Missed opportunities from Hitler's invasion of Poland to the failure of giving the UN sufficient power to globally enforce the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

 

15:  1939 Hitler invasion of Poland and the first use of Nuclear Weapons.   The Nazi invasion marked the beginning of World War II. Several key conditions and factors led to this event.  First were the harsh terms imposed on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles after World War I.  It created a sense of resentment and economic hardship with most Germans who viewed the treaty as unjust and wanted to reverse its effects.  These hardships led to Hitler’s leadership role and his expansionist ambitions to create "Lebensraum" (living space) for the German people.  His remilitarization of Germany violated the treaty but there was no international system in place with the means to stop it.  And Chamberlin’s “peace at any price” led to another world war, genocide, and ultimately the use of nuclear weapons.

The invasion of Poland marked a critical turning point in history leading to the second portioning of the world into competing ranks that would ultimately lead to the Cold War and the global threat of nuclear Armageddon. 

US leadership was missing at the Treaty of Versailles.  This could have prevented Hitler’s rise to power and the possibility of creating a peaceful European Union after the horrors of World War I.   But after WW II too many Americans were fearful of communism and a ‘one world government’ so logical efforts to prevent another war were soundly thwarted leading to a prolonged Cold War which led to the GWOT.

 

14.  1945 The Anatomy of Peace book by Emery Reves was first published.  This book expressed the world federalist sentiments shared by Albert Einstein and many others in the period immediately following World War II.  Reves argued that world law was the only way to prevent war, and the fledgling United Nations Security Council would be inadequate to preserve peace because it was an instrument of power, rather than an instrument of law.  The UN Charter continues to put the protection of national sovereignty above the protection of human rights and the environment.  “I have read THE ANATOMY OF PEACE with the greatest admiration. Your book is, in my opinion, the answer to the present political problems of the world, so drastically precipitated by the release of atomic energy... It would be most desirable if every political and scientific leader in every country would take a little time to read this book. If this could be brought about, I feel it might avert the disaster of an atomic world war.”—Letter from Albert Einstein to Emery Reves dated October 29, 1945.  

 

13:  1945 Oct 24th - Creation of the United Nations:  The original intent of the UN was to establish an international organization that could promote peace, security, cooperation, and diplomacy among nations after the devastating events of World War II.

Its founders sought to prevent future conflicts and address global challenges through a multilateral framework. It was officially established on October 24, 1945, when its charter was ratified.

 

The Charter’s primary objectives included:

1.  Maintaining International Peace and Security:  But its system of international law and its structures were insufficient to actually prevent conflicts or peacefully resolve all disputes among member states.  These were primarily blocked the non-democratic yet permanent members of the Security Council which did have the authority to take actions such as sanctions and peacekeeping missions to address threats to peace.   But these rarely agreed to and worked poorly when they were.   It faced significant challenges in stopping the Korean War.

 

2. Fostering cooperation among nations in various areas including economic development, social progress, human rights, and humanitarian assistance.  But it had no sustainable source of funds or capacity to achieve much success in any of these.

 

3. Protecting Human Rights: While the UN was committed to upholding and promoting human rights worldwide. It only had established bodies such as the Human Rights Council to monitor and address human rights violations.  Again, no resources or police power to do this. And no workable mandate.

 

4. Providing Humanitarian Aid.   The UN has effectively coordinated international humanitarian efforts to provide assistance to people affected by conflicts, natural disasters, and other crises. But this remains inconsistent and insufficient.  The global eradication of Smallpox may be the greatest accomplishment during its existence.  The eradication of Polio however demonstrates a failure of nation’s to abide by the UNs intentions.

 

5. Facilitating International Law but that is a joke given such ‘laws’ are no better than wishes.  A legitimate law would have a means ensuring justice and a means of enforcement and accountability when Laws were not followed.  Promoting “norms” and a “rules-based international order” simply doesn’t work.

 

6. Promoting Sustainable Development and the well-being of future generations may be central to the UN's mission but again, the lack of resources real power limits it solely to promotion of sustainability to agreeable partners.  

 

Over the years, the United Nations has played a role in diplomacy, conflict resolution, peacekeeping, and humanitarian efforts worldwide but rarely consistently succeeded.  Its primary bodies remain a global forum for organizing international cooperation and non-democratic/unenforceable decision-making.  The UN has made some contributions to global peace and development. But continues to face serious challenges and justifiable criticism. But critics fail to realize that its effectiveness depends entirely on the cooperation and commitment of its member states.  And until “We the people” of the world insist that our governments (all governments) put the protection of human rights and the environment above the protection of national sovereignty (which is the current UN system) it will not be able to ensure the maximum balance of protecting humanities freedoms to thrive and security to survive.

