SYSTEMS PLUS COLLEGE

College of ArtsFOUNDATION
and Social Sciences and Education

THE
Contemporary world

MODULE #4

PREPARED BY: Brian duela

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Introduction
The contemporary world is an ever-changing mix of social and political changes. While religious,
political, and ethnic conflicts continue, we are currently living in one of the most peaceful eras in
the history of the planet. Challenges of the 21st century include emerging technologies, health care,
overpopulation, climate change, poverty, illiteracy, disease, and migration. How we choose to deal
with these emerging frontiers will shape this unit for future generations. 1

Unit 1: The Structures of Globalization

This unit will introduce the student the various drivers of the globalization process, with specific
focus on economics and politics. Although it emphasizes student’s experience globalization on an
everyday level, also to realize that there are big institutions that create large-scale changes. This
unit will first trace the emergences of these institutions historically. It will then move on to explain
how they affect the countries and people today.

Major learning outcomes of this unit are:

1. Analyze the various contemporary drivers of globalization; and
2. Describe the emergence of Global economic and political systems.

Lesson 4: The United Nations and Contemporary Global Governance

Learning outcomes:
1. Define global governance;
2. Identify the roles and functions of the United Nation; and
3. Determine the challenges of global governance in the twenty-first century.

Although many internationalists like Bentham and Kant imagined the possibility of global
government, nothing of the sort exists today. There is no one organization that various states
are accountable. Moreover, no organization can military compel a state to obey predetermined
global rules. There is, however, some regularity in the general behavior of states. For example,
they more or less follow global navigation routes and, more often than not, respect each other’s
territorial boundaries. Moreover, when they do not – like when Russia invaded Crimea in 2014 –
it becomes a cause for global concern and debate. The fact that states in an international order
continue to adhere to certain global norms means that there is a semblance of world order
despite the lack of a single world government. Global governance refers to various intersecting
processes that create this order.

There are many sources of global governance. State sign treaties and form organizations, in the
process legislating public international law (international rules that govern interactions between
the states as opposed to, say, private companies). International Non-Governmental
Organizations (NGOs), though not having formal state power, can lobby individual stated to
behave in a certain way. For example an international animal protection can pressure the
governments to pass animal cruelty laws. Powerful transnational corporation can likewise have
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 tremendous effects on global labor laws, environmental legislation, trade policy, etc. Even ideas
such as the need for “global democracy” or the clamor for “good governance” can influence the
ways international actors behave.

A. What is an International Organization?

International organization, institution drawing membership from at least three states, having
activities in several states, and whose members are held together by a formal agreement. 2
When scholars refer to groups like the UN or institutions like the IMF and the World Bank,
they usually call them international organizations (IOs).

A non-governmental organization (NGO) is a non-profit, citizen-based group that functions

independently of government. NGOs, sometimes called civil societies, are organized on
community, national and international levels to serve specific social or political purposes, and
are cooperative, rather than commercial, in nature. Although international NGOs refer to
international intergovernmental organizations or groups that are primarily made up of
member-states.

One major fallacy about international organizations is that they are merely amalgamations of
various state interests. In 1960s and 1970s, many scholars believed that IOs were just a
venue where contradicting, but sometimes intersecting, agendas of countries were discussed
– no more than talk shops. What has become more evident in recent years, however, is that
IOs can on lives of their own. For example, the IMF was able to promote a particular form of
economic orthodoxy that stemmed mainly from the beliefs of its professional economists. IOs
can thus become influential as independent organizations. International relations scholars
Michael N. Barnett and Martha Finnemore listed the following powers of IOs.

First, IOs have the power of classification. Because IOs can invent and apply categories, they
create powerful global standards. For example, it is the UN High Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR) that defines what a refugee is. And since states are required to accept refugees
entering their borders, this power to establish identity has concrete effects.

Second, IOs have the power to fix meanings. This is a broader function related to the first.
Various terms like “security” or “development” need to be well-defined. States, organizations,
and individuals view IOs as legitimate sources of information. As such, the meanings they
create have effects on various policies. For example, recently, the United Nations has started
to define security as not just safety from military violence, but also from environmental
harm.

Finally, IOs have the power to diffuse norms. Norms are accepted codes of conduct that may
not be strict law, nut nevertheless produce regularity in behavior. IOs do not only classify
and fix meanings; they also spread their ideas across the world, thereby establishing global
standards. Their members are, as Barnett and Finnemore, emphasized, the “missionaries” of
our time. Their power to diffuse norms stems from the fact that IOs are staffed with the

2
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 independent bureaucracies, who are considered experts in various fields. For example, World
Bank economists come to be regarded as experts in development and thus carry some form
of authority. They can, therefore, create norms regarding the implementation and
conceptualization of development projects.

