1 st Alexandria International Model United Nations

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1 The League of Nations The Birth of the League 1 st Alexandria International Model United Nations After World War 1, the liberal internationalities favoring international cooperation and power brokers of Europe cooperated to form the League of Nations. President Woodrow Wilson took the lead in proposing a framework for collective security, arbitration of disputes, and limitation of armaments ideas that has been expressed n the Hague conferences. The victims of the war, who wanted to ensure that Germany would not again threaten the peace, joined in support of the League of Nations. Lord Grey, Prime Minister Lloyd George, and some of the leading diplomats, as well as historians who later examined the records of World War 1, were convinced that the war could have been avoided by a conference of powers. Lord Grey, Sir Robert Cecil, and Woodrow Wilson, strong supporters of the League of Nations realized how a world organization might have prevented the war. The League Covenant The League of NATIONS Covenant was put n effect by the other major powers without the United States. Its major provisions were the following: 1- The preamble emphasizes the aim to achieve international peace, not to resort war, and to establish international law as a rule of conduct among governments. 2- Major organs of the league were an assembly, council, and permanent secretariat. The Assembly consisted of representatives of all members of the League; the Council consisted of representatives of members of the principal powers together with nine representatives of other members of the League. The Assembly and the council had overlapping authority, and a clear line was never drawn on their respective functions. The International Court of Justice, established by the League of Nations shortly after it was formed, is an integral part of the UN charter. Another major UN organ, the Trusteeship Council; corresponds of the Mandates Commission under the League of Nations. There are, however, important differences between the league and the United Nations. The League of Nations worked by unanimity on all but procedural matters. The politicians of the League managed to get around this by making approval of reports with recommendations a procedural matter, so that the views of the League could not vetoed by one member. This, of course, did not bind those disagreed. Another major difference was that the mandates system in Article 22 of the League Covenant called for the well-being and

2 development of colonies and territories as being a sacred trust. The UN went beyond this in Article 1 calling for friendly relations among nations based on self-determination of peoples. The League in Action 1- Fridtjof Nansen of the Red Cross under the authority of the League restored more than prisoners of 27 nationalities to their home countries from Russia; these people were without means of subsistence. The League then conferred the title of High Commissioner for Refugees upon Nansen. Although it gave him little additional help, with assistance from private sources his organization helped resettle millions of Russians, Armenians, and Greeks, and alleviated famine. 2- Ludwik Rajchman, a Polish doctor and secretary of the Health Organization of the League, headed the League s Epidemic Commission, which in 1920 prevented the spread of typhus, cholera, and typhoid from Russia and Poland into the rest of Europe. 3- The Health Section of the League s Secretariat under Rajchman also did outstanding work in combating epidemics in the Middle East, Far East, and throughout the world, enlisting support of leading scientific experts, The organization was later transformed into the World Health Organization (WHO). 4- The League s finance committee worked out a plan for loans and reconstruction f Austria, a defeated country, and by 1925 it left Austria with a recovered economy. In 1923 and 1924 another League committee helped rehabilitate Hungarian finances. 5- In 1921 League commissioners awarded the Aaland Islands to Finland with guarantees for the Swedish inhabitants. 6- The League Council in 1921 carried out a plebiscite in Silesia and drew a frontier line between Germany and Poland in the area. The Council then established a joint commission that managed relations along the border and settled grievances during the next 15 years.. 7- In 1921 the Council with British support helped preserve Albania from being carved up by Yugoslavia, Italy and Greece. 8- The League successfully administrated indicated that the inhabitants of this rich coal-mining area wanted to return to Germany, and subsequently they were returned.

