In 1945, in the wake of the horrors of the second World War, 51 governments gathered in San Francisco and agreed to form an organization whose stated purpose was to maintain peace and security, to cultivate friendly relations between countries, to cooperate in solving international problems, and to be the meeting place for all countries interested in achieving these goals. And the United Nations was born!

Over half a century has passed. With Switzerland's decision to join, which will become official at the opening of the 57th session of the UN General Assembly in September 2002, total membership of the United Nations has reached 190. Many aspects of the United Nations have changed, but those formative goals, immortalized in its charter, have remained the cornerstone of the organization.

There is much information and misinformation floating around regarding the United Nations. Here are some frequently asked questions and their answers:

What is the United Nations?
So it's really a global government?
How is the UN organized?
How many people work for the UN?
How much does it cost to run the UN?
So what effect do UN policies really have?
Who really has the power in the UN?
Creating policy is great and all, but does the UN actually do work on the ground in places that need it?
What are human rights, and what is the UN doing to protect them?
I've heard of Kofi Annan. Who is he, and what does he do?
What are UN Peacekeeping Missions and who is in charge of them?
What are UN Conferences and what good do they do?
Can people other than diplomats take part in the UN process?
So why is the Presbyterian Church at the United Nations?
Can I come to New York and visit the UN?
How do I find out more about the UN?

The United Nations is an organization of governments who have agreed to work together towards peace, development, and global justice. By joining the United Nations, governments agree to uphold the UN Charter.

Born out of the ashes of World War II, the United Nations was created with the idea in mind that it would ensure a safer world for future generations.

No, not at all. The United Nations is a forum where sovereign governments can work together to find solutions to the world's problems. The United Nations itself doesn't impose rules on its member states. Everything that comes out of the United Nations is based solely the decisions made by the countries that are members of the UN, commonly referred to as member states. Protecting sovereignty is one of the guiding doctrines of the UN Charter. In fact, the first principle listed in Article Two of the Charter states, "The Organization is based on the principle of sovereign equality of all its Members."

There are six main bodies of the United Nations:

• General Assembly
  The General Assembly is the largest body of the United Nations, and is the single most representative body in the world. Each country that is a member of the UN has a vote in General Assembly matters. Work within the General Assembly is divided between 6 standing committees but all decisions are put to the entire body.
  
  
• Security Council
  The Security Council is made up of 15 members, five permanent seats made up of the allied powers of World War II (France, People's Republic of China, Russian Federation, United Kingdom, and United States) and 10 rotating seats, voted on each year by the General Assembly. The Security Council addresses all issues that are deemed to be "threats to international peace and security".
  
  
• Economic and Social Council
  The Economic and Social Council, or ECOSOC for short, is a 54 member body that covers all issues in the UN system that deal with economic and social issues. ECOSOC also oversees nearly 20 of the specialized agencies that are part of the UN system.
  
  
• Trusteeship Council
  Created to assist former colonies and dependent territories work towards self-government and independence, the Trusteeship Council is one of the great success stories of the United Nations. Over the course of nearly 50 years, this body helped more than 70 colonial territories gain independence. Having achieved its stated goal, meetings of the Trusteeship Council were halted in 1994 and will not meet again unless and until it is needed.
  
  
• Secretariat
  Working from the UN Headquarters in New York, the Secretariat is considered by many to be the hands and feet of the United Nations. The staff of 9,000, including individuals from over 160 countries, carry out the day-to-day work of the United Nations.
  
  
• International Courts of Justice
  Housed at the Hague in the Netherlands, the International Courts of Justice is the only main organ of the UN not in New York City. This court, presided over by 15 judges elected by the General Assembly and the Security Council, settles disputes between nations, and has no authority over individuals.

There are also 29 specialized programmes, funds, and agencies (including UNICEF, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, and the World Health Organization) that make up the United Nations System. These organizations, each of which is responsible to one of the six main bodies of the UN, were formed in an attempt to spread out the enormous workload of the United Nations. For example, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) was developed out of the Economic and Social Council to cover all environmental issues for the United Nations. Click here for an organizational chart with links to all UN bodies, programmes, and agencies.

While the United Nations does an enormous amount of work, the staff is actually quite small. The UN itself is staffed by about 15,000 people, while the entire UN system (including all of the specialized agencies) has a total of just 61,000 employees. Just in case that still sounds like a lot of people, keep in mind that there are more people who work for the Disney Theme parks (Disneyland, Disney World, and Euro Disney) than work in the UN system.

The UN regular budget for 2002 is $1.3 billion which is $500 million less that it takes to run the Tokyo fire department. Total expenditures for the entire UN system come to only $6.4 billion. That cost covers all of the economic, social, and humanitarian relief work that the UN and its agencies do in nearly every country around the world. In comparison, the United States alone spent upwards of $352 billion on military spending in FY2002.

You may have heard references in the news to decisions made by the United Nations. Statements made by the UN are done in the form of resolutions. Within the General Assembly (GA) work is done on a consensus model. General Assembly decisions are not binding, so it is important that all countries agree to what they say. All policies created by the General Assembly come directly from the member states.

The Security Council, on the other hand, has the power to create international law. Each resolution that comes out of the Security Council must be followed by all members of the United Nations, regardless of whether they are currently sitting on the Security Council or not. A Security Council Resolution must receive nine affirmative votes in order to pass, and must have the agreement of all five permanent members.

