No one is sure just what it is? However, certain known facts exist. The USA has refused to pay their legal obligations, to pay their agreed fees for years now. They are behind by a billions $dollars plus. Key government officials, Senators and others have said they "would like to see the UN leave the USA." (1990-2001) Again threatened in Dec 2004, but the Asian Tsunami changed all that in favor of the UN.
They continue the attack in the media against the United Nations, blaming the UN, Secretary-General, Richard Butler and others for whatever is convenient, because the general public does not know that the UN can not do anything unless both Britain and the USA approve through the Security Council. If they do not want something to happen, they simply veto it. So technically, if they are blaming the UN, they are blaming themselves.
It is anybody's guess, but seems like they will continue to withhold money owed to bring the UN to its knees. Forcing them to keep cutting and "dumping" personnel. Either driving it out of the USA, reducing it to a totally ineffective organization or forcing it to open up its doors to the private sector and BIG Business. We may be witnessing the end of the United Nations and the beginning of a new and revived United Corporations!
The developed countries, namely U.S.A. and Britain, trying to preserve the status quo, seem to be concerned about the growing presence of the NGOs (their peoples organizations) at the UN.
"... the major powers are steadily drawing the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and OECD (and now the World Trade Organization) away from the UN, while weakening the UN's economic policy formulation." - A World In Need Of Leadership: Tomorrow's United Nations - by Brian Urquhart and Erskine Childers 1996.(And trying to exclude the people from these organizations.)
Recent moves in 1998 by both the USA and Britain to restrict the access of the NGOs at the UN.
To most of the NGOs, all this seems like a waste of time and energy when it might be better spent focused on partnerships to solve some the growing problems in the world as a direct result of globalization and lack of a basic physics law . . . "for every action there is an opposite and equal reaction." Namely the lack of a balancing power to the only superpower.
"The international community is more and more dangerously divided on North-South lines. While there is enthusiasm in Northern quarters for 'globalization' and the market, the evidence steadily increases that, whatever benefits they may bring to some, alleviating mass poverty is not among them. Indeed in most places globalization and the market have brought the reverse!"Leading figures in the private sector are themselves expressing anxiety. Restoring a due measure of representative intergovernmental management to a world economy which is in effect an interdependent one of 6 billion people will become increasingly necessary. If stability is perceived to be vital for everyone's future, wise and disinterested global approaches will be indispensable.
There is an increasing awareness that the traditional structures of government are inadequate for a world that is suddenly far more complex and fragile than before." - sighted above. A World In Need Of Leadership.
A Better Strategy might be to try to implement the well thought out suggestions of Mr. Urquhart and Mr. Childers.
Back to top of Page
at the bottom of each page.
