We petition the United Nations Security Council and the Secretary-General of the United
Nations to abolish the Right of Veto in cases of Genocide.

Description

We request through this petition to the Secretary General of the United Nations António Guterres and the President-in-Office of the United Nations Security Council to initiate a procedure to prevent the exercise of the Veto in cases of Genocide.
Reasons to sign this petition are recalled below:
- Protection of Human Rights. Your Signature increases the effectiveness of
the United Nations to counter rights violations while avoiding humanitarian
crises.

• Promotion of Peace. Sign up to support international actions that are
  ethically responsible according to Article 1 of the United Nations Charter.
• Strengthening of the Role of the United Nations and the Security Council to prevent and combat Genocide. Sign to stop the inaction of the Security Council Resolutions on Genocide and the cost of lives around the globe.
• Global Solidarity. Sign to express your voice in the implementation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on Genocide.  

Every signature counts. Let's build a movement to ensure that the Security Council can effectively intervene in Cases of Genocide.

Your voice can make a difference

 

Petition Text
To: President-in-Office of the Security Council 405 East 42nd Street, New York, NY, 10017, USA
United Nations Plaza

Carbon copy to: António Guterres
United Nations Secretary General
405 East 42nd Street, New York, NY, 10017, USA
United Nations Plaza, N.Y. USA

via to: Volker Türk
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
Palais Wilson
52 rue des Pâquis
CH-1201 Geneva, Switzerland.

 

Considering

1. The United Nations was established to maintain international peace and
   security. However, its effectiveness is often hampered by the veto power held
   by its five permanent members (China, France, Russia, UK, and USA). This
   veto power allows any one of these nations to block any substantive
   resolution.

2. Member States Call for Removing Veto Power raised during the General
Assembly Seventy-third Session (GA/12091, 20 November 2018)
( https://press.un.org/en/2018/ga12091.doc.htm )

3. The France initiative of 2013 to regulate use of the veto in the United
Nations Security Council. In particular President Macron announced on 28
September 2015 before the 70th United Nations General Assembly that
France unilaterally renounced the use of the veto against a credible draft
resolution aiming to put an end to mass atrocities.
On 25 September 2018, at the 73rd United Nations General Assembly,
President Macron set the goal of attaining support from two-thirds of UN
members (129 countries) for regulating the right to veto in the event of mass atrocities.
The political declaration put forward by France and Mexico totaled 106
signatory.

4. The Declaration fo the President of the UN Security Council in January
2024 on a ceasefire in Gaza. While recognizing Israel’s right to self-defence,
the President called for a sustainable cessation of hostilities, protection of
civilians and the provision of humanitarian relief to the people in Gaza.

 

Acknowledging

5. The provision for a veto was made when the United Nations was created,
in Article 27 of the United Nations Charter. Security Council decisions are
adopted if nine members vote in favour, provided that none of the permanent
members (China, the United States, France, the United Kingdom and Russia)
votes against.
6. The right to veto was granted to the five permanent members to foster
cooperation among them to enable the United Nations to prevent and resolve
international conflicts, ensure effective compliance with international law and
protect civilian populations.
7. The Veto abolition is needed in order not to merely accept paralysis in the
Security Council when mass atrocities are committed.

 

Noting

8. The United States veto in February 2011 of a UN Security Council
resolution that sought to condemn Israeli settlements in the West Bank as
illegal. The resolution had widespread international support, but the U.S. used its veto power to block its adoption, citing concerns about the potential negative impact on peace negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians.

9. The U.S. veto in December 2017 of a resolution calling for the withdrawal
of the U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. The resolution was brought forward after the U.S. decision to move its embassy to Jerusalem, and the veto underscored the U.S. support for Israel's position on the status of Jerusalem.

10. Vetoes list since 1946 ( https://research.un.org/en/docs/sc/quick ).
Recent Vetoes, in particular as those of July 2022, July 2023, October 2023,
December 2023 on the situation in the Middle East including the Palestinian
question, testify the relationship between Veto power and Genocide.

 

Recognising that

11. Genocide, whether committed in time of peace or in time of war, is a crime under international law which United Nations Parties undertake to preventand to punish, according to the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide;

12. Persons committing genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in
article III shall be punished, whether they are constitutionally responsible
rulers, public officials or private individuals, according to Article 4 of the
Genocide Convention;

13. Under the Charter of the United Nations, the Security Council must take
action for the prevention and suppression of acts of Genocide.

14. Competent organs of the United Nations, should call upon the such as the to take such action under the Charter of the United Nations as they consider appropriate for the prevention and suppression of acts of genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in article III.

Recalling

Articles 6, 19 and 28 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights

We propose the abolition of Veto in case of Genocide

We request to the Secretary General of the United Nations António Guterres
and the President-in-Office of the Security Council to initiate a procedure to
prevent the exercise of the Veto in cases of Genocide.
We recommend that the five permanent members of the Security Council
(China, the United States, France, the United Kingdom and Russia) would
voluntarily and collectively undertake not to use the veto where a mass
atrocity has been ascertained.

We believe that the Abolition of Veto Power would apply to Genocide, crimes against humanity and large-scale war crimes.

We recall that being a voluntary measure, it would not require a revision of
the United Nations Charter.

Please sign this petition
In order to make our voices heard for a
fairer and just United Nations Security Council