United NationsAntonina Kerguelén María Angélica Vergara

Adaptación: Camilo Ossa

“We the peoples of the United Nations determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our

lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind”

- United Nations Charter Preamble

“Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people”

-The Universal Declaration of Human Rights Preamble

HistoryOn 1 January 1942, representatives of 27 Allied nations fighting against the Axis Powers met in Washington, D.C. to pledge their support for the Atlantic Charter by signing the "Declaration by United Nations". This document contained the first official use of the term "United Nations", which was suggested by United States President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

The 27 NationsArgentina El Salvador PhilippinesBelarus France Poland

Brazil Haiti Russia

Chile Iran Saudi Arabia

China Lebanon Syria

Cuba Luxembourg Turkey

Denmark New Zealand Ukraine

Dominican Republic Nicaragua United Kingdom

Egypt Paraguay United States

Before the UN

The League of Nations was an organization conceived in similar circumstances at the end of World War I, but failed and was finally dissolved due to its incapability of preventing World War II.

It was established under the Treaty of Versailles to “promote international cooperation and to achieve peace and security.”

Before the UN It originally consisted of

42 countries, 26 of which were non-European. At its largest, 57 countries were members of the League.

It was created under the need of an international organization which was going to be able to keep peace among its members of the international community and to prevent the horrors of the First World War.

United Nations: the Beginning

In 1945, representatives of 50 countries met in San Francisco at the United Nations Conference on International Organization to draw up the United Nations Charter (which is the equivalent to the UN’s Constitution).

The Charter was signed on 26 June 1945 by the representatives of the 50 countries.

United Nations: the Beginning

The United Nations officially came into existence on 24 October 1945, when the Charter had been ratified by China, France, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, the United States and by a majority of other signatories.

The People’s Republic of China, The French Republic, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The Russian Federation (at that time Soviet Union), and The United States of America are vetoes of the United Nations.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 10 December 1948, was the result of the experience of the Second World War. With the end of that war, and the creation of the United Nations, the international community vowed never again to allow atrocities like those of that conflict happen again. World leaders decided to complement the UN Charter with a road map to guarantee the rights of every individual everywhere.

Purpose of the UNThe purpose of the United Nations is to

bring all nations of the world together to work for peace and development, based on the principles of justice, human dignity and the well-being of all people. It affords the

opportunity for countries to balance global interdependence and national interests

when addressing international problems.

United NationsThere are currently 193 Members of the United Nations. The Holy See and Palestine are not member states, but observer delegations in the UN, except for Palestine in

UNESCO, committee in which it is actually recognized as a country.

They meet in the General Assembly, which is the closest thing to a world parliament. Each country, large or small,

rich or poor, has a single vote, however, none of the decisions taken by the Assembly are binding.

Nevertheless, the Assembly's decisions become resolutions that carry the weight of world governmental

opinion. Every year, in the month of September, the leader or representative of each of these nations attends the most important General Assembly where each nation

delivers a speech and some of the most important decisions of the organisms are taken.

Languages, Headquarters and Offices

Six official languages are used at the United Nations - Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish. The UN European Headquarters is in the Palais des Nations, Geneva, Switzerland. It has offices in Vienna, Austria and Economic Commissions in Addis Ababa in Ethiopia, Amman in Jordan, Bangkok in Thailand and Santiago in Chile. To work at the United Nations, you must be fluent in at least 3 of these languages.

Aims of the United NationsTo keep peace throughout the world.To develop friendly relations between nations.To work together to help people live better

lives, to eliminate poverty, disease and illiteracy in the world, to stop environmental destruction and to encourage respect for each other's rights and freedoms.

To be a center for helping nations achieve these aims.

Principles of the United Nations

All Member States have sovereign equality.All Member States must obey the Charter.Countries must try to settle their differences by

peaceful means.Countries must avoid using force or threatening to

use force.The UN may not interfere in the domestic affairs of

any country.Countries should try to assist the United Nations.

The Security Council

This is an organ of the UN that is in charge of maintaining international security and peace. This organ is the only one of the UN whose resolutions are legally binding. It has 15 member states, 10 of them are chosen every 2 years, and five of them are permanent member states.

Permanent Member States and Veto Powers

The five permanent member states of the Security Council are: The People’s Republic of China, The French Republic, United Kingdom of Great Britain and

Northern Ireland, The Russian Federation, United States of America.These five, also have a veto power in the SC.

Nowadays, The Federal Republic of Nigeria is asking for a veto power and a permanent seat in the SC, as there is no African Nation that has this privilege.

Secretaries General throughout History

Trygve Lie (Norway)Term of Office: 1946-1953

Dag Hammarskjöld (Sweden)Term of Office: 1953-1961

U Thant (Burma – Myanmar nowadays)

Term of Office: 1961-1971Kurt Waldheim (Austria)

Term of Office: 1972-1981Javier Perez de Cuellar (Peru)

Term of Office: 1982-1991Boutros Boutros-Ghali (Egypt)

Term of Office: 1992-1996Kofi A. Annan (Ghana)

Term of Office: 1997-2006

Secretary General: Ban Ki Moon

“Many say our world is at a tipping point. If we do not act together, if we do not act responsibly, if we do not act now, we risk slipping into a

cycle of poverty, degradation, and despair.” -Ban Ki Moon

Secretary General:

Ban Ki Moon

The Secretary-General was born in the Republic of Korea on 13 June 1944.At the time of his election as Secretary-General, Ban Ki-Moon was his country's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade. His 37 years of service with the Ministry included postings in New Delhi, Washington D.C. and Vienna, and responsibility for a variety of portfolios, including Foreign Policy Adviser to the President, Chief National Security Adviser to the President, Deputy Minister for Policy Planning and Director-General of American Affairs.His ties to the United Nations date back to 1975, when he worked for the Foreign Ministry's United Nations Division. That work expanded over the years, with assignments that included service as Chairman of the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization and Chef de Cabinet during the Republic of Korea's 2001-2002 presidency of the UN General Assembly.

Bibliographyhttp://www.un.org/sg/biography.shtmlhttp://www.un.org/sg/formersgs.shtmlhttp://www.un.org/http://www.un.org/Pubs/CyberSchoolBus/unintro/

unintro.asphttp://www.un.org/en/aboutun/history/http://www.un.org/en/members/index.shtml