1. THE CHARTER OF THE UNITED NATIONS

2. Preview History Origins of the Charter Charter of the UN
Purposes of the UN
Principles of the UN
Structure of the UN

3. First International Organizations
1865 The International Telecommunication Union
1874 International Telegraph Union; Universal Postal Union

4. First International Peace Conference
1899 1st International Peace Conference (The Hague):
1) the Convention for the Pacific Settlement of International Disputes and
2) the Permanent Court of Arbitration (1902)

5. The League of Nations
Established in 1919 under the Treaty of Versailles
“to promote international cooperation and to achieve peace and security”
1919 The International Labour Organisation created as an affiliated agency of the League
The League of Nations ceased its activities after failing to prevent the Second World War
Dissolved in 1946; transferral of functions and property to the UN

6. United Nations: Name The term UN was coined by Franklin D. Roosevelt;
first used in the “Declaration by United Nations” of 1 Jan when representatives of 26 nations pledged their governments to continue fighting together against the Axis Powers

7. Origins of the UN Charter
1941 The Atlantic Charter
1942 Declaration by United Nations
1943 The Moscow Conference
1944 Dumbarton Oaks Proposals
1944 Yalta conference

8. The Atlantic Charter (14 Aug.1941)
Principles laid down by President Rosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill
The Charter did not contemplate the establishment of an organization of States to replace the League
The need of creating a collective security system and establishing strong economic and social cooperation between the States

9. Declaration by United Nations (1942)
Roosevelt, Churchill, Litvinov (USSR),T. V. Soong (China) signed a short document which later came to be known as the United Nations Declaration representatives of 22 other nations added their signatures.

10. Declaration by United Nations (1942)
The original 26 signatories: US, UK, USSR, China, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Greece, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, India, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Poland, Union of South Africa, Yugoslavia

11. Declaration by United Nations (1942)
This important document pledged the signatory governments to the maximum war effort and bound them against making a separate peace.

12. Declaration by United Nations (1942)

13. The Moscow Conference (1943)
The Declaration of the Four Nations (U.S., Soviet Union, UK, China) recognized:
“the necessity of establishing ...a general international organization, based on the principle of the sovereign equality of all peace-loving States and open to membership by all such States, large and small, for the maintenance of international peace and security”

14. Dumbarton Oaks Proposals (October 7, 1944)
Representatives of the same 4 Governments met to lay down the foundations of the future world organization
Purposes of the Organization: to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, promote cooperation in economic and social matters
Basic organs: the Assembly, the Council, the Secretariat, headed by the Secretary General, and the Court of Justice

15. Dumbarton Oaks Proposals (October 7, 1944)
Another important feature:member states were to place armed forces at the disposal of the Security Council in its task of preventing war and suppressing acts of aggression.
The absence of such force -a fatal weakness in the League of Nations machinery for preserving peace.

16. Dumbarton Oaks

17. Yalta conference (11 Feb. 1945)
Churchill,
Roosevelt and
Stalin

18. Yalta conference(11 Feb. 1945)
“We are resolved upon the earliest possible establishment with our Allies of a general international organization to maintain peace and security…

19. Yalta conference(11 Feb. 1945)
“We have agreed that a Conference of United Nations should be called to meet at San Francisco in the United States on the 25th April, 1945, to prepare the charter of such an organization, along the lines proposed in the formal conversations of Dumbarton Oaks.”

20. The San Francisco Conference (April 25 – June 26, 1945)
Representatives of 50 states met to draw up the UN Charter based on Dumbarton Oaks proposals by the Great Powers (China, the Soviet Union, the UK, the US)
The Charter – unanimously approved and signed by all the participating States, original members of the UN

21. The San Francisco Conference (April 25 – June 26, 1945)

22. United Nations Charter
"The Charter of the United Nations which you have just signed is a solid structure upon which we can build a better world. History will honor you for it. Between the victory in Europe and the final victory, in this most destructive of all wars, you have won a victory against war itself With this Charter the world can begin to look forward to the time when all worthy human beings may be permitted to live decently as free people." (President Truman)

