Monitoring Policy Making at the United Nations |
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What Was New What's New
Week of March 24 - 28, 2008
Iraq Security Council Empire? Social and Economic Policy NGOs Nations and States UN Reform International Justice
Iraq
Exhaustive Review Finds No Link Between Saddam and Al Qaeda (March 10, 2008)
This Pentagon-supported study analyzed hundreds of thousands of Iraqi documents and still found no ties between Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda.The Bush administration, however, has continuously used this fabricated link as a justification for the US war and occupation of Iraq. The report concludes that Saddam Hussein, “whose regime was relentlessly secular, was wary of Islamic extremist groups and turned down a request for assistance by bin Laden in 1995.” (McClatchy Newspapers)Blackwater's Employment Investigated (March 11, 2008)
Officials from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Justice Department are reexamining the murder of seventeen civilians in Baghdad by the private security firm, Blackwater. Security personnel outnumber US troops in Iraq and remain immune from Iraqi law. House oversight committee Chairman Henry A. Waxman is calling for increased scrutiny of Blackwater, which violates domestic law by classifying their contractors as independents and thereby skirting millions of dollars in taxes. (Washington Post)A Climate of War: The War in Iraq and Global Warming (March 2008)
This report by Oil Change International addresses the link between the US occupation and global warming. The war in Iraq contributes to climate change through carbon dioxide emissions from fuel and artillery while global warming creates conflict over access to natural resources. The report produced astonishing findings, including one figure which stated that the “CO2 released by the war to date equals the emissions from putting 25 million more cars on the road in the US this year.”Stronger Women, Stronger Nations: 2008 Iraq Report (March 2008)
According to this report by Women for Women International, “90.6% of Iraqi women surveyed in 2004 expressed optimism about the future, while only 26.9% of those surveyed in 2007 remained optimistic.” A large majority of women do not feel protected by the occupying forces and believe the US army aggravates the security situation in Iraq. The survey concludes that while Iraqi women largely hope for a central government in Baghdad, most doubt the possibility of a unified Iraq, even within the next five years.Veto of Bill on CIA Tactics Affirms Bush's Legacy (March 9, 2008)
President Bush used his veto power against a bill that would limit the Central Intelligence Agency from using torture methods during interrogation, such as water-boarding. “Already the eighth veto power exercised in just ten months with Democrats in control of Congress, he solidified his legacy of fighting for the expansion of executive power.” President Bush justified the veto by citing the continued threat of terrorism and ignored testimonies from the FBI and military officials that confirmed torture produces unreliable intelligence. (New York Times)Security Council
Six Member States Submit New Proposal for Security Council Reform (March 27, 2008)
Germany has tabled a proposal at the UN General Assembly to expand the Security Council from 15 to 22 members. The increase would create a new seat for countries from Latin America, the Caribbean, Western and Eastern Europe, and two seats each for representatives from Africa and Asia. The proposal, however, does not address how long each country would hold a seat, or the contentious issue of veto power. Any enlargement of the Council would require the amendment of the UN Charter. (ReformtheUN.org)The Ogaden: A Forgotten War Draining a Forgotten People (March 24, 2008)
This Guardian article warns of an impending humanitarian crisis in Eastern Ethiopia. The Ethiopian government has exacerbated a regional food crisis by attacking troops allied to the Ogaden National Liberation Front, a rebel group aiming to secure independence from Ethiopia. John Holmes, UN Undersecretary for Humanitarian Affairs, states that 4.5 million people could face famine because of the fighting, which is part of a wider conflict involving Ethiopia, Eritrea and Somalia.Report of the Secretary General on the United Nations Mission in Liberia (March 19, 2008)
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon states that the UN Mission to Liberia (UNMIL) has made significant progress in rebuilding the country following its civil war. However, while acknowledging the progress made, Ban urges the Liberian government to regain control of the nation’s timber resources and monitor the country’s rich diamond industry. Ban claims that due to the success of the UNIMIL, the peacekeeping force will shrink during 2008.A Global Threat Multiplier (March 20, 2008)
