History of United Nations Charter
The United
Nations Charter is the treaty that established the United Nations.
The
following series of events led to the writing of the Charter, and the UN's
founding.
12 June
1941 - The Declaration of St. James's Palace
In June
1941, London was the home of nine exiled governments. The great British capital
had already seen twenty-two months of war and in the bomb-marked city, air-raid
sirens wailed all too frequently. Practically all Europe had fallen to the Axis
and ships on the Atlantic, carrying vital supplies, sank with grim regularity.
But in London itself and among the Allied governments and peoples, faith in
ultimate victory remained unshaken. And, even more, people were looking beyond
military victory to the postwar future.
14 August
1941 - The Atlantic Charter
Two months
after the London Declaration came the next step to a world organization, the
result of a dramatic meeting between President Roosevelt and Prime Minister
Churchill.
1 January
1942 - The Declaration of the United Nations
Representatives
of 26 countries fighting the Rome-Berlin-Tokyo Axis, decide to support the by
Signing the Declaration of the United Nations.
1943 -
Moscow and Teheran Conference
Thus by
1943 all the principal Allied nations were committed to outright victory and,
thereafter, to an attempt to create a world in which “men in all lands may live
out their lives in freedom from fear and want.” But the basis for a world
organization had yet to be defined, and such a definition came at the meeting
of the Foreign Ministers of Great Britain, the United States and the Soviet
Union in October 1943.
1944-1945
- Dumbarton Oaks and Yalta
The
principles of the world organization-to-be were thus laid down. But it is a
long step from defining the principles and purpose of such a body to setting up
the structure. A blueprint had to be prepared, and it had to be accepted by
many nations.
1945 - San
Francisco Conference
Forty-five
nations, including the four sponsors, were originally invited to the San
Francisco Conference: nations which had declared war on Germany and Japan and
had subscribed to the United Nations Declaration.
The United Nations Charter
CHARTER
OF THE UNITED NATIONS
WE THE PEOPLES OF THE UNITED NATIONS
DETERMINED to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice
in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind, and to reaffirm faith in
fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the
equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, and to establish
conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from
treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained, and to
promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,
AND FOR THESE ENDS to practice
tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours, and
to unite our strength to maintain international peace and security, and to
ensure, by the acceptance of principles and the institution of methods, that
armed force shall not be used, save in the common interest, and to employ
international machinery for the promotion of the economic and social advancement
of all peoples,
HAVE RESOLVED TO COMBINE OUR EFFORTS
TO ACCOMPLISH THESE AIMS
Accordingly, our respective
Governments, through representatives assembled in the city of San Francisco,
who have exhibited their full powers found to be in good and due form, have
agreed to the present Charter of the United Nations and do hereby establish an
international organization to be known as the United Nations.
CHAPTER I
PURPOSES AND PRINCIPLES
Article
1
The
Purposes of the United Nations are:
1. To maintain international peace and
security, and to that end: to take effective collective measures for the
prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the suppression of acts
of aggression or other breaches of the peace, and to bring about by peaceful means,
and in conformity with the principles of justice and international law,
adjustment or settlement of international disputes or situations which might
lead to a breach of the peace;
2. To develop friendly relations among
nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and
self-determination of peoples, and to take other appropriate measures to
strengthen universal peace;
3. To achieve international
co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social,
cultural, or humanitarian character, and in promoting and encouraging respect
for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to
race, sex, language, or religion; and
4. To be a centre for harmonizing the
actions of nations in the attainment of these common ends.
Article 2
The Organization and its Members, in
pursuit of the Purposes stated in Article 1, shall act in accordance with the
following Principles.
1. The Organization is based on the
principle of the sovereign equality of all its Members.
2. All Members, in order to ensure to
a of them the rights and benefits resulting from membership, shall fulfill in
good faith the obligations assumed by them in accordance with the present
Charter.
3. All Members shall settle their
international disputes by peaceful means in such a manner that international
peace and security, and. justice, are not endangered.
4. All Members shall refrain in their
international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial
integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner
inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations.
5. All Members shall give the United
Nations every assistance in any action it takes in accordance with the present
Charter, and shall refrain from giving assistance to any state against which
the United Nations is taking preventive or enforcement action.
6. The Organization shall ensure that
states which are not Members of the United Nations act in accordance with these
Principles so far as may be necessary for the maintenance of international
peace and security.
7. Nothing contained in the present
Charter shall authorize the United Nations to intervene in matters which are
essentially within the domestic jurisdiction of any state or shall require the
Members to submit such matters to settlement under the present Charter; but
this principle shall not prejudice the application of enforcement measures
under Chapter VII.
CHAPTER II
MEMBERSHIP
Article 3
The original Members of the United
Nations shall be the states which, having participated in the United Nations
Conference on International Organization at San Francisco, or having previously
signed the Declaration by United Nations of 1 January 1942, sign the present
Charter and ratify it in accordance with Article 110.
Article 4
1. Membership in the United Nations is
open to a other peace-loving states which accept the obligations contained in
the present Charter and, in the judgment of the Organization, are able and
willing to carry out these obligations.
2. The admission of any such state to
membership in the Nations will be effected by a decision of the General
Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council.
Article 5
A Member of the United Nations against
which preventive or enforcement action has been taken by the Security Council
may be suspended from the exercise of the rights and privileges of membership
by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council. The
exercise of these rights and privileges may be restored by the Security
Council.
