The United Nations:

Effective or Not?

Cosmos Fristachi

English 111, Semester 1, Class 1A

Mrs. Erskine
December 16, 2014

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The United Nations, formed immediately after WWII to prevent similar

conflicts, has since been faced with many complex issues with which it has dealt to
varying levels of success. Over the years, the organization has handled many
situations requiring differing degrees of involvement. The atrocities of WWII
showed the world that the human race needed an international organization to
watch over the world as a sort of father figure. The UN does this by creating
treaties, signed by the member nations, promising to adhere to a variety of
regulatory precedents. Although the purpose of these rules is to prevent a future
need for action, the treaties are occasionally enacted too late to successfully end a
detrimental course of action. When the treaties are too late or members of the
organization violate existing treaties and subsequently refuse to participate in
diplomatic negotiation, UN troops have to be deployed (United Nations
Peacekeeping Forces).
Immediately after the end of WWII, the allied nations met to discuss the
future. They knew that no such war could ever occur again, lest the world be
destroyed. It was out of this concern that they decided to create an organization to
preserve international peace. They wrote out a plan called The Charter of the
United Nations, describing the bodys purpose and main functions, and in June of

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1945, 50 countries signed it, thusly becoming the first members of the famed
assembly, which has since grown to 192 member nations. A similar organization
had been created (ironically by most of the same nations) after WWI called the
League of Nations, but it did not possess the power to have a substantial effect on
world affairs. Although similar in essence, there were major differences between
the two groups. Firstly, The United Nations started with all of the worlds major
military powers (except for Communist China, which joined in 1971); while the
League of Nations had several powerful countries either withdraw or never join in
the first place. Secondly, the United Nations takes more interest in all the worlds
activities, whether social, economic, or military. Their increased involvement
allows them to be more recognized as a force for good and more respected by the
worlds countries, whether members or not (Rupp).
The United Nations and the United States Government often disagree on a
vast majority of political actions and ideals. In 2004, the UN passed a bill that
banned the torture or inhumane treatment of prisoners taken by a nation, but the
US President of the time, George W. Bush, found a loophole. He stated that
prisoners held overseas, and not on a countrys soil, were not protected by the
treaty and thus he continued to torture supposed terrorists against the will of the
UN (DeYoung). More recently, the United Nations proposed a new treaty that
would ban the degrading treatment of prisoners, regardless of where they may be

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held (specifically citing George W. Bushs loophole in its predecessor). In another

example of UN/US collision of ideals, the United Nations condemned the United
States police policy recently, citing that US police officers often exercise
excessive force, especially on minorities such as African Americans, Latinos, and
homosexuals. Cases such as Ferguson, Missouri and New York City have caused
the UN to urge the US government to crack down on all police organizations.
They state that such action would set a higher standard for police officers to use
deadly force (Schlein).
Internationally, the United Nations has also become involved in many
nations affairs. Over the past year, ISIS has become a deadly force that killed over
5,000 civilians; the UN has taken note of the conflict and monitored it carefully so
appropriate action can be taken at the most appropriate time. Many UN
representatives believe that that time is now, but the general assembly has yet to
decide what action to take (Cummings-Bruce). The UN has recently informed
North Korea that several of the nations leaders have been summoned to appear at
the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, but their response
has not been a very compliant one. North Korea threatened the United Nations
stating that unless the charges were dropped, they would conduct their nations
fourth nuclear test. In a vote of 111 to 19, the UN decided to go ahead with the
subpoena regardless of the threat. "Nuclear weapons should not be used as threats

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or as bargaining chips" (Deen). Another ideal that the UN fights for is

environmental protection and the reduction of pollution. Because of the
environments worsening condition, the United Nations hosted an international
meeting. This meeting was attended by multitudes of national governments,
including several corporations. Both governments and corporations formed
separate coalitions for the savior of the worlds future. Both groups donated
billions of dollars towards the cause that the UN has put towards research on clean
energy forms, and other such devices of environmental protection (Ki-Moon).
The United Nations, when presented with a situation requiring their action,
always deals with it as effectively as they can. In North Korean affairs, they have
indicted corrupt leadership, in US government, they have issued pleas for change
in a system that causes the suffering of minorities still to this day, and on the issue
of the environment, they have raised billions of dollars to fund the protection of the
future. Whether that issue is the international tensions, the impending
environmental disaster, or the United States trying to avoid its treaties, the UN
never shies away from a situation just because it is slightly distasteful. Truly a
force for good, the United Nations was created with the intentions of saving the
world and it has since done that several times over. Although some will argue that
its methods are ineffective because of the restraint of force, the United Nations is

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simply an organization devoted to the methods of peace and unwilling to violate its
moral code.

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Works Cited

Cumming-Bruce, Nick. "5,500 Iraqis Killed Since Islamic State Began Its Military Drive..." New
York Times. 03 Oct. 2014: A.6. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 10 Dec. 2014.

DeYoung, Karen. "Treaty Banning Torture Applies to Detainees." Washington Post. 13 Nov.
2014: A.4. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 04 Dec. 2014.

Ki-Moon, Ban. "Making Headway Against Climate Change." Wall Street Journal. 26 Sep. 2014:
P. A.11. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 10 Dec. 2014.

Deen, Thalif. "Nuclear Weapons as Bargining Chips in Global Politics." Global Information
Network. 25 Nov. 2014: N.p. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 04 Dec. 2014.

Rupp, Richard E. "United Nations (UN)." World Book Student. World Book, 2014. Web. 8 Dec.
2014.

Schlein, Lisa. "UN Watchdog Committee Condemns Police Brutality in United States." Voice of
America News. 28 Nov. 2014: N.p. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 08 Dec. 2014.

United Nations Peacekeeping Forces." Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia. Grolier Online, 2014.
Web. 8 Dec. 2014.