The Role of United Nations in 21st Century Essay Example for Free

The Role of United Nations in 21st Century Essay The United Nations is an international organization of independent countries. These countries have joined together to work for world peace and against poverty and injustice. The UN was established as a result of a conference in San Francisco in June 1945 by 51 countries committed to preserving peace through international cooperation and collective security. Today, nearly every state in the world belongs to the UN 191 countries in all. UN headquarters are located in New York City. The UN is not a world government, and it does not make laws. It does, however, provide the means to help resolve international conflicts and formulate policies on matters affecting us all. At the UN, all the Member States large and small, rich and poor, with differing political views and social systems have a voice and vote in this process. | | The UN has  four main purposes, as stated in its Charter: 1. To keep peach throughout the world;? 2. To develop friendly relations among nations;? . To help improve living conditions of poor people and encourage respect for each others rights and freedoms;4. To be a centre for helping nations achieve these goals. | ? The UN is central to global efforts to solve problems which challenge humanity. Cooperating in this effort are more than 30 affiliated organizations known together as the UN system. Day in and day out, the UN and its family of organizations work to promote respect for human rights, protect the environment, fight disease, promote development and reduce poverty. UN agencies also define the standards for safe and efficient transport by air and sea, help improve telecommunications and enhance consumer protection, work to ensure respect for intellectual property rights and coordinate allocation of radio frequencies. The United Nations leads the international campaigns against illicit drug trafficking and terrorism. Throughout the world, the UN and its agencies assist refugees and set up programmes to clear landmines, help improve the quality of drinking water, expand food production, make loans to developing countries and help stabilize financial markets. The UN is central to global efforts to solve problems which challenge humanity. Cooperating in this effort are more than 30 affiliated organizations known together as the UN system. Day in and day out, the UN and its family of organizations work to promote respect for human rights, protect the environment, fight disease, promote development and reduce poverty. UN agencies also define the standards for safe and efficient transport by air and sea, help improve telecommunications and enhance consumer protection, work to ensure respect for intellectual property rights and coordinate allocation of radio frequencies. The United Nations leads the international campaigns against illicit drug trafficking and terrorism. Throughout the world, the UN and its agencies assist refugees and set up programmes to clear landmines, help improve the quality of drinking water, expand food production, make loans to developing countries and help stabilize financial markets. | Historical Development of UN When it established, its members was 51. Nowadays member of united nations are 192. This number includes People’s Republic of China and Vatican which is not a member of this organizations anymore. Turkey is a founder member of United Nations. Central of United Nation is in New York. All of meeting with member countries are making in this space. Before this organization , there was different organizations. Such as league of nations which is established on term between two word war. The main differences between the League of Nations and the United Nations were the stronger executive powers assumed by the Security Council and the requirement that member states should make available armed forces to serve as peace-keepers or to repel an aggressor. President of USA (F. D. Roosevelt) propound to this concept (United Nations). This declaration was followed by a conference of Foreign Ministers in Moscow, in October, 1943 where discussions took place concerning a replacement for the discredited League of Nations. United Nations was firstly used in decisions of declaration by UN which include combined and maintaining of war against axis powers on 1 January 1942. China , Soviet Union , Britain and US ‘s delegates determined UN principal agreement by congregating in Dumbarton Oaks In Augusts and Octobers on 1944. Every year on 24 October is celebrated as United Nations day by member countries . UN principal agreement determined aim of this organization; To protect international peace and security by peaceful solvation of problems and using active expedience. To provide development of rights of people without being any differences between nation , sex, language, religion in solutions of problems about international. Language of UN: United Nations legal languages are Arabic, Turkish , French , English , Spanish and Russian. Un? ted Nations basic discipline are : All members are hegemon and equal. 2- All members are responsible of process of UN role in international relations. 3- Any member of this organization wouldn’t use any power. 4- All members have to support UN’s applications. 