Article 6
A Member of the United Nations which
has persistently violated the Principles contained in the present Charter may
be' expelled from the Organization by the General Assembly upon the
recommendation of the Security Council.
CHAPTER III
ORGANS
Article 7
1. There are established as the
principal organs of the United Nations: a General Assembly, a Security Council,
an Economic and Social Council, a Trusteeship Council, an International Court
of Justice, and a Secretariat.
2. Such subsidiary organs as may be
found necessary may be established in accordance with the present Charter.
Article 8
The United Nations shall place no
restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity
and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs.
CHAPTER IV
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Composition
Article 9
1. The General Assembly shall consist
of all the Members of the United Nations.
2. Each Member shall have not more
than five representatives in the General Assembly.
Functions and Powers
Article 10
The General Assembly may discuss any
questions or any matters within the scope of the present Charter or relating to
the powers and functions of any organs provided for in the present Charter,
and, except as provided in Article 12, may make recommendations to the Members
of the United Nations or to the Security Council or to both on any such
questions or matters.
Article 11
1. The General Assembly may consider
the general principles of co-operation in the maintenance of international
peace and security, including the principles governing disarmament and the
regulation of armaments, and may make recommendations with regard to such
principles to the Members or to the Security Council or to both.
2. The General Assembly may discuss
any questions relating to the maintenance of inter- national peace and security
brought before it by any Member of the United Nations, or by the Security
Council, or by a state which is not a Member of the United Nations in
accordance with Article 35, paragraph 2, and, except as
provided in Article 12, may make recommendations with
regard to any such questions to the state or states concerned or to the
Security Council or to both. Any such question on which action is necessary
shall be referred to the Security Council by the General Assembly either before
or after discussion.
3. The General Assembly may call the
attention of the Security Council to situations which are likely to endanger
international peace and security.
4. The powers of the General Assembly
set forth in this Article shall not limit the general scope of Article
10.
Article 12
1. While the Security Council is
exercising in respect of any dispute or situation the functions assigned to it
in the present Charter, the General Assembly shall not make any recommendation
with regard to that dispute or situation unless the Security Council so
requests.
2. The Secretary-General, with the
consent of the Security Council, shall notify the General Assembly at each
session of any matters relative to the maintenance of international peace and
security which are being dealt with by the Security Council and similarly
notify the General Assembly, or the Members of the United Nations if the
General Assembly is not in session, immediately the Security Council ceases to deal
with such matters.
Article 13
1. The General Assembly shall initiate
studies and make recommendations for the purpose of:
a. promoting international co-operation in
the political field and encouraging the progressive development of
international law and its codification;
b. promoting international co-operation in
the economic, social, cultural, educational, and health fields, an assisting in
the realization of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without
distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion.
2. The further responsibilities,
functions and powers of the General with respect to matters mentioned in
paragraph ) above are set forth in Chapters IX and X.
Article 14
Subject to the provisions of Article 12, the General Assembly may recommend measures for
the peaceful adjustment of any situation, regardless of origin, which it deems
likely to impair the general welfare or friendly relations among nations,
including situations resulting from a violation of the provisions of the
present Charter setting forth the Purposes and Principles of the United
Nations.
Article 15
1. The General Assembly shall receive
and consider annual and special reports from the Security Council; these
reports shall include an account of the measures that the Security Council has
decided upon or taken to main- tain international peace and security.
2. The General Assembly shall receive
and consider reports from the other organs of the United Nations.
Article 16
The General Assembly shall perform
such functions with respect to the international trusteeship system as are
assigned to it under Chapters XII and XIII,
including the approval of the trusteeship agreements for areas not designated
as strategic.
Article 17
1. The Genera Assembly shall consider
and approve the budget of the Organization.
2. The expenses of the Organization
shall be borne by the Members as apportioned by the General Assembly.
3. The Assembly shall consider and
approve any financial and budgetary arrangements with specialize agencies
referred to in Article 57 and shall examine the
administrative budgets of such specialized agencies with a view to making
recommendations to the agencies concerned.
Voting
Article 18
1. Each member of the General Assembly
shall have one vote.
2. Decisions of the General Assembly
on important questions shall be made by a two- thirds majority of the members
present and voting. These questions shall include: recommendations with respect
to the maintenance of international peace and security, the election of the
non-permanent members of the Security Council, the election of the members of
the Economic and Social Council, the election of members of the Trusteeship
Council in accordance with paragraph 1 of Article 86, the admission of new
Members to the United Nations, the suspension of the rights and privileges of
membership, the expulsion of Members, questions relating to the operation of
the trusteeship system, and budgetary questions.
3. Decisions on other questions,
including the determination of additional categories of questions to be decided
by a two-thirds majority, shall be made by a majority of the members present
and voting.
Article 19
A Member of the United Nations which
is in arrears in the payment of its financial contributions to the Organization
shall have no vote in the General Assembly if the amount of its arrears equals
or exceeds the amount of the contributions due from it for the preceding two
full years. The General Assembly may, nevertheless, permit such a Member to
vote if it is satisfied that the failure to pay is due to conditions beyond the
of the Member.
Procedure
Article 20
The General Assembly shall meet in
regular annual sessions and in such special sessions as occasion may require.
Special sessions shall be convoked by the Secretary-General at the request of
the Security Council or of a majority of the Members of the United Nations.
