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| Saturday, 1 May 2004 |
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The United Nations as an educational resource - Part 2 by Dr. Ruwantissa Abeyratne - United Nations, Montreal (Continued from April 26) In a typical educational curriculum involving the United Nations process, two areas that would stand out are human rights and peace and security.
The New York Times, on September 2, 2002, quotes the words of Judge Keith in the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit who invoked in Orwellian terms : "When government begins closing doors, it selectively controls information rightfully belonging to the people. Selective information is misinformation. A government operating in the shadow of secrecy stands in complete opposition to the society envisioned by the framers of our Constitution." Due recognition and active protection of a minority's rights pertaining to racial, cultural and religious issues guarantees freedom from discrimination based on race, language, nationality and national origin or religion. Western democracies, particularly after World War II and the Nuremberg trials which ensured punishment for those responsible for the organized murder of thousands of innocent persons by the commission of atrocities during the war, have been particularly sensitive to the need to ensure human rights. This has led to a gradual evolution where focus on collective rights of national minorities has replaced earlier emphasis on individual rights. The protection of human rights is the most significant and important task for an enlightened State, particularly since multi ethnic States are the norm in today's world. The traditional nation State in which a distinct national group rules over a territorial unit is fast receding to history. Globalisation and increased migration across borders is gradually putting an end to the concept of the nation State, although resistance to reality can be still seen in instances where majority or dominant cultures impose their identity and interests on groups with whom they share a territory. In such instances, minorities frequently intensify their efforts to preserve and protect their identity, in order to avoid marginalization. Polarization between the opposite forces of assimilation on the one hand and protection of minority identity on the other inevitably causes increased intolerance and eventual armed ethnic conflict. In such a scenario, the first duty of governance is to ensure that the rights of a minority society are protected. As for peace and security, this subject is firmly entrenched in the United Nations Charter and steadfastly supported in the United Nations Security Council. Both within the United Nations and among States, both internally and externally, this is the most contentious issue where the stakes are the highest. Effective tools, such as the power of "veto"in the Security Council are good role models that could be analyzed in depth in a high school or university educational program. The role played by the international Court of Justice in adjudicating disputes is another area of scholarly research that could enrich a political science and international relations programme. The United Nations Charter recognizes one of the purposes of the United Nations as being to maintain international peace and security, and to that end: take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression or other breaches of peace, and to bring about by peaceful means, and in conformity with the principles of justice and international law, adjustment or settlement of international disputes or situations which might lead to a breach of the peace. It is a cliche but a true one, that the price of education is expensive, but the price of ignorance cannot be fathomed. It is also abundantly clear that, to prepare ourselves for the globalised economy of the 21st Century, we must first learn the art of interdependence, which essentially requires us to get used to the practicality of co-operation across national boundaries as well as within our own domestic peripheries in order to obviate and eliminate personal barriers. The responsibility for providing solutions to current global problems should be shared by all public institutions, and universities are no exception. The university system has a particularly important role, for it puts the finishing touches to a young human being before he or she takes up responsibility in the world. At graduate level, this becomes more significant, particularly in the context of the seniority and accountability involved in the office that would be held by a person holding a masters degree or doctorate. To this end, a period of practical experience at both late secondary and tertiary level education would also assist students in preparing for their upcoming professional careers. For instance, law students could assist practising lawyers with their research and follow court proceedings and students of international relations could work in the foreign office for a given period of time during their periods of scholarship. To illustrate the point that awareness of the compelling need for global interaction is a sine qua non for a student in the modern economic and political world, one has to examine a practical instance. International Organizations are as important actors as are States when it comes to international politics. This is brought to bear by the fact that the United Nations is the only international organization of countries created to promote world peace and cooperation. The UN was founded after World War II ended in 1945. Its mission is to maintain world peace, develop good relations between countries, promote cooperation in solving the world's problems, and encourage respect for human rights. The UN is an alliance of countries that agree to cooperate with one another. It brings together countries that are rich and poor, large and small, and have different social and political systems. Member nations pledge to settle their disputes peacefully, to refrain from using force or the threat of force against other countries, and to refuse help to any country that opposes UN actions. The UN's influence in world affairs has fluctuated over the years, but the organization gained new prominence beginning in the 1990s. It was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2001. Still, the UN faces constant challenges. It must continually secure the cooperation of its member nations because the organization has little independent power or authority. But getting that support is not always easy. Many nations are reluctant to defer their own authority and follow the dictates of the UN. It therefore becomes abundantly clear that the study of international politics through the UN system is of critical importance to a society, if only to gain a full realization of the difficulties posed by the various nuances of international relations, negotiation of disputes through diplomacy and problem solving. Such an education could only be provided through the experiences of international institutions such as the United Nations. (Concluded) |
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The starting point in international legislation is Article 19 of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights which provides that everyone has the
right to freedom of opinion and expression and that this right includes
freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and
impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of
frontiers.
