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Malay Mail
25-06-2025
- Politics
- Malay Mail
UN80: Our achievements should give us hope for a better future — Philemon Yang
JUNE 25 — Eighty years ago this month, the Charter of the United Nations was signed in San Francisco, turning the page on decades of war and offering hope for a better future. For 80 years, the United Nations has stood as the highest expression of our hopes for international cooperation, and as the fullest embodiment of our aspiration to end the 'scourge of war.' Even in a world steeped in cynicism, this is a milestone worth acknowledging. The United Nations remains the only organisation of its kind, and the only one to have endured for so long. That longevity is remarkable when we consider the context of its founding: assembled from the rubble of not one, but two global cataclysms. Its predecessor, the League of Nations, had collapsed in disgrace. No organisation is flawless. But to paraphrase the second Secretary-General, Dag Hammarskjöld: the United Nations was created not to take humanity to heaven but to save us from hell. In that mission, it has not failed. We continue to witness heart-wrenching scenes of war in Gaza, Sudan, Ukraine, and elsewhere. The recent escalation between Iran and Israel is a stark reminder of the fragility of peace, particularly in the tension-prone Middle East region. Yet amid the violence, we have managed to avert a third global war. In a nuclear age, that is an achievement we can never take for granted. It is one we must preserve with the full force of our efforts. Over the past eight decades, much of human development also bears the direct imprint of the United Nations. Consider the success of the Millennium Development Goals, adopted in 2000 by 189 Member States and more than 20 international organisations, which gave the world a shared roadmap for action. By 2015, compared to 1990, extreme poverty had been more than halved. Child mortality had fallen by nearly 50 percent. And millions of children — especially girls who had long been denied the right — had entered school for the first time. Now, as we strive to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, we must build on that legacy of progress. We must continue efforts to eradicate poverty and hunger, achieve universal health coverage, and produce and consume sustainably. There is another story of progress, often overlooked: the dismantling of the empire. Eighty years ago, colonialism cast its shadow over much of the world. Today, more than 80 former colonies across Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific have gained independence and joined the United Nations. That transition, supported and legitimised by this Organisation, reshaped the global order. It was a triumph of self-determination, a profound affirmation of the Charter's most fundamental principle: the sovereign equality of all States. A man carries a box of aid along al-Rashid street in western Jabalia on June 22, 2025, after humanitarian aid trucks entered the northern Gaza Strip through the Israeli-controlled Zikim border crossing, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. — AFP pic Evolving for the future The world has changed dramatically since 1945. Today, the Organisation faces a deepening liquidity crisis. Despite the promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, progress has been uneven. Gender equality continues to elude us. Our pledge to limit global temperature rise and protect our planet is slipping beyond reach. These setbacks do not warrant diminished ambition but greater resolve. The United Nations has always shown its worth in times of crisis. Its founders had witnessed humanity at its most destructive and responded not with despair, but with boldness. We must draw on these achievements. The spirit of San Francisco was not utopian. It was grounded in a sober understanding of what was at stake. It held that, even amid deep division, nations could still choose cooperation over conflict and action over apathy. We saw that spirit last September, when world leaders gathered in New York for the Summit of the Future. After difficult negotiations, they adopted the Pact for the Future and its annexes—the Declaration on Future Generations and the Global Digital Compact—by consensus. In doing so, they pledged to renew multilateralism for a world more complex, connected, and fragile than the one imagined in 1945. That spirit endures today. It lives in the resolve of 193 Member States, in the integrity of international civil servants, and in the quiet determination of those who believe firmly in the promise of the Charter. It is carried forward by the Secretary-General's UN80 initiative, which calls on us to deliver better for humanity; and to look to the future with adaptability and hope. As we mark this anniversary, we must rekindle the call for unity and solidarity that rang out from San Francisco 80 years ago. We built a world order once, in the ruins of war. We did so with vision and urgency. Now, again, we find ourselves at a moment of consequence. The risks are high. So too is our capacity to act. *Philemon Yang is the President of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly. ** This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
