Sochum - Tech

Santa Maria Model United Nations 2021 | Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee (SOCHUM)
Santa María Model United Nations 6th Edition - 2021
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INTRODUCTION TO THE COMMITTEE 6
INTRODUCTION TO THE TOPIC 6
HISTORY OF THE TOPIC 7
CURRENT SITUATION 9
PAST ACTIONS 15
BLOCK POSITIONS 17
QARMAS (Questions All Resolutions Must Answer) 18
FINAL REMARKS 19
BIBLIOGRAPHY 20
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Dear Delegates and Faculty Advisors,
On behalf of the secretariat and everyone working within and as Co-Secretary General, it’s my pleasure
to welcome you to the Sixth Edition of Santa Maria Model United Nations.
My name is Alejandro Padrón, I’m 16 and a senior high school student at Colegio Santa Maria
Marianistas who is eager to study International Relations abroad. Aside from MUN, I enjoy hanging
out with friends, watching 3-hour marathons of CSI Las Vegas, and spending some time alone with my
thoughts and Pop Music.
My MUN career started 3 years ago. At the time I was called “La Metralleta Padrón” because of my
nervousness and how fast I talked which caused me to stumble upon my words. However, I was
determined to succeed, so I went to my first MUN. At the end of the four days of intense debate, I was
disappointed in my results because of my competitive nature, but the things I learned were enough for
me to keep pushing forward. Now, 3 years later, I have gone to over 16 conferences, won 5 Best
Delegate awards, participated in an international conference, and met friends who I’m happy to call my
second family.
I will be forever grateful for the opportunity of being Co-Secretary General that has been given to me
by my Faculty Advisor Juan Pablo and Coaches Angel, Nicolas, and Juan Diego. I’m also happy to
take this role alongside Joaquin Daza, a person that at first didn’t have a lot in common but later
became one of the most important and endearing friends. With the secretariat conformed by amazing
and hard-working people and chairs that have put their heart and soul into their committees, we have
tried to make this MUN an experience you will never forget.
Yours Truly,
Alejandro Padrón
Co-Secretary General SMMUN
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Dear Delegates and Faculty Advisors,
I’m excited and honoured to welcome each and every one of you to the sixth edition of Santa María
Marianistas Model United Nations.
It’s my last year of school here at Santa María. Being 17 years old and the Co-Secretary General is
something I would’ve never have imagined. Looking back I see someone who was always pretending
to be someone else. I just wanted to be liked by everyone. It’s not a horrible thing to want but I
could’ve done better. I think that’s the main reason that I’m here, I found a place and people I really
like to be around. That’s all of you guys!

