Dawn Breaker's Reflections

Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, shakes hands with US Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham at his residence in Novo-Ogaryovo outside Moscow, Sunday, Sept. 21, 2003. The Russian leader, who is attending the U.N. General Assembly session in New York that starts Tuesday, appeared optimistic about his upcoming talks with Bush at Camp David next week. US Secretary of Commerce Don Evans is in the center. (AP Photo/Dmitry Lovetsky,pool) -Copyright © 2003, The Associated Press

This week at the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York, the leaders of two nations that in the past have been inveterate enemies (US and Russia) will present to the General Assembly diametrically opposed points of view on the war in Iraq and UN involvement in transition to self-rule in that country, shortly before meeting each other at Camp David to discuss hotly debated topics such as Chechnya, global terrorism, weapons of mass destruction, and Russia's involvement with Iran's alleged nuclear program.

With presentations and points of view already fixed, the political rhetoric heating up and East/West attacks flying before the actual meeting, one can only wonder if there will be any fruitful results after this showdown in the General Assembly, and if the heat of such a debate will transfer onward into Camp David. Vladimir Putin will be strongly condemning the war in Iraq, calling it a mistake, and call for greater involvement of the UN in Iraqi affairs and transition to self-rule, while Bush will defend the war in Iraq, stating it was the right thing to do, and defend the US plan for transition to self-rule, which is at least six months to a year longer than what Putin is calling for. Kofi Annan, secretary General of the UN, to the surprise of many, has already expressed his support of Bush's proposal, while the majority of EU members are in alignment with Putin's point of view.

While some may speculate that not much may come out of this meeting due to the extreme division of UN leadership over the issues being discussed, it will nevertheless be a historic occasion, because of the addresses to the General Assembly of these two leaders representing the most militarily powerful nations of the world. The fact that both leaders are addressing the UN General Assembly and seeking its moral approval, and not simply recurring to the much smaller yet many times more powerful UN Security Council, and the increasing number of General Assembly emergency meetings taking place gives one hope that the General Assembly is being resuscitated, and beginning to have a new importance in world affairs that it long has deserved in the eyes of the leaders of the world.

Resolutions passed by the General Assembly are currently not legally binding as are those of the UN Security Council, but they are largely viewed as the consensus of the global community, and therefore dictate the moral and ethical correctness/incorrectness of global governance decisions and actions in the eyes of the peoples of the world.

To close today's entry, another long but very helpful quote full of insight from a section of "Turning Point For All Nations", a Statement of the Baha'i International Community on the Occasion of the 50th Anniversary of the United Nations, which presents a clear proposal with practical measures and steps for the "resuscitation" and strengthening of the U.N. General Assembly:



"The foundation for any system of governance is the rule of law and the primary institution for promulgating law is the legislature. While the authority of local and national legislatures is generally respected, regional and international legislative bodies have been the subject of fear and suspicion.

In addition, the United Nations General Assembly has been a target of attack for its ineffectiveness. Although some of the accusations hurled against it are unfounded, there are at least two shortcomings that hamper the ability of the General Assembly to have impact.

First, the current arrangement gives undue weight to state sovereignty, resulting in a curious mix of anarchy and conservatism. In a reformed United Nations, the legislative branch and its voting structure will need to represent more accurately the people of the world as well as nation-states. [13]

Second, General Assembly resolutions are not binding unless they are separately ratified as a treaty by each member state. If the current system, which places state sovereignty above all other concerns, is to give way to a system which can address the interests of a single and interdependent humanity, the resolutions of the General Assembly -- within a limited domain of issues -- must gradually come to possess the force of law with provisions for both enforcement and sanctions.

These two shortcomings are closely linked inasmuch as the majority of the world's people, suspicious and fearful of world government, are unlikely to submit to an international institution unless it is itself more genuinely representative. [14]

Nevertheless, in the short term, five practical measures are possible to strengthen the General Assembly, enhance its reputation and align it with a longer term direction.

