The World Still Needs the UN

Beyond the United States and China, it would be impossible to agree on which powers deserved special prerogatives. The deadlock over COVID-19 reflected the campaigns by the United States and China to deflect blame for the crisis. The UN Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and other instruments embody precepts of democracy, freedom, the rule of law, and respect for human rights treasured by liberal democracies. In considering how to constrain human rights abusers, the answer increasingly lies not in traditional diplomatic pressure but in public outrage. The UN should take advantage of this change, integrating video and imagery into human rights reports and presentations.