#5: Decolonizing the UN

The United Nations was established by the victors of World War II following an Anglo-Saxon model of internal management and external deployment. In addition to the ideas of humanism and the Enlightenment that the UN was endowed with, as reflected in its Charter, it was also influenced by the ways of the Western European colonial empires and their offspring in the American non-territorial empire. With a Western approach to goals, means and indicators, some deeply entrenched biases that go with it have come to haunt the UN in its claims and efforts to represent the whole of humanity, in its very broad diversity and richness. No surprise, therefore, that the legitimacy of the UN, where such powers and approaches / attitudes / mentalities still dominate, is increasingly questioned by the rest of the world, which feels like a guest and constantly lectured at in the supposedly common home that is the UN. 

This open consultation will try to build on discussions regarding “decolonisation” that have been ongoing for decades, in one form or another, to see how they could apply to the UN. To make the task somewhat manageable, we will address with our expert guest speakers and everybody’s active participation four key questions: How would a decolonised UN look in its political, peacekeeping and peacebuilding structures and operations? What would be different and what would remain the same How can a new global deal be reached that is based on de facto equality and practical respect among the various actors, for the joint management for the broadest common good of the UN and the UN system, including the Bretton Woods Institutions? Might the UN’s eventual decolonisation have as side effect the doubting and eventual dismantling of the human rights protection system and other aspects that could be criticised as of Western origin?

The meeting summary can be found here.