United Nations Organisation

MS. RANEETA PAL

Prior to UNO, The league of Nations (established by the treaty of
Versailles 1919) aimed to promote international peace and security.
The idea of creating an effective organization was first mooted out in
the Atlantic Charter 1941. The United Nations Declaration 1942
followed it.
The UNO finally came into existence on October 24, 1945. The
organization was formed in 1945 under a permanent Charter (ratified
by 50 countries) that had its inception in conferences (1941-45) held by
nations opposed to the fascist coalition of Germany, Japan, Italy and
their satellites. The headquarters has been in New York city since 1946
and the membership consists of 193 nations.
AIM AND OBJECTIVES
The UNO is governed by its charter, which is the result of a multilateral treaty by its
members. It not only deals with the constitution of the UN but also describes right and
duties of member states.
The aims/objects of the UN are set forth in the Preamble, which states that: We the
people of the United Nations are determined.
• To save the succeeding generations form the scourge of war.
• To reaffirm faith in fundamental human right and in the dignity and worth to the
human person
• To reaffirm faith in the equal rights of men and women and all nations large and small
• To established condition under which justice and respect for international law and
international obligations can be maintained.
Cont.
• To promote social progress etc.
• To maintain international peace and security
• To ensure that armed forces shall not be used save in the common
interest
• To promote economic and social advancement of all the people
The preamble realizes the fact that peace is not mere absence of war. It
sets before the United Nations the object of positivity achieving peace
by recognizing the worth and dignity of the individual his fundamental
rights and by promoting social progress and better standards of life.
PURPOSE AND PRINCIPLES OF UN
Article 1 of the charter explain the purpose (objectives) of the UN:
• To maintain international peace and security
• develop friendly relations among nations
• Foster international corporation in social, economic, cultural
and humanitarian matter
• Develop respect for human rights and freedom
• Take necessary steps to achieve these objectives.
Article 2: The Organization and its Members, in pursuit of the Purposes stated in
Article 1, shall act in accordance with the following Principles:
• 1. The Organization is based on the principle of the sovereign equality of all its
Members.
• 2. All Members, in order to ensure to all of them the rights and benefits resulting
from membership, shall fulfil in good faith the obligations assumed by them in
accordance with the present Charter.
• 3. All Members shall settle their international disputes by peaceful means in such
a manner that international peace and security, and justice, are not endangered.
• 4. All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use
of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in
any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations.
• 5. All Members shall give the United Nations every assistance in any action it
takes in accordance with the present Charter, and shall refrain from giving
assistance to any state against which the United Nations is taking preventive or
enforcement action.
MEMBERSHIP OF UN
• UN is an inter governmental organization in which ‘sovereign
independent states’ can only be members. According to article 4
membership of UN is open to all peace loving states which accept the
obligations contained in the charter and able and willing to carry out
them.
• There are two types of members:
• Original members: those states who participated in the San Francisco
conference 1945 and signed and ratified the charter.
• Members subsequently admitted:
• The procedure is briefly as follows:
• The State submits an application to the Secretary-General and a letter
formally stating that it accepts the obligations under the Charter.
• The Security Council considers the application. Any recommendation
for admission must receive the affirmative votes of 9 of the 15
members of the Council, provided that none of its five permanent
members — China, France, the Russian, the United Kingdom and the
United States of America — have voted against the application.
• If the Council recommends admission, the recommendation is
presented to the General Assembly for consideration. A two-thirds
majority vote is necessary in the Assembly for admission of a new
State.
• Membership becomes effective the date the resolution for admission is
adopted.
PRICIPLES OF UN
• The principle of sovereign equality
• the principle of fulfilment of obligation
• the principle of peaceful settlement of international disputes
• principle of non use of force
• Principle of assistance to United Nations
• principle for non member states
• principle of non intervention in domestic matters of state
Suspension and Expulsion
• Article 5 provides that a member state against which preventive or
enforcement action has been taken by the security council may be
suspended by the general assembly upon the recommendation security
council.
• Article 6 lays down that the general assembly may expel upon the
recommendation of the security council any member state which is
persistently violating the principles contained in the charter.
• As regards the withdrawal of membership, though there is no provision
in the charter the San Francisco conference adopted as declaration that
a member state can withdraw because of exceptional circumstances.
ORGANS OF UNITED NATIONS
• The general assembly
• The security Council
• The Economic and Social Council
• The Trusteeship council
• The international court of justice
• The secretariat
In addition, the Charter authorizes the General Assembly and Security
Council to establish ‘subsidiary organs’ which are deemed necessary for
the performance of their functions.
General Assembly
• The principal organ of UNO consisting of all members. Each member state has
one vote and five representatives/ delegates. The general assembly regularly
meets once a year. But special session can also be convened by the secretary
general either on the request of security council or on the request of majority
of member states or at the request of one member concurred by a majority
of member states.