Article 21
The General Assembly shall adopt its
own rules of procedure. It shall elect its President for each session.
Article 22
The General Assembly may establish
such subsidiary organs as it deems necessary for the performance of its
functions.
CHAPTER V
THE SECURITY COUNCIL
Composition
Article 23
1. The Security Council shall consist
of fifteen Members of the United Nations. The Republic of China, France, the
Union of Soviet Socialist , the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
Ireland, and the United States of America shall be permanent members of the
Security Council. The General Assembly shall elect ten other Members of the
United Nations to be non-permanent members of the Security Council, due regard
being specially paid, in the first in- stance to the contribution of Members of
the United Nations to the maintenance of inter- national peace and security and
to the other purposes of the Organization, and also to equitable geographical
distribution.
2. The non-permanent members of the
Security Council shall be elected for a term of two years. In the first
election of the non- permanent members after the increase of the membership of
the Security Council from eleven to fifteen, two of the four additional members
shall be chosen for a term of one year. A retiring member shall not be eligible
for immediate re-election.
3. Each member of the Security Council
shall have one representative.
Functions and Powers
Article 24
1. In order to ensure prompt and
effective action by the United Nations, its Members confer on the Security
Council primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and
security, and agree that in carrying out its duties under this responsibility
the Security Council acts on their behalf.
2. In discharging these duties the
Security Council shall act in accordance with the Purposes and Principles of
the United Nations. The specific powers granted to the Security Council for the
discharge of these duties are laid down in Chapters VI, VII, VIII, and XII.
3. The Security Council shall submit
annual and, when necessary, special reports to the General Assembly for its
consideration.
Article 25
The Members of the United Nations
agree to accept and carry out the decisions of the Security Council in
accordance with the present Charter.
Article 26
In order to promote the establishment
and maintenance of international peace and security with the least diversion
for armaments of the world's human and economic resources, the Security Council
shall be responsible for formulating, with the assistance of the Military Staff
Committee referred to in Article 47, plans to be submitted
to the Members of the United-Nations for the establishment of a system for the
regulation of armaments.
Voting
Article 27
1. Each member of the Security Council
shall have one vote.
2. Decisions of the Security Council
on procedural matters shall be made by an affirmative vote of nine members.
3. Decisions of the Security Council
on all other matters shall be made by an affirmative vote of nine members
including the concurring votes of the permanent members; provided that, in
decisions under Chapter VI, and under paragraph 3 of Article 52, a party to a dispute shall abstain from voting.
Procedure
Article 28
1. The Security Council shall be so
organized as to be able to function continuously. Each member of the Security
Council shall for this purpose be represented at times at the seat of the
Organization.
2. The Security Council shall hold
meetings at which each of its members may, if it so desires, be represented by
a member of the government or by some other specially designated
representative.
3. The Security Council may hold
meetings at such places other than the seat of the Organization as in its
judgment will best facilitate its work.
Article 29
The Security Council may establish
such subsidiary organs as it deems necessary for the performance of its
functions.
Article 30
The Security Council shall adopt its
own rules of procedure, including the method of selecting its President.
Article 31
Any Member of the United Nations which
is not a member of the Security Council may participate, without vote, in the
discussion of any question brought before the Security Council whenever the
latter considers that the interests of that Member are specially affected.
Article 32
Any Member of the United Nations which
is not a member of the Security Council or any state which is not a Member of
the United Nations, if it is a party to a dispute under consideration by the
Security Council, shall be invited to participate, without vote, in the
discussion relating to the dispute. The Security Council shall any down such
conditions as it deems just for the participation of a state which is not a
Member of the United Nations.
CHAPTER VI
PACIFIC SETTLEMENT OF DISPUTES
Article 33
1. The parties to any dispute, the
continuance of which is likely to endanger the maintenance of international
peace and security, shall, first of a, seek a solution by negotiation, enquiry,
mediation, conciliation, arbitration, judicial settlement, resort to regional
agencies or arrangements, or other peaceful means of their own choice.
2. The Security Council shall, when it
deems necessary, call upon the parties to settle their dispute by such means.
Article 34
The Security Council may investigate
any dispute, or any situation which might lead to international friction or
give rise to a dispute, in order to determine whether the continuance of the
dispute or situation is likely to endanger the maintenance of international peace
and security.
Article 35
l. Any Member of the United Nations
may bring any dispute, or any situation of the nature referred to in Article 34, to the attention of the Security Council or of
the General Assembly.
2. A state which is not a Member of
the United Nations may bring to the attention of the Security Council or of the
General Assembly any dispute to which it is a party if it accepts in advance,
for the purposes of the dispute, the obligations of pacific settlement provided
in the present Charter.
3. The proceedings of the General
Assembly in respect of matters brought to its attention under this Article will
be subject to the provisions of Articles 11 and 12.
Article 36
1. The Security Council may, at any
stage of a dispute of the nature referred to in Article 33 or of a situation of
like nature, recommend appropriate procedures or methods of adjustment.
2. The Security Council should take
into consideration any procedures for the settlement of the dispute which have
already been adopted by the parties.
3. In making recommendations under
this Article the Security Council should also take into consideration that
legal disputes should as a general rule be referred by the parties to the
International Court of Justice in accordance with the provisions of the Statute
of the Court.
Article 37
1. Should the parties to a dispute of
the nature referred to in Article 33 fail to settle it by
the means indicated in that Article, they shall refer it to the Security
Council.
