CCMUN 2018

General Assembly

Welcome Letter:
Welcome delegates to General Assembly of CCMUN 2018. The secretariat is
honored to have your participation in this third edition of CCMUN. Secretariat,
chair and staff have been working non-stop to make the best experience
possible for you.
GA is one of the most important committees in the UN. It has the power to
accept and reject all the solutions of most of the committees. That means that
during this simulation, you have the power to implement solutions that could
change the world.
In this simulation you will prove and put to the test your abilities of teamwork,
critical thinking, leadership, communication and creativity.
We hope you enjoy this simulation and take something with you, after it.
I. History of the committee:

The United Nations General Assembly was established in 1945 under the
Charter of the United Nations. GA holds a central position as the deliberative
and normative principal organ of the United Nations. The General Assembly is
the only organ that is part of the United Nations in which all the Member States
have the same representation. All the 193 Member States of the United Nations
have a valid participation in order to discuss and cooperate for possible
solutions on a wide variety of transnational problems and issues covered by the
United Nations Charter.

The work of the United Nations derives largely from the decisions of the General
Assembly and is carried out by committees and other bodies established by the
Assembly to study and report on specific issues. Each nation has the right to
vote in favor or against an important topic that involves development, security,
admission of new members, monetary budgets, etc.

During the annual session of GA, the Assembly comprises all Members of the
United Nations and meets in regular session each year from september to
december they decide whether to approve or reject the solutions that are
proposed by the other UN committees. The General Assembly has had 72
sessions in total; in which they have made global decisions like authorizing the
Universal Declaration on Human Rights.* However, crime and violence still has
a strong presence on Earth, so after all
the decisions and resolutions the GA has established, civilians and sometimes
even political leaders, the laws and basic rules of human rights are not obeyed
nor respected around the world as they are “advertised” by other political
powers and the UN itself.

*(adopted in the 3rd session, from 1948-1949, and became the 217th resolution
achieved by the GA, including a total of 30 articles, it is a very relevant document
in the history of human rights, which was elaborated with all kinds of legal and
cultural backgrounds with the purpose of providing every human being with the
resources and services that they deserve as humans).

Topic: Protection of civilians in conflict zones

● Introduction:

Civilians have become the victims of armed conflicts. The world witnesses
atrocities committed against citizens. They are murdered, tortured, enslaved an
sexually assaulted during conflicts they didn’t start. The responsibility to protect
their own population falls in individual governments. However, many fail in doing
so, due to their lack of capacity and will, in some cases the government even
allows and promotes these kind of violations. The United Nations esteems that
125 million people are in need of humanitarian aid. These number gets bigger
every year and one third are children. These also increases the cost of
humanitarian aid 600 percent, making it practically unsustainable. Laws for the
protection of civilians have been established in peace conferences during non-
international conflicts, protecting the citizens dignity and rights. Many have done
their job others haven’t. A lot people don’t have other option but to flee their
homes. Migrating to other countries or states. They come in large groups, filling
hospitals and refugee camps, that could also get bombarded and destroyed.

Countries:
1. Saudi Arabia
2. Australia
3. Brazil
4. Canada
5. China
6. Haiti
7. Syria
 8. France
9. Indonesia
10. Germany
11. Italy
12. Cameroon
13. United Kingdom
14. Mexico
15. Japan
16. DR Congo
17. Venezuela
18. Spain
19. Russia
20. Sweden
21. Belgium
22. South Africa
23. Ukraine
24. United States
25. New Zealand
26. Niger

● History of the Topic:

Insecure places and the absence of resources such as water, food, housing and
medical services are another cause of the lack of security regarding civilians in
conflict zones. This is a worldwide issue. It affects both, countries at war and
countries around them. The people at conflict zones do not have an easy
access to basic needs, that causes the migration of refugees to places around
the country at conflict. Countries that receive refugees are affected by
overpopulation, not having enough resources to sustain the millions of refugees
that come into their countries for help, affecting also their own population as
they do so. Most of the police officers in the UN work under a mandate to protect
civilians created by the security council in 1999. They have different procedures
and guidelines to work at their best to protect citizens. The globe became very
concerned of civilians at the end of the Cold War. The USA started making laws
for the protection of civilians during the Cold War making that other countries
follow US example at the end of the war. Conflict in the Balkans, Somalia and
Africa resulted in a greater understanding of the impact of war on civilian
populations, this encouraged a reconsideration of the boundaries of
humanitarian aid and the role and meaning of its space. Some countries, such
as Turkey, have made strategies and has provided safe havens to refugees,
which the UN has sponsored. Other countries, such as Libya, have conflicts in
the way of government and citizens, which results in a civil war. This conflicts
are attempted to be solved by laws and political movements, which most of the
times make the conflict become worse.

● Current situation:

In places like Congo, poverty is a normal way of lifestyle. War has decreased
the country's resources pushing the majority of the population to live under
extreme life circumstances. Since Congo’s government is paying for weapons
instead of basic resources, they no longer have money to ask for humanitarian
aid, leaving the citizens unprotected and working sixteen hours a day for a
payment that can’t sustain them and neither their families. About 200,000
women are raped in Congo since 1994. Men are tortured and restricted of their
freedom. Children are being taken by soldiers to fight for a war they didn’t start.

In Sudan Health-care facilities are stretched to the limit as they struggle to cope
with mass casualties every day. Many sick and injured people don’t go to
hospitals because is too dangerous and the doctors and staff that work there
are usually targeted and threatened. Even if their lives weren’t in danger they
Still couldn’t take care of the amount of people that (because of their injuries)
don’t have any other option but to go to the hospitals.
Food shortages have been reported in several areas. According to the Iraqi Red
Crescent, malnutrition has increased over the past year. The vastly
inadequate water, sewage and electricity infrastructure is presenting a risk to
public health. Making of the cities of Sudan an excellent place for viruses to
grow.

In some cases the civilians are being oppressed by the government, an

example would be Venezuela. The government lacks the will of giving its
population what it needs. Placing the civilians in a position in which they didn’t
had the enough resources to sustain themselves and their families. The people
started a revolt, to which the government responded with gunfire. Creating of
Venezuela a really dangerous and unstable government. This case is an
example of a government against its civilians.

With violence increasing around the globe, the protection of civilians has
become a cornerstone of United Nations peacekeeping mandates. The United
Nations has made peacekeeping operations to help civilians around the world.
Sending aid and soldiers (blue helmets) to help the citizens risking their own
lives as they do so.

Delegates are expected to establish solutions regarding the safety, health, and
basic necessities of the civilians. Solutions could also address the problems
citizens might have with the government.

● Focus Questions:

1. What has your delegation done to contribute to the protection of

civilians in conflict zones?
2. What is your delegation currently doing to contribute to the protection of
civilians in conflict zones?
3. What percentage of your country’s GDP is aimed towards the
addressing of civilians protection in conflict zones?
4. What is your delegation’s current position regarding civilians protection
in conflict zones?
5. What actions has your country’s government taken in the past to
promote the protection of civilians in conflict zones?
6. Is your delegation involved in any conflict? If yes, how does this conflict
affects the citizens inside your country, if no how does other
delegation’s conflicts affect yours?

● Helpful links

● https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwpzzAefx9M
● https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAZpdn4tyeI
● https://www.un.org/press/en/2005/sc8575.doc.htm
● https://globalsolutions.org/files/public/documents/CP-Factsheet-
Protecting-Civilians-in-Armed-Conflict.pdf
● https://editorials.voa.gov/a/protecting-civilians-in-conflict-
zones/1618127.html
● http://www.e-ir.info/2011/07/06/protecting-civilians-in-conflict-human-
rights-and-humanitarian-law/
● https://www.icrc.org/en/document/protection-civilians-armed-conflict