5- UN never touch any countries’ home affairs except for protecting international peace. Organs of UN: United Nation has six basic organ and subsidiary organ. Basic organs are general assembly, security council, economic and social council Trusteeship Council (not active) , general secretary and international court of justice. General assembly is a basic discussing organ of UN. Each member country has a vote. This assembly makes meeting on September or December regularly, but sometimes when there is a extraordinary they can be collected. Security Council has a basic responsible about international peace and security. -The Economic and Social Council assists the General Assembly in promoting international economic and social cooperation and development. -The United Nations Secretariat is headed by the Secretary-General, assisted by a staff of international civil servants worldwide . It provides studies, information, and facilities needed by United Nations bodies for their meetings. It also carries out tasks as directed by the UN Security Council, the UN General Assembly, the UN Economic and Social Council, and other UN bodies. -The International Court of Justice, located in The Hague, Netherlands, is the primary judicial organ of the United Nations. The Security Council had five permanent members, United States, the Soviet Union, China and Britain. Six other countries served two-year periods on the Council (this was increased to ten in 1965). Controversially, permanent members were given the power to veto decisions made by the Security Council. The other nations vigorously opposed the idea of the veto but it became clear that without such a favoured position the five major nations would not join the United Nations. The United States Senate ratified the United Nations treaty by a vote of 89 to 2 on 28th July, 1945. The Role of United Nation: United Nation is an opportunity for all world to solve global problems since sixty years. This is also opportunity to conquer anarchic system which created by dominant state . As the most representative inter-governmental organization of the world today, the United Nations role in world affairs is irreplaceable by any other international or regional organizations. The United Nations has made enormous positive contributions in maintaining international peace and security, promoting cooperation among states and international development. Today, people of the world still face the two major issues of peace and development. Only by international cooperation can mankind meet the challenges of the global and regional issues. The United Nations can play a pivotal and positive role in this regard. Strengthening the role of the United Nations in the new century and promoting the establishment of a just and reasonable international political and economic order goes along with the trend of history and is in the interest of all nations. In order to strengthen the role of the United Nations, efforts should be made to uphold the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations. The authority of the Security Council in maintaining international peace and security must be preserved and role of the United Nations in development area should be strengthened. To strengthen the role of the United Nations, it is essential to ensure to all Member States of the United Nations the right to equal participation in international affairs and the rights and interests of the developing countries should be safeguarded. The UN has had so many positive impacts on the world that naming a few would be almost silly but here goes:? Established a peace treaty in Yugoslavia. If the UN didnt exist the genocide would have continued. Has a security council that is made up of almost every type of political standing in which all have to agree if war is allowed to happen and is just. Established neutral zones in many middle eastern conflicts to make both sides take a breather and try to talk. Allows for open communication between all the nations in the world. Sends food aid to many poor locations. Before all the haters jump in, they need to realize that it is not perfect but it is at least an attempt at fixing the problems of the world. Almost all things bad that have happened from the UN have been because a country didn’t listen. The role of UN in 21st Century: As the United Nations (UN) enters the 21st Century, it is faced with challenges that were not seen by its creators. The end of the Cold War, globalization, intra-state conflict, and a desire to achieve universal human rights continues to separate the world between those who have and those who need assistance. In order for the UN to obtain any semblance of global governance to meet these new challenges, it will have to move beyond its traditional logic and employment of international peacekeeping forces. Sending a sovereign nation‘s uniformed military to keep fighting parties separated will not promote long term peace, economic development, nor aid the cause of individual liberty. While there has been much success gained through the medical, educational, and financial institutions under the UN umbrella, it has not developed the means to protect those investments. The focus of this research effort is to move away from conventional use of military personnel in UN peacekeeping operations and analyze the need for their replacement and enhancement with a permanent UN Police Force. There are two broad obstacles concerning the implementation of a UN Police Force. The first is nothing short of the nature of politics itself. Secondly, and many may consider a product of the former, is the means by which to gain the resources required to field a force capable of meeting the world‘s needs. In both areas, the UN will have to present a case that will be supported by the people and government of its member nations. The Beginnings of Collective Security : The United Nations is not the first organization that has attempted to achieve collective or regional security. History is full of alliances that have been set up at many different levels to protect property, sovereignty, and people. Although there are significant