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Marking United Nations Day

October 24 is United Nations Day; that is because the United Nations Charter became effective on that day back in 1945. President Franklin D. Roosevelt is considered to be the “father” of the United Nations. Every year UN Day is celebrated at UN headquarters in New York City and throughout the world. This year will be the 64th anniversary of the United Nations.

What are the purposes of the United Nations? The main purposes are to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, to recognize the dignity and worth of the human person, to acknowledge the equal rights of men and women and nations large and small, and to promote respect for international law and social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom.

In order to achieve these ends, UN member states should practice tolerance anmd live together in peace as good neighbors. They should employ international machinery for promoting the economic and social advancement of all eople. They should unite their strength to maintain international peace and security and ensure that armed force shall only be used in the common ointerest. The United Nations seeks to develop friendly relations among nations based on the principles of equal rights and self-determination of peoples. It also seeks to promote international cooperation and to be a center for harmonizing the actions of nations.

Despite all the criticism of the organization, the United Nations has been a success. It has prevented another world war, promoted social progress, and is in the process of realizing its purposes and principles. It is also in the process of refomring itself.

The main reason the United Nations has not been more effective is simple: The five permanent members of the UN Security Council do not want to elect a truly first-rate Secretary-General to scrupulously implement and reform the UN Charter. That is why the United Nations is still njot the focal point of international relations. On UN Day, every member state and person should resolve to translate the ideals of the UN into reality in our troubled, interdependent world.

David Slive
Buffalo



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