Hilary Evans, MAW Exec Member, writes:
When? Three significant dates:
26 June: the UN Charter was signed in San Francisco
24 October, UN Day: the Charter came into effect
10 January 2026: 80 years after the first meeting of the General Assembly was held in Methodist Central Hall, London (look out for the plaque recording this on the side wall)
Why?
Readers of Abolish War will be convinced of the potential of the UN and supportive of its aims and ideals. But we are all distressed by the limitations shown up so starkly by the war in Ukraine, the genocide in Gaza, the unravelling of the landmine treaty along the Russian borders, etc.
The global rule of law on which we in MAW set so much store seems to be on the point of collapse and it isn’t uncommon to be told that the UN has failed.
The disasters and limitations make the headlines. The huge successes of the last 80 years, most notable in the fields of health, education and human rights, take a little more effort to identify; and all on an annual budget of less than that of the New York Police Department. To many, the UN is invisible. How often do we give a thought to the UN-agreed Sustainable Developments Goals, being pursued with varying degrees of commitment around the globe? Still less to the work of the International Maritime Organisation, the only UK-based UN agency, on which the safety and security of global shipping depends, together with the regulation of shipping pollution.
Sadly, though, the UN can only be as effective as its member states allow. All too often the most powerful nations seem more interested in preserving their perceived global status than in genuinely promoting the UN’s founding ideals. Look at how the UK sidelined the UN in the run-up to the Iraq war. And how ironic that the five most influential members of an organisation set up to ‘save succeeding generations from the scourge of war’ – the permanent members of the Security Council – are the source of more than 70% of global arms sales!
We must, then, widen our horizons and heed John Gittings’ plea to give much more attention to ‘world voice diplomacy’ (see https://abolishwar.net/alternatives-to-war/ ) in an attempt to loosen the domination of the big power blocs (and enable the heartfelt entreaties of the Secretary General to be heard too). This can happen: a recent example being the coalition of NGOs, regional groupings and non-aligned countries which drove forward and brought to fruition the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in 2021. Deborah Burton, MAW’s representative at the climate COPs, tells us too of the increasing power of smaller states as they group together to defy the shadowy forces ranged against their calls for climate justice.
One vital role of the UN is in setting agreed standards and targets. Accusations of human rights abuses or of breaching treaty obligations, can be made only because we have global standards by which to measure such behaviour. Urgent reform is certainly needed, but we should see the UN as a vital pillar of our international order to be respected, protected, nurtured and promoted at all costs.
How?
Anything that raises awareness of the importance of the UN and its work: so many people never give it a thought. ·
· Support https://una.org.uk/
https://unalaser.org/ (of interest not only in the South East)
https://www.unfoldzero.org/ and https://www.wfm-igp.org/
· Ask your Council Leader to fly the UN flag from the civic flagpole on UN Day 24 October.
· Faith connections? Ask the clergy to celebrate UN Day.
· School connections? Suggest/organise a celebratory assembly.
· Ask your MP how he/she plans to celebrate UN80 personally, within their party, in Parliament.
· Raise the topic within your local political party.
· Write to press outlets with letters, op-eds, articles on this subject.
· Distribute copies of the UN Charter.
· Raise the UN and its work on your social media.