The United Nations Organization

The United Nations Organization came into being on October 24 1945, a date commemorated every year as United Nations Day. On that say, the Charter of the United Nations entered into force. The Charter had been drawn up in San Francisco at the United Nations Conference in the closing days of the Second World War (April 25 to June 26, 1945), when, in the ringing words of the Preamble,

We, the people of the United Nations, determined to save succeeding generation from the scourge of war the representatives of fifty countries resolved to establish an international organization to be known as the United Nations.

The purposes, and principles of the Organization, as set forth in the Charter, are:

Ø to maintain international peace and security;

Ø to develop friendly relations among nations;

Ø to achieve co-operation in solving international economic, social, cultural and humanitarian problems, and in promoting respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms;

Ø to be a centre for harmonizing the actions in attaining these common ends.

The Member States are sovereign and equal, and the Charter provides that the UN shall not intervene in matters essentially within the jurisdiction of any State except when it is acting to maintain or restore international peace. But the Member -State ' have certain obligations under the Charter. They are committed to settle their international disputes by peaceful means, to refrain from the threat of use of force against other States, and to assist the United Nations in any action it takes in accordance with the Charter.

Membership in the United Nations is open to all peace —loving States which accept the obligations of the Charter and are judged by the Organization to be able and willing to carry out these obligations.

The six main organs of the UN are:

ü the General Assembly;

ü the Security Council;

ü the Economic and Social Council;

ü the Trusteeship Council;

ü the Secretariat; the International Court of Justice.

The Court has its seat at the Hague, Netherlands. All other organs are based at United Nations Headquarters in New York.

The General Assembly is the main deliberative organ of the UN. It is composed of all Member States. The main functions of the Assembly are:

1. to consider and make recommendations on the principles of international cooperation in the maintenance of peace and security, including the principles governing disarmament and the regulations of armaments;

2. to discuss any problem affecting peace and security;

3. to receive and consider reports from the Security Council and other organs of the United Nations;

4. to elect ten non-permanent members of the Security Council and members of main organs of the UN;

5. to consider and approve the budget of the UN, etc.

The General Assembly meets once a year in regular sessions which begin on the third Tuesday of September and continues to mid December, or at the demand of the Security Council.

Each member nation, large or small, has one vote in the General Assembly. In matter which the Charter defines as important (such recommendations on peace and security, elections of member organs and budgetary matter a decisions are taken by a two third majority vote of those present and voting. Other matters are decided by a simple majority.

Members of the General Assembly talk to each other in many languages, but officially there are only six — optional, although as along with the others — Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian; and Spanish. The General Assembly deals with its work through seven main Committees in which all the members have the right be represented.

The Security Council. The organ on which the Charter takes primary responsibility for maintaining peace and security is the Security Council. It is composed of five permanent members: China, France, and Russia, the United Kingdom and the USA— and ten non permanent members elected by the General Assembly for two-year terms. The main functions of the Security Council are:

ü to maintain international peace and security in accordance with the purposes and principles of the UN;

ü to investigate any dispute or, situation which might lead to international conflicts;

ü to formulate plans for the establishment of a system to regulate armaments;

ü to determine the existence of a threat to peace or act of aggression;

ü to recommend what action against an aggressor should be taken, etc.

Each member of the Council has one vote. Decisions on procedural matters are made by the affirmative vote of any nine members. Decisions on substantive matters also require nine votes including the concurring votes of all five permanent members. This the rule of "great power unanimity", often referred to as the “veto”. All five permanent members have exercised the veto at one time or another. If a permanent member does not support a decision but in no desire to block it through a veto, it may abstain; an abstention not regarded as a veto, but tire vote is required on substantial matters, so it may be equal to veto.

Under the Charter, all members of the United Nation: agree to accept and carry out the decision of the Council.

The Security Council is so organized as to be able to maintain continuously, and a representative of each of its members must present all time at the Headquarters of the UN.

FOCUS ON VOCABULARY

l. Make sure that you know the following words and expressions:

peace-keeping force, be involved, to devote, to be responsible for, common foreign policy, citizenship, a minister, a guarantee, to sign a treaty, to enlarge, former members, the chairman, current.

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