• It is mainly a deliberative body with powers of discussion, investigation,
review, recommendation and criticism about the work of the UN as a whole
including its other organs and specialized agencies. Though primarily a
recommending body without having binding effects, the general assembly can
also take final decision over certain matters like budget and admission/
suspension/ expansion of a member, etc.
• Decision on important question are taken by a two third majority of
members present and voting. The important question include,
recommendation with respect to the maintenance of international
peace and security, the election of members (non permanent), of the
security council, the ECOSOC, the trusteeship council, the admission
of new members, the suspension and expulsion of members,
questions relating to trusteeship system and budget( Art.18). All other
decisions are taken by a simple majority.
• The general assembly can not make any recommendations to the
members or to the security council on any questions or any questions
or any dispute or situation over which the security council is
exercising its function.
Security Council
• it is continuously functioning body originally consisted of 11 members
but since 1965 of 15 members ( elected by the general assembly for a
period of 2 years keeping in view the contribution of member states
to maintenance of peace and security).
• In order to have equitable geographical distributions, five members
from afro Asian nations, one from Eastern Europe, two from Latin
America and two from Western countries are elected.
The economic and social council (ECOSOC)
• The charter of UN in order to achieve the economic and social advancement of all
people created the ECOSOC as a permanent organ of UN with a view to secure
International prosperity, stability and justice the council originally had 18 members but
now composed of 54 members elected by general assembly for a term of 3 years.
• The economic and social council (ECOSOC) is the United Nations central platform for
reflection , debate, and innovative thinking on sustainable development.
• ECOSOC, one of the six main organs of the United Nations established by the UN
charter in 1946, is the principle body for coordination , policy review, policy dialogue
and recommendation on economic, social and environmental issues, as well as for
implementation of the internationally agreed development goals.
• ECOSOC serves as the central mechanism for the activities of the United Nations
system and its specialized.
Trusteeship Council
• The charter of UN provides for an international Trusteeship system with
the objectives of furthering international peace and security to
promote the advancement of inhabitants of the trust territories and
their progress of development towards self- government or
independence.
‘ Trust territories’ include territories held under mandate at the
commencement of the charter; territories which may be detached from
enemy states as a result of second world war and territories voluntarily
placed under the system by states responsible for the administration.
Trusteeship Council suspended on 1st November 1994.
The last trust territory was Palau under the administration of US.
INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
• The need for the establishment of a permanent court to resolve international
dispute was felt in the first Hague conference.
• It was in the second Hague peace conference, the USA proposed for the
establishment of such a court.
• The permanent court of international justice (PCIJ) was established in 1921 under
the Covenant of the League of Nations. After its dissolution the new international
court of Justice started functioning on 18 April 1946 with the headquarters at the
Hague.
• ICJ is the principal judicial organ of the UNO. The rules concerning the ICJ are set
out in a statue annexed to UN charter. All members of the UNO are its effects to
parties to the statue of ICJ. The members states are under an obligation to comply
with the decisions of ICJ in the cases to which they are parties.
• The functions of ICJ was conceived primarily to decide legal disputes
between state parties but when they agree to submit the dispute to it. The
ICJ was not given the power of judicial review over the actions taken by
other international organs. Thus, the absence of compulsory jurisdiction
over states and lack of power of judicial review makes it a weaker court
than the municipal courts.
• The court consists of 15 judges who are elected regardless of their
nationality, from among the persons of high moral character who possess
the qualification required for the appointment to the highest judicial office
of their own states, or, who are jurist consults of repute in international
law. But no two judges shall be elected from the same state.
• One third i.e. 5 judges re elected, once in every three years. Thus, once
elected a judge enjoys tenure of 9 years and is also eligible for re-election.
The seat of the court is at the Hague, though it can also sit elsewhere if it
considers necessary. The quorum of the court is nine judges.
THE SECRETARAIT
• For smooth running of UN, for execution of its execution of its decision and for
administering of its policies and programs, the charter created a secretariat headed by
a secretary general appointment for term of 5 years by the general assembly on the
recommendation supported by 9 affirmative votes (including the concurring votes of
five permanent members) of security council.
• The secretariat, one of main organs of the UN, is organized along departmental lines,
with each department or office having a distinct area of action and responsibility.
Offices and departments coordinate with each other to ensure cohesion as they carry
out day to day work of the organization in offices and duty stations around the world.
At the head of United Nations Secretariat is the secretary general.
• Antonio Guterres is the current Secretary general of United Nations.
• He is the ninth Secretary General, his term began 1 January 2017.
• The secretary general is the Chief Administrative Officer of UN and its
organs. He attends all the meetings of UN and its organs. He is
expected to act without any guidance from the general assembly of
the security council. He may bring into attention of security council
the matters which threat international peace and security. He has to
submit annual report to the general assembly on the working of UN.
He can summon special sessions of general assembly on the request
of security council or of majority member of UN.
• The secretary general acts as the registering authority of all treaties
and international agreements. He has been assigned the control of
various peacekeeping forces created by the UN. It may be noted that
he must maintain the exclusive international character of the UN.
Thus, he should not seek or receive instructions from any government
of from any authority external to the organization.