Jordan News
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Jordan News
UN80: Our Achievements Should Give Us Hope for a Better Future - Jordan News
Eighty years ago this month, the Charter of the United Nations was signed in San Francisco, turning the page on decades of war and offering hope for a better future. For 80 years the United Nations has stood as the highest expression of our hopes for international cooperation, and as the fullest embodiment of our aspiration to end the 'scourge of war.' Even in a world steeped in cynicism, this is a milestone worth acknowledging. اضافة اعلان The United Nations remains the only organisation of its kind, and the only one to have endured for so long. That longevity is remarkable when we consider the context of its founding: assembled from the rubble of not one, but two global cataclysms. Its predecessor, the League of Nations, had collapsed in disgrace. No organisation is flawless. But to paraphrase the second Secretary-General, Dag Hammarskjöld: the United Nations was created not to take humanity to heaven but to save us from hell. In that mission, it has not failed. We continue to witness heart-wrenching scenes of war—in Gaza, Sudan, Ukraine and elsewhere. The recent escalation between Iran and Israel is a stark reminder of the fragility of peace particularly in the tension-prone Middle East region. Yet amid the violence, we have managed to avert a third global war. In a nuclear age, that is an achievement we can never take for granted. It is one we must preserve with the full force of our efforts. Over the past eight decades, much of human development also bears the direct imprint of the United Nations. Consider the success of the Millennium Development Goals, adopted in 2000 by 189 Member States and more than 20 international organisations, which gave the world a shared roadmap for action. By 2015, compared to 1990, extreme poverty was more than halved. Child mortality had fallen by nearly 50 percent. And millions of children — especially girls who had long been denied the right — had entered school for the first time. Now, as we strive to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, we must build on that legacy of progress. We must continue efforts to eradicate poverty and hunger, achieve universal health coverage and produce and consume sustainably. There is another story of progress, often overlooked: the dismantling of empire. Eighty years ago, colonialism cast its shadow over much of the world. Today, more than 80 former colonies across Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific have gained independence and joined the United Nations. That transition, supported and legitimised by this Organisation, reshaped the global order. It was a triumph of self-determination, a profound affirmation of the Charter's most fundamental principle: the sovereign equality of all States. Evolving for the future The world has changed dramatically since 1945. Today, the Organisation faces a deepening liquidity crisis. Despite the promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, progress has been uneven. Gender equality continues to elude us. Our pledge to limit global temperature rise and protect our planet is slipping beyond reach. These setbacks do not warrant diminished ambition but greater resolve. The United Nations has always shown its worth in times of crisis. Its founders had witnessed humanity at its most destructive and responded not with despair, but with boldness. We must draw on these achievements. The spirit of San Francisco was not utopian. It was grounded in a sober understanding of what was at stake. It held that, even amid deep division, nations could still choose cooperation over conflict and action over apathy. We saw that spirit last September, when world leaders gathered in New York for the Summit of the Future. After difficult negotiations, they adopted the Pact for the Future and its annexes—the Declaration on Future Generations and the Global Digital Compact—by consensus. In doing so, they pledged to renew multilateralism for a world more complex, connected, and fragile than the one imagined in 1945. That spirit endures today. It lives in the resolve of 193 Member States, in the integrity of international civil servants, and in the quiet determination of those who believe firmly in the promise of the Charter. It is carried forward by the Secretary-General's UN80 initiative, which calls on us to deliver better for humanity; and to look to the future with adaptability and hope. As we mark this anniversary, we must rekindle the call for unity and solidarity that rang out from San Francisco 80 years ago. We built a world order once, in the ruins of war. We did so with vision and urgency. Now, again, we find ourselves at a moment of consequence. The risks are high. So too is our capacity to act.
Irish Times
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
Why didn't Ireland stand up for Palestine at the ICJ?