Because resolutions and decisions of the Security Council are binding on all member states, current Security Council members are seen as having the most power at the United Nations. The five permanent members of the Security Council also have a special privilege of holding veto power. A 'no' vote from any of the permanent members (also called the P-5) means that the resolution fails, regardless of the level of support from the other members.

In recent years, there has been increasing levels of talk about Security Council reform. There is general support in the United Nations to make Japan and Germany, the second and third largest donors to the United Nations, permanent members of the Security Council. Because of the Council's power and authority, there is also general support for increasing the size from 15 members and making it more geographically representative of the world's population. There has also been talk of abolishing the 'veto power'. Any decisions made will have to be approved by both the General Assembly and the Security Council.

Absolutely. Most of the ground work for the United Nations is done by its specialized agencies, created specifically to deal with certain issues. Here are just a few of the many examples of the hands-on work the United Nations does around the world. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is currently working in 120 countries, providing nearly 22 million refugees with food, water, shelter, clothing, medicine, and assistance in building a new life. UNICEF, the United Nations Children's Fund, operates in over 161 countries providing children with basic education, health care, sanitation, and nutrition. The World Health Organization (WHO) is on the ground in over 60 countries around the world responding to health crises.

Human rights can be understood to be those rights that are essential for human life. Human rights include, but certainly aren't limited to, right to life and liberty, freedom from slavery, freedom from torture, freedom of religion, right to participate in government, right to education and a standard of living adequate for healthy living. These rights are spelled out in the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The United Nations protects human rights in a number of ways. There is a Commission on Human Rights (CHR) that is dedicated to monitoring human rights abuses all over the world. In 1993, the World Conference on Human Rights was held in Vienna, Austria, and delegates created the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, a document outlining steps for the promotion and protection of human rights worldwide. It was also decided that there needed to be one person charged with coordinating all of the human rights work for the United Nations and the position of the High Commissioner for Human Rights was created. UN world conferences have been convened to deal with women's rights, racism, and children's rights.

Kofi Annan is the seventh Secretary General of the United Nations. Appointed by the General Assembly and the Security Council, the Secretary General can be understood as the CEO of the United Nations and is responsible for directing the work of the Organization. Kofi Annan, who hails from Ghana, was appointed Secretary General in 1997, and was re-appointed to a second 5-year term in 2002. As a side-note, Kofi Annan did his undergraduate study at Macalester College, a Presbyterian-related college in St. Paul, Minnesota. Click here for more information about the Secretary General.

When conflicts arise between countries that require a neutral third-party intervention, the United Nations is called upon to help. This is typically done in the form of Peacekeeping Operations, or PKOs. Peacekeepers are most often used to maintain a cease-fire, but have also been called upon to monitor elections, protect humanitarian aid workers, set up mine-clearing programs, and demobilize former combatants. Peacekeeping Missions are established by the Security Council with the full support of all parties involved in the conflict.

The United Nations has no standing army, so Peacekeeping Missions mandated by the Security Council are carried out by multi-national forces under the flag of the United Nations. Soldiers are always under command of superior officers from their own nations and maintain their national loyalties - no soldier is asked to pledge allegiance to the United Nations. Peacekeeping officers wear the regular uniform of their own military, but are issued blue helmets that identify them as peacekeepers and for that reason are often referred to as "blue helmets".

Each year, the United Nations convenes international conferences, meetings at which world leaders get together to discuss pressing international issues. Recent examples include the World Conference Against Racism held in Durban South Africa, the World Conference on Financing for Development in Monterrey, Mexico and the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg South Africa. These meetings provide a forum for international leaders to develop ground-breaking policy and set goals and timelines for solving the world's pressing problems. For more information about UN Conferences, click here. To read about the Presbyterian United Nations Office involvement in UN conferences, chick here.

Yes. There are groups called NGOs, or Non-Governmental Organizations, that play an active and integral role in the work of the United Nations. You may know of NGOs as non-profit organizations. They are organizations that are not affiliated with any government and often times have specific expertise on topics that are under consideration of the United Nations. Some notable examples of NGOs are Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Greenpeace, and yes, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). NGOs can apply for consultative status at the UN, which means that they are allowed to attend UN meetings, consult with diplomats, and even address plenary sessions when called upon. Often seen as a link between the UN and civil society, NGOs have become a crucial part of the UN family.

The Presbyterian United Nations Office serves as a link between the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and the United Nations. Our office has the highest level of consultative status available to NGOs at the UN, and enjoys a reputation as a strong and effective member of the NGO community. Following the biblical call to bring good news to the poor, release to the captives, sight to the blind and freedom to the oppressed, the Presbyterian United Nations Office advocates PC(USA) policy at the UN and educates Presbyterians about the work of the UN. For more information about the office, click here.

Of course you can! Guided tours of the UN Headquarters in New York (located on First Avenue and 46th Street) are available weekdays year round and on Saturdays during the spring and summer. And while you're here, be sure to come visit our office, or have our office plan a seminar for you. Click here.

The UN website has a great deal of information about the UN, including what's happening each day at the UN, live webcasts of important events, and educational information aimed specifically at children.

You can also send specific questions to the Presbyterian United Nations Office.