examples of such entities throughout history, the scope of this work can only make a brief mention of the League of Nations and some of the instances and background that has led up to our current situation in the UN. Under the UN, Cold War settings and the different forms of peacekeeping will be addressed. Although there have always been calls for some form of utopian ideal among the fringes of society, the aftermath of World War I allowed for a more open discussion of a better future for the world. The leadership of President Woodrow Wilson helped form the League of Nations following the Treaty of Versailles. This Wilsonian vision of a —supranational organizationâ€Å" failed to gain acceptance in the United States and in its mission. This first attempt at collective security lacked the necessary diplomatic support to secure its objectives and forced nations back to the alliance system in preparation for World War II. The United Nations Early Years While the loss of a generation of European men was catastrophic in World War I, the destruction of property was isolated to the war front. The Second World War saw not only the death of soldiers, but also the death of millions of civilians and entire cities destroy across the world. It comes as no surprise then that there was another outcry for a world body to manage conflict before it spirals out of control. With the close of this second Great War, the birth of the United Nations gained more authority and support than its predecessor. The UN did not immediately find itself at the helm of an efficient collective security system. Instead, it was a pawn in the return to balance of power politics in the bi-polar world between the United States and Soviet Union for the next half century. The end of World War II saw both the birth of the UN and atomic weapons. Between the spread of communism and the efforts of a containment policy, the East-West struggle left the UN with little role other than a forum for heated debate and inaction from the Security Council. According to the UN, there have been 54 peacekeeping operations from 1948 to October of 2000. Fifteen of these operations are current, but only 16 were initiated before 1989. The fall of the Soviet Union and the removal of a bi-polar system that provided supported and control for regional tension left us with what President George Bush referred to as the —new world orderâ€Å". It didn‘t take long for others to coin the phrase New World disorderâ€Å". Peacekeeping Types There are a number of different definitions of peacekeeping. The first is —traditional peacekeepingâ€Å" that was a product of the Cold War. United Nations missions between 1945 and 1988 were designed to keep direct confrontation limited between the US and Soviets. Traditional peacekeeping puts a military force between former belligerents to monitor a cease-fire while diplomatic negotiations are conducted. While this type of operation may still be required on occasion between nations, it can be accomplished with a third country military force as needed. Other definitions of the peacekeeping mission since the late 1980s require some refinement due to the nature of the operations. There are three other definitions of —peacekeepingâ€Å" as they apply to conflicts within a nation or among small, undeveloped countries. These operations are labeled multidimensional peace operations, humanitarian intervention, and peace enforcement. Multidimensional peace operations are similar to traditional peacekeeping, but have an implementation schedule and timeline. A multidimensional operation also involves separating the factions and working towards a peace accord that addresses the underlying cause of an internal conflict. Humanitarian intervention sometimes lacks the consent of the warring parties and is frequently thought to violate a nation‘s sovereignty when there is a desire to maintain an isolationist approach. However, to stop further loss of life or a threat to international peace and security may require such an intervention. The last type of operation to be addressed is that of peace enforcement. In this case, coercive force is used by the intervening parties to suppress conflict in a specific area as a result of genocide or lack of governance. As stated earlier, traditional peacekeeping operations between nation states is not in severe need of change and therefore not the focus of this research effort. It is necessary for the full means available to a modern military to stand between nations on the verge of war. This paper will address the specific requirement of a UN Police Force to conduct the multidimensional peace operations required for the plethora of failed states that have emerged in the post Cold War World. The next chapter will address why the UN should form an international police force and the logic necessary of it‘s member states to support it. The Need for Change The impact of globalization, moving beyond just the idea of universal protection of human rights, and the changing environment of world conflict make the logic of a UN Police Force more relevant now than ever before. The Cold War was an era of strict definitions with regard to international law. In order to protect the East-West alliances, intervention was viewed as illegal and no doubt a threat to the respective power broker. Self-determination, that supported one of the super-powers, and sovereignty of the nation was placed higher on the UN agenda than any abuse of individuals within the state. While it would be easy to say the fall of the Soviet Union has caused this new phenomenon of failed states, there is a deeper cleavage that has been opened up. States fail when they can no longer govern themselves as a result