According to openDemocracy, climate change will cause conflict over natural resources in the poorest nations of the world. The article warns that as glaciers melt, changes in river flows and irrigation will exacerbate tensions over food and water resources. The author argues that climate change constitutes a “threat to international peace and security.” However, rather than a military response, global warming requires richer nations to reduce their carbon emissions and at the same time increase development aid to those countries most affected by global warming.Annual Review of Global Peace Operations 2008: Briefing Paper (March 2008)
UN peacekeeping operations face severe logistical and operational challenges, according to the Center on International Cooperation at New York University. Despite an “overstretch” in peacekeeping resources, Security Council member states continue to approve complex missions without adequate financial or material support. The article also shows that the US and UK prefer to deploy troops in the operations of NATO rather than in UN peacekeeping missions.The Security Council’s Targeted Sanctions Regimes: In Need of Better Protection of the Individual (December 2007)
This Leiden Journal of International Law article notes that the Security Council’s targeted sanctions contain serious procedural flaws. The Council can arbitrarily place individuals on a sanctions list, without giving them access to evidence against them or the right to appeal. The article recommends that the UN establish an independent and impartial sanctions organ, with the power to review petitions for delisting.Empire?
“Legalized Imperialism”: “Responsibility to Protect” and the Dubious Case of Haiti (December, 2005)
This Briarpatch Magazine article suggests that Canada invoked the “responsibility to protect” (R2P) to legitimize foreign intervention and overthrow Jean Bertrand Aristide in February, 2004. When Aristide put the needs of Haiti’s poor ahead of the International Monetary Fund’s structural adjustment program, the US, France and Canada rallied behind Canadian MP, Denis Paradis’, rhetoric of R2P, to enforce a UN mandate for the coup. As John Pilger puts it, R2P looks like “the latest brand name of imperialism.”Sovereign Wealth Funds: Power vs Principle (March 5, 2008)
Authoritarian states use their Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs) to undermine US hegemony, argues this openDemocracy article. To protect the Western model of global capitalism, the US seeks to stem the fall of the Dollar. The Gulf States are offering help by dispensing their SWFs – but investment from these state-owned savings entities is help in disguise. Where nations offer SWF resources to the US, they seek, for better or for worse, to challenge US international influence in the midst of a financial crisis.Just like America, China Is Building a Multi-Ethnic Empire in the West (March 25, 2008)
This Guardian article asks how China’s claim on Tibet differs from the US’s rule over Texas two centuries ago. Both nations co-opted outer territories to gain strategic gateways to trade routes and monopolize natural resources. The article notes that “large empires are maintained through a combination of force and law”: Like the US, China exercises force and law over its provinces, largely without meaningful popular resistance.Resisting the Empire (March 20, 2008)
This article from Foreign Policy in Focus applauds grassroots movements like the global “No Military Bases Network” for challenging the Pentagon’s “imperial arrangement” of 750 military bases. These outposts can launch potential nuclear attacks and impose control over foreign oil. “Host” countries object to the bases due to Marine-led crime and human rights abuses. Aggrieved communities are resisting the US military web through landmark court battles, like the case against the Marines of Okinawa, accused of raping minors.Social and Economic Policy
The Cost of Food: Facts and Figures (March 10, 2008)
This BBC compilation points out various reasons for a rapid increase in food prices, such as population growth, increased meat consumption and biofuel production. In the course of 2007, the price of wheat increased by 130 percent. Price rises will continue to pose problems to food security. The world population is set to increase from 6 billion to nine billion over the next 50 years, and scarcity will further drive up food prices.UN Security Council Must Act Preemptively on Climate Change (March 24, 2008)
The authors of this article commend UN initiatives on tackling climate change, but claim the organization is not doing enough. The authors urge the Security Council to take “preemptive action” on climate change. But placing climate change in the hands of the Security Council could actually hinder progress. The largest carbon emitters (China and the US) are also P-5 members and could veto any resolution suggesting a carbon cap, for instance. (Christian Science Monitor)Climate Change Deepening World Water Crisis (March 19, 2008)
