The UN Charter and basic principles

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From the course by University of Geneva

International Organizations Management

28 ratings

University of Geneva

International Organizations Management

28 ratings

This course provides an introduction to International Organizations and the United Nations, and explores how business and management tools can be applied in these settings to achieve better, more effective results. With a focus on cross-sector partnerships in a changing world, the course offers you insights into the inner workings of international organizations and the challenges they face today. It will introduce you to effective, state-of-the art management tools and principles to help you lead change in this world – taught by senior staff of international organizations themselves. This is an introductory course offered by the International Organizations MBA (IO-MBA) of the University of Geneva, an executive program for change-makers in international organizations, NGOs and social ventures.

From the lesson

Introduction to International Organizations

In the first module of our course on International Organizations Management, we provide an overview of the historical context and different ways of classifying international organizations in today's contemporary world. We will focus in particular on the United Nations – its origins, purposes, mandate, structure and activities – as the most important inter-governmental organization that coordinates global action on peace and security, humanitarian protection, human rights, and economic and social development.

The UN Charter and basic principles11:12

The UN governance system6:57

Meet the Instructors

Gilbert Probst
Professor, Organization and Management
Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences
Sebastian Buckup
Visiting professor
International Organizations MBA
Bruce Jenks
Visiting professor
International Organizations MBA
Stephan Mergenthaler
Visiting professor
International Organizations MBA
Cassandra Quintanilla
Teaching and research assistant
International Organizations MBA
Lea Stadtler
Research Fellow
Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences
Claudia Gonzalez Romo
Visiting professor
International Organizations MBA
Julian Fleet
Visiting professor
International Organizations MBA
Tina Ambos
Academic Director of the International Organizations MBA
Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences

[MUSIC]

Hello again.

Now let's take a look at the mandate and governance of the United Nations system.

The UN Charter, of course, is the founding legal constitutive document

of the United Nations, expressing the hopes and aspirations of its founders.

What does the preamble tell us about the hopes and

aspirations of the founders of the United Nations?

It says, we the peoples of the United Nations,

the peoples of the United Nations,

determined first to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war.

We the peoples of the United Nations determined to

reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights.

Equal rights of men and women, already a reference to women's

rights back at the start, at the founding, of the United Nations.

Determined to promote the equal rights of nations large and

small, and we'll talk about that in a moment.

Determined to promote, respect, for international law, for

justice, for respect for the obligations arising from treaties.

And you'll hear more about international law and

international organizations later in the course.

Determined to promote social progress and better standards of life.

Setting the stage already in the preamble to the UN Charter for

all the work that UN agencies are doing all around the world,

to promote economic development and social progress.

Now, a number of basic principles underpin the structure and operation of the UN,

and represent fundamental legal obligations for all its members.

You'll find these principles in Article 2 of

the UN Charter as well as in other provisions.

Arguably, the most fundamental principle is, quote-unquote,

the sovereign equality of member states.

But what do we mean by sovereign equality?

We know that countries like the tiny kingdom of Swaziland

in Southern Africa, or Lesotho in southern Africa or

small island states like the Bahamas, Barbados in the Caribbean,

Fiji in the Maldives, in the Indian Ocean.

These small countries are not equal in physical size,

in population, in economic power, in military power compared to,

say, the members of the UN Security Council.

China, the United States, Russia, France, Great Britain.

Nor are they equal to the size or

economic wealth of the emerging countries in the world,

like the BRICS countries, Brazil, South Africa, India.

So what we mean by equality in the UN Charter, sovereign equality of states,

is really the legal status of states in the international community.

For example, each state has one vote in the UN General Assembly.

Yet at the same time, we're all well aware that

inequality in the UN system was built in at the start,

as we saw with the special status accorded to the so

called great powers in previous international organizations.

Precursors to the United Nations that we discussed in our section on

the historical context of modern day international organizations.

So notwithstanding the sovereignty of states,

governments do give up some things in joining the United Nations.

They give up some of their powers.

The UN Charter creates both a formal organization with its own powers,

the UN itself, and a set of basic rules of conduct for its member governments.

Both the organization and the rules are legally binding, and

do constrain the sovereignty of member states.

So we see, in the charter, two principles,

closely related to the UN's primary goal of maintaining peace and security.

And the principle is that states refrain from threatening or

using force against the territorial integrity or

the political independence of the member states.

And that they try to settle their international disputes by peaceful means,

and we see that in the UN Charter in chapter seven on

the so-called Pacific Settlement of Disputes.

We can discuss and debate, for a long time,

the example since 1945 where states have failed to uphold these principles and

the gap between dream and reality for the United Nations.

Yet, these principles of pacific settlement of disputes and

respect for state sovereignty remain central tenets in UN action today.

You'll see in the UN Charter that UN member states also accept

the responsibility for enforcement actions, such as economic sanctions,

as well as the enforcement actions set out in chapter seven of the charter.

Chapter seven is the basis for what kind of enforcement action in the UN today?

Think about it for a moment.

I've already mentioned the Blue Helmets,

the UN peacekeeping operations that have taken place

in virtually in all regions of the world since the inception of the United Nations.

In Africa, in Asia and the Pacific, in the Americas,

in Europe, and in the Middle East.

The Article 43 of the UN Charter

provides that all member states are called upon, quote,

to contribute to the maintenance of international peace by making available

armed forces, assistance, and facilities, including rights of passage, end quote.

Now let's go back again to some other basic principles.

One other important principle is the requirement that states, quote unquote,

fulfill in good faith their obligations under the charter.

These obligations include the requirement to pay

assessed annual contributions to the organization.

And the charter even provides a provision for

suspending the membership of a member state if it fails to live up

to its duty to provide financial contributions to the organization for

two years running, for two years in a row.

You will see, as you explore further the UN system,

that it really does matter how a UN organization is funded.

The UN charter provides for, as I said,

assessed contributions to finance the UN itself and

some subsidiary bodies as well as some specialized UN agencies.

But other organizations, for example, my own UN aides, are supported and

function through voluntary contributions of member states.

Increasingly, we are seeing contributions even from

less developed countries, from low income countries.

We recently received contributions from several countries in Africa

that are also partner governments in the work that we do.

So it does matter how an organization is funded in terms of stability,

predictability, and sustainability of the work of the organization.

Another principle, Article 2.7 of the Charter, provides, quote,

nothing in the present charter shall authorize the United Nations to intervene

in matters which are essentially within the domestic jurisdiction,

domestic jurisdiction of any state.

This provision underscores the long-standing norm of

non-intervention in the internal affairs of states.

And we hear today, in the debates in the United Nations, claims that one or

another action should not be taken because it interferes in the sovereignty,

in the domestic jurisdiction of member states.

But think about it.

What is falling purely under the domestic jurisdiction of states?

And what is international in character and scope?

Who decides this?

This tension between the commitment of the member states of the United Nations to

act collectively against a member state, when it is necessary.

And the principle of non-intervention in domestic affairs lies at the heart

of debates at the United Nations over the years and continuing today.

We see this coming up, for example, in the halls of the Security Council

over the conflict in Syria that is currently raging in that country.

[MUSIC]

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