23. United Nations Charter
"If we fail to use it,we shall betray all those who have died so that we might meet here in freedom and safety to create it. If we seek to use it selfishly - for the advantage of any one nation or any small group of nations — we shall be equally guilty of that betrayal. "

24. United Nations Charter (www.un.org/aboutun/charter)
Constituting instrument of the Organization
Rights and obligations of member states
UN organs and procedures

25. 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,

26. Preamble
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,

27. Preamble
“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.”

28. Purposes of the UN To maintain international peace and security
To develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples
To help nations work together to improve the lives of poor people, to conquer hunger, disease and illiteracy, and to encourage respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms;
To be a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations in attaining these common ends

29. UN Principles It is based on the sovereign equality of all members
All members are to fulfil in good faith their Charter obligations
They are to settle their international disputes by peaceful means and without endangering international peace, security and justice

30. UN Principles
Members are to refrain from the threat or use of force against any other state
They are to give the UN every assistance in any action it takes in accordance with the Charter
Nothing in the Charter is to authorize the UN to intervene in matters which are essentially within the domestic jurisdiction of any state

31. Membership
Open to all peace-loving nations which accept the obligations of the Charter
The General Assembly admits new member states on the recommendation of the Security Council
The Charter provides for the suspension or expulsion of a member for violation of the principles of the Charter (no such action has ever been taken)

32. Official languages
Arabic
Chinese
English
French
Russian
Spanish

33. Structure of the Organization
The General Assembly
The Security Council
The Economic and Social Council
The Trusteeship Council
The International Court of Justice
The Secretariat

34. General Assembly (www.un.org/ga)
Representatives of all member states (193), each of which has one vote
Decisions on important issues, e.g. peace and security, admission of new members, budgetary matters require a two thirds majority

35. Security Council Maintenance of international peace of security
15 members: 5 permanent (China, France, the Russian Federation, the UK, the US); 10 members elected by the General Assembly for two-year terms

36. Security Council
Decisions on procedural and substantive matters require 9 votes
Permanent members: power of veto
All members of the UN have are obliged to accept the decisions of the Security Council

37. Economic and Social Council (www.un.org/esa/coordination/ecosoc)
Coordinates the economic, social and related work of the UN and the specialized agencies and institutions
54 members, who serve for three-year terms

38. International Court of Justice (www.icj-cij.org)
The principal judicial organ of the UN
Settles legal disputes between states
Gives advisory opinions to the UN
Open to all member states; not open to private persons and entities or international organizations

39. Jurisdiction of the ICJ
Decides disputes by applying:
International conventions establishing rules recognized by the contesting states;
International custom as evidence of a general practice accepted as law;
The general principles of law recognized by nations
Judicial decisions and the teachings of the most qualified scholars of the various nations

40. Membership of ICJ
15 judges elected by the General Assembly and the Security Council, voting independently
Chosen on the basis of their qualifications; care is taken that principal legal systems of the world are represented

41. Membership of ICJ No two judges can be from the same country
Serve 9-year term and may be re-elected
They cannot engage in any other occupation during their term of office

42. Secretariat (www.un.org/documents/st)
Secretary General – appointed by the General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council for a five-year, renewable term
Administering peacekeeping operations, mediating international disputes, surveying economic and social trends, preparing studies on human rights and sustainable development

43. Secretariat
Informs the world’s media about the work of the UN, organizes international conferences, translates documents into the official languages
Staff of 7,500 drawn from 170 countries
Headquarters: New York; main centres of activities: Geneva (disarmament, human rights), Vienna (crime prevention, international trade law, peaceful uses of outer space), Nairobi (environment, human settlements)

44. Secretary-General (www.un.org/News/ossg/sg)
Symbol of UN ideals and a spokesman for the interests of the world’s peoples
Chief administrative officer of the UN
Brings to the attention of the Security Council any matter which may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security