This article reports on the growing water crisis. One billion people worldwide do not have access to safe drinking water and 2.5 billion are lacking safe sanitation. Experts say the crisis is not due to an outright lack of water, but rather a “chronic lack of funding and inadequate understanding of the need for sanitation and good hygiene at the local level.” Climate change will only worsen the problem. In addition, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warns that water shortages will drive future conflicts. (Inter Press Service)World Food Program Issues “Emergency Appeal” for Funds (March 25, 2008)
The World Food Programme (WFP) is appealing to donor nations to help bridge its $500 - $650 million budget shortfall. This is the first time the WFP has had to launch an emergency appeal due to a market-generated crisis. Spiraling costs of food and fuel are impairing the organization’s work and it needs additional donations to continue to support the 73 million people that rely on it. A growing number of people can no longer afford to buy essential foodstuffs, which will likely deepen the funding crisis. (Los Angeles Times)NGOs
Civil Society Development Important for a Nation (March 19, 2008)
NGOs across the developing world unite scattered individuals to pressure for tangible government reform. In Rwanda, for example, NGOs have helped spread democratic principles in the wake of conflict. This article describes how groups traditionally skeptical of non-state organizations, like Muslim communities of the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa, are engaging in pro-democracy activism thanks to the mediation of NGOs. (New Times)Generation NGO (March 21, 2008)
Large NGOs often discourage students’ volunteering ambitions with grueling application requirements. So, “rather than fight[ing] the power,” students are “stealing it” by launching a new kind of non-profit organization. These youth-run outfits operate through blogs and Facebook networks, relying on short bursts of labor. This new style of volunteering is luring expertise away from traditional, long-standing NGOs. (Globe and Mail)Nations and States
A Torturous Road to Nation-Building (March 20, 2008)
Fifteen years after the UN Transitional Authority conducted free elections in Cambodia, the country still remains fragile. The executive, legislative and judicial branches of government are all engaged in corruption, creating lawlessness and endangering the justice system. Corrupt legal officials also reduce the credibility of the UN supported tribunal trying Khmer Rouge leaders. While many cities attract investment thanks to tourism, the government’s lack of social policies strongly hurts citizens in rural areas. There are no health services and many live on the “edge of hunger.” (International Herald Tribune)UN Reform
Mandate Review Moves to Humanitarian Cluster with New Methodology (March 6, 2008)
The UN Working Group on Mandate Review will soon start reviewing the humanitarian mandates. The working group will divide the mandates into four categories, based on their efficiency and effectiveness. Resources that become available due to eliminated mandates will fund “development-related activities.” Member states raised the concern that the UN accounting system cannot calculate the precise amount of money that corresponds to each mandate. (ReformtheUN.org)125 Public Interest Leaders Urge UN to Withdraw Support from CEO Water Mandate (March 20, 2008)
In this letter, NGOs from all over the world ask UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to withdraw his support for the Global Compact CEO Water Mandate – an initiative between the UN and transnational corporations. The supporters of the initiative argue it will counter the global water crisis. However, NGOs say the CEO Water Mandate seeks to increase corporations’ control over water sources. Many corporations, such as Coca Cola and Nestle, have great interest in doing this, as they depend on water for the production of their products. But, the NGOs argue, water is a basic human right and its control should be in hands of local communities and elected governments. (Corporate Accountability International)International Justice
Sierra Leone’s Special Courts Narrow Focus (March 26, 2008)
After Sierra Leone’s civil war, the UN established the Special Court for Sierra Leone to end impunity, advance reconciliation and create a public account of the atrocities committed. The Court’s actual impact remains uncertain. Set to end operations in 2010, the US$212 million-Court has indicted 13 alleged war criminals, and convicted five. Sierra Leoneans are critical of the massive cost and are puzzled at the Court’s tendency to prosecute high-level officials like Charles Taylor instead of the soldiers who conducted the widespread killings and amputations.
