The United Nations was established by 51 countries on Oct. 24, 1945, at the end of the World War II. Its goal was to commit to maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations and promoting social progress, better living standards and human rights.

If in fact the U.N. believed in the missions and objectives it outlined and established, it would cease to allow pointless speakers such as Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to continuously address the U.N. General Council year after year. Last week Ahmadinejad spoke before the United Nations 66th General Assembly. This year’s speech, the majority of which was posed as rhetorical questions, was no different from any of his previous speeches that have all received the same extreme criticism.

In his speech, Ahmadinejad expressed his dissatisfaction with the global state as a whole. He made reference to what he calls “the mysterious September 11th attacks” and called them a reason for the United States to launch attacks in Afghanistan and Iraq. He criticized the United States for spending over $1 billion annually on the military, claiming that it was “more than the military budgets of all countries of the world combined.”

In an Associated Press interview given shortly after his speech, Ahmadinejad said that, as an engineer, he’s sure that the twin towers were not brought down by jetliners. He said it would have been impossible for two jetliners to bring down the towers simply by hitting them and that some kind of planned explosion must have taken place.

Sept. 11 wasn’t the only issue he spoke of during his speech. He questioned the validity of the Holocaust and why the U.S. “viewed Zionism as a sacred notion and ideology, while endorsing and allowing sacrilege and insult against the beliefs of other religions.” He criticized the Zionists for more than 60 years of war through deceit and hypocrisy and again slighted the U.S. for its use of nuclear weapons during World War II.

The big question in all of this is why the U.N. continuously gives Ahmadinejad a global forum in which to preach this rhetoric. His speeches have nothing to do with the missions and objectives outlined by the U.N., nor does it help promote any sense of world peace or prosperity. Ahmadinejad has demonstrated his ignorance to the reality of global events by continuously refusing to accept their validity. Perhaps the documentation of the concentration camps or video footage of the plane crashes isn’t enough for Ahmadinejad. He appears to be so brainwashed that he lacks all credibility as an international foreign diplomat, let alone president of a country.

This is not the first time Ahmadinejad has come out with bold and hateful statements. In 2005 he hosted the “World Without Zionism” conference, where he called for Israel to be wiped off the map. During this speech he was quoted as saying that “The establishment of the Zionist regime was a move by the world oppressor against the Islamic world,” and that “as the Imam said, Israel must be wiped off the map. The Islamic umma (community) will not allow its historic enemy to live in its heartland. Anyone who signs a treaty which recognizes the entity of Israel means he has signed the surrender of the Muslim world.”

With his known history of extreme hatred, how can the U.N. allow Ahmadinejad to speak?

By allowing this hate speech to be conducted in its assemblies, the U.N. shows that it is not adhering to its founding ideals. The U.N. should not allow open discourse from those who seek to paint others as historic enemies and call for a world without them. The U.N. should try to prevent persecution from occurring, not encouraging it through the toleration of such speeches by Ahmadinejad.

Nobody should deny religious and cultural differences that separate the membering countries that make up the U.N. They should however remember the common neighboring bond that all countries are to share. Leaders like Ahmadinejad have no place on any stage in any country. The U.N. should put an end to his pointless, hateful and harmful speeches. It will ultimately help the U.N. get more in touch with its foundation.

— Joshua Segall is a management information systems senior. He can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.