1. Creation of the United Nations 1945
Landon, David & Daymond

2. Where & When was it created?
In 1945, 50 countries met in San Francisco at the United Nations Conference on International Organization to draw up the United Nations Charter

3. Who?
At the start of the United Nations, their was 50 countries that were involved in the first meeting that took place in San Francisco, U.S.A.
Argentina
Australia
Belgium
Bolivia
Brazil
Canada
Chile
Costa Rica
Columbia
China
Cuba
Czechoslovakia
Denmark
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
Egypt
El Salvador
Ethiopia
France
Greece
Guatamola
Haiti
Honduras
India
Iran
Iraq
Lebanon
Liberia
Luxembourg
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nicaragua
Norway
Panama
Paraguay
Paru
Philippines
Saudi Arabia
South Africa
Syria
Soviet Union
Byelorussian SSR
Ukrainian SSR
Turkey
United Kingdom
United States
Uraguay
Venezuela
Yugoslavia

4. Why Did Only Some Nations Join?
The UN was initially created and formatted by the “Allied Big Four”. This included the USSR, the UK, the US and China.
The UN charter was then signed by 46 other nations in 1945, bringing the total number of member states to 50
An example of a country that didn’t participate in the San Francisco conference was Poland as they were going through a transition period in their government and had to wait for a new government to be set before they joined the UN.

5. Why was it created?
The United Nations was created for a number of reasons
To maintain international peace and security among countries.
Protect human rights
Deliver humanitarian aid
Promote sustainable development
Uphold international law

6. Modern United Nations
The modern UN has become an excellent example of international cooperation and problem solving
It now has 193 members, over 90% of the world’s population is represented and from all the continents of the world
The headquarters are now based in New York and is considered international territory
An example of a country who is not part of the UN is Vatican City because of its small population and unique status. They are just a permanent observer.

7. UN Peacekeeping Mission
The Suez Canal in Egypt was being fought over on who it belonged to
A war between several countries almost started over the dispute.
UN had just been formed and sent soldiers to Egypt and they figured out a peaceful solution.
The UN is an effective way of solving disputes and world issues.

8. Harry S. Truman on the UN
Harry Truman was the President of the USA when the UN was founded and he had this to say about the conference (April 25, 1945)
“ At no time in history has there been a more important Conference, or a more necessary meeting, than this one in San Francisco, which you are opening today...With ever-increasing brutality and destruction, modern warfare, if unchecked, would ultimately crush all civilization. We still have a choice between the alternatives: the continuation of international chaos--or the establishment of a world organization for the enforcement of peace.”
“If we do not want to die together in war, we must learn to live together in peace.”

9. The Nanking Massacre (1937)
Daymond, Daymond & others

10. Who was involved? When and where did it happen?
In late 1937 Japanese forces took over the city of Nanking killing Chinese soldiers and civilians.The massacre lasted for over 6 weeks.

11. What led to the abuse?
During the Second Sino-Japanese War China was fighting Japan in World War ll. The Japanese army invaded Nanking and started the massacre. There was no spark to the incident or reason for the violence. Nanking was left mostly undefended due to ongoing war in China

12. What was involved in the Massacre?
50,000 people were shot down in the Yangtze River
100,000 refugees were annihilated as soon as Japanese troops marched in
Extreme methods of killing including decapitation, stabbing in the eye and other parts of body, drowning and burning.
Raping and looting ran rampant in the streets
Estimations of the number of deaths range from 200, ,000

13. How could the Nanking Massacre have been prevented?
The Nanking Massacre was a horrible result of war. At the time, Japan and China were involved in the “Second Sino-Japanese War” which was a result of WWII
The Japanese army took advantage of the fact that Nanking was under defended as a result of the war

14. Diary Excerpt from a Japanese Soldier
“We took about 5,000 prisoners of war, some of those we captured a couple of days ago, to the bank of the Yangtze and mowed them down by machine guns. Then we stabbed them with bayonets to our satisfaction. I probably bayoneted 30-odd hateful Chinese soldiers. Climbing up the heap of dead bodies and bayoneting them gave me a courage, which made me feel I could even vanquish ogres. I stabbed them with all my might while hearing them groan. There were some old ones and kids. I killed them all. I even borrowed a sword and severed a head. It was the most unusual experience I’ve ever had.”
December 16, 1937