The UN’s problem of legitimacy is not limited to the aforementioned issues either. We face a very serious problem of global justice caused by the United Nations system itself. When U.S. President Woodrow Wilson called for the establishment of the League of Nations in the first quarter of the 20th century, his purpose was to promote global peace by putting a lid on violent clashes between states. Unfortunately, the Western powers that formed and endorsed the League of Nations did not keep their promises. Instead, they remained committed to the pursuit of their imperialist agendas. The system, which they created to defend victims against aggressors, ended up neither defending the victims nor stopping the aggressors. Quite the contrary, those nations themselves chose to become aggressors. Such mistakes gave rise to two grave consequences: The loss of 50 million lives and the deliberate use of nuclear weapons as a purely punitive measure – a source of shame for humanity.

A mindset, which does not value human beings by virtue of their humanity, cannot possibly promote global security and peace. It is impossible to prevent the desertification of the earth at a time when people’s conscience suffers from the same problem. Before all else, we must enrich everyone’s conscience with justice, mutual respect, peace and compassion.

The peace, welfare and safety of future generations depend on the steps and precautions that we will take today. It is time to show leadership and tackle problems head-on while keeping in mind our conscientious responsibilities. Otherwise, the world may end up having to experience a particularly dark age with no end in sight. We may face the danger of losing our chance to build a new world by the time everyone wakes up from that darkness.

Could a system, which assumes that the strong are always right due to the volume of their voice, deliver justice?