of any number of reasons. Most of the factors that cause a state to fail can be attributed to competition over resources without regard to the rule of law. Resource competition may be over wealth, education, ethnic community, or simply an opportunity to seek a better life. Throughout history the current trouble spots of the world were held together by colonial rule or under the protection of the East-West regimes. Two other reasons that can be attributed to the lack of involvement by the UN and industrialized nations prior to 1989 include the level of information getting into and out of less developed countries before the information revolution. The ability of CNN to flash the first signs of civil disobedience, international crime, and any number of human rights violations to the watching world have forced local, regional, and multilateral agencies to answer to their public. Moreover, the people who once lacked information of the world did not realize just how poor their plight was. The effects of the World Wide Web and globalization have changed forever the way nations and people interact. There is a desire by a vast amount of the world‘s population to experience the freedoms, economic prosperity, and success they see occurring in developed nations. However, the inability of their own infrastructure or political administration is preventing them from instituting laws and an enforcement agency that could lead to a more productive nation. Globalization The spread of technology that has resulted in increased information flow has also fostered the spread of global business. Multi-national corporations are now the rule rather than the exception when it comes to 21st Century business. The reality of a global business community that advances the lives of the population needs the same safe and secure environment to operate that people do. Globalization requires special attention because it is the basis and means for the UN to develop and employ an international police for that protects property rights and individual rights. There has been much discussion over the last decade concerning how to manage the effects of globalization. The rich wish to maintain and improve their current status while the poor seek to find the means to develop. Political focus has usually been to protect the rich nations through laws that affect immigration and import/export barriers. Poor nations are left further behind due to their inability to provide the safe environment and properly suited work force to invite foreign capital as a result of government shortcomings. While many view the spread of industry and markets as a purely business interest, a successful world economy that involves everyone must be supported politically through the establishment of law enforcement. It is the law of the rich nation that prevents market forces from allowing people, prices, and goods to meet their theoretical economic potential. Not all the people and governments of the world view globalization as a desired objective. The use of technology and business to integrate and expand markets can result in a clash of civilizations through diluted customs, ethnic integration, and labor force migration. Traditional sources of revenue such as agriculture and local industry can be moved resulting in dependence on foreign means. In order to achieve an effective world market, while at the same time promoting literacy and awareness through a global information revolution, there needs to be a sense of fairness and security felt throughout the world. The advancement of some countries cannot be at the expense of the majority without inciting resentment and conflict. The UN must use globalization to promote protection of business markets while at the same time using that force to provide the means for ensuring people can live safely and seek better lives through increased access to education, religion, liberty, and means of prosperity. Even though democracy has spread since the fall of communism, it has not brought significant advances to less developed nations. Countries that have seen economic prosperity as a result of globalization have confined that success to a special interest group and not the nation‘s people as a whole. Democracy is not enough to warrant success, —an effective state requires good laws as well as law enforcement that is timely, even-handed, and accessible to the poor. â€Å" United Nations Declaration of Human Rights One of the critical arguments against any type of universal human rights policy and enforcement is that they are the product of the West and cultural exceptionalists choose not to abide by international norms when it is not in accordance with their political agenda. However, as a byproduct of globalization, the world has become a smaller place and nations should no longer be able to hide behind the veil of sovereignty when breaking international laws. —The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the several ensuing legal treaties setting out civil, political, cultural, and economic rights as well as the rights of children, women, ethnic groups, and religions, were meant to create a global safety net of rights applicable to all persons, everywhere†¦they brook no cultural exceptionalism. The UN now has the obligation to find a means to enforce and promote these rules until they have become commonly accepted by all citizens. Leaving member nations, specifically those on the UN Security Council, to decide when, where, and how human rights and globalization laws are to be enforced will only further delay the advancement of Third World Nations and promote continued armed conflict. The people of the world deserve the opportunity to work t owards their own prosperity. It