At a time when the UN demonstrates new vitality, this straightforward explanation of nearly a half century of the world organization's experience provides essential background. It sets out the fundamental features of the structure of the UN and traces the political developments around such topics as maintaining international peace, protecting human rights, and improving economic welfare. Its authors are longtime observers and recognized scholars. Their transatlantic collaboration provides an extra edge of objectivity.
Since the end of the Cold War, economic sanctions have been a frequent instrument of UN authority. Based on more than 200 interviews with officials from both sides, this book aims to provide a comprehensive assessment of the effectiveness of UN sanctions in the 1990s.
At a time when the UN demonstrates new vitality, this straightforward explanation of nearly a half century of the world organization's experience provides essential background. It sets out the fundamental features of the structure of the UN and traces the political developments around such topics as maintaining international peace, protecting human rights, and improving economic welfare. Its authors are longtime observers and recognized scholars. Their transatlantic collaboration provides an extra edge of objectivity.
First in a series of annual reports, this volume is about people and about how development enlarges their choices--access to income, long life, knowledge, political freedom, personal security, community participation, and guaranteed human rights. It measures human development not by the yardstick of income alone, but by the human development index--reflecting life expectancy, literacy and command over resources to enjoy a decent standard of living. The report analyzes the record of human development for the last three decades and the experience of 14 countries in managing economic growth and human development. The volume concludes with human development indicators for more than 130 countries, both developing and developed. ISBN 0-19-306481-X (pbk.): $15.95.
Now updated with a chapter-length afterword by the editors on the end of the Deng era and its aftermath, China in the 1990s provides a comprehensive survey of a nation in transition. An understanding of this complex process requires a multidisciplinary and multidimensional approach, which the editors have achieved by bringing together experts from Britain, the United States, Europe, Australia, and Hong Kong who examine China's economic, political, military, cultural and social achievements and problems. The difficulties China still faces are enormous, some of them of its own making: pollution, urban sprawl, the insecurity of food supplies, the risks of political authoritarianism and the perils of liberalisation. Its population is still growing dramatically and is likely to be 1.5 billion by 2015, three times what it was when the P.R.C. was established in 1949. But since embarking on a reform programme which, at the time seemed experimental and hard to reconcile with official ideology, it has gone from being the 'sick man of Asia' to being one of the world's largest and fastest developing economies in what now looks to be a remarkably effective and well-managed transition.
This short introduction to the United Nations analyzes the organization as itis today, and how it can be transformed to respond to its critics. Combiningessential information about its history and workings with practical proposalsof how it can be strengthened, Trent and Schnurr examine what needs to bedone, and also how we can actually move toward the required reforms. Thisbook is written for a new generation of change-makers — a generation seekingbetter institutions that reflect the realities of the 21st century and that can actcollectively in the interest of all.
Making War and Building Peace examines how well United Nations peacekeeping missions work after civil war. Statistically analyzing all civil wars since 1945, the book compares peace processes that had UN involvement to those that didn't. Michael Doyle and Nicholas Sambanis argue that each mission must be designed to fit the conflict, with the right authority and adequate resources. UN missions can be effective by supporting new actors committed to the peace, building governing institutions, and monitoring and policing implementation of peace settlements. But the UN is not good at intervening in ongoing wars. If the conflict is controlled by spoilers or if the parties are not ready to make peace, the UN cannot play an effective enforcement role. It can, however, offer its technical expertise in multidimensional peacekeeping operations that follow enforcement missions undertaken by states or regional organizations such as NATO. Finding that UN missions are most effective in the first few years after the end of war, and that economic development is the best way to decrease the risk of new fighting in the long run, the authors also argue that the UN's role in launching development projects after civil war should be expanded.
