Transcript The United Nations - CSPE.tv citizenship education

The United Nations
By CSPE.tv
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The United Nations
• Learning objectives
– After this lessons students will be able to:
– explain what the United Nations is
– give the reasons why it was set up
– explain how the UN is run
– list some of the areas that the UN is involved in
– discuss Ireland’s contribution to UN peacekeeping
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The UN was founded in 1945 after the death and destruction
of World War II
It is the closest thing we have to a world parliament
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The United Nations
• Its main aims are:
– To keep peace
– To develop friendly
relations between countries
– To encourage respect for
human rights
– To help solve world
problems such as poverty,
disease and illiteracy
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United Nations members
Most countries in the world are members of the UN (shaded blue above)
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The General Assembly
Each country sends one representative to the General Assembly
- These discuss and vote on international issues.
- However the General Assembly does not have a lot of power
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The UN and the General Assembly headquarters are based in New York
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• The head of the United Nations is called the Secretary General
• The current Secretary General is Ban Ki Moon (pictured above)
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UN peacekeepers
• At the moment there are 100,000 police,
soldiers and observers on UN missions
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Ireland’s contribution
For more than 60 years Irish soldiers have been taking part in UN
missions. 500 are currently on missions.
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UN peacekeepers
• Irish peacekeepers provide humanitarian
assistance and prevent violence in 15 countries
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The UN and the arms trade
• The UN working on an Arms Trade Treaty that will stop
arms sales that lead to conflict or human rights abuses.
• Corrupt governments that abuse human rights would
no longer be allowed to buy arms legally
• In October 2008 147 states at the UN voted to begin
work on an Arms Trade Treaty. Only the US and
Zimbabwe voted against it.
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Anti-personnel mines were used by soldiers and rebels in wars all over the world.
More than three-quarters of those killed are civilians.
Every year more than 10,000 civilians stand on landmines and are killed or seriously
injured.
Most are killed in countries now at peace.
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UN peacekeepers clear mines
•What is happening in this picture?
•There are more than 50 million landmines in the ground around the world
•It costs as little as $3 to make a mine but can cost $1,000 each to remove them
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The land mine treaty
• In 1997 people started a petition to have them banned
• Now most countries have agreed not to make or use
them
– 156 countries have signed the treaty
– 42 million landmines destroyed
– The trade in mines has ended
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The United Nations
By CSPE.tv
CSPE.tv