This whole thing started for me in 2018. I didn’t know what I was doing but I knew that I loved every
second of it. Along with the things I was doing in life, MUN had a big impact on how I started to
behave as my true self. MUN was the last thing I expected to make a change within me, it didn’t give
me the meaning of life but it gave me: friends, unforgettable experiences, and a family.
Through time, MUN started to feel less like a distraction and more as something I truly wanted to do.
Because I always left learning something I didn’t know before and meeting someone new. That’s how I
want all of you to see this activity. It’s a lot more than going to a school to debate with people for a
weekend. There’s no better time to join the MUN community than today, it may seem cliche but I
continue to hear this kind of excuse. No one joins knowing everything, not even now I consider myself
to be the best. Don’t feel alone in this experience because I can assure you that there are a lot of people
out there feeling the same way.
I wish I could’ve made SMMUN face-to-face. It has always been my dream to make my own
conference, to make the best one yet. But this is no time for regrets. Alongside the secretariat we have
planned and organized this conference to take advantage of everything we have at hand. We even have
for the first time international students joining us to debate. Having said all of this, I wish the best of
luck to you and your delegation.
Sincerely,
Joaquín Daza,
Co-Secretary General
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Dear Delegates,
It is our pleasure to welcome you to the sixth edition of Santa Maria Model United Nations! Our names
are Camila Neyra and Fiorella Valle and we are thrilled to be your directors in this Social,
Humanitarian, and Cultural Committee.
To tell you a little bit more about ourselves, we both graduated from Colegio Maria Reina Marianistas
and are currently studying Law at Universidad de Lima and Administration and Finances at
Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas respectively. We´ve been friends for over three years now
and ever since we've shared this passion for MUN; in fact, we met at our school’s delegation. We also
share our love for binge-watching Gossip Girl. We consider ourselves as the Yin, a yogi with a golden
retriever personality, and the Yang, a professional overthinker and the ultimate drama queen.
We both started our Model UN journey way back in 2018, and since, we have debated several times as
a partnership. One of those times was this exact conference almost three years ago. Ironically, it was a
SOCHUM as well, where we achieved our very first best delegate (you can tell we have a spot in our
hearts for this committee). We also attended an international conference last year, Harvard Model of
United Nations, where we ended our MUN school journey with international awards.
Regarding MUN, we expect delegates to use logical argumentation to cover every edge of the topic
rather than focusing on one type of solution and being able to listen to different perspectives in order to
be very efficient at problem-solving while staying on your country's policy. Nevertheless, the key to be
a good delegate is not being the most content-wise, but using your knowledge to approach every
representative and come to a consensus, as well as to project your ideas in a clear way without
imposing them. Furthermore, we highly value delegates who want to move the debate forward and
stand out from the rest, especially in this relevant topic in our new Pandemic Era. Remember that
debate is about building proposals and argumenting with other delegates without losing the diplomacy;
discrediting other proposals without arguments is not debating. We hope to see you all in the committee
and have an amazing debate on this interesting topic!
If you have any doubts, feel free to contact us in our emails: camilaneyrabozzo@gmail.com and
fiorevallea@gmail.com
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INTRODUCTION TO THE COMMITTEE
The Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee (SOCHUM) is the third committee of the United
Nations General Assembly, it was established in 1947 and it involves all of the 193 Member States. Its
intention is to propose global and viable solutions to social and humanitarian affairs, as well as human
rights issues that affect the world population.
An important part of the work of the Committee will focus on the examination of human rights
questions, including reports of the special procedures of the Human Rights Council which was
established in 2006. SOCHUM finds it fundamental to discuss questions relating to the advancement of
women, the protection of children, indigenous issues, the treatment of refugees, the promotion of
fundamental freedoms through the elimination of racism and racial discrimination, and the right to
self-determination.
The Committee also addresses topics that include considering and making recommendations on
cooperation in the maintenance of international peace and security, initiating studies and commissions
to promote international political cooperation, the development and codification of international law,
the realization of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, and international collaboration in
economic, social, cultural, educational and health fields. In this session of SMMUN, we will deal with
Evaluating Potential Human Rights Infringements by Technological Development.
As one of the main committees of the General Assembly, all the United Nations Member States can and
should participate in the debates of SOCHUM, being that said, it is fundamental that all states are able
to share their points of view and find global solutions in order to solve these major problematics.
INTRODUCTION TO THE TOPIC
In 1948, after the Second World War, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was adopted
by the founding countries of the United Nations, setting the fundamental rights of all people, declaring
them an international standard of achievement for all nations. Human rights are the basic rights and
freedoms to which everyone is entitled on the basis of their common humanity. They include civil and
political rights, as well as economic, social, and cultural rights. Human rights are drawn from various
cultures, religions, and philosophies from around the world over many centuries. They are in force at
all times and in all places. Human rights protect everyone equally without discrimination according to
race, sex, religion, political opinion, or another status. When those rights are not protected or blatantly
disregarded, they are violated. (What Are Human Rights?, 2014)
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Technological development refers to the introduction of new technology and the progressive changes it
produces in society. The term “technological development” has different focuses such as agricultural
technological developments, scientific and medical advances, among others; in this committee, we will
be discussing the information technology field.
Throughout time, information technology has been an issue discussed with different perspectives and
ways. Two great examples for this are Huxley’s Brave New World and Orwell’s 1984 dystopia; they
both describe similar points yet different perspectives. Postman said “Orwell feared those who would
deprive us of information. Huxley feared those who would give us so much that we would be reduced
to passivity and egoism. Orwell feared that the truth would be concealed from us…” (as cited in
Keisman, 2016, p. 19). This ongoing discussion as a “possible reality” has become, nowadays, real;
especially after the United States National Security Agency (NSA) scandal that broke in early June
2013.
The internet and digitization has ushered in a new age of big data analytics; algorithms facilitate
governance decisions in both private and public spheres; artificial intelligence and machine learning
have advanced to the point that computers are considered more trustworthy than humans for primary
decision making in a wide range of activities, from health care and transportation to identify likely
terrorists as targets. Digital technology has undermined many aspects of national and international
security policy, including human rights defense. Roles and responsibilities related to information
protection of data, infrastructure, and people are uncertain in our new digital world.
Nowadays, the government's use of technology and the lack of transparency in said use is one of the
most talked-about issues worldwide, with more and more information coming in every day revealing
new details about surveillance activities. Relations between world leaders, national security, and
international peace, are some of the elements that have been threatened by the disclosure of technology
and surveillance-related programs.
In an article published by Association for Progressive Communications (2019), they said “UNGA
called on states and business enterprises to protect and respect the right to privacy in the digital age in
accordance with their respective responsibilities under international human rights law”. Each day
technology develops even more, and the concern of being under constant vigilance is a clear violation
of human rights.
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HISTORY OF THE TOPIC

