Preamble to the United Nations Charter

Preamble to the United Nations Charter is the introductory statement of the foundational treaty of the United Nations. It was adopted at the San Francisco Conference in 1945 and sets forth the high ideals and common purposes of the wartime Allies and the nations that joined them. The text articulates a collective determination to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war and to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights. It serves as a moral and philosophical foundation for the subsequent chapters of the Charter of the United Nations.

Text of the Preamble

The full text of the Preamble reads: "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."

Historical context and drafting

The Preamble was crafted in the immediate aftermath of the Second World War, a conflict marked by the atrocities of the Holocaust and the deployment of atomic weapons. Key figures in its formulation included Jan Smuts, the Prime Minister of South Africa, who produced an early draft that heavily influenced the final text. The San Francisco Conference, officially the United Nations Conference on International Organization, brought together delegates from fifty nations, including the United States, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and China. The language was refined by a committee led by U.S. State Department official Virgil Jordan and sought to encapsulate the lessons learned from the failure of the League of Nations. Its powerful opening phrase, "We the Peoples," was consciously modeled on the Preamble to the United States Constitution.

Legal and symbolic significance

While the Preamble itself does not create binding legal obligations like the operative articles of the Charter of the United Nations, it holds immense interpretive weight. The International Court of Justice has referenced its principles in advisory opinions and judgments, using it to illuminate the Charter's object and purpose. Symbolically, it represents a universal commitment to peace, distinct from the more state-centric covenant of the League of Nations. The invocation of "fundamental human rights" directly paved the way for the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights under Eleanor Roosevelt. It establishes the United Nations not merely as a treaty among governments but as an organization in the name of the world's peoples.

Analysis of key phrases

The phrase "to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war" directly references the devastation of both the First World War and the Second World War. "Faith in fundamental human rights" reflects the influence of thinkers like H. G. Wells and his 1940 pamphlet on the subject, and was a direct response to the crimes of Nazi Germany. The commitment to "equal rights of men and women" was a progressive stance for its time, championed by delegates like Bertha Lutz of Brazil. "Nations large and small" asserts the principle of sovereign equality, a cornerstone of the modern international system. The aim to "promote social progress and better standards of life" foreshadowed the development of the United Nations Development Programme and the World Health Organization.

Influence and legacy

The Preamble's resonant language has been cited in countless political speeches, from Nelson Mandela to Dag Hammarskjöld, and has inspired the preambles of many national constitutions, such as those of India, Indonesia, and Bangladesh. Its ideals are echoed in subsequent international treaties, including the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. The phrase "We the Peoples" is emblazoned on the United Nations Headquarters in New York City and remains a powerful reminder of the organization's aspirational mission. While the United Nations Security Council and the United Nations General Assembly have often struggled to fulfill its promises, the Preamble endures as a foundational text of twentieth-century internationalism and a continuing benchmark for global governance.

Category:United Nations Charter Category:1945 documents Category:Political charters and declarations