Re-Form UNO

League of Nations died when the Second World War started and United Nations Organisation (UNO) is almost dead with the American invasion of Iraq. The P-5 who lords over all affairs of the world are no more truly representative of the planet we live in and the lone warlord in P-5 is blind with unchallenged might. With the growth of media and democratic values, it is no longer the sole privilege of a few elected (and unelected) world leaders to decide on who represents humanity. Each and every human being has a viewpoint on what is good for mankind. What is good for governments need not necessarily be good for humanity. Any world body, if it is to represent the hopes and aspirations of human beings, must be based on certain unnegotiable human values. Instead of wasting time in reforming an outdated system it may be better to re-form the UNO once again based on the following criteria:-

Equal Rights for All Humans

Equal rights for all human beings shall be the sole criterion on which any credible world body can be formed. I am deliberately avoiding the word ‘equality’ because it is an unrealistic target. But assigning equal rights for all members is definitely an achievable and realistic target for any organisation. If it is equal rights for all human beings, headcount must be the only criterion for deciding on the world leaders. It may be true that some of the present leaders were super military powers once (at others expense). But the most repugnant policies of colonialism and imperialism practised by such erstwhile superpowers make them morally incompetent to lead humanity in any form. The first 15 or 25 of the most populous nations must form the core council in any world body. They should take the responsibility and authority to decide on what is good for mankind. A fixed % of the GDP of all the countries must form the corpus for the functioning of a re-formed UNO. There must be more than one general council meeting every year and it must be mandatory for all the heads of states to attend at least one of them. All decisions must be made on two-third majority with no veto power for anyone.

Equality of Nations, Religions and Cultures

Though equality of individuals is an unachievable objective, equality of man-made entities like nations, religions and cultures is an achievable target. The re-formed UNO must declare equality with regard to nations, religions and cultures without any ambiguity. This is very important because Whites are dominating the world even after fifty years of UNO. Nations, Religions and Cultures dominated by the Whites are still dictating the destiny of mankind. This is unacceptable when we know for sure that they have neither the natural resources nor talent to do so. Hang over from the colonial era is still making the Brown and Black bend in front of the White. In such a scenario, the world body must clarify without any doubt about the equality of Nations, Religions and Cultures. No priority, privilege or partiality need to be shown for any individual in any matter connected with the re-formed UNO. It is definitely a good idea to have the UNO premises located in one of the islands not forming part of any nation. This can go a long way in asserting its independence.

Ban Religious Conversion & Organised Migration

The single most reason for growth of extremism and terrorism is the organised effort of some religions to convert others into their fold. Even in this twenty first century, some people live under the delusion that theirs is the only way to reach God. Out of this false notion arise the contempt for other faiths which counter breeds hatred and violence. The only way to avoid this situation to worsen further is for the world body to declare their equal respect for all the existing faiths and newer faiths in the making. Theocratic states must be discouraged and true secularism must form the basis of every modern nation. The re-formed UNO must make it unambiguously clear that it considers all religions as equal and ban all efforts to convert people from one faith to another as a matter of policy. An individual wanting to convert from one religion to another is a different matter. Nowadays it is few and far between.

Another factor fuelling hatred in the world is the misuse of migration by organised groups. Instead of allowing the natural migration of people from one part of the world to another in line with mutually acceptability, there are highly organised clans in every nation who plan the migration of their members for eventual take over of the host country. This must be put an end to if we want to avoid generation of bad blood among natives and migrants.

Comfort for All, Luxury for None (‘Comfall and Luxnone’)

Meaning and purpose of all world organisations are nullified when we see the misery in Africa & Asia in stark contrast to the opulence in Europe & USA. Decades of efforts by all these world bodies have brought no change to the basic living conditions of the poor and deprived. In fact in many places the rivalries between the so-called world leaders have brought in more miseries and loss of lives. If the re-formed UNO is to be any relevance, it should declare “comfort for all and luxury for none - comfall and luxnone” as its motto until basic amenities (drinking water, minimum food, healthcare and education) are available to all the human beings. People who spend hundreds of dollars a day can be considered only as criminals in a planet where more than 75% people do not make even two dollars a day. International seminars on development and peace spending millions of dollars are meaningless and the money is better spent on bringing drinking water to at least one village in Asia or Africa.

Effective Punishment for Non-Compliance

The past failure of UNO has been essentially due to the absence of an effective mechanism to implement its decisions. Those who are refusing to comply with UN resolutions had nothing much to lose. Embargo and sanctions have failed to bring the erring countries on their knees. UNO has been found to be completely helpless if the offender is a powerful nation. All this can change if the punishments are severe and pre-defined. For any decision that has been taken with more than two-third majority in the general council, the punishment for non-compliance shall be complete boycott. No citizen or goods of the erring country should be allowed to come out and nothing should go in. The internal pressure that will build up can bring the defiant countries to the table in no time. The re-formed UNO can definitely succeed in this if it can act without fear and prejudice.