Saturday, October 15, 2016

Could the UN have prevented Aleppo?

Critics of the UN, including Donald Trump and his supporters, question the value of the United Nations at every turn. They wonder why the US is host to the organization, and why we fund the institution.

The organization is all about advancing human rights, deterring war, and helping people who are in desperate need of assistance.

Of course, its operations are political. The rules that are intended to ensure equality may also undermine attaining explicit goals. When that happens, and the organization becomes dysfunctional, world leaders must advance to tip the balance to keep progress advancing.

"The United Nations is an international organization founded in 1945.  It is currently made up of 193 Member States.  The mission and work of the United Nations are guided by the purposes and principles contained in its founding Charter.
Preamble
WE THE PEOPLES 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 human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, and to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained, and to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,
AND FOR THESE ENDS
to practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours, and to unite our strength to maintain international peace and security, and to ensure, by the acceptance of principles and the institution of methods, that armed force shall not be used, save in the common interest, and to employ international machinery for the promotion of the economic and social advancement of all peoples,

HAVE RESOLVED TO COMBINE OUR EFFORTS TO ACCOMPLISH THESE AIMS
Accordingly, our respective Governments, through representatives assembled in the city of San Francisco, who have exhibited their full powers found to be in good and due form, have agreed to the present Charter of the United Nations and do hereby establish an international organization to be known as the United Nations. 
http://www.un.org/en/sections/about-un/overview/index.html

"Syrian government preventing aid from reaching Aleppo, U.N. official says" 
Washington Post
The Syrian government is the problem and the UN must address it.

Could the Aleppo disaster have been prevented? The answer is a resounding yes. Member states failed in their responsibilities and should be called out for that.



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