actions in NY. We used the seat to support our pursuit of peace mediation in the Horn of Africa & the Great Lakes. We learned that the Council is a single link in a chain of actions that stretch from capital to practical initiatives