 

12. Creation and Enforcement of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights:  The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a landmark document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on December 10, 1948.  It’s 75^th anniversary is this year.  Its creation and adoption were influenced by various historical events and factors:

Most importantly the Post-World War II context of global war, genocide and the creation of nuclear weapons. 

The horrific aftermath of World War II highlighted the need for a comprehensive framework to protect fundamental human rights and underscored the urgency of addressing these issues on a global scale.

 

Individuals and diplomats from different countries played pivotal roles in drafting the UDHR. Notable figures included former U.S. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, who chaired the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, and René Cassin, a French lawyer and diplomat.  The drafting process involved representatives from various countries and legal traditions. The drafters drew inspiration from previous declarations and documents, including the U.S. Bill of Rights, the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, and the Atlantic Charter.

Its drafting was followed by an extensive debate then negotiations among the member states of the UN. Disagreements and compromises were common, particularly regarding economic and social rights versus civil and political rights.

Its finally adoption was on December 10, 1948 by the United Nations General Assembly with 48 member states in favor and 8 abstentions. This date is now celebrated as Human Rights Day.

Importantly the UDHR consists of 30 articles that affirm a broad range of human rights, including the right to life, liberty, and security; freedom from torture and slavery; freedom of thought, expression, and religion; and the right to education and work.

But its global impact has been minimal other than the development of international human rights laws that are virtually unenforceable if those involved don’t allow it.  International treaties are often ignored. Regional human rights conventions are powerless.  And national constitutions rarely adopt its idyllic human rights principles. 

While the UDHR represents a significant milestone in the history of human rights by emphasizing the universality and indivisibility of human rights, it remains simply a guiding document for the promotion of human rights worldwide. Simply because the UN was never engineered to enforce the protection of human rights or the environment.  It was only designed to protect national sovereignty.

National sovereignty is effectively defined as the right of any nation, to do whatever it wants, whenever it wants, to whomever it wants, within its own borders.  And, if it has nuclear weapons or believes it has a powerful enough military it can do crazy things within other nation’s borders.

While advances in technology are making it easier to monitor and verify violations of human rights and environmental treaties.  The same technologies are making it harder to track weapons development and resources for war, corruption, or misinformation.

And all humanity can rely on is the enforcement of human rights through diplomatic pressure, public awareness campaigns, and occasionally legal mechanisms with varying degrees of success in different regions and cases.

 

If the UN had been empowered to enforce the UDHR in 1948 within each nation the world would look significantly different today.  Some potential outcomes and changes that could have included:

1.  Stronger mechanisms in place to protect rights including freedom of speech, religion, and assembly, as well as protections against discrimination and torture.

2.  Reduced conflicts and civil wars, as oppression and human rights abuses often serve as catalysts for unrest.

3. Increased global cooperation on a range of global issues including the eradication of polio and measles, the effective outlawing of landmines, reduced motivation for violent extremism, improved environmental quality in air, water, and soil, prevention of some pandemics with better capacity to identify exactly how and where they emerge...given advanced warning and means of stopping it or slowing it down so efforts to develop counter measures would be more likely be found. 

4. Advancements in gender equality as nations would be compelled to eliminate discriminatory laws and practices that hinder women's rights.

5. Improved Labor Rights including fair wages and safe working conditions more consistently protected globally, reducing exploitation and inequality.

6. A stronger focus on freedom of the press and expression may have led to greater transparency and accountability in governments worldwide and reducing corruption and flawed elections.

7. Minority rights might be better safeguarded, reducing ethnic and religious tensions in many regions or preventing genocides.

8.  There may have been more robust international cooperation in providing refuge and asylum to those fleeing persecution, conflict, or natural disasters.

9. Perhaps most importantly extending human rights to include the right to a healthy environment and protection natural resources.

10.  Prevention of weapon systems in space and more time to find solutions to massive change coming from the application of Artificial intelligence by a species that lacks the commitment to abide by wisdom instead of short term interests.

Essentially there would be a global commitment to principles of universal human rights that transcends political and cultural differences representing a profound departure from the current suicidal international system.