2. If the Security Council deems that
the continuance of the dispute is in fact likely to endanger the maintenance of
international peace and security, it shall decide whether to take action under
Article 36 or to recommend such terms of settlement as it may consider
appropriate.
Article 38
Without prejudice to the provisions of
Articles 33 to 37, the Security
Council may, if all the parties to any dispute so request, make recommendations
to the parties with a view to a pacific settlement of the dispute.
CHAPTER VII
ACTION WITH RESPECT TO THREATS TO THE PEACE,
BREACHES OF THE PEACE, AND ACTS OF AGGRESSION
Article 39
The Security Council shall determine
the existence of any threat to the peace, breach of the peace, or act of
aggression and shall make recommendations, or decide what measures shall be
taken in accordance with Articles 4 and 42,
to maintain or restore international peace and security.
Article 40
In order to prevent an aggravation of
the situation, the Security Council may, before making the recommendations or
deciding upon the measures provided for in Article 39,
call upon the parties concerned to comply with such provisional measures as it
deems necessary or desirable. Such provisional measures shall be without
prejudice to the rights, claims, or position of the parties concerned. The
Security Council shall duly take account of failure to comply with such
provisional measures.
Article 41
The Security Council may decide what
measures not involving the use of armed force are to be employed to give effect
to its decisions, and it may call upon the Members of the United Nations to
apply such measures. These may include complete or partial interruption of
economic relations and of rail, sea, air, postal, telegraphic, radio, and other
means of communication, and the severance of diplomatic relations.
Article 42
Should the Security Council consider
that measures provided for in Article 41 would be
inadequate or have proved to be inadequate, it may take such action by air,
sea, or land forces as may be necessary to maintain or restore international
peace and security. Such action may include demonstrations, blockade, and other
operations by air, sea, or land forces of Members of the United Nations.
Article 43
1. All Members of the United Nations,
in order to contribute to the maintenance of international peace and security,
undertake to make available to the Security Council, on its and in accordance
with a special agreement or agreements, armed forces, assistance, and
facilities, including rights of passage, necessary for the purpose of
maintaining international peace and security.
2. Such agreement or agreements shall
govern the numbers and types of forces, their degree of readiness and general
location, and the nature of the facilities and assistance to be provided.
3. The agreement or agreements shall
be negotiated as soon as possible on the initiative of the Security Council.
They shall be concluded between the Security Council and Members or between the
Security Council and groups of Members and shall be subject to ratification by
the signatory states in accordance with their respective constitutional
processes.
Article 44
When Security Council has decided to
use force it shall, before calling upon a Member not represented on it to
provide armed forces in fulfilment of the obligations assumed under Article 43,
invite that Member, if the Member so desires, to participate in the decisions
of the Security Council concerning the employment of contingents of that
Member's armed forces.
Article 45
In order to enable the Nations to take
urgent military measures, Members shall hold immediately available national
air-force contingents for combined international enforcement action. The
strength and degree of readiness of these contingents and plans for their
combined action shall be determined, within the limits laid down in the special
agreement or agreements referred to in Article 43, by the Security Council with
the assistance of the Military Committee.
Article 46
Plans for the application of armed
force shall be made by the Security Council with the assistance of the Military
Staff Committee.
Article 47
1. There shall be established a
Military Staff Committee to advise and assist the Security Council on questions
relating to the Security Council's military requirements for the maintenance of
international peace and security, the employment and command of forces placed
at its disposal, the regulation of armaments, and possible disarmament.
2. The Military Staff Committee
consist of the Chiefs of Staff of the permanent members of the Security Council
or their representatives. Any Member of the United Nations not permanently
represented on the Committee shall be invited by the Committee to be associated
with it when the efficient discharge of the Committee's responsibilities re-
quires the participation of that Member its work.
3. The Military Staff Committee be
responsible under the Security Council for the strategic direction of any armed
forces paced at the disposal of the Security Council. Questions relating to the
command of such forces shall be worked out subsequently.
4. The Military Staff Committee, with
the authorization of the security Council and after consultation with
appropriate regional agencies, may establish sub-commit- tees.
Article 48
1. The action required to carry out
the decisions of the Security Council for the maintenance of international
peace and security shall be taken by all the Members of the United Nations or
by some of them, as the Security Council may determine.
2. Such decisions shall be carried out
by the Members of the United Nations directly and through their action in the
appropriate international agencies of which they are members.
Article 49
The Members of the United Nations
shall join in affording mutual assistance in carrying out the measures decided
upon by the Security Council.
Article 50
If preventive or enforcement measures
against any state are taken by the Security Council, any other state, whether a
Member of the United Nations or not, which finds itself confronted with special
economic problems arising from the carrying out of those measures shall have
the right to consult the Security Council with regard to a solution of those
problems.
Article 51
Nothing in the present Charter shall
impair the inherent right of individual or collective self-defence if an armed
attack occurs against a Member of the United Nations, until the Security
Council has taken measures necessary to maintain international peace and
security. Measures taken by Members in the exercise of this right of
self-defence shall be immediately reported to the Security Council and shall
not in any way affect the authority and responsibility of the Security Council
under the present Charter to take at any time such action as it deems necessary
in order to maintain or restore international peace and security.
Chapter VIII
REGIONAL ARRANGEMENTS
Article 52
1. Nothing in the present Charter the
existence of regional arrangements or agencies for dealing with such matters relating
to the maintenance of international peace and security as are appropriate fur
regional action, provided that such arrangements or agencies and their
activities are consistent with the Purposes and Principles of the United
Nations.
