The UN Lie: Between Slogans and Reality

The United Nations is presented to the world as the paramount global institution defending peace, security, human rights, and sustainable development. Its emblem carries the hopes of nations, and its documents are full of lofty principles that promise a more just world!

However, the reality, across decades of experience, reveals a deep chasm between rhetoric and practice. This has led many to describe it as the "great lie," hiding behind a cloak of humanitarianism while serving only the interests of the powerful.

The Security Council: Justice for the Victors

American political thinker Noam Chomsky says, "The real failure of the Security Council lies in its being a tool in the hands of the powerful few, not a global conscience as it is supposed to be."

The UN Security Council is the clearest example of a lack of justice within the organization. The veto power, held by only five countries (America, Russia, China, Britain, and France), strips the principle of equality among nations of its meaning.

How many times have resolutions to save peoples from occupation or oppression been aborted because the American veto stood against them, as in the Palestinian issue or the Zionist invasion of Lebanon and the Gaza Strip? Is this justice, or the imposition of the will of the powerful?

Double Standards

Former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said: "International law is sometimes used as a weapon, not as a balance of justice!"

When it comes to countries allied with major powers, the UN turns a blind eye to violations. In contrast, the organization's mechanisms, such as sanctions or investigations, are used against countries that deviate from the Western line. We see this clearly in the handling of wars in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen, or even the aggression against Gaza. Those who possess power write the laws, and those who don't are prosecuted for violating them.

Failure to Prevent Genocides

The commander of UN forces in Rwanda, Romeo Dallaire, said: "The United Nations did not lack information... it lacked will."

Despite early warning and disaster prevention mechanisms, the UN failed in Rwanda (1994), where over 800,000 people were killed within weeks. It also stood helpless before the massacres in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the tragedy in Myanmar, the civil war in Sudan, and most recently, the Zionist genocide in Gaza. In many cases, the organization knew what was happening but chose silence or issued weak statements.

Human Rights Slogans: A Selective Tool

Former Human Rights Watch Executive Director Kenneth Roth says, "The international human rights system has become conditional on the desires of the great powers, not on the values of justice."

The UN adopts resounding rhetoric about human rights, but it ignores the issues of forgotten peoples. Why don't we hear its voice when opponents are suppressed in countries allied with the West? Why are peoples under occupation absent from active discussions? It seems that rights are granted according to a map of interests, not according to human dignity.

Manufacturing Incapacity: Resolutions Without Implementation

Palestinian-American thinker Edward Said said: "The United Nations is good at issuing resolutions, but it lacks the courage to implement them if they conflict with the interests of the powerful."

The UN has issued hundreds of resolutions concerning Palestine, but none with real impact have been implemented. For example, Resolutions 242 and 338 regarding the Zionist withdrawal from the occupied Palestinian territories, or the resolution on the right of return for Palestinian refugees, all remained "ink on paper". What is the value of resolutions if they are not applied?

Reform or Dismantling?

Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said: "If the United Nations is unable to reform itself, it may lose all legitimacy in the eyes of the world's peoples."

Is the United Nations a lie? Perhaps not in the literal sense, but it is certainly a major disappointment. Undoubtedly, there are dedicated staff and institutions within the organization, but the overall system is subject to the dominance of major powers. What is needed is not to embellish the discourse, but radical reform that restores the institution's true role as a guardian of justice, not as a political tool with humanitarian masks.