What are the functions of the main organs of the united nations?

Question

What are the functions of the main organs of the united nations?

Answer 1

The United Nations system is based on five principle organs [17]: (1) UN General Assembly, (2) UN Security Council, (3) UN Economic and Social Council, (4) UN Secretariat, and (5) International Court of Justice.

UN General Assembly



UN General Assembly.

Interior of the Security Council chambers.The UN General Assembly is the main deliberative organ of the United Nations. It is made up of all United Nations member states and meets in regular yearly sessions. As the only UN organ in which all members are represented, the assembly serves as a forum for members to discuss issues of international law and to make decisions regarding the functioning of the organization.

UN Security Council

Main article: United Nations Security Council

Further information: Reform of the United Nations Security Council

The UN Security Council is charged with maintaining peace and security among nations. While other organs of the United Nations only make recommendations to member governments, the Security Council has the power to make decisions that member governments must carry out under the United Nations Charter. The decisions of the Council are known as United Nations Security Council Resolutions.

The Security Council is made up of 15 member states, consisting of five permanent seats and ten temporary seats. The permanent five are China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States. These members hold veto power over substantive but not procedural resolutions allowing a permanent member to block adoption but not debate of a resolution unacceptable to it. The ten temporary seats are held for two-year terms with member states voted in by the UN General Assembly on a regional basis. The presidency of the Security Council is rotated alphabetically each month.

The Security council has been criticized for being unable to act in a clear and decisive way when confronted with a crisis. Recent examples include the Iranian nuclear program[citation needed] and the genocide in Darfur, Sudan[citation needed]. The veto power of the five permanent members has been cited as the cause of this problem. The makeup of the security council dates back to the end of World War II, and this division of powers no longer represents the state of the world. Critics question the effectiveness and relevance of the Security Council because enforcement relies on the member nations and there usually are no consequences for violating a Security Council resolution.[citation needed]

International Court of Justice



Peace Palace, seat of the ICJ. The Hague, NetherlandsThe International Court of Justice (ICJ), located in The Hague, Netherlands, is the main court of the UN. Its purpose is to adjudicate disputes among states. The ICJ was created in 1946 and continues to hear cases.

Notable events/cases include:

Congo vs. France, where the Democratic Republic of Congo accused France of illegally detaining former heads of state accused of war crimes

Nicaragua vs. United States, where Nicaragua accused the United States of illegally arming the Contras (this case led to the Iran-Contra affair).

In 1993, in response to "ethnic cleansing" in the former Yugoslavia, the UN Security Council established the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. In 1994, in response to the Rwandan genocide, the council established the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. The jurisprudence of these two courts established the current understanding of rape committed in furtherance of an armed conflict as a war crime.[18]

In 1998, the General Assembly called a conference in Rome to establish an International Criminal Court (ICC), where it adopted the "Rome Statute". The ICC became operational in 2002 and began its first case in 2006.[19] It is the first permanent international court charged with trying those who commit the most serious crimes under international law including war crimes and genocide. The ICC is functionally independent of the UN in terms of personnel and financing, but some meetings of the ICC governing body, the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute, are held at the UN. There is a "relationship agreement" between the ICC and the UN that governs how the two institutions regard each other legally.

Answer 2

The United Nations is based on five principal organs:

The UN General Assembly (serves as a forum for members to discuss issues of international law and to make decisions regarding the functioning of the organization); the UN Security Council (serves to maintain peace and security around the globe through a series of resolutions); the UN Economic and Social Council (assists the General Assembly in promoting international economic and social cooperation and development); the UN Secretariat (provides studies, information, and facilities needed by United Nations organizations to carry out their duties); and the International Court of Justice (probably one of the least effective organs of the UN, it theoretically provides a mechanism to settle international legal disputes and to give advisory opinions on legal questions submitted to it by duly authorized international organs and agencies).

http://www.un.org/aboutun/mainbodies.htm

Answer 3

The United Nations functions in 6 main organs or bodies. The first five are,

a) The General Assembly,

b) The Security Council,

c) The Economic and Social Council,

d) The Trusteeship Council and

e) The Secretariat.

All the above organisation's are  located in New York City.

The sixth main body is the International Court of Justice, which is located in The Hague.

The General Assembly functions as a parliament. All UN members participate.It is the UN's central deliberative body, empowered to discuss and make recommendations on any subject falling within the scope of the charter itself. It also approves the UN's budget and determines—alone or with the Security Council—part of the composition of the other main organs, including the Security Council.

The Security Council deals with security issues. There are 5 permanent members and 10 rotating members. The permanent members are Russia, the United States, China, France and the United Kingdom.It has primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security. In times of crisis, it is empowered to act on behalf of all member states and to decide on a course of collective action that is mandatory for the entire membership.

The Economic and Social Council handles economic and social issues. There are 54 members. It is assigned the task of organizing the UN's work on economic and social matters and the promotion of human rights. It consists of 54 members elected for overlapping three-year terms by the General Assembly.

The Trusteeship Council is currently inactive. Formerly, it oversaw trusteeship territories operated the UN trusteeship system established under the charter. It was originally composed of member nations administering trust territories, the permanent members of the Security Council, and a sufficient number of other members, elected by the General Assembly for three-year terms, to ensure an equal division of administering and nonadministering powers. After 1975, it was composed of the five permanent members of the Security Council—the United States, the sole remaining administering power, and the four permanent nonadministering powers. The last trust territory, the Pacific island of Palau, voted for affiliation with the United States in late 1993. The Trusteeship Council voted in 1994 to suspend operation, convening only at the request of its President, a majority of its member states, the General Assembly, or the Security Council.

The Secretariat deals with the administrative workings of the UN and includes the office of the Secretary Generalis the administrative arm of the organization. It is headed by a Secretary-General appointed by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council for a five-year, renewable term.

The International Court of Justice (also known as the World Court) sits in The Hague in the Netherlands. Its documentation system is distinct from that of the first five main organs.It is the principal judicial organ of the UN. It consists of 15 judges elected to nine-year terms by the General Assembly and the Security Council voting independently. It may not include more than one judge of any nationality. The Members of the Court do not represent their governments but are independent magistrates.

Each main organ of the UN publishes its own documents and publication methods can vary. Furthermore, there are many subsidiary organizations within the UN, which publish their own documents. Subsidiary organizations are located throughout the world, many in Geneva.

Hope, this would have given you a brief and informative idea about the main organs of the UN. Please, refer the below links for a more in depth view.