Has the United Nations changed the world?

The 72nd session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) comes to an end on the 25th of this month. There has been criticism whether the UN's policies have worked, whether there has been equal representation between nations at the UN and the UN's ability to enforce its rulings. Nations also continue to face social, political and economic challenges despite the presence of the body.

Many also wonder whether the UN achieved the millennium development goals.

Administrative criticism

Five elite countries have a major say at the UN's Security Council. China, the US, France, Russia, and the United Kingdom continue to veto decisions made by the UN. security council. Decisions that need international response can be vetoed by any of the five countries holding a sit on the council. A Journalist named Kourosh Ziabari once stated that "the veto is a discriminatory and biased privilege awarded to only five countries that can dictate their own will to 200 countries as they please". His words simply meant that a powerful and authoritative minority could dictate the fate of the less powerful majority.

Global conflicts still exist

Conflicts around the world still exist. Hostilities between the US and North Korea continue to be the greatest impediment to "world peace." Islamic extremists in the Middle East have caused the death and displacement of many. The extremists have stated that they will extend their ideologies beyond borders which is against the UN norms and the norms of people around the world. The extremists have begun to infiltrate Europe, the Philippines, North Africa and the United States. Unforeseen conflicts between nations are also likely to occur in the future. Russia annexing of Crimea is an example of the UN's lack of power to counter future disputes between nations.

Conflict within countries also continues to exist.

The lack of a global military has made the UN unable to deal with conflicts such as the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya people in Myanmar, the South Sudanese conflict as well as the continuous bombing of Syrians by the Syrian government.

Inequality between nations

Despite the presence of the UN economic and social council, starvation in some parts of the world still exist. Global warming is blamed for the lack of rainfall in some regions in Africa. Starvation stories are written on a yearly basis due to irregular and unpredictable weather patterns. Terms such as developed and developing nations still exist. The UN's lack of control of the global financial system has not enabled it to bridge the gap between wealthy nations and poor nations.