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By Angel Guerra Cabrera

September 22, 2005

Original Article (Spanish)

President Bush Clearly Enjoyed Visiting the Security Council.

As was to be expected, the Summit for the 60^th Anniversary of the United Nations was a grotesque farce that failed to act to alleviate even the most pressing problems of humanity. The writing of the Summit's Final Statement was kidnapped and altered at will by the hegemonic superpower, with the complicity of its allies and partners. The arrogance of the Everlasting Vacationer's [Bush's] government is directly proportional to the magnitude of the political crisis he faces, both for the resounding failure of the Iraq invasion and the insensitivity and apathy he displayed before and after the passage of Katrina. In order to evade the uncomfortable voting process, the kidnappers imperiously declared without consulting most of the delegations, that a consensus had been reached on the document.

So crude was the procedure that no one has contradicted the assertion of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez that a number of his colleagues had confided in him after approving the Statement, that they knew nothing of its contents.  Earlier we read the excellent report from correspondent David Brooks in La Jornada, which gave an account of the many delegations - in the corridors - praising a meeting held by Venezuela and Cuba that denounced the crude maneuvering surrounding the approval of the Final Statement.

President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela: The Ultimate U.N. Crowd Pleaser

It was no accident that the participation of Chavez and Cuban legislative leader Ricardo Alarcon were applauded. The subjects that were of the highest-priority - United Nations reform and preparations for the Millennium Summit - were thrown in the waste basket. There was no serious discussion of eliminating the undemocratic veto rights of the permanent members of the Security Council or the transferal of greater authority to the General Assembly.

Neither was there discussion on the aggressions in Afghanistan and Iraq. Nor on underdevelopment, the increasing inequality of economic relations and international politics, hunger, poverty, disease, the earth's atmosphere, democracy, human rights, equality in general, the end of arsenals and nuclear testing, rule by the people and world peace. Just the opposite. In fact the main topic of Bush II's speech came in the form of a practical joke, calling for a battle against terrorism and defending "free trade." Or the new imperialistic tall tale of the "right to protection," which seeks to legalize armed "humanitarian" interventions by the oligarchic Security Council.

Condi Rice and John 'Slap-in-the-Face' Bolton Look on as President Bush Votes at the Security Council, September 17.

A clear signal of the slap-in-the-face Washington was preparing against the United Nations was the designation of John Bolton as its U.N. representative, an official that causes widespread consternation over his arrogant, immoral, provocative conduct, even among legislators of the Republican Party.

The U.N. arose out of a combination of forces after World War II, more favorable to the people and the cause of justice than its predecessor [The League of Nations], shown by its implemention of the process of decolonization. The irreplaceable role played by the USSR in the defeat of Nazism forced the United States and Great Britain, the other victors of the conflict, to recognize each other as equals. In spite of the terrible mistakes that took place during the Soviet experiment, it cannot be denied that people around the world received its support when fighting for liberation, and that its mere existence constituted a retaining wall against expansionism and imperialistic bellicosity.

President Putin Defends the U.N.'s Legacy

This, naturally, was reflected in the U.N. and it is not as though the organization has been a vestal all that time. It allowed the allies bloody armed interventions in Korea, the Congo and Vietnam, to name only three examples. In exchange, invasions by Moscow within the sphere of influence awarded to it at Yalta were tolerated. But until it disappeared, the USSR operated as the great equalizer of international relations. Since that time, the world has passed from bipolarity to the unipolarity of an extremely aggressive power, which in little more than a decade has extended over the planet, in the name of democracy, a regime of exploitation more savage than anyone has witnessed. Day after day, the rights and freedoms of workers, conquered over more than a century of struggle, are being eliminated.

Today more than ever, a reformed and democratic U.N. will come only as the fruit of the struggle of the world's people against imperialism, and for the right to decide their own destiny, united in action with the governments of the third world who decide to accompany them.