2. The Members of the United Nations
entering into such arrangements or constituting such agencies shall make every
effort to achieve pacific settlement of local disputes through such regional
arrangements or by such regional agencies before referring them to the Security
Council.
3. The Security Council shall
encourage the development of pacific settlement of local disputes through such
regional arrangements or by such regional agencies either on the initiative of
the states concerned or by reference from the Security Council.
4. This Article in no way the
application of Articles 34 and 35.
Article 53
1. The Security Council shall, where
appropriate, utilize such regional arrangements or agencies for enforcement action
under its authority. But no enforcement action shall be taken under regional
arrangements or by regional agencies without the authorization of the Security
Council, with the exception of measures against any enemy state, as defined in
paragraph 2 of this Article, provided for pursuant to Article
107 or in regional arrangements directed against renewal of aggressive
policy on the part of any such state, until such time as the Organization may,
on request of the Governments concerned, be charged with the responsibility for
preventing further aggression by such a state.
2. The term enemy state as used in
para- graph 1 of this Article applies to any state which during the Second
World War has been an enemy of any signatory of the present Charter.
Article 54
The Security Council shall at all
times be kept fully informed of activities undertaken or in contemplation under
regional arrangements or by regional agencies for the maintenance of
international peace and security.
CHAPTER IX
INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL
CO-OPERATION
Article 55
With a view to the creation of
conditions of stability and well-being which are necessary for peaceful and
friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal
rights and self-determination of peoples, the United Nations shall promote:
a. higher standards of living, fu
employment, and conditions of economic and social progress and development;
b. solutions of international
economic, social, health, and related problems; and international cultural and
educational co- operation; and
c. universal respect for, and
observance of, human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without
distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion.
Article 56
All Members pledge themselves to take
joint and separate action in co-operation with the Organization for the
achievement of the purposes set forth in Article 55.
Article 57
1. The various specialized agencies,
established by intergovernmental agreement and having wide international
responsibilities, as defined in their basic instruments, in economic, social,
cultural, educational, health, and related fields, shall be brought into
relationship with the United Nations in accordance with the provisions of Article 63.
2. Such agencies thus brought into
relationship with the United Nations are hereinafter referred to as specialized
agencies.
Article 58
The Organization shall make
recommendations for the co-ordination of the policies and activities of the
specialized agencies.
Article 59
The Organization shall, where
appropriate, initiate negotiations among the states concerned for the creation
of any new specialized agencies required for the accomplishment of the purposes
set forth in Article 55.
Article 60
Responsibility for the discharge of
the functions of the Organization set forth in this Chapter shall be vested in
the General Assembly and, under the authority of the General Assembly, in the
Economic and Social Council, which shall have for this purpose the powers set
forth in Chapter X.
CHAPTER X
THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL
Composition
Article 61
1. The Economic and Social Council
shall consist of fifty-four Members of the United Nations elected by the
General Assembly.
2. Subject to the provisions of
paragraph 3, eighteen members of the Economic and Social Council shall be
elected each year for a term of three years. A retiring member shall be
eligible for immediate re-election.
3. At the first election after the
increase in the membership of the Economic and Social Council from twenty-seven
to fifty-four members, in addition to the members elected in place of the nine
members whose term of office expires at the end of that year, twenty-seven
additional members shall be elected. Of these twenty-seven additional members,
the term of office of nine members so elected shall expire at the end of one
year, and of nine other members at the end of two years, in accordance with arrangements
made by the General Assembly.
4. Each member of the Economic and
Social Council shall have one representative.
Functions and Powers
Article 62
1. The Economic and Social Council may
make or initiate studies and reports with respect to international economic,
social, cultural, educational, health, and related matters and may make
recommendations with respect to any such matters to the General Assembly, to
the Members of the United Nations, and to the specialized agencies concerned.
2. It may make recommendations for the
purpose of promoting respect for, and observance of, human rights and
fundamental freedoms for all.
3. It may prepare draft conventions
for submission to the General Assembly, with respect to matters falling within
its competence.
4. It may call, in accordance with the
rules prescribed by the United Nations, international conferences on matters
falling within its competence.
Article 63
1. The Economic and Social Council may
enter into agreements with any of the agencies referred to in Article
57, defining the terms on which the agency concerned shall be brought into
relationship with the United Nations. Such agreements shall be subject to
approval by the General Assembly.
2. It may co-ordinate the activities
of the specialized agencies through consultation with and recommendations to
such agencies and through recommendations to the General Assembly and to the
Members of the United Nations.
Article 64
1. The Economic and Social Council may
take appropriate steps to obtain regular re- ports from the specialized
agencies. may make arrangements with the Members of the United Nations and with
the specialized agencies to obtain reports on the steps taken to give effect to
its own recommendations and to recommendations on matters falling within its
competence made by the General Assembly.
2. It may communicate its observations
on these reports to the General Assembly.
Article 65
The Economic and Social Council may
furnish information to the Security Council and shall assist the Security
Council upon its request.
Article 66
1. The Economic and Social Council
shall perform such functions as fall within its competence in connexion with
the carrying out of the recommendations of the General Assembly.
2. It may, with the approval of the
General Assembly, perform services at the request of Members of the United
Nations and at the request of specialized agencies.
