9. The United Nations: The World in One Building

What do you know about the United Nations? How important is it to world development and world peace? The following article may add something to your knowledge.

Do you know the old Arab story about a bird called the phoenix? First it burned to death. Then it came back to life. That doesn't sound believable, does it? But there is an example of the phoenix in our own time: The United Nations. In 1945, it brought the dream of world peace back to life again after World War II.

Since the day of its birth, the United Nations has been the subject of much debate. Some people attack the organization because they think it is too powerful. Others think that it is too weak. We can better understand this debate if we learn more about the U.N. and its history.

The U.N. was started for two reasons. First, when the idea was born, people all over the world were tired of war. They were tired not just of World War II, but of war itself. They felt that there must be peaceful answers to the world's problems. They felt that only an international organization could keep world peace.

The second reason was that modern science had developed new bombs and airplanes. These weapons made it almost impossible for a country to defend itself. National borders were beginning to lose their meaning. There was also a feeling that this was only the beginning. Science would develop even more dangerous weapons in the future. Only an international organization would be able to control modern science.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who was President of the United States at the time, believed that the Allies should plan for peace before the war ended. On December 1, 1943, Roosevelt, Winston Churchill of Great Britain and Joseph Stalin of the former Soviet Union agreed to start an organization for world peace. They asked all countries, large and small, to join them.

During the next year and a half, the idea of such an organization was debated in all the capitals of the world. Then came a big day in modern history. On April 11, 1945, the first international meeting of the United Nations took place in San Francisco.

The goal of the meeting was to write the U.N. Charter. All of the fifty-one nations at the meeting had their own ideas to offer for the Charter. After a long debate, a Charter was agreed upon. Every nation present voted for the Charter, no one voted against it.

The U.N. Charter is a beautiful piece of writing. In clear language it explains why the U.N. was started. The reasons are: 1) to keep world peace; 2) to find answers to the world's social and economic problems; 3) to win respect for human rights; and 4) to help win freedom for all people on earth.

Since 1945, the number of nations that have signed the U.N. Charter has more than doubled. These countries contain almost the whole population of the world. Every kind of government can be found at the U.N. And there is one idea which all these countries agree on: the need for world peace.

Most of the offices of the United Nations are in New York City. But there are other important U.N. offices all over the world. The World Health Organization, for example, is in Geneva, Switzerland. The International Court of Justice is in the Hague, Holland.

The buildings in New York stand along the East River on the island of Manhattan. The park around them leads right to the water. The park contains many works of art that were given as presents to the U.N. by member countries. There is a Russian work of art next to an American one. In another part of the garden there is a beautiful Japanese bell. In some ways the garden itself shows the idea of the U.N.—peace among the nations of the world.

Outside the U.N. buildings there is a line of flags almost five blocks long. These are the flags of the member nations.

The flag of the United Nations flies above them. When all the flags are flying, the General Assembly is meeting inside.

The General Assembly is the most important part of the U.N. At its meetings, any country can bring a problem to the attention of the world. But the first big problem of the U.N. was what language to use. How would the delegates understand each other? Should they translate everything into all languages, or should they choose one language and translate everything into it?

They decided to do neither. Instead, they chose five languages. Everything that is spoken at the General Assembly is translated into Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish. Above the hall of the General Assembly there are several little glass rooms. The translators sit inside them. They are very good at their jobs. They must be able to listen to delegate and to translate at the same time! This is a difficult but very important job. One small mistake could cause many problems.

The Security Council also meets in New York. Its job is to solve serious problems before they lead to war. It also has the power to send an army into a country—if members of the Security Council agree.

There are many other smaller organizations in the U.N. One is supposed to help countries with their economic and social problems. Another is supposed to help countries win independence. Another is meant to help women all over the world.

Since its earliest days, many people have criticized the U.N. They say that the U.N. is too weak. As an example, they say that some member countries promise to respect human rights, but many member countries show little or no respect for human rights. The U.N. can do nothing about this. Some also say that the Security Council is too weak to do any good. This happens because all five big powers have to agree before the U.N. can act.

But there are many people who defend the United Nations. They say that only the citizens of a country can make their government respect human rights. The U.N. can act only when two countries are at war. It can't help the people of a country fight their own government.

Another important defense of the U.N. is this: where would we be without it? When someone speaks at the U.N., everyone hears about it. There are reports in the newspapers, on the radio, and on television. No one can stop the debates at the U.N. Even the smallest country on earth can have its voice heard.

We are all citizens of the United Nations. Each of us should learn more about how this important organization works. If we work to make it better, maybe this phoenix will never burn to death again.

From Travel, ed., Theodore Gross,

New York, 1981.