THE CONTEXT: In the wake of Covid-19, climate changes and other important global issues such as globalization, cold war, trade, war, the world is facing several issues and the UN nearly just seems an audience in most of them. Hence, the demand is whether the world needs a global parliament for dealing with global issues. This article discusses this issue in detail.
WHAT IS WORLD PARLIAMENT?
The world should establish parliament to resolve the global issue and make the rules for International issues such as the pandemics, stockpiles of nuclear weapons, deadly biological weapons, natural disasters, climate change, loss of control over artificial intelligence, terrorism, serious imbalances in international trade, influence, intelligence, greed for power and a host of other threats.
It is obvious that these threats cannot be tackled by any one country alone and a united action at local, regional, and international levels alone can rid the world of these dangers.
THE ISSUES FACED BY MANKIND IN RECENT TIMES
- Amid ever-increasing threats facing humanity, it’s high time to initiate steps at the governance level to make the world a safer place for mankind.
- The COVID-19 pandemic has provided the impetus to the idea of a global democratic government and underlined the necessity of a world organization to tackle the dangers facing mankind in a more effective manner.
- These include — pandemics, stockpiles of nuclear weapons, deadly biological weapons, natural disasters, climate change, loss of control over Artificial Intelligence, terrorism, and so on.
NEED FOR THE WORLD PARLIAMENT
Transcending the Nation-State: There is nobody that represents the interest of the world community at Even if a treaty is concluded and ratified, a state can withdraw again. The international order recognizes no higher authority for decision or enforcement.
Social disparities between citizens: The world is witnessing the emergence of global social strata that are giving rise to vertical social tensions. The dividing line will no longer be between rich and poor countries, but between the super-rich and the rest everywhere.
Immigrationsemerged as a major issue: The promise of the “global village” is only valid for the rich. But for the poor people and minor communities of many countries face harassment and seek asylum in neighboring countries. As there is no world policy to resolve these issues they are facing many issues.
Addressing environmental threats: Humanity now shares a common destiny. The dangers posed by nuclear war, global pandemics, environmental devastation, biodiversity loss, or climate change affect everybody. Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere knows no borders.
Global ruling in a proper way: The supply of important public goods like food security or the stability of the financial and economic system depends on how well global structures are working. Regulating research and development in fields such as artificial intelligence, genetics, biotechnology or autonomous weapons must be on the global agenda. Based on the collaboration of 193 nominally sovereign states, global regulation will never work well.
WHY DOES THE WORLD NEED WORLD PARLIAMENT DESPITE HAVING UNITED NATIONS?
Presently a world body already exists known as United Nations Organization (UNO). Formed after world war II in 1945 to prevent and eliminate recurrence of wars and to maintain peace all over the world, it was also mandated in broader terms to look after some aspects of areas like economic, social, and cultural development.
PAST RECORD OF UN:
- The organization has been beneficial to mankind in many ways, but looking back at its record during the last over seventy-five years of its existence, there is not much to feel proud about.
- Soon after its formation in 1945, it had to face a cold war between the western Block and the Soviet Block headed by the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics(USSR) which lasted till the collapse of the Soviet Block in 1991.
- It could not prevent local and regional wars in the Korean peninsula, Asia, Africa, and even in Europe and Latin America.
- It could not stop Chinese aggression against India in 1962 and the Cuban missile crisis between the then Soviet Union and the USA.
- Mostly because of the cold war, politics, and its attitude, it failed to take bold united action.
- Its response to natural disasters and epidemics at the national or international level also fell far short of its expectations.
THE ISSUE OF REPRESENTATION:
- Apart from the cold war, politics, other main causes responsible for its failure to meet expectations have been the lack of its full representative character and its failure to reform itself.
- Also, it has not restructured itself to keep up with the needs of changing world.
- Under these circumstances, its attitude towards enormous problems and threats and deviant forces facing mankind has been almost inflexible.
- Despite repeated calls by many countries, it has more or less continued with its inequitable representative character.
- A glaring example of this has been that India with over 1.38 billion population which constitutes about eighteen percent of the total world population has no permanent representation on its most important decision-making organ UN Security Council.
- While more basic structural changes in the organization will take years and years if not decades, it has to reform itself urgently to make itself fully representative to tackle the pressing problems.
- The urgency of such a step can also be gauged by the fact that last year in June out of 192 votes cast in the UN General Assembly,184 countries voted in favour of India for two-year non-permanent membership of UNSC which started from January this year.
- The world body has also to change its responses so that threats facing mankind are attended to promptly.
BIASED NATURE:
- In a world full of diversities and ideological differences, such an institution will have to be free from biases and prejudices and will have to transcend the diversities and differences to acquire a truly representative and independent profile.
- But it is evident in the recent past and in the past seventy-five years that the UN is facing business issues. It took actions against small countries, but against powerful countries, its peaceful appeal had no impact.
AN OLD CONCEPT:
- One of the key challenges of modern cultural evolution is the time lag between rapid technological development and slow political adaptation.
- The United Nations that represents the best governance model humanity could come up with for the management of global affairs is now frozen in time.
- Its underlying principle of national sovereignty goes back to 1648, a hundred years before the industrial revolution even started.
- Today we live in the 21st century, the world population is approaching eight billion and technological development continues to accelerate.
- The need for global governance to catch up with the accelerating pace of change is more urgent than ever before.
HOW THE GLOBAL PARLIAMENT SHOULD WORK FOR BETTER OUTCOMES?
- In a world full of diversities and ideological differences, such an institution will have to be free from biases and prejudices and will have to transcend the diversities and differences to acquire a truly representative and independent profile.
- The parliament of the world body could be elected directly by proportional representation based on the population of each member nation or nation-state.
- The challenges facing mankind, as also the matters of economic and financial governance can be dealt with in a far better way by a Global Parliament.
- Such an institution will strengthen democracy, justice, and equity throughout the world and help in curbing fundamentalist and radical ideologies.
- Proper attention to all threats facing mankind could ensure the safety and survival of intelligent life on earth. But to realize it, the member countries will have to shed a few shades of their sovereignty which could democratically authorize and enable such a World Government to prevent deadly nuclear and biological wars at the local, regional, or international levels.
- At present, there are already scores of organizations in Africa, America, Europe, and elsewhere, and some of these are popularly elected.
WAY FORWARD
- The idea regarding the deep structural changes to turn the UN into a democratic World Government will take more time to come somewhat into shape.
- Moreover, in a world full of diversities and ideological differences, such an institution will have to be free from biases and prejudices and will have to transcend the diversities and differences to acquire a truly representative and independent character.
- Recently, with advancements in human civilization and thought, the necessity for such a global institution has been felt immensely at various stages.
- After the deeper restructuring of the existing world body, contours for a democratic World Government can be established and Parliament of the world body could be elected directly by proportional representation based on the population of each member nation.
CONCLUSION
The experience of democratic regimes teaches us that no parliament can govern a country alone. A government is necessary. So the World Parliament must be seen as a crucial milestone on the way toward forming a democratic government endowed with the necessary powers to enforce the laws approved by the World Parliament.
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