1. Raising minimum requirements for membership

The minimum standards for conduct by a government towards its people have been well established in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and subsequent international covenants, collectively referred to as the International Bill of Human Rights

Without an unshakable commitment to regular and periodic elections with universal participation by secret ballot, to freedom of expression and to other such human rights, a member state stands in the way of the active and intelligent participation of the vast majority of its population in the affairs of its own communities.

We propose that there should be consequences for member states that violate these standards. Similarly, nations seeking recognition should be denied membership until they openly espouse these standards or make recognizable efforts to move in that direction.

2. Appointing a commission to study borders and frontiers

Outstanding irredentist claims continue to be a major source of conflict and war, highlighting the critical need for general agreements on national boundaries. Such treaties can only be arrived at after consideration of the arbitrary manner in which many nation-states were originally defined and of all outstanding claims of nations and ethnic groups.

Rather than relegating such claims to the World Court, we believe it would be best to establish a special International Commission to research all claims affecting international boundaries and then, after careful consideration, to make recommendations for action. [15] The results would serve as an early warning system for growing tension among civil or ethnic groups and assessment of threats in situations benefiting from early preventive diplomacy.

In order to establish a genuine community of nations in the long run, it will be necessary to settle finally all disputes over borders. This research would serve that end.

3. Searching for new financial arrangements

Primarily triggered by the unwillingness of some member states to remit their general assessments on time, compounded by the absence of authority to collect any interest accrued because of that delay, and further aggravated by the bureaucratic inefficiencies in parts of its operations, the annual budget shortfall pressures the UN into a crisis management mentality.

Voluntary payments from member states will never be a reliable approach to finance an international institution. Vigorous approaches to revenue generation must be devised to enable the smooth functioning of the UN machinery. We propose the immediate appointment of an expert Task Force to begin a rigorous search for solutions.

In studying alternatives, the Task Force should be mindful of several fundamental principles. First, there should be no assessments without representation. Second, in the interest of fairness and justice, assessments should be graduated. Third, mechanisms for encouraging voluntary contributions by individuals and communities should not be overlooked. [16]

4. Making a commitment to a universal auxiliary language and a common script

The United Nations, which currently uses six official languages, would derive substantial benefit from either choosing a single existing language or creating a new one to be used as an auxiliary language in all its fora. Such a step has long been advocated by many groups, from the Esperantists to the Bahá'í International Community itself. [17] In addition to saving money and simplifying bureaucratic procedures, such a move would go far toward promoting a spirit of unity.

We propose the appointment of a high-level Commission, with members from various regions and drawn from relevant fields, including linguistics, economics, the social sciences, education and the media, to begin careful study on the matter of an international auxiliary language and the adoption of a common script.

We foresee that eventually, the world cannot but adopt a single, universally agreed-upon auxiliary language and script to be taught in schools worldwide, as a supplement to the language or languages of each country. The objective would be to facilitate the transition to a global society through better communication among nations, reduction of administrative costs for businesses, governments and others involved in global enterprise, and a general fostering of more cordial relations between all members of the human family. [18]

This proposal should be read narrowly. It does not in any way envision the decline of any living language or culture.
5. Investigating the possibility of a single international currency

The need to promote the adoption of a global currency as a vital element in the integration of the global economy is self-evident. Among other benefits, economists believe that a single currency will curb unproductive speculation and unpredictable market swings, promote a leveling of incomes and prices worldwide, and thereby result in significant savings. [19]

The possibility of savings will not lead to action unless there is an overwhelming body of evidence addressing the relevant concerns and doubts of skeptics, accompanied by a credible implementation plan. We propose the appointment of a Commission consisting of the most accomplished government leaders, academics and professionals to begin immediate exploration into the economic benefits and the political costs of a single currency and to hypothesize about an effective implementation approach."

(Baha'i International Community, 1995 Oct, Turning Point For All Nations)



Loooong post, but oh, so worthy of reading! There is so much insight to gain from reading these statements of the BIC over and over again... It's almost the break of dawn once again this dawn-breaker must go for dawn prayers... until next post.