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gzusbmine
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How democratic is the UN?
February 2, 2009 - 09:34 PM
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How democratic is the UN? Does it pose a threat to basic freedoms, democracy and human rights?
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esra
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Re: How democratic is the UN?
February 3, 2009 - 08:14 AM
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As a person who had worked for 3 years as a peer educator with UNFPA & worked as an intern for 40 days in UNFPA, in the last events about wars in the world, we see that UN lost its pose. We cant talk about democracy after this war in Gaza. If democracy understanding is to be silent  against helpless, innocent people & children, I dont want that democracy as a human.
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gzusbmine
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Re: How democratic is the UN?
February 3, 2009 - 12:12 PM
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Websters Dictionary defines Democracy:
de·moc·ra·cy Listen to the pronunciation of democracy
Pronunciation:
di-ˈmä-krə-sē
Function:
noun
Inflected Form(s):
plural de·moc·ra·cies
Etymology:
Middle French democratie, from Late Latin democratia, from Greek dēmokratia, from dēmos + -kratia -cracy
Date:
1576
1 a: government by the people ; especially : rule of the majority b: a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections2: a political unit that has a democratic government3capitalized : the principles and policies of the Democratic party in the United States <from>4: the common people especially when constituting the source of political authority5: the absence of hereditary or arbitrary class distinctions or privileges
Does this define the UN?
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Ana
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Re: How democratic is the UN?
February 3, 2009 - 06:25 PM
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If you mean if UN is democratic in the processes of decision, I don't it is democratic at all. As UN represents 192 countries, to be democratic the decisions should be made according to the majority of people of all the countries. In that case I don't think that some countries should have more power in decision than others.
In the light of these last events I hate the fact that the international community doesn't condemn Israel actions against Palestinian people just because Israelis have the United States support.
However, there are countless UN groups in a great variety of issues, that carry out tasks of great importance regarding Food Aid Programmes, Gender Equality, Human Rights, etc.
Therefore, my opinion is that although UN must evolve in decision processes, to be actually effective defending the core values of the organization,(like to maintain peace), I believe our world is a better place due to a lot of work related to the UN.
I wanted to ask you esra, working in a UN programme, what impression did you get from it? Is is really usefull and effective?
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gzusbmine
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Re: How democratic is the UN?
February 3, 2009 - 08:44 PM
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There is no election of any of these officials "by the people," but by elite individuals.
How much good is the UN really doing for the world?
Here is a good documentary on the UN and world government in general.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=4eBqDHWlEdc&feature=related
Or some articles that question the UN and the corruption that goes on. Articles are from around the world. READ and EDUCATE and find FREEDOM and TRUTH.
http://www.hindu.com/2005/11/09/stories/2005110904351400.htm
http://thepoint.gm/africa/gambia/article/2008/4/30/united-nations-and-corrupt-practices
http://www.aim.org/media-monitor/the-corrupt-un-press-corps/
http://www.nysun.com/foreign/is-the-un-corrupt/69431/
http://www.canadafreepress.com/2006/rosett040406.htm
http://www.redcounty.com/sarasota/2009/02/claudia-rossett-the-un-is-abso/
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esra
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Re: How democratic is the UN?
February 4, 2009 - 07:06 AM
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anaifos wrote:
I wanted to ask you esra, working in a UN programme, what impression did you get from it? Is is really usefull and effective?
Dear Ana, when I was studying at university, I met with UN in 2004, was educated on sexual & reproductive health & HIV/AIDS as a peer educator by UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund) in Turkey & had shared my knowledge with my peers at university for 3 years as a volunteer. My other peer educator friends and me organized many activities concerning sexual & reproductive health & HIV/AIDS. Then I had worked to UNFPA-Pakistan as an intern, during internship I had positive impressions, with my team at UNFPA and other UN workers, friendly, well educated, hard working, thoughtful. Everyone works to change things from negative to positive. I can say that after I met UN, if we want, we can make world a better place.
"UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is an international development agency that promotes the right of every woman, man and child to enjoy a life of health and equal opportunity. UNFPA supports countries in using population data for policies and programmes to reduce poverty and to ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, every young person is free of HIV/AIDS, and every girl and woman is treated with dignity and respect."
After Gaza War, unfortunately we saw that UN/UNFPA policy above failed. I hope after this UN will work freely to reach aims...
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gzusbmine
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Re: How democratic is the UN?
February 4, 2009 - 10:10 AM
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Esra, did you and your group collect data to determine the effectiveness of the programs you assisted in at the UN. If so, what was your methodology and results?