Major developments in technology had been happening since at least the 1950s. In the Spy Museum,
located in the United States, there is an exhibition of a microphone wristwatch that was used by the
Central Intelligence Agency; this device was connected to a recorder or radio transmitter in the pocket
of the designated agent. (Fourtané, 2018)
Kittner, S. (n.d.). International Spy Museum [Photograph]. Spy Museum.
Technology played a key role during World War II, the United Kingdom, with its Security Service (also
known as MI5) they intercepted German communications and also sent them misinformation to gain
advantage over them. (Security Service, n.d.). The United States had its own agency too, the Office of
Strategic Services (OOS) was in charge of obtaining information and sabotaging the enemy military
efforts. (The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, n.d.). It is considered the predecessor of the current
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
June 17, 1972 is an important date to remember; the Watergate scandal began, and with that, a lot of
important events. In an article published by History (2009) they stated the following:
The prowlers were connected to President Richard Nixon’s reelection campaign, and they had
been caught wiretapping phones and stealing documents. Nixon took aggressive steps to cover
up the crimes, but when Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein revealed
his role in the conspiracy, Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974.
Four months after Nixon’s resignation, Seymour Hersh, a New York Times reporter revealed the CIA
intelligence program that was targeting U.S. citizens; this event led to confusion since it was a direct
violation of their own chapter. (Maranzani, 2017).
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Shamrock was the name of a surveillance program of the NSA operating for three decades that gained
access to major telecommunication companies; under this program approximately 150 thousand
messages were being intercepted each month. According to Maranzani (2017) “The FBI was also
accused of illegally monitoring more than 200,000 pieces of mail to obtain intelligence, again without
obtaining a warrant”.
After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance
Court (FISA Court) surveillance orders were expanded with the USA Patriot Act, which allowed “...
authorities to gather foreign intelligence information on both U.S. citizens and non-citizens”.
(Maranzani, 2017). This event caused a lot of controversy among the US and foreign citizens.
CURRENT SITUATION
Human rights can be protected and secured in a variety of ways thanks to new technology. Satellite
imagery and other imagery sources, for example, are increasingly being used to monitor and uncover
grave human rights violations. Such images can later be used as evidence in the prosecution of
criminals. Documentation and sharing on a personal level can quickly bring widespread attention to
specific issues and abuses.
Although technology offers powerful tools for society, there are restrictions to digital freedom, and
developments in artificial intelligence, automation, and robotics raise serious concerns about the impact
on human rights. The expansion of these being as easy as a click, among others.
In a context where everything is being digitally connected and links between the physical world and the
cyber realm are expanding, society-wide digital insecurity and cyber vulnerability may be the biggest
systemic threat of all. As more sectors of society have been digitized, the Internet has become the
backbone of all infrastructures. While that interconnectivity and interdependence certainly have its
upsides.
In this context, as nations embrace the benefits that free and open online access and communications
can bring to the lives of their citizens, they still need to protect their citizens from threats and illegal
activities that occur online. This is not a simple task. By the very nature of the Internet, there are
complex interdependencies that must be evaluated in order to successfully preserve basic human rights
while also addressing legitimate public interest concerns.
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Freedom of expression
The internet´s freedoms to share ideas, communicate and associate with others, practice human
imagination, and innovation as means of communication are unparalleled. Personal liberty, dignity, and
fundamental human rights are all dependent on these liberties.
The internet provides a huge opportunity for individuals to exercise the right to freedom of opinion and
expression through communication and the exchange of ideas. More than 4 and a half billion people
now use the internet, 4 billion rises since 2000.
Yet digital freedom continues to decline across the globe due to activities such as manipulation of
social media in democratic processes, shutdowns of mobile and internet service, and attacks on online
activists. Governments around the world shut down the internet more than 50 times in 2016, according
to the United Nations – suppressing elections, slowing economies and limiting free speech. So-called
‘fake news’ proliferated in the 2016 US election, a phenomenon familiar to countries such as the
Philippines and Indonesia where online news has huge reach and influence. Technology companies’
ability to take down extremist content in real-time is limited.
Police violently disperse a spontaneous protest in Tverskaya street after the verdict in the Bolotnaya
case was delivered, Moscow, February 2014.
Right to privacy
Everyday communications such as email, messaging, and cloud storage are becoming more available
with strong encryption. Encryption ensures the privacy and security needed to exercise the right to
freedom of speech in the digital age, which is especially critical for human rights defenders, vulnerable
communities, and whistleblowers. However, law enforcement and intelligence agencies are concerned
that encryption makes it more difficult to combat crime, and they are using public policies and hacking
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techniques to prevent and combat it. Some states are implementing or proposing "back doors" to
bypass encryption, but giving government officials "special access" can weaken everyone's online
security and privacy.
The exercise of citizens' freedoms requires privacy and digital security. More to the point, human rights
defenders' digital security is now inextricably linked to their physical safety. All actors must become
more sophisticated in their approach to digital security in our global, digital context. Domains that were
previously private are being perforated by the Internet of Things. As a result, the line between private
and public spheres is blurring, putting people's right to privacy in jeopardy.
Despite the fact that many people value privacy more than ever, millions of people are giving away
their personal information without even realizing it. This has an effect on both children and adults.
There is a growing industry of "smart toys" with AI and speech recognition that can interact with
children, learn from them, and send data back to the manufacturers, potentially infringing on the child's
privacy rights.
Attendees photograph U.S. President Barack Obama with their mobile phones at a reception in the
White House on March 18, 2013.
The global economy, national security, and human rights work all rely on the reliable operation of
critical Internet infrastructure. The protection of this critical infrastructure from hacking or attack, as
well as digital security for users and their data, is a shared priority for all of these actors and
communities. It is worth underscoring that undermining digital security in the name of national security
is absurd in today's interconnected digital world.
A report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights during 2018 with the title “The
right to privacy in the digital age” addresses the challenges the world faces in order to maintain its right
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to privacy. It mainly talks about the private sector and the data they collect about people’s personal life,
even behavioral patterns are collected by these enterprises, mostly without the users knowing about it.
Surveillance
According to the CyberWire, government surveillance is defined as:

