THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, September 30, 1996 TAG: 9609280005
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A8 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: 65 lines
Fifty-one years after it was chartered, the United Nations is beset by troubles and critics.
But in these uncertain, post-Cold War years, it is critical that this international structure remain in place - and its flaws be addressed.
In the United States, critics on the right have been joined by moderates in roundly denouncing the United Nations as an overly bureaucratic hotbed of hostility toward the United States and Israel. At the further fringes of fantasy are those who believe the U.N. fields menacing squadrons of black helicopters to impose one-world government.
Congress' growing distrust of the United Nations could be seen when the House of Representatives voted earlier this month by a margin of 299 to 109 to curb the president's power to deploy American troops in multinational forces under United Nations command, such as has been done in recent years in Somalia, Bosnia and Haiti.
And by a vote of 276 to 130, the House also voted to prohibit U.S troops from wearing United Nations garb without the approval of Congress. Under the terms of the latter bill, a U.S. serviceman or servicewoman in an international peacekeeping force could decline to wear a U.N. insignia, helmet or other item.
These votes are symbolic of some Americans' disillusionment with the world organization. They also represent a pandering for votes to isolationist elements in the electorate.
But American failure to pay its United Nations dues, in the amount of about $1.6 billion, is not just symbolic. By withholding funding, the United States is crippling the organization and threatening its existence. It also undermines American credibility and persuasiveness within the international forum.
When it was formed, the United Nations' mission was at once simple and daunting: to help create world security and to ease the suffering of peoples around the globe.
In retrospect, the U.N. has been more successful at its humanitarian work than at preventing wars.
One need look no further than the United Nations' efforts on behalf of refugees and children (through UNICEF) to see the power of the U.N. Its efforts to combat world hunger, stem the spread of AIDS, bring comfort to disaster victims, monitor global health and pollution threats, and secure human rights have been admirable, frequently effective and worthy of American support.
In recent weeks the United Nations has demonstrated its relevance. The passage of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty was an important gain, as were the recent elections in Bosnia, which the United Nations oversaw. And as Saddam Hussein began attacking his Kurdish minorities, the United Nations was there to comfort this newest wave of refugees.
In an open letter to President Clinton and Congress, 80 citizen groups - as diverse as B'nai B'rith International, the African-American Islamic Institute, the National Council of Catholic Women and the Episcopal Church urged the U.S. government to pay its dues and support the United Nations.
There is no question that the United Nations has become top-heavy with bureaucrats and Third World factotums paid for by First World dues, but if it didn't exist, a similar structure would have to be reinvented to carry out many of the same missions.
As imperfect as the United Nations is, the world needs this instrument with its 159-member nations. The United States should insist on reform, work out a way to pay its dues in arrears and continue to work within the global framework of the United Nations to bring humanitarian aid to those who need it. by CNB