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esra
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Re: How democratic is the UN?
February 4, 2009 - 02:37 PM
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Gzusbmine wrote:
Esra, did you and your group collect data to determine the effectiveness of the programs you assisted in at the UN. If so, what was your methodology and results?
Im one of the first peer educators in Turkey(we were 16 students from 8 universities in Turkey), now there are many peer educators, because needs are getting increased. Of course, our program was effective on some students at university. Even tough Turkey is a Muslim country, some very young students have sex and they dont use condom or they dont know how to protect themselves from illness.. I know a student, 17 years old was pregnant, she cant tell her family(maybe her family will not accept her anymore), she cant give a birth too (cuz she is a student & very young to have a baby). Also I know a boy had HIV.. We worked to increase awareness and decrease harms on university students. We had sources(books, articles, presentations) from UNFPA and doctors at university & prepared some presentations & organized panels & played funny games with participants in spring festivals&important days(World Aids Day). I designed some cards to give informations for students & had worked for 3 years, first year(2005) many students was feeling ashamed or not well educated on these issues. Second year, some students were sharing their problems. 3. year many students had most of information. Finally we noticed that we had more conscious youth. 
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Robert
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Re: How democratic is the UN?
February 4, 2009 - 08:29 PM
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The UN betrays the idealism expressed in the preamble to its charter.
Ironically, but not surprisingly, the UN keeps seeking more money, seriously considering global taxes.
The UN resembles an alcoholic who has lost all moorings. The best intervention a bartender and family members can do is refuse to sell or give alcohol to that wayward person.
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gzusbmine
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Re: How democratic is the UN?
February 4, 2009 - 09:50 PM
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I think it may be fair to say that the UN is a non-democratic body. Should a non-democratic body be legislating, determining winners and losers in wars, determining right and wrong? For all the people in the world? The people aren't being represented here. Governments maybe. Elite surely. Corporations definitely. The common people of the world are put aside for the greater good. Who is the greater good? The profiteers?
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Robert
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Re: How democratic is the UN?
February 4, 2009 - 11:21 PM
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“Unknown amounts. I titled one chapter of the book
“$400,000 in a Desk Drawer” because a review of 58
audits released by the Volcker investigation revealed
billions frittered away, from the 400 grand stashed in a
U.N. office in Iraq with “unrestricted access” that the staff
would dip into for “ loans,” to overpaying Gulf War
reparations to Kuwait by $2 billion. A recent internal U.N.
investigation found what it called “a culture of impunity”
when it comes to U.N. spending. It said peacekeepers
spent $10.4 million leasing a helicopter that should have
cost $1.6 million. $65 million was spent for fuel in the
Sudan and Haiti that wasn’t needed, $2.4 million for
hangers in the Congo that were never used, and on and
on. In January, one U.N. study found overpayments in the
Peacekeeping department amounted to more than $300
million.”
When we look at what the UN has allowed the OIC to do, it's rather hard to take them seriously - Human Rights for example - It rather defies the imagination to visualize how any UN entity designed to promote human rights could do so when UN membership, and disproportionately UN leadership, consists of nations and politicians from nations which are the human-rights
culprits.
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gzusbmine
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Re: How democratic is the UN?
February 4, 2009 - 11:47 PM
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Agreed, Robert...like China...what is that all about? Its like letting an alcoholic run a liquor store.
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Robert
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Re: How democratic is the UN?
February 5, 2009 - 11:13 AM
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You got it.
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Andrew
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Re: How democratic is the UN?
March 16, 2009 - 11:39 AM
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Therefore the next question must be who benefits from the UN being corrupt? Who benefits from this corruption causing the UN to be sidelined as atrue force?
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Andy ehwhiteboy
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Friedrich Brandi
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Re: How democratic is the UN?
March 16, 2009 - 06:39 PM
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Hi,
Some facts at the beginning:
_________________________
the US military budget is 50 times the total UN budget
___________________________
The UN is certainly not very democratic, but you can make a change: unpacampaign.org (please also forward to your friends/family)
__________________________
I belive though that we do need global governance and that the current organizations already do good things. (WHO, UNICEF, etc.)
ps:
I looked at the video and I don´t understand what these people are afraid of?!?
-A world without weapons
-sustainable economy
-free and stable society
etc.
In my opinion there is nothing to worry about:
1) Right now the UNO has basically no power.
2) And we as citizens of the earth can decide wether it ought to have more power, how it should be organized etc. We only need to start discussing and to put pressure on the politicians of our countries to reform the UNO. We need to inform ourselfs, we need to create concepts.
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