The Brønnøysos Report | Analysis and Intelligence. The World Congress: Doomed in its Infancy.A Trond Henrichsen Institute for International Affairs case study.by Storolfur Arthursson.The idea of a conglomerate of nations has been bandied throughout terra for centuries upon end. From the early days of the Artanian Union and the Majatran Union, the idea of juxtaposing two or more islands for administrative convenience or for mere economic expediency, had appealed to various government but there had been minor unification in reality. What actually transpired was that appointed administrators, frequently shared power with a host of nations in the Artanian, Majatran, Maconian-Kerisian, Dovani regions, an amalgam known as the Artanian Union, the Majatran Union, the Macon-Kerisian Union, the Mikokuzin Union. These unions usually brought nations together under an umbrella principles, usually economic, militarism or political matters which were seen to need a joint approach. It soon became clear to the various governments that a conglomerate of nations fixed on the principle of promoting peace and maintaining global stability and secure was missing in the apparatus towards maintaining one's internal order. Although several attempts were formed, many if not all initially failed to bare results as nations often locked horns of certain issues. Thus the international community shelved any experiment to form a collection of all nations of terra under an umbrella organisation. There was not much rhetoric about a "united terra" until the period posterior to the Great Terran War, when it became clear to the members involved and observers respectively that another war of a similar calibre could possibly bring terra to its knees. Thus the World Congress was born.
World Congress: the Politics of Blunders and Failures.
The World Congress' initial blunder came in the form of its drive towards elections for the Security Council. Around the initial formation of the World Congress, elections for the acclaimed security council seats were opened and the flood gates of criticism, blackmail and insularity were also opened. The first Security Council election was not a battle between winning the hearts and minds of the voters, nor was it about championing a cause in which one believes in. Instead it became a battle of names-calling, slander, religious blasphemy and bigotry. Upon an analysis of the situation, the election period was considered a "circus" by local politicians who witness the vitreous nature of the various nations involved the campaigning process. This created the impetus for many nations wanting to abstain from voting with the World Congress, due to the dismal, disorientated, fear-mongering and insularity driven campaigns being run by nations such as Zardugal, Beitenyu, Hutori, Baltusia, Istalia and Jelbania.
In-fighting between S.C. members and G.A. members.From the offset, petty political skirmishes were rampant among members of the General Assembly and the Security Council. For example, in the first session of the General Assembly, rampant skirmishes were initiated between the Ameliorate Historical Union floor leader Rev. Geert Verdonk, Giovanni Paolo Fulgi, Ambassador of the Istalian Republic to the World Congress and Baron Igor Sokolovskiy, the Trigunian Ambassador to the World Congress, over the church's support for the institution of slavery after Rev. Verdonk attempted to legitimise slavery as an institution rather than a system of oppression. This has been described as a debate which had no place within the World Congress as it soon altered from an argument over slavery into one of religion. This was the first horn of the demise of the World Congress. The Security Council, on the other hand, enjoyed a lengthy period of peace and cooperation, however this soon changed within the Aldegar-Baltusian Crisis. The Istalian and Kalistani representatives locked horns of the issue which resulted in the first intervention by General Secretary of the World Congress Phang Thi Hong who said: I must insist that order is restored to this chamber. Heated and continuous debate is inevitable in the General Assembly but in the Security Council, we must endeavour to retain some structure! It is my view that the positions of Kalistan and Istalia are irreconcilable. Istalia is convinced that Baltusia is blameless and Kalistan is convinced of the opposite. Let us work from that position to reach a productive outcome of some kind rather than attempt, fruitlessly to change the situation at the moment. This was a testimony that the Security Council will no longer be a place of political discussion and mature debate, but would instead be a place of petty skirmishes and grudge-driven discord.
Dual RepresentationDespite all the political pettiness, the attitude of the political leaders toward the WC was quickly put to the test because the constitution of the WC provided that no person could serve in the legislature of one of the unit territory and in the S.C at the same time. Thus, before the first S.C. elections, politicians had to decide whether to stand for election to the S.C. or stay in local territorial politics. For many holders of national ministerial posts, moving from local to S.C. positions would have meant moving to a position of less responsibility and would have indeed signified an act of faith in the future of the World Congress. Whether or not some politicians showed some measure of affinity toward the World Congress, the overall political climate of the W.C, per se, prompted observers to cite "erratic and arbitrary actions of certain political leaders as contributing to the downfall of the WC."
Powers of the World Congress Security CouncilOn the question of the powers of the World Congress, several nations spared no pains in seeing that the world congress did not exercise any extraordinary powers which might encroach on its national sovereignty. Nations such as Pontesi, Beiteynu, Rildanor and Kanjor diametrically opposed to the proposals made in resolution 23, "These nations' pressure defeated a proposal to increase the powers of intervention of the World Congress under the guise that it encroached on their national sovereignty, a phrase used by many nationalist politicians today.
Threat to national sovereignty.In addition, to safeguard its particular interest, several nations "demanded that the S.C. be revised so as to exclude the possibility of the World Congress to "steal its national sovereignty." For the sake of the other nations that might desire to establish closer relations with the W.C., Several nations launched a slander campaign against the organisation, championing the cause of nationalism and self-determination. These other nations were to be left free to have looser association with the WC and its associated branches and keep control over all matters which, in its view, they could take care of for themselves. Indeed, it can be concluded that certain nationalist driven nations were only preoccupied in looking after its own selfish interests and not the interests of the entire international community. Ellinor Ketelsen (deceased), former Statsminister and World Congress Ambassador surmised several nations' overall attitude toward political integration very succinctly as follows: "Several nations seem to want everything out of the World Congress and wants to give nothing to it and that's a plain fact. They want maximum representation that will put her in a position where they will virtually supplant the General Secretary. All it would mean is that order could cease to be and chaos would take over."
Why is the World Congress failing?(1)"the Security Council is virtually powerless", (2) "The leadership was timid", (3) "There were differences between the leadership of the region (4) "There was reluctance on the part of the mainland territories to join the World Congress", (5) "The absence of a unifying force prompted by external danger and the want of a common struggle against a reluctant nationalist strain", (6) "Parochialism, which was grounded in generations of isolated history and the absence of a sense of a common identity and insular pride amounting to parochialism". (7) "Political in-fighting and skirmishes between members, (usually out of irrational and nonsensical situations)".
ConclusionAgainst this backdrop, political leaders need to adhere to the belief that "international political unity is one major issue that must be kept by all those who can appreciate the importance of having the international community as one body to deal with the world at large in these modern times.