The Contemporary World The United Nations and Contemporary Global Governance, Lecture notes of Political Systems

Download The Contemporary World The United Nations and Contemporary Global Governance and more Lecture notes Political Systems in PDF only on Docsity! The Contemporary World The United Na�ons and Contemporary Global Governance 1. What is Global Governance? The term global governance lacks any accepted defini�on. As analyst puts it: “The word presents dangers and opportuni�es to anyone who could reopen the ques�on of global governance, though the term itself lacks in precision what it offers in its novelty. It is quite certain in most people’s minds that governance is not government but beyond that nega�ve stance, the concept of global governance needs to be clarified, amplified and if thought desirable, made opera�onal” Oran Young (1994, 15), in turn, defines governance as: “the establishment and opera�on of social ins�tu�ons (in the sense of rules of the game that serve to define social prac�ces, assign roles, and guide interac�ons among the occupants of these roles) capable of resolving conflicts, facilita�ng coopera�on or more generally, allevia�ng collec�ve ac�on problems in a world of interdependent actors.” Implica�ons • Frequently noted in the exis�ng literature, governance is not equivalent to government or formal ins�tu�ons • Global governance is not limited to contracts between states • Governance is a variable between the rela�ons of anarchy and hierarchy Governance and Globaliza�on • Globaliza�on and Global governance are in�mately connected • As globaliza�on occurs, states lose control over their des�nies, problems become “bigger” than the capaci�es of individual governments, and states must delegate and possibly abdicate poli�cal authority to suprana�onal en��es with powers that more nearly coincide with the scope of the issues and actors to be managed Arenas of Global Governance 1. Intergovernmental -rela�ng to or conducted between two or more governments. 2. Suprana�onal -having power or influence that transcends na�onal boundaries or governments. 3. Transgovernmental - are informal ins�tu�ons linking regulators, legislators, judges, and other actors across na�onal boundaries to carry out various aspects of global governance. 4. Transna�onal -extending or opera�ng across na�onal boundaries. Global Governance as an Interna�onal Organiza�on • Global governance clearly is not world government- indeed; it is be�er viewed as the sum of governance processes opera�ng in the absence of world government. • Global governance is any purposeful ac�vity intended to “control” or “influence” someone else that either occurs in the arena occupied by na�ons or occurring at other levels, projects influence into that arena. • It is a process of ac�vity and to differen�ate it from other terms, its descrip�ve rather than norma�ve nature should be emphasized: global governance is governing, without sovereign authority, rela�onships that transcend na�onal fron�ers. The Potencies of Global Governance • Crea�ng greater opera�onal capacity and effec�veness • Genera�ng more flexibility and efficiency • Establishing a coopera�ve work culture in par�cipa�ng organiza�ons • Encouraging interorganiza�onal learning • Crea�ng greater opportuni�es for par�cipa�on and increasing the legi�macy of governance 2. What is an Interna�onal Organiza�on? An interna�onal organiza�on is an organiza�on established by a treaty or other instruments governed by the interna�onal law and possessing its own interna�onal legal personality. Interna�onal organiza�ons are composed of primarily member states, but may also include other en��es such as other interna�onal organiza�ons. Examples: • United Na�ons (UN) • Organiza�on for Security and Coopera�on in Europe (OSCE) • World Health Organiza�on (WHO) • Interna�onal Labor Organiza�on (ILO) • Interna�onal Police Organiza�on (INTERPOL) When scholars refer to groups like the UN or ins�tu�ons like the IMF or the World Bank, they usually call them interna�onal organiza�on (IOs). Although interna�onal NGOs are some�mes called as IOs, the term is commonly used to refer the interna�onal intergovernmental organiza�ons or groups that are primarily made up of member-states. Security Council The Security Council has primary responsibility, under the UN Charter, for the maintenance of interna�onal peace and security. It has 15 Members (5 permanent and 10 non- permanent members). Each Member has one vote. Under the Charter, all Member States are obligated to comply with Council decisions. The Security Council takes the lead in determining the existence of a threat to the peace or act of aggression. It calls upon the par�es to a dispute to se�le it by peaceful means and recommends methods of adjustment or terms of se�lement. In some cases, the Security Council can resort to imposing sanc�ons or even authorize the use of force to maintain or restore interna�onal peace and security. The Security Council has a Presidency, which rotates, and changes, every month. Five permanent member state: 1. China 2. France 3. Russia 4. United Kingdom 5. United States Economic and Social Council The Economic and Social Council is the principal body for coordina�on, policy review, policy dialogue and recommenda�ons on economic, social