45. Secretary General
Consultations with world leaders, government officials, representatives of civil society groups, the private sector and others
Annual report on the work of the Organization

46. The UN family of organizations
UN secretariat
UN funds and programmes (e.g. UNICEF)
Specialized agencies (e.g. UNESCO, WHO)
Related organizations (e.g. WTO)

47. International tribunals
International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY)
International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)

48. Created by the Security Council in 1994
International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) (
Created by the Security Council in 1994
Mandate to prosecute persons responsible for serious violations of international humanitarian law committed since 1991
16 permanent judges, 27 ad litem judges, staff of 1,238 from 84 countries

49. Fill in the missing words:
Observance, rule, development, recognition, conscience, foundation, realization, freedom, standards, promotion

50. Observance, rule, development, recognition, conscience, foundation, realization, freedom, standards, promotion
Whereas _____of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the _____ of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

51. Observance, rule, development, recognition, conscience, foundation, realization, freedom, standards, promotion
Whereas disregard and contempt of human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the ___ of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy ___ of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,

52. Observance, rule, development, recognition, conscience, foundation, realization, freedom, standards, promotion
Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the __ of law,
Whereas it is essential to promote the ____ of friendly relations between nations,

53. Observance, rule, development, recognition, conscience, foundation, realization, freedom, standards, promotion
Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better ___of life in larger freedom,

54. Observance, rule, development, recognition, conscience, foundation, realization, freedom, standards, promotion
Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the ___ of universal respect for and ___ of human rights and fundamental freedoms,
Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full ___ of this pledge,

55. Universal Declaration of Human Rights: Preamble
Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

56. Preamble
Whereas disregard and contempt of human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,

57. Preamble
Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,
Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,

58. Preamble
Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,

59. Preamble
Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,
Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,

60. Preamble Now, therefore, The General Assembly
Proclaims this Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations…..

61. The International Court of Justice
ICJ is the principal judicial body of the UN. Its seat is in The Hague. It began work in 1946, when it replaced the Permanent Court of International Justice which had functioned in The Hague since 1922.

62. The International Court of Justice
Below is some information about the court and its activities. Match the information to the following headings. You will need to use some headings more than once:

63. Exercise Functions of the Court Composition
The Parties in Cases between States
Jurisdiction in Cases between States
Procedure in Cases between Sttes
Sources of Applicable law
Advisory Opinions

64. Exercise
ICJ
Headings
One of the roles of the Court is to settle in accordance with international law the legal disputes submitted by States
The advisory procedure of the Court is open solely to international organizations

65. Exercise
ICJ
Headings
The Court decides in accordance with international treaties and conventions in force, international custom, the general principles of law and, as subsidiary means, judicial decisions and the teachings of jurists

66. Exercise
ICJ
Headings
The Members of the Court do not represent their governments but are independent magistrates
The court is competent to entertain a dispute only if the States concerned have accepted its jurisdiction

67. Exercise
ICJ
Headings
The other role is to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by duly authorized international organs and agencies
Only States may apply to and appear before the Court

68. Exercise
ECJ
Headings
The Court is composed of 15 judges elected to nine-year terms of office by the UN General Assembly and Security Concil
After the oral proceedings, the Court deliberates in camera and then delivers its judgement at a public sitting

69. Exercise
ECJ
Headings
If one of the States involved fails to comply with it, the other party may have recourse to the Security Council of the UN

70. At which of the following conferences was the United Nations Charter adopted?
a) The Yalta Conference b) The San Francisco Conference c) The Dumbarton Oaks Conference
Quiz

71. Quiz Which Secretary General died during his mandate?
a)Trygve Lie b) U Thant c) Dag Hammarskjöld

72. Quiz What was the first United Nations Peacekeeping Force?
1) United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) 2) United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) 3) United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)

73. Quiz
In 1980 the World Health Organization (WHO) announced the eradication of which of the following diseases?
a) Smallpox b) Tuberculosis c) Malaria

74. Quiz
Which of these three UN agencies was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize twice?
a) United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) b) United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) c) United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)