63 Years of Unity, Peace and Freedom?

At the end of World War II, on October 24th, representatives from 50 countries met to agree on a code of conduct that promotes peace among nations. They stablished the United Nations, aiming to maintain international peace and security, promote human rights, and solving international humanitarian problems. The UN has 192 Member Countries in the General Assembly, 15 of which are Security Council members that set agendas. The Security Council has five permanent members – the US, China, France, Russia, and the UK, each with a power to veto any proposal and adversely or strategically affect them or their allies, potentially undermining the UN’s objectives. The Council also has 10 non-permanent members that are periodically elected by all Member States for a two-year term. The UN has a long and mixed record of peacekeeping success. For example, it stood idle in Rwanda while 800,000 people were slaughtered. However, UN peacekeepers in Kashmir have tried keeping the peace between the nuclear powers of India and Pakistan since 1949. In Cyprus, the UN has for decades kept the peace between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots. Some nations such as Brazil and India have made calls to reform the UN Security Council, especially the makeup of Permanent Members. They claim the Security Council largely reflects the power structure of a world immediately following World War II, when many countries were undeveloped, and that current permanent members do not want to share or give away their power of veto. For example, although Latin America hosts a 570 million population, none of its countries has a permanent presence on the Security Council. Brazil, the continent’s largest country in terms of population, received backing as a Permanent Member, though without a veto power. India, the world’s largest liberal democracy with a $1.1 billion economy has had a similar issue. The UN is also successful in non-peacekeeping missions, running over 40 global agencies, the most famous of which are the International Atomic Energy Authority (IAEA) and the World Health Organisation (WHO). These agencies operate around the world, from setting common international health standards, to promoting the peaceful use of nuclear power. In 1967 there were over 130,000 cases worldwide of the smallpox virus, but thanks to the WHO’s efforts in mass vaccinations,eradicated the virus in 1984. For all its faults, the UN has been a force for good. Though it makes mistakes like any other bureaucracy, one must remember it is a voluntary association of nations that is the most represented and recognized on Earth. Not many 63-year-old organizations can claim the same.

Nasouh Raslan

Tags: United Nations