Proclamation 6498—United Nations Day, 1992

As stated in its Charter, the purposes of the United Nations are "to maintain international peace and security . . . to develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principles of equal rights and self-determination of peoples . . . [and] to achieve international cooperation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character." Signatories to the U.N. Charter also agreed to work together "in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion." During the past year, the United Nations has taken strides in promoting all of these goals.

In the post-Cold War era, former rivals are working together under the U.N. Charter toward a better future for all mankind. The U.N. Security Council has demonstrated increasing effectiveness in matters of peace and security, and U.N. peacekeepers serve proudly in every part of the world to bring about transitions to peace. Following up on the report of U.N. Secretary General Boutros-Ghali, "An Agenda for Peace," the United States has proposed ways in which we and others can enhance U.N. peacekeeping and humanitarian relief capabilities, beginning with conflict prevention.

While we celebrate recent democratic reforms around the world, we deplore the violent resurgence of ethnic hatred and aggressive nationalism in some regions. Through the U.N. Security Council and U.N. agencies such as the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the United States and other nations are working hard to bring desperately needed aid to victims of the tragic strife in Bosnia and the horrifying situation in Somalia. We salute the courageous U.N. personnel who have put themselves in harm's way in these and other troubled regions, and we honor the memory of those who have died in the line of duty.

In addition to humanitarian and peacekeeping efforts, the United Nations will continue to play a vital role in stemming the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Since the successful international effort to liberate Kuwait, the U.N. Security Council has continued to promote stability in the Middle East by working to dismantle Iraq's weapons of mass destruction through the unprecedented work of the U.N. Special Commission (UNSCOM). The United States also notes the impressive efforts of the International Atomic Energy Agency toward nonproliferation enforcement.

The United Nations was created not only "to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war" but also "to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom." The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, which are an integral part of the U.N. family of organizations, are playing an instrumental role in efforts to raise standards of living through development, investment, and the adoption of market-oriented economic and financial policies. Other specialized agencies of the United Nations are working to promote better standards of life by promoting development, helping children, fighting the spread of AIDS and other devastating diseases, coordinating efforts to stop drug trafficking, and encouraging international cooperation on the environment. Recently the United States was proud to become the first industrialized nation to ratify the United Nations Framework Convention on Global Climate Change, which was signed in Rio de Janeiro in June.

As we continue to seek the goals set forth in the U.N. Charter, we must keep in mind that member nations are the United Nations. Our continued cooperation is vital, because as members of this body affirmed when they adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, "recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and unalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice, and peace in the world."

Now, Therefore, I, George Bush, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 24, 1992, as United Nations Day. I invite all Americans to observe this day with appropriate programs and activities.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-fourth day of October, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-two, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and seventeenth.

GEORGE BUSH