In the context of cybersecurity, the surveillance is conducted by observations [sic] of networks
and information processing and communication systems generally [sic]. Government
surveillance may be done for intelligence collection or law enforcement investigation, for
counterintelligence monitoring, for political [sic] intelligence, or for social control.
(Government Surveillance Definition, n.d.)
The use of technology in surveillance has a variety of ways to be applied; from governments to track
each movement using GPS to secretly read all of the text messages and even turning on webcams
without their consent. This is a clear violation of the right to privacy and should be regulated.
The collection and surveillance of "content" is inherently more invasive than the collection and
surveillance of "communications" data or "metadata." The effect of data collection and surveillance is
often depicted as occurring only when data is analyzed by humans, rather than when data is collected or
algorithmically examined. Rather than being intrinsically and inextricably connected, commercial and
governmental data collection and surveillance are viewed as separate and distinct. This miscasting has
serious consequences. When the discussion is recast to include these misunderstandings, the bar for
justifying surveillance is increased, and a new balance must be sought in political debate, law, and
on-the-ground decision-making.
Cybercrimes
Cybercrime is a violation made through a technological device with the aim of harming or affecting
another person, organization or any type of victim. This activity is vastly growing in the world of tech
today, and can affect from one person to the whole State. On the contrary of what might be known,
cybercrime is not only hacking another person's computer or cellphone, this whole sphere can be
divided in three main categories: Property, Individual, and Government.
● Property: In this case, we do refer to a crime that involves some kind of property, but
again, this presummes different criminal activities such as stealing intellectual property,
identity theft, hacking a bank account, or entering a page with confidential information
through a malicious software, among others.
● Individual: This affects the individual as itself. It can go from distributing illegial
information online to affecting the dignity of a person through cyberstalking, child
pornography, drug or sex trafficking and various more.
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● Government: A cybercrime against the government is also known as cyberterrorism and

it concerns more serious activities such as hacking a government's database and
distributing fake propaganda.
The future Work
Artificial intelligence, automation, and robotics are rapidly advancing, raising concerns about their
effect on human rights and the future of jobs. The use of computers to boost productivity risks
increasing social inequality by putting downward pressure on wages and causing job losses. The
long-term consequences of increased automation are unknown, but there is a clear risk that
lower-skilled employees, who are already disadvantaged due to low wages, insecure working
conditions, or job instability, will be disproportionately affected. Staff and labor unions must be at the
forefront of debates and decision making about how technology can be used to help everyone.
A subset of AI, Machine Learning (ML) is rapidly expanding, opening doors to more effective,
reliable, and powerful processes ranging from cancer diagnosis to self-driving cars. Machine learning is
only possible with the help of data. To make the recruiting process more effective, companies like
HireVue use AI and facial analysis to assess tone and delivery.
Sneaky Programs
As it has been stated, each government has the right to protect its citizen’s privacy, but at the same time
to protect them. Due to this, there exist various programs destined to collect data, even though not all of
them respect the rights of the population.
● STONEGHOST: Codename for a network operated by the United States Defense
Intelligence Agency (DIA) for information sharing and exchange between the United
States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia. Some say that it connects and is
accessible to all five eye parties.
● PRISM: Program used by NSA to collect metadata from citizens.
● DISHFIRE: NSA program that collects text messages.
● MYSTIC: The NSA intercepts and stores all phone calls made in the Bahamas and
Afghanistan through a program called MYSTIC.
Case Study China

