UN Security Council Undemocratic with No Checks, Balances: Law and Governance Scholar

The Security Council, which makes most of the decisions at the United Nations level, is undemocratic with no checks and balances, Addis Ababa University Law and Governance Associate Professor Getachew Assefa said.

Presenting a paper entitled ‘The International Law of Non-interference in the Internal Affairs of Sovereign States’, Getachew stated today that the recent successive unjust statements issued by some  Western states and organizations on Ethiopia are acts of intervention.

The principle of non-intervention has precarious position at the moment both from collective as well as unilateral threats imposed by states, the scholar added.

“At the level of the body politic, we know that most decisions made by the Security Council at the UN level  are undemocratic, which only five members among close to two hundred states of the world make important decisions on behalf of all nations of the world,” he criticized.

Such undemocratic character from the Council essentially makes the whole world at the disposal of these nations, according to the associate professor.

Citing that such a trend poses its own challenge, Getachew said “they will make self-serving decisions because they have their own interests and there are no checks and balances in the system at the UN level.”

There is no body in the United Nations organization to control the Security Council, the scholar stated, adding that “these essentially made the Security Council a very undemocratic dictatorial group of nations.”

For the associate professor, the other important challenge is unilateral sanction taken by powerful states against developing countries that simply undermines international rule of law.

“So, I think it is important that non-Western countries understand this challenge and act collectively to protect their interests and protect challenges that come from developed nations, either in a collective platform like the UN security or individually as part of their foreign policy,” he concluded.