MUN 5: RESEARCH PAPER

Country: Finland
Committee: United Nations General Assembly (DISEC)
Topic: The Taliban Insurgency and the Future Of Afghanistan

General Speakers List

Honorable Chair and my fellow delegates,
The delegate of Finland appreciates the efforts taken to execute this conference.
Millions of people in Afghanistan are faced with an extremely undetermined future. Many have
been displaced all over the country and are in an urgent need for aid.
The delegate of Finland would like to state that international recognition is something that can be
used against the Taliban. The delegate of Finland believes that international legitimacy must only
be given to the Taliban after they enforce certain legal mechanisms under an independent judiciary
to ensure that human rights are respected within the territory of Afghanistan. This is one of the
best ways to combat the threat posed by the Taliban and their associates. The delegate of Finland
is aware of the terrible situation that awaits when the international community engages in a war
with the Taliban. However, the delegate of Finland would like to point out that there are over 2.6
million refugees from Afghanistan as a direct result of the war and 2.3 million of them are being
housed in Pakistan and Iran alone. The UN refugee convention of 1951 specifically states the
signatories to these conventions provide them with:
a) right to housing (article 21)
b) right to education ( article 22)
And many other such benefits to be given to the refugees. In light of this and the government that
was present before the Taliban takeover, it is imperative, in the opinion of the delegate of Finland,
that the international community intervene militarily against the Taliban to prevent this crisis from
getting out of hand.
The delegation of Finland Strongly stands with Afghanistan, and for sure not the Taliban!
The delegation also suggests & rather highly recommends all member nations to support
Afghanistan in this tough time!

1. Topic Background
The Taliban first emerged in the 1900s in northern pakistan. This followed the withdrawal of soviet troops
from Afghanistan. Once in power, they promised to restore peace and security along with their version of
the Sharia Law.

2. Past International Actions

- “The UN Security Council passed a resolution on Monday that calls for the Taliban to facilitate safe
passage for people wanting to leave Afghanistan, allow humanitarians to access the country, and
uphold human rights, including for women and children.”

Improvements that could’ve been done:

* send troops to make sure no person is being denied to leave against their will
 - On the issue of human rights, UK Ambassador Barbara Woodward emphasized the need to protect
gains made over the past two decades, stressing that the rights of women, children and minorities
must be safeguarded.

- Foreign governments have warned that, if the Taliban do not protect Afghans’ rights, they could
stop providing aid, which could lead to a dire humanitarian crisis.

- The UK is to double its humanitarian and development aid to Afghanistan, which will provide
urgent life-saving assistance to millions of people suffering from the conflict, drought and
COVID-19.

3. Human rights violations

- Violations of International Humanitarian Law
- Attacks on Healthcare Providers and Facilities
- Violence and Sexual Harassment Against Women
- Attacks on media and human right defenders
- Torture (article 5 of universal declaration of human rights is violated)
- Elections (article 21 of universal declaration of human rights is being violated)

4. Allies and Enemies of Finland

- Only Russia and its allies are Finland's Enemies.
- It's a peace loving country, thus does not believe in getting into controversies.
- China, Russia, Ossetia can be targeted.

5. Solutions
- Reinstatement of the peace deal between Taliban and USA
- Countries should volunteer to host refugees
- Renegotiate human rights with keeping the Sharia in mind
- Provide aids to the people in Afghanistan
- Send aircrafts to evacuate those who wish to
- Reopen schools and public places with covid protocols
- Rebuild the Afghanistan government with the help of allies

6. The Taliban’s structure

Leader - Mawlawi Haibatullah Akhundzada

Senior judge - Mullah Abdul Hakeem
Political deputy - Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar
Deputy - Mullah Muhammad Yaqoob
Deputy - Sirajuddin Haqqani
Leadership council - Rahbari Shura
Commissions - political (Doha), economic, military, intelligence, 13 more

7. Pros of taliban

- They have respected the United nations personnel and premises in a large measure
- They have agreed to work with the existing institutions
 - The group has claimed that going forward, it would respect women's rights according to Islamic
law and would not seek revenge on Afghans who used to work with its enemies.
- The Taliban reportedly promised Russia that it would eradicate drug production, but it will not be
easy to crack down on the criminal organizations involved in trafficking
- The Taliban have promised a softer system this time around, including rights for women.

9. Possible motions
- The situation of women in Afghanistan
- Taliban’s rise to power
- The security situation in Afghanistan
- Funding of Taliban
- Nuclear weapons involved
- Impact on gender
- How embassies and airport control may better themselves
- Proper rehabilitation of refugees for the immediate and slowly taking relief efforts by urging ngos to
do the task of damage control in the hotspots of the same
- Issue of harassment and abuse of women during the crisis
- The role of religious extremism in the situation in afghanistan.
- Measures which can be taken to protect the women and other vulnerable groups in Afghanistan
under current circumstances

10. The Sharia Law

- Islam’s legal system

- It is derived from the Quran, Islam's holy book, as well as the Sunnah and Hadith - the deeds and
sayings of the Prophet Muhammad.
- Sharia acts as a code for living that all Muslims should adhere to, including prayers, fasting and
donations to the poor.
- It aims to help Muslims understand how they should lead every aspect of their lives according to
God's wishes. Islamic scholars say Sharia is mainly a code of ethical conduct and about worship
and charity but a part of it deals with crime.
- Sharia law divides offenses into two general categories: "hadd" offenses, which are serious crimes
with set penalties, and "tazir" crimes, where the punishment is left to the discretion of the
judge.Hadd offenses include theft, which under the strictest interpretations of Sharia, can be
punishable by amputating the offender's hand.

