EARTHKEEPING NEWS
A NEWSLETTER OF THE NORTH AMERICAN COALITION FOR CHRISTIANITY AND ECOLOGY

Volume Two, Number Three
January/February 1993

Call to Action:
Protect Global Environment Through a Strong United Nations

The election of Bill Clinton as President creates a new opportunity to make progress towards building a stronger and more democratic United Nations to help solve world problems. Our oceans and atmosphere are threatened by pollution, but the UN has been powerless to protect our "global commons." People are dying in wars in many countries because the UN lacks the means and authority to keep the peace. The gap between rich and poor countries continues to widen. The United Nations Charter was signed on June 26, 1945 — in a colonial world unaware of the atomic bomb and of global pollution. It is not surprising that the 1945 UN cannot solve the problems facing us in the 21st century.

The U.S. Commission on Improving the Effectiveness of the United Nations (USCIEUN), initiated by Congress in 1985, held its first public hearing in October 1992. More hearings are scheduled for 1993.

President Clinton also needs to hear from people all over the world their concerns about global issues. The following are some specific steps the President, as a world leader, might support:

To keep the peace:

  • Create a standing UN peace force, to deploy before wars begin.
  • Eliminate the Great Power veto in the Security Council.

To protect the atmosphere:

  • Seek international agreement on rapid reductions in global emissions of "greenhouse" gases which contribute to global warming.
  • Ensure that each nation's compliance with the agreement is closely monitored by the UN.

To combat poverty:

  • Increase funds for UN and other programs working to ensure access for all the world's people to basic human needs, such as food and water, education, family planning and health care.

To strengthen the UN:

  • Immediately pay all US unpaid dues on the regular UN and peacekeeping budgets (approximately $500 million).
  • Support a voluntary contribution to the UN Population Fund.

Before January 20th, write your concerns to President (elect) Bill Clinton, Attention: National Security Advisor, Anthony Lake, Presidential Transition Office, 1120 Vermont Ave. NW, Washington DC 20270, (202) 973-2600.

After the inauguration, write or call the White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington DC 20500, (202) 456-1111.

Overseas, send a letter addressed to President Clinton to your nearest US Embassy and ask them to forward it to the White House.

Material for this Call to Action comes from EarthAction Network. The North American office is located at 30 Cottage Street, Amherst MA 01002, (413) 549-8118.

For more on strengthening the UN, write Center for War/Peace Studies, 218 E. 18th Street. New York NY 10003, (212) 475-1077.

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