UNITED NATIONS ORGANISATION (U.N.O.)
ORIGIN OF THE UNO
UNO came into being on October 24, 1945. But many attempts were made
earlier to establish an international organisation.
1. The London Declaration, June 1941 : In June, 1941 the representatives of
Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa met in London. The
first proposal for a new world organisation to be established was made. It
should be more powerful than the League of Nations so that peace be
established in the world in the real sense. The decisions and deliberations of
these members were called the London Declaration.
2. Declaration of the Atlantic Charter, August 1941 In August, 1941, the U.S.
President Roosevelt and the British Prime Minister Churchill issued a
declaration known as the Atlantic Charter. The Charter states The main
objectives of the Charter were.
• International peace and security.
• International cooperation in the field of social economic, cultural
development of the world.
• Establish friendly relations among nations based on equal rights and self
determination.
• Recognition of fundamental rights of the people.
3. Washington Declaration, January 1942. 26 Allied states representatives
meet at Washington. Pledge to defeat common, enemies unitedly. The word
"United Nations" used for the first time.
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4. The Moscow Declaration, October 1943 : In October, 1943, a conference of the
Foreign Ministers of the U.S.A., the U.S.S.R., England and China took place at
Moscow. The Moscow Declaration of 1943 confirmed the necessity of forming a
general international organisation, based on the principle of sovereign equality of all
peace-loving nations, for the preservation of international peace and security. It laid
down the foundation of the U.N.O.
5. The Dumbarton Oaks Conference, October 1944 A plan for the formation of an
international security organisation was discussed at Dumbarton Oaks Conference
held in Washington in October, 1944. Resolved to banish terror of war, to create a
world in which all people may live free lives, untouched by tyranny and acts
according to their own conscience.
6. The Yalta Conference, February 1945 : Early in 1945, heads of three big nations,
i.e., the U.S. President Roosevelt, the British Prime Minister Churchill and the Soviet
Premier Stalin met at Yalta in the Soviet Union from 4th to 11th February, 1945. It
was decided to open to all the states, at war with Germany, the membership of the
United Nations, so that they could attend the next meeting to be held at San
Francisco for drafting the Charter of the United Nations.
7. The San Francisco Conference, April 1945: A meeting of the %Allied nations was
held at San Francisco, U.S.A. Its deliberations continued from 25th April to 26th
June, 1946 and about 50 countries took part in it. The United Nations Charter was
signed by 50 participating countries on June 26, 1945. It became effective on
October 24, 1945 when the United Nations Organisation started functioning in a
regular manner. That is why 24th October is celebrated each year as the United
Nations Day.
• UN Headquarters are in New York City USA.
• Official languages of the UN are Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and
Spanish. Any speech can be translated simultaneously into the other five.
Flag
The United Nations flag was adopted on October 20, 1947. It consists of the U.N.
emblem in white on a light blue background. The emblem shows a globe
inscribed in a wrath of olive branches which symbolises peace.
Finance
The expenses of the United Nations is met by the contributions made by the
member-states. The contribution of different states is determined by the General
Assembly each year on the recommendation of its committee on contributions.
Membership
Membership of the U.N.O. is open to all peace-loving nations which agree with
the objectives of the U.N.O. and are ready to abide by its principles. The
admission, suspension and expulsion of members is decided by the General
Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council by a 2/3rd majority of
votes. Montenegro (a part of former Yugoslavia) became the newest member of
the UN (192nd) in July 2006. Ban-ki-Moon of South Korea is the Secretary
General of the UNO.
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE U.N.O.
The main aims and objectives of the United Nations were defined in Article I of
the Charter as:
1. To maintain international peace and security and to that end. To take
effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the
peace. Suppression of acts of aggression or other breaches of the peace. 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.
2. To develop friendly relations among nations, based on respect for the
principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples, To take other
appropriate measures to strengthen universal peace.
3. To achieve international cooperation in solving international problems of an
economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character is promote and
encourage respect for human rights and for fundamental freedom for all
without distinction as to race, sex, language or religion.
4. To be a centre for harmonising the actions of nations in the attainment of
these common ends.
Composition and Functions of the Main Organs of The UNO
1. General Assembly Composition.
Considered the Parliament of the UNO.
All the member states of the UNO are its members.
Regular session is only once a year. It starts on 3rd
Tuesday in September and countries till mid-December. Emergency/special
session can also be held.
Each country sends five deligates but has one vote only.
Decisions on Important questions require 2/3 majority. On ordinary matters a
simple majority is enough.
The Presidency of the Assembly rotates every among five group of states
African, Asian, Eastern, European.
2. The Security Council Composition :
It is the executive body of the UNO. Has 15 members. The USA, Russia,
England, France and China are permanent members.
Remaining 10 members are elected by the General Assembly for 2 years. Each
council member has one vote.
Permanent members have the right to veto. A permanent member can reject
any decision of the Security Council.
Meetings are held once a month, but can be held earlier in emergency.
The members hold the presidency for one month by turns.
Security council is considered continually in session, so that-the council can
meet on a short notice.
The Economic and Social Council
Composition : Its 54 members are elected by the General Assemblies for 3
years, 1/3 retiring after 3 years and new members elected. Holds two sessions
in a year.
Functions : The chief function of this Council is to solve the economic, social
and cultural problems.
Makes efforts to remove the economic and social causes of the war. It aims at
higher standard of living, full employment and economic and social progress.
It appoints commissions in different spheres and inspects the working of the
various institutions set up by the U.N.O.
It established a commission in status of women in 1946. Its work led to the
celebration of International women's year in 1975.
The Trusteeship Council
The charter provided for an international trusteeship system to safeguard the
interests of the inhabitants of the territories which were not self-governing. The
five pennanent members of the security Council were its members — China,
France, Russia, UK, USA.
Note : All the original 11 trust territories have become independent countries
the work of the Trusteeship council has been suspended and is under review.
The International Court of Justice Composition
The Chief Court of UN, has 15 judges elected by the General Assembly and
security voting separately.
Ten term of the judges is 9 years and they can be re-elected.
Quorum is fixed at nine.
All decisions taken by majority vote of the Judges present.
Chief justice elected for 3 years and has a casting vote.
One judge from one country.
The Hague, Netherlands is the seat of the court.
Functions: Settle mutual disputes among different nations peacefully.
Disputes regarding Treaties of pacts are referred to it for decision.
Advises the General Assembly, security council and other agencies of the
UNO on legal matters.
The Secretariat
Day to day business is carried out by the secretariat chief administrative
officer is the secretary-General who is appointed-for 5 years.
Divided into 8 parts for smooth running, officials from many countries work
here.
Functions : Keeps record of all organs of the UNO.
Implements the decisions taken by all the organs.
Coordinates the work of all branches, see that they function properly and
submit their animal report to the UNO.