Perhaps the most advanced version of cyber repression is seen in China where a combination of digital
tools for mass surveillance, censorship, and social monitoring provide a rich and comprehensive means
of social and political control. China reportedly employs two million Internet police who are tasked
with monitoring citizens' online activity and sifting through millions of messages on social media and
microblogging sites in an "old school" dimension of its digital social-monitoring system. This
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information is collected into government reports on the risk of civil unrest and is used to stifle political
and social activity. China's Cyberspace Administration suspended 580 social media accounts,
following complaints that users disregarded their social obligations, abused their power, and sullied the
state's honor.
Case Study Snowden

Edward Snowden, a former contractor for the CIA, was the one who brought up to the eye of the world
the US surveillance that was happening around the world without any consent. Some of the countries
under the NSA surveillance at the time were China, France, Brazil, South Korea, among others.
Nevertheless, the United States was not the only country with a surveillance program, in fact, the
United Kingdom, with its own spy agency called Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ),
was gaining access to the world’s communications with fiber optic cables and sharing this data with the
NSA. These incidents brought up again the debate of security and privacy of citizens, leading the
population to ask for enforcement of the law regarding the right of privacy each human being has.
Transparency, control, and more specific legislation regarding this topic were demanded.
According to the Guardian (2013) “The first Snowden document to be published by the Guardian was a
secret court order showing that the NSA was collecting the telephone records of millions of US
customers of Verizon, one of America's largest telecoms providers”.
Tribouillard, K. (n.d.). Protesters hold up posters with pictures of US President Barack Obama and
Edward Snowden, the former technical contractor of the US Central Intelligence Agency, during a
demonstration in support of Snowden at the Place du Trocadero in front of the Eiffel tower in Paris on
July 7, 2013. [Photograph]. The World.
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Case Study France-UK

Despite the post-Snowden outrage in Europe over US mass surveillance, the French parliament passed
a “Law strengthening steps related to the war against terrorism” in November 2014, which poses
questions regarding conformity with the rights to free movement, the presumption of innocence, and
free speech. In its current form, the UK's Investigatory Powers Bill will allow UK security forces to
conduct mass global surveillance and allow extraterritorial hacking of computers, phones, and
networks. And some members of the Freedom Online Coalition — a group of 29 governments formed
specifically to strengthen human rights protections online — continue to demand backdoors or
exclusive access to encryption for themselves, despite the fact that such acts not only jeopardize human
rights and privacy protections but often compromise security.
Case Study Rober Williams

On January 25, 1979, 25-year-old Robert Williams climbed into a storage rack to retrieve parts from a
malfunctioning robot at Ford’s Flat Rock plant in Michigan. The robot, not able to sense Williams'
presence, swung round and struck him on the head, killing him instantly. The robot kept working for 30
minutes as Williams lay dead on the floor. His death, nearly forty years ago, makes Williams the first
person to be killed as a result of actions by a robot.
PAST ACTIONS
Universal Declaration of Human Rights about Right to Privacy, Article 12:

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home, or correspondence,
nor to attacks upon his honor and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against
such interference or attacks. right to privacy, according to which no one shall be subjected to arbitrary
or unlawful interference with his or her privacy, family, home, or correspondence, and the right to the
protection of the law against such interference.
UN’s International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights:

Article 17:
1. No one shall be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his or her privacy, family,
home and correspondence, nor to unlawful attacks on his or her honor and reputation
2. That individuals have the right to share information and ideas with one another without
interference by the State, secure in the knowledge that their communication will reach and be
read by the intended recipients alone. (United Nations, 1976)
“The right to privacy in the digital age”, a resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 18
December 2013, stated the following:
Reaffirms the right to privacy, according to which no one shall be subjected to arbitrary or
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unlawful interference with his or her privacy, family, home or correspondence, and the right to
the protection of the law against such interference, as set out in article 12 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights1 and article 17 of the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights. (United Nations, 2013)
Report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights:
In its resolution 68/167, the General Assembly requested the United Nations High Commissioner for
Human Rights to submit a report on the protection and promotion of the right to privacy in the context
of domestic and extraterritorial surveillance and/or the interception of digital communications and the
collection of personal data, including on a mass scale, to the Human Rights Council at its
twenty-seventh session and to the General Assembly at its sixty-ninth session. It is clear that
surveillance must be necessary, but it should also be proportionate: the onus is on governments to
demonstrate that their surveillance practices are not arbitrary or unlawful. That means governments
must show that surveillance is both proportionate and necessary to a legitimate aim.
ECHELON:
Originally a secret government code name, is a surveillance program (signals intelligence/SIGINT
collection and analysis network) operated by the US with the aid of four other signatory nations to the
UK-USA Security Agreement. ECHELON was formally established in 1971 but was created in the late
60s. Its main purpose was to monitor the military and diplomatic communications of the Soviet Union
and its Eastern Bloc allies during the Cold War. It also functioned as "…a global system for the
interception of private and commercial communications".
The European Parliament report (2000) concluded that it seemed likely that ECHELON is a method of
sorting captured signal traffic, rather than a comprehensive analysis tool. It was also part of an umbrella
program codenamed FROSTING, which was established by the NSA in 1966 to collect and process
data from communications satellites. FROSTING had two sub-programs:
● TRANSIENT: for intercepting Soviet satellite transmissions.
● ECHELON: for intercepting Intelsat (satellite provider) satellite transmissions.
EUROPEAN COUNCIL CONVENTION ON CYBERCRIME:

Adopted in 2001 and formally established in 2004, it is the first international treaty addressing
cybercrime by harmonizing national laws, improving investigation techniques and increasing
cooperation between nations.
With 42 countries ratifying it and 11 signings it yet nor ratifying it, the European Council Convention
on Cybercrime discusses several topics such as Intellectual Property Infringement, Computer Fraud,
Child Pornography, Hate Crimes, and Network Security Breaches.
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Substantive criminal law: it can be defined as the identification of “...what the government must
prove to convict a person of a crime, the defenses that can be raised by those accused of crimes, and the
extent to which a person convicted of a crime can be punished”. (Willamette University, 2008). It
discusses topics such as crimes against confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data and computer
systems that include illegal access, illegal interception, attacks on data integrity, attack on system
integrity, and abuse of devices.
BLOCK POSITIONS
Not all countries will agree on the best ways to address the protection of Human Rights with the
technological development happening each day. The stage of development of each country and public
beliefs will all contribute to disparities in national opinion and even policy on how to deal with the
issue. The following are a few bloc positions you may find in committee (however these are only
recommendations and delegates may feel free to create their own blocs):
Bloc 1 - African and the Middle East countries

The use of interception and surveillance technologies by oppressive governments during the
recent pro-democratic revolutions in Northern Africa and the Middle East demonstrated that
regimes that collect information for the national security of a developing country may not
always use this power for good. (Privacy and Developing Countries, 2011)
In 2014, the African Union Convention on Cyber Security and Personal Data Protection was
established with the main purpose of providing a framework for cybersecurity in Africa. Only
five countries have ratified it (Namibia, Senegal, Ghana, Guinea, and Mauritius) and a
minimum of fifteen are required for the framework to take effect. (Jili, 2020)
Bloc 2 - Developed countries (Ex. USA, UK, Russia)

As stated before, the GCHQ from the United Kingdom and the NSA from the USA have
worked together to share phone records, email messages, entries on social media such as
Facebook, the history of search in websites, among others. All of this without any public
acknowledgment. (MacAskill et al., 2013)
Russia has similar methods to the USA to access citizens’ information through
telecommunication companies. In an article by Mehrotra (2021) published in Bloomberg, it was
said that “Russian telecommunications companies play an essential role in the government’s
digital surveillance program, SORM, which requires service providers and carriers to install
backdoors to state intelligence”.
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Bloc 3 - Latin American countries

