The 81st session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA 81) took place amid rising global tensions, with leaders of the Global South highlighting the inequities in the global governance system. Brazilian President Lula, who opened the session, criticized the obsolete UN Security Council (UNSC), citing its unjust privilege of veto power for the five permanent members - the UK, France, the US, China, and Russia. Lula emphasized that the UNSC requires urgent overhaul, with no justification for Latin America and Africa having no permanent seat.
Outgoing UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres lamented the unequal playing field in the global forum, where all nations are legally equal before international law, but in practice, the opposite is true. He identified three major drivers of unsustainability: a world of impunity, inequality, and uncertainty. Guterres stated that these worlds are connected and colliding, with the level of impunity being politically indefensible and morally intolerable. He pointed out that some countries feel they can trample international law and violate the UN Charter with impunity.
President Cyril Ramaphosa, addressing UNGA 81 via a pre-recorded message, added to Guterres and Lula's standpoints, emphasizing that as long as poverty, injustice, and gross inequality persist, none of us can truly rest. Turkish President Recep Erdogan called on the international community to intervene in the ongoing situation in Palestine, which Israel continues to perpetuate despite calls by the International Court of Justice and the Majority World to stop.
The international community's inability to act against Israel was attributed to its protection from the US, which has veto power in the UNSC. This has shielded Israel against dozens of attempts to rein in the rogue state. Syrian new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa made an impassioned plea to UNGA 81 to stop Israel's ceaseless bombardment and violation of Syria's territorial integrity.
The rise of unilateralism is responsible for the massive deficit in the credibility of the UN system, with Western nations notorious for paying lip service to equality before international law. The West has invested hundreds of billions of dollars in Ukraine, but not in Africa, Latin America, and Asian nations they had previously colonized. This double-standard has contributed to the Global South's frustration with the UN system.
Western nations in the UN hardly ever support calls for UN reforms, as the UN system was established when most Global South nations were colonies of the West. This skewed arrangement continues to benefit the West. As the Majority World appeals for UN reforms, the West turns away, their indifference and collective silence loud and clear.
With Guterres leaving the UN at the end of this year, the question for the Majority World is: where to now? The Global South needs to grow its own structures, such as BRICS, which offers a chance to ignore Western-dominated institutions. Growing truly indigenous Global South structures could offer a "get-out-of-jail" card amidst growing unilateralism.
Key points
- The 81st session of the UN General Assembly highlighted the frustrations of the Global South with the UN system, particularly the obsolete UN Security Council and its unjust veto power structure.
- Leaders of the Global South, including Brazilian President Lula and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, called for reforms to address the inequities in the global governance system.
- The Global South is exploring alternative structures, such as BRICS, to reduce its dependence on Western-dominated institutions and promote a more equitable global order.