is incumbent upon governments to ensure an environment free to exercise individual rights and provide a certain degree of protection in life and property. Although there are occasions when direct welfare is required, the issue of direct compensation is a complex one and not in the scope of this research project. Seeking the advancement of a better alternative to the traditional use of national military forces is however. The UN must use the cornerstone of economic advancement to also promote the ideals of individual benefit. An achievable goal is the reduction of armed conflict when nations and their population feel they are reaping the benefits of their labor and exercising individual freedoms. However, the world is controlled by the wealthy nations and the reality is they must be convinced a change to the status quo is required. The Catch-22 the UN faces is finding the trained personnel, finances, and time investment to help developing nations succeed while not promoting themselves as the world protector of global governance. A new UN Police Force is the means by which the developed countries of the world can provide the framework for Third World independence without collective, regional, or unilateral involvement of military forces. Values and Practicalities As the twenty-first century draws nearer we are witnessing an era where foreign policy and international relations are increasingly values-driven. The United States and other major countries form the vanguard of what amounts to a universal crusade to spread doctrines and practice of their version of good governance and democracy, in tandem with wider acceptance of liberal market economic policy as the pathway to modernisation. But a profound paradox emerges here. As the world grows more democratic, so the UN becomes less democratic or at least mired in ays of governance reflecting its formative period, which fail to mirror todays world and relative global influence. Realists argue that there is no correlation between a more democratic world and a more democratic multilateral system; that no intrinsic linkages exist. That is an argument that rests upon the distribution of power and those that want to maintain their built-in advantage. The signs are that the fundamental logic of such an argument will be put to the test sooner rather than later in the century ahead. Critical reflection drives us to the conclusion that despite urgency and obvious need, the UN is probably not going to be reformed in a meaningful way. Differences among member states stemming from power-political rivalries and ideological antagonisms have been fundamental obstacles to UN reform. These differences continue today. Even as the debate between East and West lapsed into obsolescence, the debate between North and South continues, with emphasis on conflicting claims on fundamental values and perspectives. The UN remains a stake and a prize in this escalating debate. Every proposal for change in the organisation is assessed in the light of advantages bestowed upon one or the other side, and everyrecommendation for reform offered by one is predictably resisted by the other. Such a situation has tended to cause political gridlock everywhere. Conclusions The world no longer lacks the economic and technological means to do more than pay ideological lip service to advancing the individual rights and pursuit of prosperity to the global population. The UN must convince the wielders of hegemonic power that they may face the same problems encountered by the Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman empires if they do not seek alternative solutions to managing world crises. Past and present attempts to quell conflict between less developed nations or manage the consequences of a failed state have not had much success. Results are the continued deployment of combat forces between belligerents in foreign lands. The biggest concern for a UN military force is still one of intervention in a crisis instead of the daily presence required to enforce the law and defuse potential hot spots before they occur. The UN‘s member states are also reluctant to use military forces because there is little support for forcible entry. By having a UN monitored Police Force already present, this obstacle would be eliminated. While the use of deadly force is taught to police forces, it is engrained in the minds of the soldier. The likelihood of excess force and inability to interact with the target population are significant drawbacks to the use of a military force to conduct peacekeeping operations. Other obstacles for a military include lack of continuous presence and the need to return home for national emergencies. Even if there is a long-term military presence, the soldiers are on a rotation schedule that inhibits the contact required to promote trust. A properly trained UN Police Force could mitigate many of these problems. While the idea of a UN Police Force does meet the needs for the establishment of law and order, there are other areas that will require much research and debate. Even after the acceptance of this concept by the world‘s leaders, there will continue to be the same issues that plague every effort proposed by the United Nations. In addition to those seeking the exceptions from universal implementation, the reality of financing, training, organizational structure, appropriate force size, and demographics will need to be addressed. Each of these areas will require their own research and debate. However, this level of detail will only be necessary if the need for a UN Police Force is seen as the best way to protect individuals and economic investment thereby allowing growth and development in our ever-changing world.