The United Nations and Global Governance

Lesson 4: The United Nations and Contemporary Global Governance

• The objectives of this lesson are to define global governance, identify the roles/functions of the UN, and determine the challenges of global governance in the 21st century.

Introduction

• There is no global government or single organization that states are accountable to today.
• No organization can militarily compel a state to obey global rules.
• States generally follow rules, respect territorial boundaries, and don't violate the sovereignty of other States.
• International Organizations set international agendas, mediate political bargaining, and act as catalysts for coalition formation.
• IOs facilitate cooperation and coordination between member nations, setting a semblance of global order.

What is an International Organization?

• International Organizations pertain to international intergovernmental organizations/groups primarily made up of member-states (Penguin Dictionary of International Relations).
• IOs are more than just amalgamations of various state interests.
• In the past, IOs were essentially considered venues where contradictory (but also sometimes intersecting) agendas of States are discussed "talk shops."
• IOs have the power of classification.
• IOs have the power to fix meanings.
• IOs have the power to diffuse norms.

IOs Power of Classification

• They can invent/apply categories leading to powerful global standards.
• The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) defines "refugee", and States must accept those who enter their borders.

IOs Power to Fix Meanings

• States, organizations, and individuals view IOs a legitimate source of information.
• The meanings IOs create impacts various policies.
• The UN defines security as safety from military violence and safety from environmental harm.

IOs Power to Diffuse Norms

• Norms are codes of conduct that produce regularity in behavior rather than strict law.
• IOs spread ideas worldwide, establishing global standards.
• IOs are often viewed as missionaries of modern times (Barnett and Finnemore).
• The World Bank carries authority by being regarded as an expert in development.
• The World Bank creates norms on the implementation/conceptualization of development projects.
• IOs can be sources of great good; they can also cause great harm.

The United Nations

• The UN is the most prominent IO in the contemporary world.
• It has averted another world war.

Global Governance as an International Organization

• Global governance is not world government.
• It can be viewed as the sum of all governance processes in the absence of world government.
• Global governance is any purposeful activity intended to control or influence someone else, either occuring between nations or any other level.

Establishment of the League of Nations

• The 20th Century involved two world wars and highlighted the need for peace and cooperation.
• The League of Nations formed after World War I in an attempt to achieve world peace.
• The League of Nations was unsuccessful because it could not avert World War II.

Establishment of the United Nations

• The search for peace culminated in the formation of the UN after WWII.
• Delegates from 50 nations met in San Francisco from 25 April to 26 June 1945 to draft the UN Charter.
• The UN officially came into existence on October 24, 1945.
• The UN Charter was ratified by China, France, the USSR, the UK, the US, and a majority of other signatories.
• October 24th is celebrated as UN day around the world.

The Purposes of the United Nations

• To maintain international peace and security.
• To develop friendly relations among nations.
• To solve international economic, social, cultural, and humanitarian problems while promoting respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.
• To protect the Earth and the environment.

Principles of the United Nations

• The UN is based on the sovereign equality of all its members.
• All members must fulfill their charter obligations.
• International disputes are to be settled by peace.
• Members are to refrain from the threat or use of force against other states.
• Members should give the UN assistance in every action in accordance with the charter.
• The UN charter cannot authorize intervening in domestic matters of any state.

General Information About The United Nations

• The UN Headquarters have been in New York since 1952.
• The first meeting of the General Assembly was held in October 1952.
• The white UN emblem is superimposed on a light blue background, consisting of a global map projected from the North Pole embraced by twin olive branches, which symbolizes peace.
• The UN flag is not to be subordinated to any other flag.
• There are six official working languages recognized by the UN: Chinese, English, French, Russian, Spanish, and Arabic.
• The contributions of member states are the main source of funds for the regular budget.
• A state's share is determined by its total national income in relation to the income of other member states.
• Membership is open to all peace-loving nations that accept the obligations of the charter and can carry out these obligations.
• Members may be suspended/expelled by the General Assembly with the recommendation of the Security Council.

Main Organs of the United Nations

• The UN has six main organs.
• The General Assembly.
• The Security Council.
• The Secretariat.
• The Trusteeship Council.
• The Economic and Social Council.
• The International Court of Justice.

The General Assembly

• The General Assembly serves as the main deliberative organ.
• The General Assembly is like a World Parliament.
• The General Assembly ordinarily meets once a year unless there is an emergency for a special session.
• Decisions are taken by a two-thirds majority.
• The General Assembly is composed of all UN member states that meet in regular yearly sessions under a President.
• The first session convened on January 10, 1946 in the Westminster Central Hall in London, including representatives from 51 nations.

Security Council

• The Security Council has the headquarters in New York.
• It maintains peace and security among countries.
• The Security Council makes binding decisions that member governments agree to under the terms of the Charter.
• The Security Council decisions are known as UN Security Council Resolutions.
• The Security Council comprises five permanent members (United States, Britain, France, Russia, and China) and ten non-permanent members who are elected for two years by the General Assembly.
• The permanent members can veto any Security Council decisions.