3 Who Were At Fault? Professors and practitioners of the power-politics school, like Professors Hans Morgenthau, George Kennan, and Zbigniew Brzezinski, blame supporters of the League for encouraging governments to reply on international law and the League of Nations to stop aggression in the 1930s, when actually the aggressors of that era would only respect power. The above account suggests that this is not a fair appraisal. The Axis and particularly Hitler, of course, were primarily to blame for the final demise of the League, which was incidental to the shattering of the Versailles Treaty system. Many also fault the United Stated for not joining the league and for the thereby weakening it from the beginning. F. P. Walters, formerly deputy secretary general of the League. Stated the following: The immediate loss in power and influence of the Council and Assembly, due to the absence of the United States was great; it was destined to show itself in a hundred ways as the years went by. The indirect effects were no less calamitous. Within each member-state anti- League elements were encouraged Again with the United States outside the League any dissatisfied member could henceforth make effective use of the threat to withdraw. To leave the League was not to isolate oneself, but no follow an illustrious example. UN History: United Nations Emergence The name "United Nations", coined by United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt, was first used in the "Declaration by United Nations" of 1 January 1942, during the Second World War, when representatives of 26 nations pledged their Governments to continue fighting together against the Axis Powers. States first established international organizations to cooperate on specific matters. The International Telecommunication Union was founded in 1865 as the International Telegraph Union, and the Universal Postal Union was established in Both are now United Nations specialized agencies. In 1899, the International Peace Conference was held in The Hague to elaborate instruments for settling crises peacefully, preventing wars and codifying rules of warfare. It adopted the Convention for the Pacific Settlement of International Disputes and established the Permanent Court of Arbitration, which began work in The forerunner of the United Nations was the League of Nations, an organization conceived in similar circumstances during the first World War, and established in 1919 under the Treaty of Versailles "to promote international cooperation and to achieve peace and security." The International Labour Organization was also created under the Treaty of

4 Versailles as an affiliated agency of the League. The League of Nations ceased its activities after failing to prevent the Second World War. In 1945, representatives of 50 countries met in San Francisco at the United Nations Conference on International Organization to draw up the United Nations Charter. Those delegates deliberated on the basis of proposals worked out by the representatives of China, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom and the United States at Dumbarton Oaks, United States in August-October The Charter was signed on 26 June 1945 by the representatives of the 50 countries. Poland, which was not represented at the Conference, signed it later and became one of the original 51 Member States. The United Nations officially came into existence on 24 October 1945, when the Charter had been ratified by China, France, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, the United States and by a majority of other signatories. United Nations Day is celebrated on 24 October each year.

5 Boutros Boutros- Ghali (Egypt) Term of Office Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali became the sixth Secretary-General of the United Nations on 1 January 1992, when he began a five-year term. At the time of his appointment by the General Assembly on 3 December 1991, Mr. Boutros-Ghali had been Deputy Prime Minister for Foreign Affairs of Egypt since May 1991 and had served as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs from October 1977 until Javier de Perez de Cuellar (Peru) Term of Office Secretary General Javier Perez de Cuellar assumed office as Secretary-General of the United Nations on 1 January On 10 October 1986, he was appointed for a second term of office, which began on 1 January Mr. Perez de Cuellar was born in Lima, Peru, on 19 January He is a lawyer and a career diplomat, now retired. Kurt Waldheim (Austria) Term of Office Kurt Waldheim was appointed Secretary-General of the United Nations for a five-year term beginning on 1 January The Security Council had recommended the appointment on 21 December 1971 and the General Assembly approved it by acclamation on the following day. The Secretary-General was born at Sankt Andra-Wordern, near Vienna, Austria, on 21 December He graduated from the University of Vienna as a Doctor of Jurisprudence in He is also a graduate of the Vienna Consular Academy. U Thant (Myanmar) Term of Office U Thant, who served as Secretary- General of the United Nations from 1961 to 1971, was chosen to head the world body when Secretary- General Dag Hammarskjold was killed in an air crash in September U Thant was born at Pantanaw, Burma, on 22 January 1909, and was educated at the National High School in Pantanaw and at University College, Rangoon. Dag Hammarskjold (Sweden) Term of Office Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjold was Secretary- General of the United Nations from 10 April 1953 until 18 September 1961 when he met his death in a plane accident while on a peace mission in the Congo. He was born on 29 July 1905 in Jonkoping in south-central Sweden. The fourth son of Hjalmar Hammarskjold, Prime Minister of Sweden during the years of World War I, and his wife Agnes, M.C. (b. Almquist), he was brought up in the university town of Uppsala where his father resided as Governor of the county of Uppland. - This year is the year of Dag Hammar. Trygve Lie (Norway) Term of Office Trygve Halvdan Lie was born on 16 July 1896, in Oslo, Norway, the son of Martin and Hulda Arnesen Lie. He was educated at Oslo University where he obtained a law degree in On 8 November 1921, he married Hjordis Joergensen. They had three children - Sissel, Guri and Mette. Mr. Lie became a member of the Norwegian Labor Party Youth Organization in He was an assistant to the secretary of the Labor Party from 1919 to 1922, a legal adviser to the Norwegian Trade Union Federation from 1922 to 1935, and national executive secretary of the Labor Party in In the Labor Party Government formed by Johan Nygaardsvold, Mr. Lie was Minister of Justice for the years 1935 to 1939, then Minister of Trade and Industries from July to September 1939