Because of these immense powers, IOs can be sources of great good and great harm. They
can promote relevant norms like environmental protection and human rights. But, like other
entrenched bureaucracies, they can become sealed-off communities that fail to challenges
their beliefs. For example, the Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz famously
criticized the IMF from using a “one-size-fits-all” approach when its economist made
recommendation to developing countries.

B. The United Nations

The United Nations is an international organization founded in 1945. It is currently made up

of 193 Member States. The mission and work of the United Nations are guided by the
purposes and principles contained in its founding Charter.

Due to the powers vested in its Charter3 and its unique international character, the United
Nations can take action on the issues confronting humanity in the 21st century, such as
peace and security, climate change, sustainable development, human rights, disarmament,
terrorism, humanitarian and health emergencies, gender equality, governance, food
production, and more.

The UN also provides a forum for its members to express their views in the General
Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, and other bodies and
committees. By enabling dialogue between its members, and by hosting negotiations, the
Organization has become a mechanism for governments to find areas of agreement and
solve problems together.4

Having examined the powers, limitations and weaknesses of IOs, the spotlight will now fall in
the most prominent IO in the contemporary world, the United Nations (UN). After the
collapse of the League of Nations at the end of WWII, countries that worried about another
global war began to push for the formation of a more lasting international league. The result
was the creation of the UN. Although the organization is far from perfect, it should be
emphasized that it has do far achieved its primary goal of averting another global war. For
this reason alone, the UN should be considered a success.

Main Organs
3
The Charter of the United Nations was signed on 26 June 1945, in San Francisco, at the conclusion of the United Nations Conference on
International Organization, and came into force on 24 October 1945. The Statute of the International Court of Justice is an integral part of the Charter.
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 The main organs of the UN are General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and
Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice, and the UN
Secretariat. All were established in 1945 when the UN was founded.

1. General Assembly

The General Assembly is the main deliberative, policymaking and representative organ

of the UN. All 193 Member States of the UN are represented in the General Assembly,
making it the only UN body with universal representation.  Each year, in September,
the full UN membership meets in the General Assembly Hall in New York for the
annual General Assembly session, and general debate, which many heads of state
attend and address. Decisions on important questions, such as those on peace and
security, admission of new members and budgetary matters, require a two-thirds
majority of the General Assembly. Decisions on other questions are by simple
majority.  The General Assembly, each year, elects a GA President to serve a one-year
term of office.5

2. Security Council

The Security Council has primary responsibility, under the UN Charter, for the

maintenance of international peace and security.  It has 15 Members (5 permanent
and 10 non-permanent members). Each Member has one vote. Under the Charter, all
Member States are obligated to comply with Council decisions. The Security Council
takes the lead in determining the existence of a threat to the peace or act of
aggression. It calls upon the parties to a dispute to settle it by peaceful means and
recommends methods of adjustment or terms of settlement. In some cases, the
Security Council can resort to imposing sanctions or even authorize the use of force to
maintain or restore international peace and security.  The Security Council has
a Presidency, which rotates, and changes, every month.6

3. Economic and Social Council

The Economic and Social Council is the principal body for coordination, policy review,
policy dialogue and recommendations on economic, social and environmental issues,
as well as implementation of internationally agreed development goals. It serves as
the central mechanism for activities of the UN system and its specialized agencies in
the economic, social and environmental fields, supervising subsidiary and expert
bodies.  It has 54 Members, elected by the General Assembly for overlapping three-
year terms. It is the United Nations’ central platform for reflection, debate, and
innovative thinking on sustainable development.7

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6
Ibid
7
Ibid
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 4. Trusteeship Council

The Trusteeship Council was established in 1945 by the UN Charter, under Chapter

XIII, to provide international supervision for 11 Trust Territories that had been placed
under the administration of seven Member States, and ensure that adequate steps
were taken to prepare the Territories for self-government and independence. By 1994,
all Trust Territories had attained self-government or independence.  The Trusteeship
Council suspended operation on 1 November 1994. By a resolution adopted on 25
May 1994, the Council amended its rules of procedure to drop the obligation to meet
annually and agreed to meet as occasion required -- by its decision or the decision of
its President, or at the request of a majority of its members or the General Assembly
or the Security Council. 8