and environmental issues, as well as implementa�on of interna�onally agreed development goals. It serves as the central mechanism for ac�vi�es of the UN system and its specialized agencies in the economic, social and environmental fields, supervising subsidiary and expert bodies. It has 54 Members, elected by the General Assembly for overlapping three-year terms. It is the United Na�ons’ central pla�orm for reflec�on, debate, and innova�ve thinking on sustainable development. Trusteeship Council The Trusteeship Council was established in 1945 by the UN Charter, under Chapter XIII, to provide interna�onal supervision for 11 Trust Territories that had been placed under the administra�on of seven Member States,and ensure that adequate steps were taken to prepare the Territories for self-government and independence. By 1994, all Trust Territories had a�ained self-government or independence. The Trusteeship Council suspended opera�on on 1 November 1994. By a resolu�on adopted on 25 May 1994, the Council amended its rules of procedure to drop the obliga�on to meet annually and agreed to meet as occasion required -- by its decision or the decision of its President, or at the request of a majority of its members or the General Assembly or the Security Council. Interna�onal Court of Jus�ce The Interna�onal Court of Jus�ce is the principal judicial organ of the United Na�ons. Its seat is at the Peace Palace in the Hague (Netherlands). It is the only one of the six principal organs of the United Na�ons not located in New York (United States of America). The Court’s role is to se�le, in accordance with interna�onal law, legal disputes submi�ed to it by States and to give advisory opinions on legal ques�ons referred to it by authorized United Na�ons organs and specialized agencies. Secretariat The Secretariat comprises the Secretary-General and tens of thousands of interna�onal UN staff members who carry out the day-to-day work of the UN as mandated by the General Assembly and the Organiza�on's other principal organs. The Secretary-General is chief administra�ve officer of the Organiza�on, appointed by the General Assembly on the recommenda�on of the Security Council for a five-year, renewable term. UN staff members are recruited interna�onally and locally, and work in duty sta�ons and on peacekeeping missions all around the world. But serving the cause of peace in a violent world is a dangerous occupa�on. Since the founding of the United Na�ons, hundreds of brave men and women have given their lives in its service. 4. Challenges of the UN UN peace efforts face five big challenges today: • Geopoli�cal aggression and intransigence: Conflicts are becoming protracted by intense rivalries between global powers and regional powers as they support proxies to wage war overseas. The wars in Syria and Yemen are prime examples. • The prac�ce of relabeling conflicts as counter-terror struggles: This tendency leads to the neglect of the factors and actors driving conflict and the erosion of space needed to build peace. We’ve seen this occur in high-profile cases like Syria, but also in Egypt, Turkey and elsewhere. When leaders use the pretext of counter-terror to crush dissent and poli�cal opposi�on, it escalates violent conflict rather than reducing it. • Legacies of military interven�on and regime change: Framed as interven�ons to counter terror, save civilians or remove rogue regimes, in case a�er case military interven�on and regime change have failed to bring las�ng stability or to defeat fundamentalist groups. On the one hand this has brought deep distrust of interven�onism – but at the same �me there are huge risks in simply giving up on suppor�ng construc�ve, peaceful change in the face of repression. • Panic over forced displacement: As desperate people flee conflict zones, the impact of forced displacement is hi�ng neighboring countries hardest and they are coping as best they can. Meanwhile, Western governments are making hasty deals to support border and security forces in transit countries to close their borders and shut the problem out. But this train, equip and ignore approach – as in the EU’s Khartoum Process – fails to address the root causes of the problem. • Struggling humanitarianism: Undoubtedly humanitarians have a tough job. The UN and others are making enormous efforts, with inadequate resources, to assist the vic�ms of conflict. But they are not yet good enough at defending humanitarian values, working for preven�on during crisis or empowering those affected by humanitarian crises to take the ini�a�ve. And if UN Security Council members – either directly or through allies they support – con�nue to bomb hospitals or a�ack humanitarian convoys, we are unlikely to see this change. Conclusion Global governance is such a complex issue that one can actually teach an en�re course in itself. IOs are highlighted because they are the most visible symbols of global governance. The UN in par�cular is the closest to a world government. What is important to remember is that interna�onal ins�tu�ons like the UN are always in a precarious posi�on. On the other hand, they are groups of sovereign states and organiza�ons with their own ra�onali�es ang agendas. It is this tension that will con�nue to inform the evolu�on of these organiza�ons.