UN General Assembly
1972

165. More than a quarter of a century has passed since the adoption of the United Nations Charter. A quick comparison of the hopes and aspirations it contains with the present world situation clearly indicates the vast differences between the beauty of dreams and the pain and bitterness of realities. The Charter states: "We the peoples of the United Nations", while the world of today declares: "We the States of the United Nations". The world of today is governed by "We the States of the United Nations" where maneuvers, compromises and pressures find an open avenue for the achievement of purely selfish gains, never in the interest of the peoples of the United Nations. Those who were responsible for the formulation of the Charter committed themselves "to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold suffering to mankind". Yet some of the States have more than once, and at times under the flag of the United Nations itself, inflicted on the present and consequently future generations the scourges of war, racism and suppression. The result of this policy has been a perpetual state of sorrow and grief. Not only have innocent lives been lost and fundamental freedoms jeopardized, but also the prestige of the United Nations has been tarnished and the fundamental moral values embodied in its Charter negated.