Essay on Is the United Nations Redundant?

“The brutal, unabashed aggression on Iraq by the USA and Britain, the cofounding members of United Nations, have thrown to wind the basic principles on which the United Nations was formed and rendered this organization a monument of no relevance.”

The preamble of the United Nations Charter says, “We, the people of the United Nations determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind and…”

“To reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the humans in the equal rights of men and women and nations large and small and…”

Not to talk of human rights of men and women, the basic reason for which the formation of the United Nation’s necessity was felt, that is to save mankind from the scourge of war, was torn to pieces, by the aggression of the USA and the U.K., on the Iraqi people.

`Might is Right, who can challenge or stop the wrong actions or doings of the superpower, the USA. Some call the USA, the ‘United States of Arrogance’, but who cares! The USA and Britain very systematically used the various resolutions of the United Nations to cripple Iraq’s military power, economic and social structure with the covert aim to change the regime of Saddam Hussain.

When Saddam Hussain captured and annexed Kuwait, the USA coalition, blessed with several UN resolutions, liberated Kuwait with its military might, but after the Gulf war I, the USA’s planning to change the regime of Saddam Hussain, started taking shapes. There is no place for any provision to change the regime in any country in the charter of the United Nations. Who could stop the USA and Britain from doing so? An ultimatum was served by Mr. Bush on Mr. Saddam and his sons to quit Iraq or face war within 48 hours. This ultimatum had no sanction of the United Nations. All the appeals of the Secretary-General were laid on deaf ears even the protest march, denouncing USA action by various countries were all in vain. Every country was using very cautious words, as mild as possible words to lodge their protest against the action of the ‘ Super Power’.

The USA first tried to get a resolution passed from the Security Council against Iraq. The other permanent and non-permanent members of the Security Council refused to oblige the USA even this couldn’t deter the USA and the U.K. from waging war against Iraq. The USA and Britain had already made all-out preparation for this aggression, started sending troops and aircraft carriers, bomber planes, and battleships to the strategic points. Even the reports of U.N. inspectors mentioned that the Iraqi officials were fully cooperating in their inspection work and asked for more time to complete their inspection work, acted against the wishes of Mr. Bush to launch a quick assault on Iraq. When the USA and Britain failed to muster the support of the Security Council to get a resolution passed, the USA and Britain resorted to the subterfuge that the earlier resolutions passed by the Security Council did provide them a valid ground for launching an assault. The two countries, a known champion of defending the democratic and human right values throughout the world, utterly discarded the very base of the United Nations by attacking Iraq, already perished due to many economic and financial solutions passed against it.

The invaders proclaimed and propagated brazenly to use the weapons never used before to liberate the Iraqi people. In such an attempt of liberation, thousands of innocent civilians were killed and huge loss was caused to Iraq’s economic and social infrastructure. The barbarity of the so-called war for the liberation of Iraq can only be compared to the savagery of the war fought during the period of Alexander the Great. What could have been done by the UNO, NAM? Where have gone the so-called champions of Human Rights? None could prevent this war and the basic principles on which the United Nation was found were blown to winds. Every nation kept silent, just to see the outcome of the one-sided war. Not a single voice was heard to call an emergency meeting of the General Assembly to condemn the assault and to stop the war.

On March 19, 2003, the U.N. Secretary-General Mr. Kofi Annan, did say that Iraq’s essential infrastructure to provide necessities of clean water, health and education has been totally devastated by two decades of war and conflict.

More than one million Iraqi children suffer from chronic malnutrition. Iraqi families are totally dependent on the ration supplied each month to them. For more than half the population, this ration was the main source of sustenance. Mr. Annan stressed that it is the responsibility of the USA and Britain to protect the civilians from being harmed in the war.

A special meeting of the U.N. Security Council was convened on 27th March 2003, when the US-led military action came in for severe criticism, questioning the legality of the action and Iraq calling it barbaric aggression.

The hypocrisy of the USA and Britain came to light when they asserted their right to destroy a country and then rebuild it on humanitarian ground. It amounts to breaking a sick person’s limb and legs and then offering him an artificial limb freely.

The US-led aggression on Iraq has sent a message to every civilized country that neither UNO nor NAM or any such forum can save you from the whimsical aggression of the mighty powers. Unless the country is itself powerful to face the challenges it is not safe. The basic principles of the United Nations, the respect to the sovereignty of Nations, equality of Nations, are just principles for the sake of goodness.

If the United Nations does not act strongly, or to say if the member nations do not act unitedly against such blatant aggressions, the fate of the United Nations can’t be other than the fate of the League of Nations.

The United Nations has become simply a platform to discuss general issues. The main task for which United Nations was structured, has become irrelevant as such superpowers want to discard it for their own benefits. The adage, Might is Right, is true e yen in this civilized world which has made the United Nations redundant so far the basic principles on which it was formed, are concerned.

Essay on Is the United Nations Redundant?

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