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War in Gaza overshadows UN anniversary
A United Nations representative acknowledged the call for reform within the multilateral organization and call the change 'essential', while admitting that real change will depend on the will of the Security Council's five permanent members.
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People walk past the United Nations headquarters on March 3, 2023, in New York, the United States. (AFP/Daniel Slim)
T
he unabated conflict between Hamas and Israel has cast a long shadow over the United Nations’ 78th anniversary celebration, amid growing calls for reform following criticism of the body for its inability to deal with contemporary issues.
The institution is in need of a “thorough reform,” Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi said in her prerecorded address at the anniversary celebration in Central Jakarta on Tuesday. The minister was at the UN Headquarters in New York City for meetings about the crisis in Palestine.
Held offline for the first time since COVID-19, the UN Day celebration on Tuesday saw dozens of panelists gather at the National Library in Central Jakarta to discuss Indonesia’s diplomacy at the UN, among other topics.
The multilateral organization was first created with the spirit of dialogue and peace against a backdrop of war, which could only be continued today if the institution undergoes reform, said UN resident coordinator for Indonesia Valerie Julliand in her opening remarks.
“Whatever fight we do [for peace] is a never-ending fight,” Julliand said. “The situation in Palestine reminds us that peace is the only solution and that we must fight for it.”
Read also: Indonesia calls for strengthened multilateral institutions as UN turns 75
Call for reform in the UN started in the 1990s. Some efforts have been made to renew the institution, such as the formation of a Change Management Team in 2011. However, analysts deemed that little progress had been made.