Economic and Social Council

• The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) helps the General Assembly in promoting international economic and social cooperation/development.
• ECOSOC has 54 members elected by the General Assembly for a three-year term.
• The president is elected for a one-year term and chosen among the small/middle powers represented on ECOSOC.
• ECOSOC meets once a year in July for a four-week session.
• ECOSOC has held another meeting each April with finance ministers since 1998.
• ECOSOC gathers information, advises member nations, and makes recommendations.
• It is well-positioned to provide policy coherence and coordinate the overlapping functions of the UN's subsidiary.

Trusteeship Council

• The Trusteeship Council has the headquarters in New York.
• The Council helped countries under foreign rule attain independence.
• There were eleven countries under this system after WWII.
• By 1994, all Trust Territories had attained independence.
• The Palau was the last Trust Territory (185th member state of the UN).

International Court of Justice

• The International Court of Justice has the headquarters in the Netherlands.
• This consists of 15 judges elected by the Security Council/General Assembly for nine years.
• Each judge has to be from a different country.
• The court gives advisory opinions on legal matters solicited by the UN, and it considers legal disputes brought before by nations.

Secretariat

• The Secretariat has Headquarters in New York.
• The UN Secretariat is headed by the Secretary-General, assisted by a staff of International Civil servants worldwide.
• The Secretariat provides studies, information, and facilities needed by United Nations bodies for their meeting.
• The Secretariat also carries UN Security Council/General Assembly/Economic and Social Council directions.
• The UN Charter provides the staff is chosen by the "highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity".
• The Charter provides that staff shall not seek or receive instructions from any authority other than the UN.
• Each UN member country must respect the international character of the Secretariat, and not seek to influence its staff.
• The Secretary-General alone is responsible for staff selection including helping resolve international disputes.
• The Secretary General can administer peacekeeping operations, organize international conferences, gather Security Council implementation information, and consult with governments regarding initiatives.
• The Secretary-General may bring any matter threatening international peace and security to the attention of Security Council.

Specialised Agencies of UN

• International Labour Organization
• Food and Agriculture Organization
• United Nations, Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation
• World Health Organisation
• World Bank
• International Monetary Fund.
• International Civil Aviation Organisation
• Universal Postal Union
• International Telecommunication Union
• International Maritime Organisation
• World Meteorological Organisation
• World Intellectual Property Organisation
• International Fund for Agricultural Development
• UN Industrial Development Organisation
• International Atomic Energy Agency
• World Trade Organisation

Special Bodies of United Nations

• United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF)
• UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
• UN Development Programme (UNDP)
• UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR)
• UN Environment Programme (UNEP)
• UN University (UNU)
• World Food Council (WFC)
• United Nations Volunteers (UNV)
• United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
• United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
• UN Human Settlement Programme (UN-HABITAT)
• United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research
• United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD)
• United Nations Inter-Regional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI)

Humanitarian Activities of the United Nations

• Treaty on Cyber Crime: Meeting between representatives of 30 countries in Budapost (November 23, 2001) who signed the first international treaty on criminal offences committed on the internet.
• UN Resolution 1973-: Following the global demand to act against terrorists and states that support/harbor them, the UN unanimously passed the resolution.
• Millennium Summit: World leaders established a clear direction for the organization in the new century (UN Headquarters from 6 to 8 September 2000). The millennium declaration targets issues relating to poverty, disease, and the environment.
• Protecting Children in War: The General Assembly adopted a draft to the convention on the right of the child in the year 2000 with the result that state parties agreed to raise the age limit for both compulsory recruitment and participation in combat from 15 to 18.
• UN Secretary General Ban-Ki Moon urges greater efforts to feed world's hungry amid ongoing recession.
• The UN refugee agency calls on Kenya to stop forced return of Somali asylum seekers.
• A UN rural Development arm to help poor farmers in Tajikistan has been put in place.

60 Years of UN Peacekeeping

• Today, peace and security are no longer viewed only as the absence of military conflicts, but interests common to humankind.
• The UN General Assembly has been helping to promote peaceful relations among nations by adopting several resolutions and declarations on peace, the peaceful settlement of disputes, and international cooperation in strengthening peace.
• The UN played an effective peace making role in Afghanistan, Somalia, former Yugoslav Republics, Kosovo, Middle East (Arabs, Israel conflict), Angola, Congo, Rwanda, and the Gulf crisis.
• May 29, 2008 marks International Day of Peacekeepers and the sixtieth anniversary of the UN Peacekeeping Operation.

Challenges of UN

• Limits placed upon various organs/programs to respect state sovereignty.
• The UN functions primarily because of the voluntary cooperation from states.
• UN influence can be circumscribed if states refuse to cooperate.
• Human Rights Case can encounter failure if Rapporteur is not accepted.
• Security Issues: Russia and China threatened to veto over Muslim Albanians (ethnic cleansing).
• Threats to Peace and Security as potential threats grouped under six headings:
  • Threats from poverty, disease, and environmental breakdown.
  • Threats from conflict between states.
  • Threats from violence and human rights violations
  • Threats from terrorism.
  • Threats from organized crime.
  • Threats from the proliferation of weapons.

This lesson defines global governance, identifies the functions of the UN, and determines the challenges of global governance in the 21st century. International Organizations set international agendas and mediate political bargaining. They facilitate cooperation between member nations, setting a semblance of global order.