3. It shall perform such other
functions as are specified elsewhere in the present Charter or as may be
assigned to it by the General Assembly.
Voting
Article 67
1. Each member of the Economic and
Social Council shall have one vote.
2. Decisions of the Economic and
Social Council shall be made by a majority of the members present and voting.
Procedure
Article 68
The Economic and Social Council shall
set up commissions in economic and social fields and for the promotion of human
rights, and such other commissions as may for the performance of its functions.
Article 69
The Economic and Social Council shall
invite any Member of the United Nations to participate, without vote, in its
deliberations on any matter of particular concern to that Member.
Article 70
The Economic and Social Council may
make arrangements for representatives of the specialized agencies to
participate, without vote, in its deliberations and in those of the commissions
established by it, and for its representatives to participate in the
deliberations of the specialized agencies.
Article 71
The Economic and Social Council may
make suitable arrangements for consultation with non-governmental organizations
which are concerned with matters within its competence. Such arrangements may
be made with international organizations and, where appropriate, with national
organizations after consultation with the Member of the United Nations
concerned.
Article 72
1. The Economic and Social Council
shall adopt its own rules of procedure, including the method of selecting its
President.
2. The Economic and Social Council
shall meet as required in accordance with its rules, which shall include
provision for the convening of meetings on the request of a majority of its
members.
CHAPTER XI
DECLARATION REGARDING NON-SELF-GOVERNING
TERRITORIES
Article 73
Members of the United Nations which
have or assume responsibilities for the administration of territories whose
peoples have not yet attained a full measure of self-government recognize the
principle that the interests of the inhabitants of these territories are
paramount, and accept as a sacred trust the obligation to promote to the
utmost, within the system of international peace and security established by
the present Charter, the well- being of the inhabitants of these territories,
and, to this end:
a. to ensure, with due respect for the
culture of the peoples concerned, their political, economic, social, and
educational advancement, their just treatment, and their protection against
abuses;
b. to develop self-government, to take
due account of the political aspirations of the peoples, and to assist them in
the progressive development of their free political institutions, according to
the particular circumstances of each territory and its peoples and their
varying stages of advancement;
c. to further international peace and
security;
d. to promote constructive measures of
development, to encourage research, and to co-operate with one another and,
when and where appropriate, with specialized international bodies with a view
to the practical achievement of the social, economic, and scientific purposes
set forth in this Article; and
e. to transmit regularly to the
Secretary-General for information purposes, subject to such limitation as
security and constitutional considerations may require, statistical and other
information of a technical nature relating to economic, social, and educational
conditions in the territories for which they are respectively responsible other
than those territories to which Chapters XII and XIII apply.
Article 74
Members of the United Nations also
agree that their policy in respect of the territories to which this Chapter
applies, no less than in respect of their metropolitan areas, must be based on
the general principle of good-neigh-bourliness, due account being taken of the
interests and well-being of the rest of the world, in social, economic, and
commercial matters.
CHAPTER XII
INTERNATIONAL TRUSTEESHIP SYSTEM
Article 75
The United Nations shall establish
under its authority an international trusteeship system for the administration
and supervision of such territories as may be placed thereunder by subsequent
individual agreements. These territories are hereinafter referred to as trust
territories.
Article 76
The basic objectives of the
trusteeship system, in accordance with the Purposes of the United Nations laid
down in Article 1 of the present Charter, shall be:
a. to further international peace and
security;
b. to promote the political, economic,
social, and educational advancement of the inhabitants of the trust
territories, and their progressive development towards self-government or
independence as may be appropriate to the particular circumstances of each
territory and its peoples and the freely expressed wishes of the peoples
concerned, and as may be provided by the terms of each trusteeship agreement;
c. to encourage respect for human
rights and for fundamental freedoms for all with- out : as to race, sex,
language, or religion, and to encourage recognition of the interdependence of
the peoples of the world; and
d. to ensure equal treatment in
social, economic, and commercial matters for all Members of the United Nations
and their , and also equal treatment for the latter in the administration of
justice, without prejudice to the attainment of the foregoing objectives and
subject to the provisions of Article 80.
Article 77
1. The trusteeship system shall apply
to such territories in the following categories as may be placed thereunder by
means of trusteeship agreements:
a. territories now held under mandate;
b. territories which may be detached
from enemy states as a result of the Second World War; and
c. territories voluntarily placed under
the system by states responsible for their administration.
2. It will be a matter for subsequent
agreement as to which territories in the foregoing categories will be brought
under the trustee- ship system and upon what terms.
Article 78
The trusteeship system shall not apply
to territories which have become Members of the United Nations, relationship
among which shall be based on respect for the principle of sovereign equality.
Article 79
The terms of trusteeship for each
territory to be placed under the trusteeship system, including any alteration
or amendment, shall be agreed upon by the states directly concerned, including
the mandatory power in the case of territories held under mandate by a Member
of the United Nations, and shall be approved as provided for in Articles 83 and 85.
Article 80
1. Except as may be agreed upon in
individual trusteeship agreements, made under Articles 77,
79, and 81, placing each territory
under the trusteeship system, and until such agreements have been concluded,
nothing in this Chapter shall be construed in or of itself to alter in any
manner the rights whatsoever of any states or any peoples or the terms of
existing international instruments to which Members of the United Nations may
respectively be parties.
2. Paragraph 1 of this Article shall
not be interpreted as giving grounds for delay or postponement of the
negotiation and conclusion of agreements for placing mandated and other
territories under the trusteeship system as provided for in Article
77.
