United Nations

Structure and work module

Aim- What is the United Nations (UN)

THE UNITED NATIONS
(UN)

Secretary General – Ban Ki-Moon joined

office in Jan 2007 .
 
League of Nations(LON)
• The League of Nations (LON) was an inter-
governmental organization founded as a result of the
Treaty of Versailles in 1919–1920.

•Goals included upholding the new found Rights of Man

                                
such as right of non whites, rights of women, rights of Sir Franz Bernheim
soldiers, disarmament, preventing war through
collective security, settling disputes between countries
through negotiation, diplomacy and improving global
quality of life.
• The League lacked its own armed force and so depended on the Great Powers
to enforce its resolutions and so Benito Mussolini’s
soldiers of targeting Red Cross medical tents, Mussolin responded that
Ethiopians were not fully human, therefore the human rights
laws did not apply.

Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini,

40th Prime Minister of Italy
In office :31 October 1922 – 25 July 1943
 League of Nations(LON)
• In May 1933 the League was powerless to convince Hitler that Franz
Bernheim(Hippolyte Bernheim (1840 – 1919) was a French physician
and neurologist), a Jew, was protected under the minority clauses
established by the League in 1919 (that all minorities were fully human
and held equal rights among all men). Hitler claimed these clauses
violated Germany's sovereignty. Germany withdrew from the League
soon to be followed by many other totalitarian and militaristic nations. The
onset of World War II showed that the League had failed its primary
purpose, which was to avoid any future world war.

• However than latteron the name "United Nations", coined by United

States President Franklin D. Roosevelt, was first used in the "Declaration
by United Nations" of 1 January 1942, during the Second World War,
when representatives of 26 nations pledged their Governments to
continue fighting together against the Axis Powers.
• The International Telecommunication Union (ITU)was founded in 1865 as
the International Telegraph Union(ITeU), and the Universal Postal
Union(UPU) was established in 1874. Both are now United Nations
specialized agencies.
 What is the
United Nations
(UN)?

 The United Nations is made up of 192 countries from

around the world.
 It was set-up in 1945 an officially started on 24th Oct
1945 after the second world war as a way of brining
people together and to avoid war and to replace the
league of Nation(The
Nation( League of Nations (LoN) was
an inter-governmental organization founded as a result
of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919–1920).
 Start of the UN
• Inter-Allied Declaration:
(Signed in London on 12 June 1941) "to work together,
with other free peoples, both in war and in peace“
-1st step to form UN.

• On 14 August 1941:
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt of the US and UK PM Churchill, US Pres. Roosevelt
at Atlantic Charter. HMS Prince of
Prime Minister Winston Churchill of the UK proposed a Wales, 14 Aug 41
set of principles for international collaboration in maintaining peace and
security. The document, signed during a meeting on the ship HMS Prince of
Wales, "somewhere at sea", is known as the Atlantic Charter.

•(UN Charter)/Atlantic Charter(1st charter of UN signed)--ratified by

China, France, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, the United States (5
Nations)and by a majority of other signatories. United Nations Day is
celebrated on 24 October each year.

•Declaration by United Nations: On 1 January 1942, representatives of 26

Allied nations fighting against the Axis Powers met in Washington, D.C.
                What does the UN do?
 The UN works for world peace and development in many different ways

 It organises peace keeping forces in trouble spots around the world.

 24 January 1946 General Assembly(10 January 1946) adopts its first

resolution. Its main focus: peaceful uses of atomic energy and the
elimination of atomic and other weapons of mass destruction.
 10 September 1996:The General Assembly adopted the Comprehensive
Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty. This is a turning point in the history of efforts
towards nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation. The treaty was
opened for signature on 24 September 1996.

FiftiethSession of General Assembly

votes on item relating to Comprehensive
Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty, New York, 10
Sep 96 (192255 UN/DPI/E.Schneider).
 How does it work?
Representatives of each member
country meet in the General
Assembly, this is the closest thing
to a world parliament.

Resolutions

 Each country has a single vote. Decisions that are voted for
become resolutions.
 Major decisions about things like who can join the UN need
the support of two-thirds of the Assembly.
 Less important decisions need the support of over half the
Assembly.
 The Assembly's decisions are not laws. Governments follow
resolutions because they represent the world's opinion on
major international issues.
 Who are the Security Council?
 The 15 members of the UN Security Council try to keep the
world a peaceful and secure place. They vote on the best ways
to prevent countries fighting. There are two groups of members.