6 Current Secretary General: Kofi Annan of Ghana is the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations. The first Secretary-General to be elected from the ranks of United Nations staff, he began his first term on 1 January On 29 June 2001, acting on a recommendation by the Security Council, the General Assembly appointed him by acclamation to a second term of office, beginning on 1 January 2002 and ending on 31 December U N Main Organs: It is often said that if we did not have the United Nations, it would have to be invented.

7 Why do we need the United Nations? -- In a world plagued by conflict, the UN permits instant consultations among governments and provides the forum for dealing with long-term problems. -- The UN is a catalyst for action on major global issues, such as the environment and illicit drugs, and provides the best mechanism available to mobilize and sustain international cooperation to tackle these issues. -- The UN and its agencies help build economies and stabilize financial markets. They help eradicate disease, expand food production and increase longevity. They protect refugees, deliver food aid and respond quickly to natural disasters. -- The UN and its agencies protect vulnerable groups, like children, refugees, displaced persons, minorities, indigenous people and the disabled. -- The UN and its agencies provide the machinery for setting technical and legal standards in vital areas of global interaction, from air safety standards to human rights. -- No organization in the world is better suited to pursue these goals, because no other possesses the UN's universality and legitimacy The UN has been the recipient of eight Nobel Peace Prizes in recognition of its work. Major Achievements of the United Nations The United Nations was established in the aftermath of a devastating war to help stabilize international relations and give peace a more secure foundation. Amid the threat of nuclear war and seemingly endless regional conflicts, peace-keeping has become an overriding concern of the United Nations. In the process, the activities of blue-helmeted peace-keepers have emerged as the most visible role associated with the world organization. The United Nations, however, is much more than a peace-keeper and forum for conflict resolution. Often without attracting attention, the United Nations and its family of agencies are engaged in a vast array of work that touches every aspect of people's lives around the world. Child survival and development. Environmental protection. Human rights. Health and medical research. Alleviation of poverty and economic development. Agricultural development and fisheries. Education. Family planning. Emergency and disaster relief. Air and sea travel. Peaceful uses of atomic energy. Labour and workers' rights. The list goes on. Here, in brief, is a sampling of what the United Nations organizations have accomplished since 1945 when the world organization was founded. 1. Maintaining peace and security - By having deployed a total of 54 peace-keeping forces and observer missions as of September 2001, the United Nations has been able to restore calm to allow the negotiating