5. International Court of Justice

The International Court of Justice is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations.
Its seat is at the Peace Palace in The Hague (Netherlands). It is the only one of the
six principal organs of the United Nations not located in New York (United States of
America). The Court’s role is to settle, in accordance with international law, legal
disputes submitted to it by States and to give advisory opinions on legal questions
referred to it by authorized United Nations organs and specialized agencies. 9

6. Secretariat

The Secretariat comprises the Secretary-General and tens of thousands of

international UN staff members who carry out the day-to-day work of the UN as
mandated by the General Assembly and the Organization's other principal organs. 
The Secretary-General is chief administrative officer of the Organization, appointed by
the General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council for a five-year,
renewable term. UN staff members are recruited internationally and locally, and work
in duty stations and on peacekeeping missions all around the world.  But serving the
cause of peace in a violent world is a dangerous occupation. Since the founding of the
United Nations, hundreds of brave men and women have given their lives in its
service.10

C. Challenges of the United Nations

Given the scope of the UN’s activities, it naturally faces numerous challenges. Chief among
these are the limits placed upon various organs and programs by the need to respect state’s
sovereignty. The UN is not a world government, and its functions primarily because of
voluntary cooperation from the states. If states refuse to cooperate, the influence of the UN
can be severely circumscribed. For example, the UN Council on Human Rights can send
special rapporteurs to countries where alleged human rights violations are occurring. If a
8
Ibid
9
Ibid
10
Ibid
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 country does not invite the rapporteurs or places conditions on his/her activities, however,
this information-gathering mechanism usually fails to achieve its goals.

However, perhaps the biggest challenge of the United Nations is related to issue of security.
As mentioned, the UN Security Council is tasked with authorizing international acts of military
intervention. Because of the P5’s veto power, it is tough for the council to release a formal
resolution, much more implement it. This became as issue, for example, in the late 1990s
when leader Slodoan Milosevic was committing acts of ethnic cleansing against Muslim
Albanians in the province of Kosovo. Hundreds and thousands of Albanian were victims of
massacres, mass deportation and internal displacement. Amid this systematic terror,
members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), let by the United States, sought
Security Council authorization to intervene the Kosovo war on humanitarian grounds. China
and Russia, however, threatened to veto any actions, rendering the UN incapable of
addressing the crisis. In response, NATO decided to intervene on its own. Though the NATO
intervention was largely a success, it, nevertheless, left the UN ineffectual.

Today, a similar dynamic is evident in Syria, which is undergoing a civil war, Russia has
threatened to veto any SC resolution against Syria; thus, the UN has done very little to stop
state-sanctioned violence against opponents of the government. Since Syrian President
Bashar al-Assad is an ally of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, the latter has shield away from
any policy that could weaken the legitimacy of the former. As a result, the UN is again
ineffectual amid a conflict that has led to over 220,000 people dead and 11 million displaced.

Despite these problems, it remains important for the SC to place a high bar on military
intervention. The UN Security Council has been wrong on issues of intervention, but it has
also made right decision. When the United States sought to invade Iraq in 2001, it claimed
that Iraq’s Saddam Hussein had weapon of mass destruction (WMD) that threatened the
world. However, UN members Russia, China, and France were unconvinced and vetoed the
UN resolution for intervention, forcing the United States to lead a small “coalition of the
willing” with its allies. It has since been discovered that there were no weapons of mass
destruction and the invasion of Iraq has caused problems for the country and the region that
last until today.

SUMMARY

This lesson has focused on the International Organizations (IO) and the United Nations (UN)
in particular. International organizations are highlighted because they are the most visible
symbols of global governance. The UN, in particular, is the closest to a world government.
What is important to remember is that international institutions like the UN are always in
precarious position.

On the other hand, they are groups of sovereign states. On the other, they are organizations
with their own rationalities and agendas. It is the tension that will continue to inform the
evolution of these organizations. However, note that there are many institutions, groups and
ideas that hold international and global politics together.

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 GUIDE QUESTIONS
1. Why is global governance multi-faceted?
2. How do international organizations take on “lives of their own”?
3. What are the challenges faced by the United Nations in maintaining global
security.