Countries such as Colombia, Mexico, and Argentina have their own surveillance technology.
Colombia has PUMA, it can monitor 3G mobile data in the whole Colombian territory. Mexico
by its side is a frequent client of the Hacking Team. According to an article published by
Lazalde (2015) regarding the Mexican surveillance laws, it was said the following “... the last
reform of the telecommunications law included policies to geolocalise cellphones with no need
for a judicial warrant”. Argentina had only a few conversations with Hacking Team,
nevertheless, Blue Coat is an NSA contractor which also has connections with the Argentinian
government.
Paula Jaramillo (as cited in Lazalde, 2015) declared the following “Latin American
governments are yet to understand that guaranteeing the right to privacy is a requisite for the
development of other fundamental rights in a democratic state”.
QARMAS (Questions All Resolutions Must Answer)
1. How can we ensure technology is used to enhance freedom, rather than to facilitate
repression or other nefarious objectives?
2. Should we evolve to technology-based systems and automation rather than human
work? If so, how can we assure the safety of our society in the new technology era?
3. To what extension should governments be allowed to use surveillance to gather
information about their citizens?
4. Should encryption be used in order to protect the privacy of the citizens? Or should
safety be prioritized and privacy exposed?
5. Is it possible for the United Nations to protect the citizens from unauthorized
surveillance? If so, what can the United Nations do in order to protect the world’s
population human rights?
6. How can private enterprises enforce their guidelines to protect the privacy of users?
FINAL REMARKS
In a very short period of time, digital technology has brought many benefits to the human rights
movement in many ways, transforming both the means through which human rights are exercised and
the means through which human rights are violated around the globe, because of this it is important to
reflect on the problems and examine the negative aspects of technological advances as they relate to
18
human rights. On a more concrete level, it is essential to understand how digital technology is actually
affecting human rights in practice, and even exacerbating problems that existed in the pre-digital world.
The test for governments, private sector players, civil society stakeholders, and technology
communities is if they can create constructive and holistic policies through multi-skate-holders
cooperation to ensure that technology is used to increase both freedom and security and that the
benefits of digital technology are extended to people all over the world.
Some important terms to take into consideration during the debate are:
- Countries have extraterritorial duties: Governments must respect the rights of individuals,
regardless of their nationality or location, given that the Internet’s infrastructure enables
far-reaching extraterritorial surveillance. This was a key point of contention because some
governments, like the US, did not accept responsibility for the right to privacy of individuals or
non-nationals abroad when conducting surveillance.
- Metadata merits stronger protections: Metadata, or data about communications, can reveal
highly sensitive information, especially when collected at a large scale and merits stronger
safeguards than some national laws currently provide.
- Mere collection impacts privacy: The report states that the mere collection of communications
or metadata can interfere with privacy, regardless of whether the information is viewed or used.
- Transparency and accountability: The High Commissioner cited a “disturbing lack of
governmental transparency associated with surveillance policies, laws, and practices, which
hinders any effort to assess their coherence with international human rights law and to ensure
accountability.” The report called for much greater transparency and emphasized that
surveillance cannot be justified on secret law or regulations that grant too much discretion to
authorities.
- Responsibilities of technology companies: The report stated that in any case, if technology
companies comply with government requests for surveillance assistance without adequate
safeguards, they risk complicity in any resulting human rights abuses. The report calls on
companies to “assess whether and how their terms of service, or their policies for gathering and
sharing customer data, may result in an adverse impact on the human rights of their users,”
implicitly drawing a connection between company data collection practices and government
access to data companies hold.
POSITION PAPER GUIDELINES
The position papers need to be sent
19
● A Position Paper is a policy statement document in which delegates analyze and present their
country’s view on the issue being discussed, also focusing on past national and international
actions in order to propose innovative and viable solutions. It must include a heading with the
title "Position Paper", your country's formal name, your committee's full name, the topic being
discussed (as stated in your background guide), your personal name and the name of your
delegation. Also, your paper should be divided into three sections, each in a separate paragraph,
as follows:
● Your first paragraph should include a brief introduction to the topic, always connecting it to
your country. Try to include data, catchy phrases and statistics that may apply. Remember to
explain your country's situation and policy (past efforts it carried out to address the matter, as
well as current ones). Always take into consideration that you should be focusing on answering
the question, "Why is the issue relevant to my country?".
● Your second paragraph should include a brief summary of past UN actions (documents,
programs, protocols, campaigns, among others) related to the issue being discussed, always
expressing the opinion of your country in relation to the measures you are mentioning. Try to
focus on which specific actions have had an impact on your country, as well as the ones that
failed, and explain how you believe that these measures can be expanded or improved in order
for them to work properly again in an international manner.
● Your third paragraph should focus on proposing solutions that your nation would like the UN to
consider, always respecting your country's policy and considering the QARMAs at hand. Be
creative and propose original and viable ideas that will help other delegates and your dais to
remember your contribution to the debate. These must differentiate from the initiatives that
already exist, or improve those that have failed in the past instead. Lastly, do not forget to write
a strong closing sentence.
Paper size: Letter