Article 81
The trusteeship agreement shall in
each case include the terms under which the trust territory will be
administered and designate the authority which will exercise the administration
of the trust territory. Such authority, hereinafter called the administering
authority, may be one or more states or the Organization itself.
Article 82
There may be designated, in any
trusteeship agreement, a strategic area or areas which may include part or all
of the trust territory to which the agreement applies, without prejudice to any
special agreement or agreements made under Article 43.
Article 83
1. All functions of the United Nations
relating to strategic areas, including the approval of the terms of the
trusteeship agreements and of their alteration or amendment, shall be exercised
by the Security Council.
2. he basic objectives set forth in Article 76 shall be applicable to the people of each
strategic area.
3. The Security Council shall, subject
to the provisions of the trusteeship agreements and without prejudice to
security considerations, avail itself of the assistance of the Trusteeship
Council to perform those functions of the United Nations under the trusteeship
system relating to political, economic, social, and educational matters in the
strategic areas.
Article 84
It shall be the duty of the
administering authority to ensure that the trust territory shall play its part
in the maintenance of international peace and security. To this end the
administering authority may make use of volunteer forces, facilities, and
assistance from the trust territory in carrying out the obligations towards the
Security Council undertaken in this regard by the administering authority, as
well as for local defence and the maintenance of law and order within the trust
territory.
Article 85
1. The functions of the United Nations
with regard to trusteeship agreements for all areas not designated as
strategic, including the approval of the terms of the trusteeship agreements
and of their alteration or amendment, shall be exercised by the General
Assembly.
2. The Trusteeship Council, operating
under the authority of the General Assembly, shall assist the General Assembly
in carrying out these functions.
CHAPTER XIII
THE TRUSTEESHIP COUNCIL
Composition
Article 86
1. The Trusteeship Council shall
consist of the following Members of the United Nations:
a. those Members administering trust
territories;
b. such of those Members mentioned by
name in Article 23 as are not administering trust territories; and
c. as many other Members elected for
three-year terms by the General Assembly as may be necessary to ensure that the
total number of members of the Trusteeship Council is equally divided between
those Members of the United Nations which ad- minister trust territories and
those which do not.
2. Each member of the Trusteeship
Council shall designate one specially qualified person to represent it therein.
Functions and Powers
Article 87
The General Assembly and, under its
authority, the Trusteeship Council, in carrying out their functions, may:
a. consider reports submitted by the
ad- ministering authority;
b. accept petitions and examine them
in consultation with the administering authority;
c. provide for periodic visits to the
respective trust territories at times agreed upon with the administering
authority; and
d. take these and other actions in
conformity with the terms of the trusteeship agreements.
Article 88
The Trusteeship Council shall
formulate a questionnaire on the political, economic, social, and educational
advancement of the inhabitants of each trust territory, and the administering
authority for each trust territory within the competence of the General
Assembly shall make an annual report to the General Assembly upon the basis of
such questionnaire.
Voting
Article 89
1. Each member of the Trusteeship
Council shall have one vote.
2. Decisions of the Trusteeship
Council shall be made by a majority of the members present and voting.
Procedure
Article 90
1. The Trusteeship Council shall adopt
its own rules of procedure, including the method of selecting its President.
2. The Trusteeship Council shall meet
as required in accordance with its rules, which shall include provision for the
convening of meetings on the request of a majority of its members.
Article 91
The Trusteeship Council shall, when
appropriate, avail itself of the assistance of the Economic and Social Council
and of the specialized agencies in regard to matters with which they are
respectively concerned.
CHAPTER XIV
THE INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
Article 92
The International Court of Justice
shall be the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. It shall function
in accordance with the annexed Statute, which is based upon the Statute of the
Permanent Court of International Justice and forms an integral part of the
present Charter.
Article 93
1. All Members of the United Nations
are facto parties to the Statute of the International Court of Justice.
2. A state which is not of the United
Nations may become a party to the Statute of the International Court of Justice
on to be determined in each case by the General Assembly upon the
recommendation of the Security Council.
Article 94
1. Each Member of the United Nations
undertakes to comply with the decision of the International Court of Justice in
any case to which it is a party.
2. If any party to a case fails to
perform the obligations incumbent upon it under a judgment rendered by the
Court, the other party may have recourse to the Security Council, which may, if
it deems necessary, make recommendations or decide upon measures to be taken to
give to the judgment.
Article 95
Nothing in the present Charter shall
prevent Members of the United Nations from entrusting the solution of their
differences to other tribunals by virtue of agreements already in existence or
which may be concluded in the future.
Article 96
1. The General Assembly or the
Security Council may request the International Court of Justice to give an
advisory opinion on any legal question.
2. Other organs of the United Nations
and specialized agencies, which may at any time be so authorized by the General
Assembly, may also request advisory opinions of the Court on legal questions
arising within the scope of their activities.
CHAPTER XV
THE SECRETARIAT
Article 97
The Secretariat shall comprise a
Secretary- General and such staff as the Organization may require. The
Secretary-General shall be appointed by the General Assembly upon the
recommendation of the Security Council. He shall be the chief administrative
officer of the Organization.
Article 98
The Secretary-General shall act in
that capacity in all meetings of the General Assembly, of the Security Council,
of the Economic and Social Council, and of the Trusteeship Council, and shall
perform such other functions as are entrusted to him by these organs. The
Secretary-General shall make an annual report to the General Assembly on the
work of the Organization.
