United Nations (UN) - Establishment, Activities, Functions

United Nations (UN) - Establishment, Activities, Functions

• Establishment - UN Charter was signed on – 26 June 1945, adopted on – 24 October 1945

• Type of organization – Intergovernmental organization

• Headquarter – New York

• Official languages - Arabic ,English ,French, Chinese, Russian, Spanish

• First Secretary- General - Trygve Lie

• Current Secretary - General – Ban Ki Moon

• Members - 193

History:

- A replacement for the ineffective League of Nations was created following the Second World War to prevent another such conflict

Objectives -

1. Maintaining international peace and security
2. Promoting human rights
3. Fostering social and economic development
4. Protecting the environment
5. Providing humanitarian aid in cases of famine, natural disaster, and armed conflict

Formation: 6 Organs

1. General Assembly
2. Security Council
3. Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
4. Secretariat
5. International Court of Justice
6. United Nations Trusteeship Council (inactive since 1994)

• UN System agencies include World Bank Group, World Food Program, UNESCO, UNICEF, World Intellectual Property Organization etc.

Successes of UN

1. No world war 3 till now.

2. Endeavor to make world nuclear free by negotiating traties like NPT and CTBT

3. Ending of colonialism and imperialism mostly in Africa and Asia

4. Protection of human rights by Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948

5. Peace keeping missions to war torn countries resulted in success in dozens of countries, including Cambodia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mozambique, Namibia and Tajikistan.

6. Formation of international laws and regulations

7. Food aid via World Food Program especially during natural disasters .exemplary success during Haiti earthquake

8. Aid to refuges and protect children mostly in Africa

9. Helped to conduct free and fair elections in many counries.

10. It has also achieved significant success in Environmental protection, Health and medical research, Alleviation of poverty and economic development ,Agricultural development and fisheries, Education, Advancement of women. Emergency and disaster relief. Air and sea travel, Workers’ rights etc.

Failures of UN

1. Cold war

2. Use of veto power by permanent members of security council

3. Nuclear proliferation and spread of nuclear technology to N. Korea, Iran etc

4. Some mentionable failures like Darfur, Rwanda, Bosnian War massacre, Sri Lanka, middle east etc.

5. Failed to generate a universal consensus to protect the deteriorating world climate.

6. Some times UN moved away from neutrality and showed impartiality towards western countries.

7. No adoption democracy in functioning of UN

8. Terrorism