The Role of the United Nations in Defending International Human Rights - Essay Example

The Role of the United Nations in Defending International Human Rights The United Nations is an international organization “whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress and human rights issues” (Wikipedia 2007). The United Nations is an organization which engages in peacekeeping and humanitarian missions across the globe, and although some people claim that its influence has declined rather substantially in recent decades, the United Nations absolutely still plays a tremendous role in world politics overall. The role of the United Nations in general is one of incredible relevance and significance, and particularly so is its role in defending international human rights. In order to be able to better understand the role of the United Nations in defending international human rights, there are several issues in particular that need to be addressed and discussed. For one, there is the history of the United Nations which must be taken into context in order to understand their sole purpose and the reasoning behind the beginning of the organization in the first place, and as well their aim of defending international human rights must be discussed in general. By doing this, and as well including any and all other key and related issues, we will be able to gain a much more informed and knowledgeable understanding on the subject matter at hand. This is what will be dissertated in the following. The United Nations is an organization which was founded in the year 1945, at the signing of the United Nations Charter by 50 countries, and it replaced the League of Nations, which was founded in 1919. Since 1948 there have been 60 UN peacekeeping missions, and thus far, close to 130 nations have contributed personnel at various times. As of the year 2007, there are now 192 United Nations member states, thus encompassing almost every recognized independent state. “From its headquarters in New York City, the UN and its specialized agencies decide on substantive and administrative issues in regular meetings throughout the year. The organization is divided into administrative bodies, including the General Assembly, Security Council, Economic and Social Council, Secretariat, Trusteeship Council, and the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Additional bodies deal with the governance of all other UN System agencies, such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nation’s Children Fund (UNICF). The UN’s most visible public figure is the Secretary-General” (Wikipedia, 2007). The purpose of the United Nations from the very beginning was to maintain international security and peace, seek to develop friendly relations amongst all nations, try to tackle economic and social problems as well as humanitarian issues, and act as a hub for all nations to be able to act together so that as a result their actions could then be directed towards achieving good for the whole of the world. One of the most major goals of the UN is to defend international human rights, and they are by far the most representative and influential organization in the world in this regards. They have worked dutifully and consistently in order to provide the most stable and secure international human rights and they are constantly striving to even further improve in these areas. The importance of this particular role of the UN has always been evident and present, however more so than ever it has been in recent years, particularly in regards to the complexities and troubles that have been taking place internationally. One of the most recent and significant troubles is that of the invasion of Iraq by the United States, which occurred on March 20, 2003, and which resulted in the winning of a quick military victory and the ousting of the government of Saddam Hussein. Although both the United States and the United Kingdom claimed that they truly acted in accordance with international law, the fact still remains that an overwhelming majority of the world’s governments and people thought otherwise. In response to these actions, the UN Security Council refused to endorse the invasion, and there was an incredible debate that occurred once the UN did finally become partially involved; there were those who thought that the UN could be the wedge for internationalization and US-UK withdrawal, and then there were those who thought that any presence by the UN in this regards would only work to discredit the world body. The UN then pulled out and refrained their efforts from this situation soon after, however since then they have continued to work towards further defending human rights in Iraq. This is just one example of how important the role of the UN is in defending international rights, because they are the organization – and the seemingly only one at that – which is willing to fight for human rights internationally, regardless of what is going on throughout that particular location or in the rest of the world, and they really work to fight for people who have no voice. The peacekeepers who work for the UN are sent to various regions where armed conflict has recently ceased, so that they can attempt to enforce the terms of peace agreements and as well to try and discourage the combatants from resuming hostilities. There is really no other organization that is willing or able to do such things, and this is one of the most significant reasons as to why the UN has such an important and truly unbelievably necessary role in regards to the defending of international rights. After all, there are various different organizations which work to attempt at maintaining peace and working to help humanitarian rights in North America, but when it comes to international locales, there are really no organizations or foundries that have committed to doing so. The pursuit of human rights is another of the most major goals of the UN, and their participation in human rights activities and efforts is an incredibly significant matter in regards to their role of defending international human rights, as this is what they primarily focus on. In fact, the UN charter actually obliges all member nations to promote “universal respect for, and observance of, human rights” and to take “joint and separate action” to that end. (Diehl, 2005). One of the most factual showing as to the importance of the role of the UN in defending international human rights is in how the UN and its various involved agencies are central in the upholding and implementation of the principles which are enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Not only that but as well, “In conjunction with other organizations, such as the Red Cross, the UN provides food, drinking water, shelter, and other humanitarian services to populaces suffering from famine, displaced by war, or afflicted by other disaster. Major humanitarian arms of the UN are the World Food Programme (which helps feed more than 100 million people a year in 80 countries), the High Commissioner for Refugees with projects in over 116 countries, as well as peacekeeping projects in over 24 countries” (Arend, 2003). The role of the UN in defending international human rights also goes further than this, however, as they negotiate treaties such as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea to avoid potential international disputes, and some of the most important cases in the past include that of: Congo vs. France, where the Democratic Republic of Congo accused France of illegally detaining former heads of state accused of war crimes; and Nicaragua vs. United States, where Nicaragua accused the United States of illegally arming the Contras (this case led to the Iran-Contra affair). In 1993, in response to ‘ethnic cleansing’ in the former Yugoslavia, the UN Security Council established the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. IN 1994, in response to the Rwandan genocide, the council established the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. The jurisprudence of these two courts established the current understanding of rape committed in furtherance of an armed conflict as a war crime. In 1998 the General Assembly called a conference in Rome for the establishment of an International Criminal Court (ICC), at which the ‘Rome Statute’ was adopted. The International Criminal Court became operational in 2002 and began its first case in 2006. It is the first permanent international court charged with trying those who commit the most serious crimes under international law including war crimes and genocide. However, the ICC is functionally independent of the UN both in terms of personnel and financing, although some meetings of the ICC governing body, the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute, are held at the UN. There is a ‘relationship agreement’ between the ICC and the UN that governs how the two institutions regard each other legally. The UN, in 2002, established the Special Court for Sierra Leone in response to the atrocities committed during that country’s civil war. From this review we can conclude many different things, several of particular significance, and namely that of the importance of the role of the United Nations in defending international human rights. We have seen how completely involved and hardworking they are as an organization they are in this regards, and how consistently they have proven their dedication throughout the years since the actual start up of the organization itself. Their role as a humanitarian organization is incredibly influential and important due to the fact that they basically solely work internationally, as no other organizations in the world are even nearly as willing or able to work as steadfastly as they have. For over half a century now, the United Nations has been struggling as an international governing body which has been trying its hardest to forge peace, end poverty, and heal the world. Of course this mission is anything but simple, however the efforts that have been made by the organization and the people who are involved with it have been incredibly promising and the organization itself has resulted in many various positive consequences. Especially with all of the war and complexities that are taking place in the world today, we can quite clearly see the unimaginable importance of an organization such as the United Nations, not only in regards to their role in defending international human rights, but all of their work overall. References Arend, A (1993). International Law and the Use of Force: Beyond the UN Charter Paradigm. London: Routledge. Baylis, J., & Smith, S (2001). The Globalization of World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations. London: Oxford University Press. Diehl, P (2005). The Politics of Global Governance: International Organizations in an Interdependent World. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers. Weiss, T. G., Forsythe, D. P., & Coate, R. A (2004). United Nations and Changing World Politics. Boulder, CO: Westview Press. Wikipedia (2007). United Nations, online article retrieved March 19, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations#Aims_and_Activities Read More