Five permanent members

France, UK, Russia, China and The United States

Ten temporary members

Germany, Guinea, Mexico, Pakistan, Spain, Syria, Angola
Bulgaria, Cameroon and Chile

The rules for voting

 1. One member, one vote.
 2. Each of the five permanent members can stop the UN from making
decisions they may not agree with. This is called the power of veto.
 3. Nine votes in favour are needed to make a decision.
 4. Five of the nine votes must come from permanent members.
 Universal Declaration of Human Rights
In 1948 the UN made a list of human rights
(below is a shortened list):
 Be born free and equal
 Have life, freedom and safety
 Never be a slave, tortured or degraded
 Be recognised as a person in law
 Be free from arrest, detention or exile without reason
 Privacy
 Have a fair, public, and independent trial, and be presumed
innocent until proved guilty
 Own and keep property
 Freedom of speech, thought, conscience and religion
 Vote for their government
 Achievements
Child survival and development. Environmental protection. Human rights.
Health and medical research. Alleviation of poverty and economic
development. Agricultural development and fisheries. Education. Family
planning. Emergency and disaster relief. Air and sea travel. Peaceful uses of
atomic energy. Labour and workers' rights. The list goes on……………

•Maintaining peace and security: Till date have deployed a total of 54 peace-
keeping forces and There are presently 15 active peace-keeping forces in
operation.
•Making peace: Negotiation many peaceful settlements that have ended regional
conflicts, withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan,and many more……..

•Promoting democracy: Enabled people in many countries to participate in free

and fair elections, provided electoral advice, assistance, and monitoring of results.
•Promoting development: UNDP with over 170 Member States and other UN
agencies, designs and implements projects for agriculture, industry, education,
and the environment. The World Bank loaned $333 billion for development
projects since 1946.
•Promoting human rights: the UN Human Rights Commission has focused world
attention on cases of torture, disappearance, and arbitrary detention and has
generated international pressure to be brought on governments to improve their
human rights records.
 Achievements
•Protecting the environment: a blueprint to promote sustainable
development or the concept of economic growth while protecting natural
resources
•Preventing nuclear proliferation: has helped minimize the threat of a
nuclear war by inspecting nuclear reactors in 90 countries to ensure that
nuclear materials are not diverted for military purposes.
•Promoting self determination and independence

•Strengthening international law: Over 300 international treaties

•Handing down judicial settlements of major international disputes:
By giving judgments and advisory opinions, the International Court of Justice has
helped settle international disputes involving territorial issues, non-interference in the
internal affairs of States.

•Providing humanitarian aid to victims of conflict or Refugees.

•Alleviating chronic hunger and rural poverty in developing countries

•Promoting women's rights: The UN Development Fund for Women

(UNIFEM) and the International Research and Training Institute for the
Advancement of Women (INSTRAW) have supported programmes and
projects to improve the quality of life for women in over 100 countries
 Achievements
•Eradicating smallpox: A 13-year effort by the World Health Organization
resulted in the complete eradication of smallpox from the planet in 1980.
WHO also helped wipe out polio from the Western hemisphere, with global
eradication expected by the year 2000.
•Pressing for universal immunization: Polio, tetanus, measles, whooping
cough, diphtheria and tuberculosis still kill more than eight million children
each year and hence they are saving the lives of more than 3 million children
each year.
•Promoting investment in developing countries: UN Industrial Development
Organization (UNIDO) helping in promoting entrepreneurship and self-reliance,
industrial cooperation and technology transfer in many underdeveloped and
developing countries till date.
•Reducing the effects of natural disasters: The World Meteorological Organization
(WMO) has spared millions of people from the calamitous effects of both natural and
man-made disasters. Its early warning system, which utilizes thousands of surface
monitors as well as satellites, has provided information for the dispersal of oil spills
and has predicted long-term droughts.
•Providing food to victims of emergencies:World Food Programme (WFP)

•Protecting the ozone layer, Curbing global warming, Preventing over-fishing,

Limiting deforestation and promoting sustainable forestry development.etc…
•The UN Population Fund (UNFPA) helping in family planning programmes.
 List for information on UN and its Specialised bodies.
 http://www.unsystem.org/

General Assembly
The following Bodies report directly to the General Assembly.

 Main Committees

 Subsidiary Bodies
Committees
Commissions
Boards
Councils and Panel
Working Groups and other

 Advisory Subsidiary Body

United Nations Peacebuilding Commission (1)
 List for information on UN and its Specialised bodies.
Programmes and Funds

International Trade Centre (ITC)

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF)
United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM)
United Nations Volunteers (UNV)
United Nations Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) (2)
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT)
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near
East
 (UNRWA)
United Nations World Food Programme (WFP)
 List for information on UN and its Specialised bodies.
Research and Training Institutes

United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR)

United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR)
United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI)
United Nations International Research and Training Institute for the Advanc
ement of Women
 (UN-INSTRAW)
United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD)

Other UN Entities
International Computing Centre (ICC)
Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS)
United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS)
United Nations System Staff College (UNSSC)
United Nations University (UNU)
 List for information on UN and its Specialised bodies.
Security Council
Subsidiary Bodies
Advisory Subsidiary Body

Economic and Social Council

Functional Commissions
Regional Commissions
Standing Committees
Ad hoc bodies
Expert Bodies composed of governmental experts
Other related Bodies

Trusteeship Council
International Court of Justice
Secretariat
Specialized Agencies, Related Organizations, Funds, and other UN Entities
Thanks you