Margins: 1 inch
Font name: Times New Roman
Font size: 11
Spacing between lines: Single
Maximum of pages: 1 (sources can be cited on that same page or in a separate one)
Please, make sure to cite every source that you use in your Position Paper, if not, it will be considered
plagiarism. Each delegation must submit a Position Paper to sochum@santamaria.pe by July 9th, 11:59
PM. All delegates who do not submit a Position Paper by the indicated date will not be eligible for
awards.
20
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. APC. (2019, May 18). The surveillance industry and human rights: Submission to the United
Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion
and expression | Association for Progressive Communications. Association for Progressive
Communications.
https://www.apc.org/en/pubs/surveillance-industry-and-human-rights-submission-united-nations
-special-rapporteur-promotion
2. BBC News. (2014, January 17). Edward Snowden: Leaks that exposed US spy programme.
BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-23123964
3. Digital Disruption of Human Rights. (2016, March 25). Human Rights Watch.
https://www.hrw.org/news/2016/03/25/digital-disruption-human-rights
4. Fourtané, S. (2018, December 22). 20th Century’s Spy Technologies at the World’s First Spy
Museum. Interesting Engineering.
https://interestingengineering.com/20th-centurys-spy-technologies-at-the-worlds-first-spy-muse
um#:%7E:text=Wiretapping&text=Perhaps%20one%20of%20the%20first,and%20used%20aga
inst%20the%20enemy.
5. Government Surveillance Definition. (n.d.). The CyberWire.
https://thecyberwire.com/glossary/government-surveillance
6. Jili, B. (2020, December 11). Surveillance Tech in Africa Stirs Security Concerns. Africa Center
for Strategic Studies.
https://africacenter.org/spotlight/surveillance-technology-in-africa-security-concerns/
7. Keisman, M. (2016). Power and Control in Brave New World and 1984. Prologue: A First-Year
Writing Journal, 8(4).
https://digitalcommons.denison.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1086&context=prologue
8. Kittner, S. (n.d.). International Spy Museum [Photograph]. Spy Museum.
https://spy-museum.s3.amazonaws.com/files/resources/spy2019-kittner-building-0003.jpg
9. Lazalde, A. (2015, December 16). Mass Surveillance in Latin America. CCCB LAB.
https://lab.cccb.org/en/mass-surveillance-in-latin-america/
10. MacAskill, E., Borger, J., Hopkins, N., Davies, N., & Ball, J. (2013, June 21). GCHQ taps
fibre-optic cables for secret access to world’s communications. The Guardian.
https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2013/jun/21/gchq-cables-secret-world-communications-nsa
11. Maranzani, B. (2017, March 7). How Watergate Changed America’s Intelligence Laws. History.
https://www.history.com/news/how-watergate-changed-americas-intelligence-laws
12. Mehrotra, K. (2021, January 22). Parler’s New Partner Has Ties to the Russian Government.
Bloomberg.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-22/parler-s-new-partner-has-ties-to-the-russ
ian-government
13. Privacy and Developing Countries. (2011, September). Office of the Privacy Commissioner of
Canada.
21
https://www.priv.gc.ca/en/opc-actions-and-decisions/research/explore-privacy-research/2011/ho
sein_201109/
14. Security Service. (n.d.). World War II. MI5 - The Security Service.
https://www.mi5.gov.uk/world-war-ii
15. Substantive criminal law. (2008). Willamette University.
https://willamette.edu/law/admissions/pdf-admission/summer-law-intro-to-substantive-criminal
-law.pdf
16. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. (n.d.). Office of Strategic Services. Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Office-of-Strategic-Services
17. Tribouillard, K. (n.d.). Protesters hold up posters with pictures of US President Barack Obama
and Edward Snowden, the former technical contractor of the US Central Intelligence Agency,
during a demonstration in support of Snowden at the Place du Trocadero in front of the Eiffel
tower in Paris on July 7, 2013. [Photograph]. The World.
https://media.pri.org/s3fs-public/styles/story_main/public/photos/2014-December/snowdon_16_
things.jpg?itok=-O9EACaK
18. United Nations. (1976). International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
https://treaties.un.org/doc/publication/unts/volume%20999/volume-999-i-14668-english.pdf
19. United Nations. (2013). The right to privacy in the digital age.
https://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/68/167
20. United Nations. (n.d.). Social, Humanitarian & Cultural Issues (Third Committee).
https://www.un.org/en/ga/third/
21. Verizon court order. (2013, November 1). [Document]. The Guardian.
https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/709012/pages/verizon-p4-large.gif?ts=1604690482
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22. What are human rights? (2014, September 15). Human Rights Watch.
https://www.hrw.org/news/2014/09/15/what-are-human-rights
22

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Santa Maria Model United Nations 2021 | Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee (SOCHUM)

Santa María Model United Nations 6th Edition - 2021

INTRODUCTION TO THE COMMITTEE 6

INTRODUCTION TO THE TOPIC 6

HISTORY OF THE TOPIC 7

QARMAS (Questions All Resolutions Must Answer) 18

Dear Delegates and Faculty Advisors,

Dear Delegates and Faculty Advisors,

INTRODUCTION TO THE COMMITTEE

INTRODUCTION TO THE TOPIC

HISTORY OF THE TOPIC

Kittner, S. (n.d.). International Spy Museum [Photograph]. Spy Museum.

According to the CyberWire, government surveillance is defined as:

● Government: A cybercrime against the government is also known as cyberterrorism and

The future Work

Case Study China

Case Study Snowden

Case Study France-UK

Case Study Rober Williams

Universal Declaration of Human Rights about Right to Privacy, Article 12:

UN’s International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights:

EUROPEAN COUNCIL CONVENTION ON CYBERCRIME:

Bloc 1 - African and the Middle East countries

Bloc 2 - Developed countries (Ex. USA, UK, Russia)

Bloc 3 - Latin American countries

QARMAS (Questions All Resolutions Must Answer)

POSITION PAPER GUIDELINES

The position papers need to be sent

Paper size: Letter

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