Article 99
The Secretary-General may bring to the
attention of the Security Council any matter which in his opinion may threaten
the maintenance of international peace and security.
Article 100
1. In the performance of their duties
the Secretary-General and the staff shall not seek or receive instructions from
any government or from any other authority externa to the Organization. They
shall refrain from any action which might on their position as international
officials responsible only to the Organization.
2. Each Member of the United Nations
undertakes to respect the exclusively inter- national character of the
responsibilities of the Secretary-General and the staff and not to seek to
influence them in the discharge of their responsibilities.
Article 101
1. The staff shall be appointed by the
Secretary-General under regulations established by the General Assembly.
2. Appropriate staffs shall be
permanently assigned to the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship
Council, and, as required, to other organs of the United Nations. These staffs
shall form a part of the Secretariat.
3. The paramount consideration in the
employment of the staff and in the determination of the conditions of service
shall be the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency,
competence, and integrity. Due regard shall be paid to the importance of
recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible.
CHAPTER XVI
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Article 102
1. Every treaty and every
international agreement entered into by any Member of the United Nations after
the present Charter comes into force shall as soon as possible be registered
with the Secretariat and published by it.
2. No party to any such treaty or
international agreement which has not been registered in accordance with the
provisions of paragraph I of this Article may invoke that treaty or agreement
before any organ of the United Nations.
Article 103
In the event of a conflict between the
obligations of the Members of the United Nations under the present Charter and
their obligations under any other international agreement, their obligations
under the present Charter shall prevail.
Article 104
The Organization shall enjoy in the
territory of each of its Members such legal capacity as may be necessary for
the exercise of its functions and the fulfilment of its purposes.
Article 105
1. The Organization shall enjoy in the
territory of each of its Members such privileges and immunities as are
necessary for the fulfilment of its purposes.
2. Representatives of the Members of
the United Nations and officials of the Organization shall similarly enjoy such
privileges and immunities as are necessary for the independent exercise of
their functions in connexion with the Organization.
3. The General Assembly may make
recommendations with a view to determining the details of the application of
paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article or may propose conventions to the Members of
the United Nations for this purpose.
CHAPTER XVII
TRANSITIONAL SECURITY ARRANGEMENTS
Article 106
Pending the coming into force of such
special agreements referred to in Article 43 as in the
opinion of the Security Council enable it to begin the exercise of its
responsibilities under Article 42, the parties to the
Four-Nation Declaration, signed at Moscow, 30 October 1943, and
France, shall, in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 5 of that
Declaration, consult with one another and as occasion requires with other
Members of the United Nations with a view to such joint action on behalf of the
Organization as may be necessary for the purpose of maintaining international
peace and security.
Article 107
Nothing in the present Charter shall
invalidate or preclude action, in relation to any state which during the Second
World War has been an enemy of any signatory to the present Charter, taken or
authorized as a result of that war by the Governments having responsibility for
such action.
CHAPTER XVIII
AMENDMENTS
Article 108
Amendments to the present Charter
shall come into force for all Members of the United Nations when they have been
adopted by a vote of two thirds of the members of the General Assembly and
ratified in accordance with their respective constitutional processes by two
thirds of the Members of the United Nations, including all the permanent
members of the Security Council.
Article 109
1. A General Conference of the Members
of the United Nations for the purpose of reviewing the present Charter may be
held at a date and place to be fixed by a two-thirds vote of the members of the
General Assembly and by a vote of any nine members of the Security Council.
Each Member of the United Nations shall have one vote in the conference.
2. Any alteration of the present
Charter recommended by a two-thirds vote of the conference shall take effect
when ratified in accordance with their respective constitutional processes by
two thirds of the Members of the United Nations including the permanent members
of the Security Council.
3. If such a conference has not been
held before the tenth annual session of the General Assembly following the
coming into force of the present Charter, the proposal to call such a
conference shall be placed on the agenda of that session of the General
Assembly, and the conference shall be held if so decided by a majority vote of
the members of the General Assembly and by a vote of any seven members of the
Security Council.
CHAPTER XIX
RATIFICATION AND SIGNATURE
Article 110
1. The present Charter shall be
ratified by the signatory states in accordance with their respective
constitutional processes.
2. The shall be deposited with the
Government of the Unite States of America, which shall notify a the signatory
states of each deposit as well as the Secretary-General of the Organization
when he has been appointed.
3. The present Charter shall come into
force upon the deposit of by the Republic of China, France, the Union of Soviet
Socialist, the United King- dom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the
United States of America, and by a majority of the other signatory states. A
protocol of the deposited shall thereupon be drawn up by the Government of the
United States of America which shall communicate copies thereof to all the
signa- tory states.
4. The states signatory to the present
Chartar which ratify it after it has come into force will become original
Members of the United Nations on the date of the deposit of their respective
ratifications.
Article 111
The present Charter, of which the
Chinese, French, Russian, English, and Spanish texts are equally authentic,
shall remain deposited in the archives of the Government of -the United States
of America. Duly certified copies thereof shall be transmitted by that Government
to the Governments of the other signatory states.
IN FAITH WHEREOF the representatives
of the Governments of the United Nations have signed the present Charter.
DONE at the city of San Francisco the
twenty-sixth day of June, one thousand nine hundred and forty-five.