Last week the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague held five days of hearings for yet another case against Israel and its campaign in Gaza . This time, the fate of the Palestinians and the sanctity of the United Nations (UN) were at stake. Forty-one states and four international organisations presented arguments to determine whether Israel has violated its obligations regarding its treatment of UN agencies and their representatives and the rights of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. While Ireland submitted a strongly worded statement to the court denouncing Israel's multiple violations of international law, it is one of only six states that have made submissions but did not also present oral arguments. Whether or not this is part of a carefully balanced political strategy designed not to strain further the increasingly fraught relationship with the United States, failure to appear in the Peace Palace gives the impression of lacklustre support for the Palestinian people and undercuts our stated position of solidarity. READ MORE The request for an advisory opinion on the obligations of Israel in relation to the UN and its agencies, including the provision of aid to the Palestinian population in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, arises from the General Assembly. Led by Norway , a resolution to send this question to the ICJ was passed by 137 votes in December. The death of 291 UN personnel, many of whom worked in Gaza as part of United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (Unrwa) – along with allegations that UN workers and facilities have been deliberately targeted by the Israeli military – has put the organisation at the centre of this case. The situation was exacerbated by Israel's defiance of the court's previous orders to halt the military campaign and supply humanitarian assistance. The result has been the further devastation of the Palestinian people. Opening the proceedings, the UN legal counsel Elinor Hammarskjöld, a relative of the former UN secretary-general Dag Hammarskjöld who was killed in Congo in 1961, pointed out that no aid has entered Gaza since March 2nd. In effect, as argued by the Palestinian representatives, Israel is using starvation as a weapon of war with catastrophic effects. Already devastated by the military campaign (more than 52,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since the onslaught began, according to Palestinian health officials), with Israel's blocking of humanitarian supplies , the Palestinians who remain are slowly starving to death. [ Gaza: At least 57 Palestinians have starved to death under Israeli blockade, say aid agencies Opens in new window ] A sizeable majority of submissions to the court condemned Israel's actions. Among the states who did so were Norway and Spain , who have been increasingly vocal in their support for Palestine. They are also Ireland's leading European allies on this question since they recognised Palestinian statehood at the same time as Ireland in 2024 . Spain has worked closely with Ireland to push the EU to do more on this issue. So why did Ireland not join our European allies and stand up for Palestine at the ICJ? It may have something to do with the increasingly tempestuous transatlantic relationship. The US president Donald Trump has been resolute in his support of Israel in its actions against the Palestinians. Recently he stated that he 'fully supports' the resumption of Israel Defense Forces (IDF) military activities in Gaza and has warned Hamas that there 'would be all hell to pay' if the remaining hostages are not released. For Ireland, the shifting sands of the transatlantic relationship, formerly one of the buttresses of Irish foreign policy, has been threatened by a mercurial Trump. As he is highly critical of our trade surplus and has a trigger-happy approach to tariffs that would severely affect our economy, maintaining the 'special relationship' with the US has become a central focus for the Government. Ireland's outspoken position on Palestine is a pressure point with the US, particularly among Republicans. During US senate hearings last week for Edward Walsh, President Trump's nominee as ambassador to Ireland, Republican senator for Idaho Jim Risch declared that by recognising Palestinian statehood, Ireland was ' much out of step ' with the US on Israel. The comment would have done little to assuage Government fears of a growing tension with the US. Such a perception in Washington would certainly have been exacerbated by a public argument in support of Palestine at the UN's highest court. It seems that even defining issues such as Palestine are secondary to the desire not to aggravate the untethered occupant of the White House. For its part, Israel has become even more intransigent. It did not appear at the ICJ last week. Even before proceedings began, Israel violated the ceasefire conditions by continuing to bomb Gaza, saying it would do so until Hamas releases all remaining hostages. Israel has couched its actions in the tacit legality of the Knesset, which passed two laws in 2024 demanding the cessation of Unrwa activities, the implementation of which represents a violation of Israel's obligations under the UN charter. This has raised the criticism that no matter how many advisory opinions and judgments the court declares, and regardless of how many resolutions the UN passes, Israel will continue to violate international law, rendering the UN essentially hamstrung. However, it is precisely when such grievous violations of international law and human rights take place that institutions such as those of the UN are most needed. Most states that argued before the court reiterated the importance of protecting both the Palestinians and the immunity and privileges of the UN. Ireland's absence from the Peace Palace last week is a missed opportunity to show that we stand beside the Palestinian people on the grounds of international law – not just in the face of public opinion. Alanna O'Malley is associate professor at the Leiden University Institute for History
