Bringing democracy to the United Nations
Since assuming the Presidency of the UN General
Assembly, Father Miguel d’Escoto Brockman has shown that he is capable
of taking some strong positions on issues and this have been well
received especially by those from the developing countries. The
following is an editorial he wrote which provides a glimpse of his
vision and priorities which will guide his work in the UN.
On September 16, I assumed the Presidency of the General Assembly. As
an old man, a priest and someone who did not seek this post, I was
surprised to be elected by all 192 Member States. I come to the Assembly
acutely aware of the sorry state of the world and the inescapable fact
that the United Nations has not fulfilled the mandates clearly outlined
in its Charter 63 years ago. With this defining concern in mind, I have
dedicated my presidency to the poor and oppressed of the world.
There are many reasons for our spectacular failures, but it is clear
that our “mad selfishness”, as Tolstoy described it, is still very much
at work. I believe that this is at the heart of the matter. And there is
growing awareness that we cannot continue with business as usual.
Obligations
UN building |
The General Debate of the Assembly ended on September 29 after 111
Heads of State and Government addressed what can be called the global
village’s town meeting.
The Assembly is, after all, the most representative body of any
international organization in history.
In my address to world leaders, I was frank: The Assembly has not
been fulfilling its mandate as outlined in the Charter. And because of
this, the United Nations as a whole has been unable to meet its
obligations entrusted to it by the peoples of the world.
Over the decades, the central role of the General Assembly in the UN
system has been undermined, its authority has been diverted to other
bodies, and its resolutions have become toothless and tired. Some of its
important functions have fallen into disuse.
I asked our leaders: What good is the Assembly’s magnificent
democratic structure if our votes, often reflecting the vast majority of
nations, are ignored?
Credibility
How can we continue to tolerate the behaviour of some Permanent
Members of the Security Council that so often contradicts the spirit and
the letter of the Charter which they are obligated to uphold and defend?
Can we continue to accept the domination of the Bretton Woods
institutions by the US and Europe when their economic and social
policies so often contribute to the poverty we are struggling to
overcome.
In short, I believe that the Assembly must vigorously resist the
marginalization in the economic and social spheres and take immediate
steps to re-establish its credibility and authority. To achieve this, we
need some serious changes. For this reason I have made the
democratization of the United Nations a priority of the 63rd Session.
Business as usual has produced a world in shameful disarray. After 63
years, we have not made violent conflicts, war, genocide and mutually
assured destruction the distant nightmares of another century.
The trillion dollars spent each year on arms is but one shocking
example of our wrong-headed priorities. Wars of aggression, the worst
form of terrorism, are another.
There is no one in the world who does not claim to want to end
poverty. But world leaders stand by while half the world’s population
continues to live in unending deprivation.
With the world on the brink of financial catastrophe as the result of
greed and corruption, soaring food and energy prices and shrinking
development assistance are plunging many millions more into poverty each
day.
We must immediately move to prevent the food crisis from becoming an
ongoing catastrophe for hundreds of millions of people.
We have created an extraordinary body of international law, yet
justice is still a rare commodity in much of the world. After 60 years,
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as inspiring as always, is
cynically defied mostly by States - both large and small.
And, as we willfully tip our environment into toxic destruction,
leaders cannot summon the will to curb the mind-boggling consumerism
that fuels climate change for fear of losing public support and hefty
profits.
Experiment
The United Nations is an ongoing experiment in partnership. Let’s
inspire these partnerships with solidarity and compassion.
The trigger for this solidarity does not lie with world leaders. Nor
Government bureaucracies. Nor the corporations but comes from people,
from civil society, from ordinary citizens doing extraordinary things.
As president of this Assembly, I am working as an agent of change so
that we can, together, restore the vitality and relevance of this
Assembly and push for the democratization of our international
institutions as never before.
- Third World Network Features |