November 12 - Peace-Keeping Organizations: Leaving or Joining?

Posted on November 12, 2020

On this date in 1933, Germans voted on their nation’s withdrawal from the League of Nations. The League of Nations had been created after World War I with the intent of using diplomatic talks to solve conflicts between countries.

In other words, it was an attempt to create a global peace-keeping organization.

Nazi Germany, of course, didn’t value peace as much as some do – and their withdrawal from the League, a few years before they began to take over and/or attack other nations, was a signal of their disregard for peace.

There was some pressure on the German voters to “ratify” or approve the withdrawal with a referendum vote. Almost all of the voters showed up to the polls (more than 96% turnout!), and almost all of them (95%) voted to approve leaving the League of Nations.

On this date in 1956, Morocco and Sudan and Tunisia all joined the United Nations – the world’s second, and more successful, attempt at a peacekeeping organization. On this date in 1968, Equatorial Guinea joined the U.N., and on this date in 1975, the Comoros joined. These five African nations joining on the November 12, but in different years – is that coincidence? Design?