8 process to go forward while saving millions of people from becoming casualties of conflicts. There are presently 15 active peace-keeping forces in operation. 2. Making peace - Since 1945, the United Nations has been credited with negotiating many peaceful settlements that have ended regional conflicts. Recent cases include an end to the Iran-Iraq war, the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan, and an end to the civil war in El Salvador. The United Nations has used quiet diplomacy to avert imminent wars. 3. Promoting democracy - The United Nations has enabled people in many countries to participate in free and fair elections, including those held in Cambodia, Namibia, El Salvador, Eritrea, Mozambique, Nicaragua, South Africa, Kosovo and East Timor. It has provided electoral advice, assistance, and monitoring of results. 4. Promoting development - The UN system has devoted more attention and resources to the promotion of the development of human skills and potentials than any other external assistance effort. The system's annual disbursements, including loans and grants, amount to more than $10 billion. The UN Development Programme (UNDP), in close cooperation with over 170 Member States and other UN agencies, designs and implements projects for agriculture, industry, education, and the environment. It supports more than 5,000 projects 6. with a budget of $1.3 billion. It is the largest multilateral source of grant development assistance. The World Bank, at the forefront in mobilizing support for developing countries worldwide, has alone loaned $333 billion for development projects since In addition, UNICEF spends more than $800 million a year, primarily on immunization, health care, nutrition and basic education in 138 countries. 5. Promoting human rights - Since adopting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, the United Nations has helped enact dozens of comprehensive agreements on political, civil, economic, social and cultural rights. By investigating individual complaints of human rights abuses, the UN Human Rights Commission has focused world attention on cases of torture, disappearance, and arbitrary detention and has generated international pressure to be brought on governments to improve their human rights records. Protecting the environment - The United Nations has played a vital role in fashioning a global programme designed to protect the environment. The "Earth Summit," the UN Conference on Environment and Development held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, resulted in treaties on biodiversity and climate change, and all countries adopted "Agenda 21" - a blueprint to promote sustainable development or the concept of economic growth while protecting natural resources.

9 7. Preventing nuclear proliferation - The United Nations, through the International Atomic Energy Agency, has helped minimize the threat of a nuclear war by inspecting nuclear reactors in 90 countries to ensure that nuclear materials are not diverted for military purposes. 8. Promoting self determination and independence - The United Nations has played a role in bringing about independence in countries that are now among its Member States. 9. Strengthening international law - Over 300 international treaties, on topics as varied as human rights conventions to agreements on the use of outer space and seabed, have been enacted through the efforts of the United Nations. 10. Handing down judicial settlements of major international disputes - By giving judgments and advisory opinions, the International Court of Justice has helped settle international disputes involving territorial issues, non-interference in the internal affairs of States, diplomatic relations, hostage-taking, the right of asylum, rights of passage and economic rights. 11. Ending apartheid in South Africa - By imposing measures ranging from an arms embargo to a convention against segregated sporting events, the United Nations was a major factor in bringing about the downfall of the apartheid system, which the General Assembly called "a crime against humanity." Elections were held in April 1994 in which all South Africans were allowed to participate on an equal basis, followed by the establishment of a majority government. United Nations and Civil Society: "The United Nations once dealt with only with governments, By now we know that peace and prosperity can't be achieved without partnerships involving Governments, international Organizations, the business community and civil society. In Today's world, we depend on each other." Secretary General, Kofi Annan No n-governmental organizations helped to found the United Nations. Article 71 of the UN Charter embeds arrangements for the UN consultations with NGOs. The UN systems maintain formal associates with a remarkable number and variety of major non-governmental organizations. The UN organizes, and hosts briefings, meetings and conferences for NGO representatives who are accreted to the UN offices, programs and agencies. United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MGDs) emphasize ever increasing partnerships of the UN with Civil Society Organizations, (CSO), including with private sector and with other international organizations. NGOs and ECOSOC The fi rst avenue by which non-governmental organizations took a role

10 in formal UN deliberations was through the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). 41 NGOs were granted consultative status by the cou ncil in 1946; by 1992 more that 700 NGOs had attained consultative status and the number has been steadily increasing ever since to 2,613 organizations today. Article 71 of the UN Charter opened the door providing for suitable arrangements for consultation with non-governmental organizations. The consultative relationship with ECOSOC is governed today by ECOSOC resolution 1996/31, which outlines the eligibility requirements for consultative status, rights and obligations of NGOs in consultative status, procedures for the withdrawal or suspension of consultative status, the role and functions of the ECOSOC Committee on NGOs, and the responsibilities of the UN Secretariat in supporting the consultative relationship. Consultative status is granted by ECOSOC upon recommendation of the ECOSOC Committee on NGOs, which is comprised of 19 Member States. Who is Eligible? Consultative relationships may be established with international, regional, sub regional and national non-governmental, non-profit public or voluntary organizations. NGOs affiliated to an international organization already in status may be admitted provided that they can demonstrate that their programme of work is of direct relevance to the aims and purposes of the United Nations. In the case of national organizations consultation with the Member State concerned is required. To be eligible for consultative status, an NGO must have been in existence (officially registered with the appropriate government authorities as an NGO/non-profit) for at least two years, must have an established headquarters, a democratically adopted constitution, authority to speak for its members, a representative structure, appropriate mechanisms of accountability and democratic and transparent decision-making processes. The basic resources of the organization must be derived in the main part from contributions of the national affiliates or other components or from individual members. Organizations established by governments or intergovernmental agreements are not considered NGOs. General, Special and Roster status:

11 There are three categories of status: General consultative status, Special consultative status and Roster status. General consultative status is reserved for large international NGOs whose area of work covers most of the issues on the agenda of ECOSOC and its subsidiary bodies. These tend to be fairly large, established international NGOs with a broad geographical reach. Special consultative status is granted to NGOs which have a special competence in, and are concerned specifically with, only a few of the fields of activity covered by the ECOSOC. These NGOs tend to be smaller and more recently established. Organizations that apply for consultative status but do not fit in any of the other categories are usually included in the Roster. These NGOs tend to have a rather narrow and/or technical focus. NGOs that have formal status with other UN bodies or specialized agencies (FAO, ILO, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, WHO and others), can be included on the ECOSOC Roster. The roster lists NGOs that ECOSOC or the UN Secretary-General considers can make "occasional and useful contributions to the work of the Council or its subsidiary bodies." ECOSOC Resolution 1996/31: The Economic and Social Council, Recalling Article 71 of the Charter of the United Nations, Recalling also its resolution 1993/80 of 30 July 1993, in which it requested a general review of arrangements for consultation with non-governmental organizations, with a view to updating, if necessary, Council resolution 1296 (XLIV) of 23 May 1968, as well as introducing coherence in the rules governing the participation of non-governmental organizations in international conferences convened by the United Nations, and also an examination of ways and means of improving practical arrangements for the work of the Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations and the Non- Governmental Organizations Section of the Secretariat, R ecalling further its decision 1995/304 of 26 July 1995, Confirming the need to take into account the full diversity of the nongovernmental organizations at the national, regional and international levels, cknowledging A the breadth of non-governmental organizations' expertise and the capacity of non-governmental organizations to support the work of the

12 United Nations, Taking into account the changes in the non-governmental sector, including the emergence of a large number of national and regional organizations, Calling upon the governing bodies of the relevant organizations, bodies and specialized agencies of the United Nations system to examine the principles and practices relating to their consultations with non-governmental organizations and to take action, as appropriate, to promote coherence in the light of the provisions of the present resolution, To Find the full resolution visit this: The Committee on NGOs The Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations is a standing committee of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). It was established by Council resolution 3(II) on the 21st of June The Committee reports directly to ECOSOC (rule 82 of its rules of procedure) and its report includes draft resolutions on matters calling for action by the Council. The Committee has 19 members (Council resolution 1981/50 of 20 July 1981) who are elected on the basis of equitable geographical representation: 5 members from African States; 4 members from Asian States; 2 members from Eastern European States; 4 members from Latin American and Caribbean States; and 4 members from Western European and other States. In accordance with ECOSOC decision 70 (ORG-75) of 28 January 1975, the term of office of its members is four years The Committee's original terms of reference were set out in ECOSOC resolution 288 B (X) of 27 February 1950, which was superseded by ECOSOC resolution 1296 (XLIV) of 25 May The current terms of reference of the Committee are set out in Resolution 1996/31 of 25 July In its proceedings the Committee is guided by the rules of procedure of the Council. The main tasks of the Committee are: The consideration of applications for consultative status and requests for reclassification submitted by NGOs; The consideration of quadrennial reports submitted by NGOs in General and Special categories; The implementation of the provisions of Council resolution 1996/31 and the monitoring of the consultative relationship; Any other issues which the ECOSOC may request the Committee to consider. Reference:

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