A few days ago, politics sat on the podium of the United Nations (UN) to do what is usually done on that podium lately: talk to the void. While the population of Latin America is obsessed with organized crime and drug trafficking, the first Latin American leaders talked about what these days only concern them and a small elite: climate change, gender politics, the lifting of sanctions against Cuba and Venezuela. Yes, that’s right. The podium of the UN painfully becomes a space where state representatives can contradict the very foundations of the institution while it remains silent.

In the UN, Venezuela proposed the formation of an “international zone without sanctions” from the United States

The latest UN report on the state of human rights in Venezuela finds that the country’s intelligence agencies, both civilian and military, operate in an organized and coordinated manner to commit crimes against humanity that include crimes of a sexual nature. , torture and so on. That report I mention is lapidary, because it not only admits that there are systematic crimes against humanity in Venezuela, but that they are directed from the top of the Government. That report, I repeat, was created by the UN from scratch.

Olivier De Schutter, UN rapporteur: We need a different recipe to fight poverty, without affecting the natural resources

Despite what is being reported about Venezuela, the organization’s most representative podium is allowed to request the lifting of sanctions against that country without any condemnation of human rights violations at the same instance. Questioning the reasons for economic sanctions against Cuba and Venezuela is absolutely justified, but doing so separately from criticism of these regimes is a political signal in favor of two bloody dictatorships. And doing it on the podium of the UN is absolutely offensive.

Gone are the days when UN goals were cross-validated…

I think the figure of an international organization like the United Nations is relevant. It is a meeting space between leaders and authorities, a space for diplomacy, a space that is needed. The goal of the UN is to maintain international peace and security and to promote friendly and cooperative relations between nations, not to give a platform to political leaders who want to side with totalitarian regimes. Now the validity of its role is being distorted by events like this which contradict the mission of the UN. Abuse of power and lack of political consistency do not attract attention, although they are the minimum required. Therefore, it is not surprising that citizens’ voices against the organization are getting stronger and that its functionality is beginning to be questioned.

Nayib Bukele highlights El Salvador’s actions against criminal groups before the UN

Gone are the days when the goals of the UN were confirmed transversely and this distance will increase over the years. The survival and sustainability of the organization over time could be increasingly threatened by becoming a political platform that does not respect the foundations on which its raison d’être rests. It would be a shame if the necessary body continues to lose credibility because it cannot demand from member states responsible use and commitment to the body’s mission. It would be a shame if the famous podium turned into another empty symbol. (OR)