Oct. 24, 2010, was the 65th anniversary of the United Nations (UN). This international organization was founded to create and maintain world peace through diplomacy and economic, social and humanitarian cooperation.
The idea, which came from US president Franklin Delano Roosevelt and British prime minister Winston Churchill, originally focused on the handling of post-World War II development and peacekeeping.
Parallel to the demands of times, the UN has developed its capacity. Now the UN is present not only as a preserver of peace but also as a forum for its members to negotiate various issues, such as conflict management and humanitarian aid.
With the increasingly complex interactions among nations, the issues handled by the UN have become even more varied, ranging from sustainable development, the environment, refugees, terrorism, democracy empowerment, human rights, gender equality and women’s development, governance, food
production promotion, to health and AIDS.
One of the great efforts of the UN today is the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which have been agreed upon by all UN members including Indonesia. With the MDGs, the UN has established universal benchmarks for life and decent living for all citizens in the world.
MDGs constitute an operational form of the concept of world community development expected to create a world order characterized by tolerance, prosperity, and dignity. Certainly it is not simple to realize the objectives by the approved year of 2015, but Indonesia will keep striving for optimum growth to fulfill its obligation to the population.
As an international organization, the UN has been widely criticized for the intervention of super powers and questioned about its effectiveness in handling conflicts.
Actually this can be overcome if UN member nations play a more active role in it. As a world body serving the interests of various countries affiliated with it, the role of the UN is considerably determined by the extent of active contribution of these countries. I believe the world peace craved by all nations can only come true through endeavors and hard work.
The world is at present haunted by different crises, encompassing food, energy, monetary and biodiversity crises. As part of the world community, Indonesia will not be free from the threat of crises unless we contribute some of our attempts to the improvement of world conditions.
As a UN member possessing diverse resources that can be fostered and developed, Indonesia is among the countries that have a high potential for growth. We have a high degree of biodiversity, vast forests, wealthy seas and varied human resources.
We can imagine how our country will be beneficial to the world if we are capable of managing the various resources at our disposal for mutual advantage, not only for Indonesian people but also for the world as a whole.
We can utilize the peat land we own for the absorption of world carbon. We can also make use of our biodiversity for the discovery of substances that have therapeutic effects.
Indonesia can contribute to the lungs of the world by maintaining our forest zones in order to reduce the effects of global warming.
With the various things we can contribute to the world, Indonesia will enjoy a strong bargaining position in the international political arena and especially in the UN. We can envision a magnificent future when all nations on this globe work through mutual assistance to share the fruits of their attempts for common good.
To realize these dreams, we need to manage our assets in the best possible manner. We hope that by being capable of contributing a lot more to the benefit of the world, we can gain many more advantages from the world, and finally we will be able to bring about the lasting peace we have always longed for.
Let us embark on this undertaking by avoiding transient interests and getting rid of egoism for the sake of developing the virtues that will most benefit the world.
The writer is the chairman of the executive board of the Democratic Party.