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 Learning Activity 4.1
Guide Questions

1. Why is global governance multi-faceted?

2. How do international organizations take on “lives of their own”?

3. What are the challenges faced by the United Nations in maintaining global security.

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 Learning Activity 4.2
South China Sea (West Philippine Sea)  Dispute11

Key facts on the sea and the territorial disputes

Geography
The South China Sea covers more than 3 million square kilometers (1.16 million square miles),
ringed by southern China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Borneo island, and mainland Southeast
Asia.
Most of its hundreds of small islands, islets and rocks were originally uninhabited. The Paracel
and Spratly chains contain the biggest islands. Scarborough Shoal (Bajo de Masinloc or
Panatag Shoal) is a small outcrop in the east.
Significance
The sea is the main maritime link between the Pacific and Indian oceans, giving it enormous
trade and military value. Its shipping lanes connect East Asia with Europe and the Middle East.
Over $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes through the sea annually.
Major unexploited oil and gas deposits are believed to lie under the seabed.
The sea is home to some of the world's biggest coral reefs and, with marine life being
depleted close to coasts, it is important as a source of fish to feed growing populations.
Claimants
China and Taiwan both claim nearly all of the sea, while Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and
Brunei each have overlapping claims to parts of it.
Beijing's argument is based largely on Chinese maps dating back to the 1940s with a "nine-
dashed line" that approaches the coasts of other countries.
Name
Beijing and most other countries know it as the South China Sea. Hanoi calls it the East Sea
and Manila officially refers to it as the West Philippine Sea.
Occupation
China has held all of the Paracel islands since a conflict with South Vietnam in 1974. It has
controlled Scarborough Shoal, a rich fishing ground 230 kilometers (140 miles) off the
Philippine island of Luzon, since 2012 and occupies at least seven of the Spratly islands.
Vietnam is believed to occupy or control 21 of the Spratlys and the rest are divided between
Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Taiwan.

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 Conflicts
There have been two armed conflicts between China and Vietnam in the sea.
In 1974, a clash erupted between the South Vietnamese navy and Chinese forces that left
about 50 Vietnamese troops dead.
The other major conflict occurred when Vietnam and China fought a naval battle on Johnson
Reef in the Spratlys in 1988 that killed about 70 Vietnamese military personnel.
Chinese naval vessels have fired at other times on Vietnamese fishing boats in the area.
Chinese expansion
China has in recent years sought to dramatically expand its presence in the sea, raising
tensions with its neighbors and beyond.
In 2012, China gave new powers to Sansha, a city on Hainan Island, to administer Chinese
rule over its South China Sea domain.
Since then, it has conducted massive dredging and artificial island-building activities in the
Spratlys, dwarfing the scale of reclamation work of other claimants.
The Pentagon said China added 3,200 acres (1,295 hectares) of land to the seven features it
occupies. Beijing installed structures on these new islands, including radar systems and
runways long enough for huge commercial or military planes.
Chinese coast guard vessels have become an ever-growing presence in the key parts of the
sea, being used to guard Scarborough Shoal and perform other security duties. The Philippines
protested in 2014 after Chinese coast guard vessels prevented the rotation and resupply of
Philippine soldiers stationed at Second Thomas Shoal.
Failed diplomacy
The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations and China adopted a non-binding
"declaration of conduct" in 2002 to discourage hostile acts. All sides agreed not to use threats
or force to assert claims.
But China has since refused to turn it into a legally binding "code of conduct".
The dispute has caused deep divisions within ASEAN, which normally seeks to operate on a
basis of consensus among its members. The Philippines has in particular pushed for a tough
ASEAN stance against China. But Chinese allies Laos and Cambodia have been widely seen as
blockers of such moves.
Legal challenges
The Philippines filed its case at the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in 2013, becoming
the first and only country to legally challenge China's claims.
But Vietnamese and Indonesian officials have said they are considering legal action.
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 While not a party to the case, Vietnam also submitted a statement to the PCA's tribunal in
2014 affirming the court's jurisdiction and rejecting China's nine-dashed line.

Instructions:
1. Make a research regarding the rulings/decisions in case filed by the Philippines at
Permanent Court of Arbitrators against China. (State only a summary)
2. Do you agree with the rulings rulings/decisions of PCA? (State and briefly explain your
answer/s).

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 REFERENCES

Claudio, Lisandro and Abinales, Patricio.2018.The Contemporary World. C&E Publishing, Inc.

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ttps://www.britannica.com/topic/international-organization

https://www.un.org/en/sections/about-un/overview/index.html

https://www.un.org/en/charter-united-nations/index.html

https://www.un.org/en/sections/about-un/main-organs/

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