11. Finland’s foreign policy

- Finland’s foreign and security policy aims at preserving its independence and the democratic core
values of society and promoting the well-being and security of its citizens.
- As a Member State of the European Union and a member of the international community, Finland
exercises foreign policy with a view to securing its national interests and endeavors to contribute to
world peace.
- Foreign and security policy is based on good bilateral and international relations, a strong role in
the EU's Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) of the EU, effective multilateral cooperation
and credible national defense.
12. What has Finland done about the situation in Afghanistan?

To date, Finland has evacuated a total of 413 people from Afghanistan, the Xinhua news agency reported.
According to Finnish national broadcaster Yle, the evacuated include Finnish citizens,

Finnish permanent residents and locally hired embassy workers as well as their families. Evacuees also
include people working with the European Union and NATO missions. The ministry noted that Finland's
evacuation operation in Afghanistan was completed when the ministry's relief team and the Defense
Forces' unit tasked in ensuring the efforts had left Kabul.

The Finnish Defense Forces announced that the Finnish troops who supported evacuation efforts in Kabul
arrived in Finland on Saturday morning. The troops were sent to Afghanistan about one week ago.

The ministry said that it will continue to provide assistance to Finnish citizens and permanent residents of
Finland in Afghanistan to the extent possible.

13. Moderated Caucus Topics

- Discussion on the Effects of the Taliban insurgency on Afghan citizens with
special emphasis on global and regional peace and security.
- For nearly 20 years, the Taliban’s great wealth has financed mayhem, destruction and death in
Afghanistan.
- Swift action must change the current catastrophic trajectory of violence and humanitarian suffering
in Afghanistan. This is a call for an immediate halt to the recent Taliban offensive that has led to
record numbers of civilian casualties and targeted killings.
- Afghanistan is suffering through the pandemic, food insecurity, political hindrance and high levels
of displacement all at once. A defining characteristic of violent conflicts is the existence of
competing truths. The delegate of Finland would like to remind the Taliban that they cannot hope
to rule the Afghan population through coercion and force indefinitely.
- Lets deal in specifics rather than principles. Discussions of principles fed into and encouraged the
Taliban’s tendency to become defensive and to adopt rigid positions. The best approach tended to
be one that made each issue as specific and tangible as possible; even better was when
negotiators managed to convey why the specific issue was important for them and what action
points would help them.
- A lot of people were killed, comprising 46% of all civilian casualties, 32% were children – 1,682 in
total and 14% were women. In the words of Daisaku Ikeda, “So long as nuclear weapons continue
to exist, so will the temptation to threaten others with overwhelming military force.”

- Deliberation upon the use of WMDs in case of an inevitable scenario and

formulation of a contingency POA, in case of wrongful acquisition of WMDs by
Non-State actors in Afghanistan.
- Comoros has expressed deep concern over the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and
their delivery systems that could endanger peace and security, saying the possibility of terrorists
acquiring such weapons necessitates the global community to work together to address this grave
danger.
- If terrorist groups like Houthis, ISIS and so on manage to get their hands on these weapons
through any back channels, or through any means what so ever, the whole world especially the
gulf will be at the turning point of yet another contingency.
- No peace is possible in Yemen unless all arms and ammunition supply to the warring factions is
stopped; an embargo on arms can only succeed if the neighboring countries actively assist in
enforcing it.
- Deploying troops around the borders of Yemen is always a solution.
- We also call upon all parties who have been supporting the Houthis financially to stop from doing
so. If they wouldn’t have any arms, their power would eventually die down.

- Geo-political, social and economic issues that have risen in Afghanistan post
Taliban insurgency & its recovery post Taliban era.
- The speedy collapse of the Afghan security forces and the tactical offensive of the Taliban has
been an intensely discussed issue amongst scholars and practitioners across the world. While the
arguments generally boil down to the Taliban’s psychological warfare and the Afghan
government’s incapability to defend the state, several of these assertions have missed out on an
important aspect that facilitated the Taliban’s march to power ,i.e., the economics of the conflict.
- Because for the Taliban, the priority was not only to establish an Islamic emirate but to also ensure
its sustenance. And for this, the plan was to avoid extreme external dependence and achieve
financial and military independence.
In any case, to either manipulate the state forces, a key point revolves around individuals,
institutions and organizations making rational decisions on what actions could benefit or harm
them, and the case of Afghanistan is a stark reflection and reminder of the same.
- The Taliban have relished the international attention their negotiators have received by global
diplomats trying to establish an inclusive political settlement. But so far they have not put forward
any plan for compromise while their forces march on Kabul. The international community should
deny the Taliban travel privileges from Doha as long as fighting supersedes intra-Afghan talks. The
rest of the world should also make clear to the Taliban that if they do take Kabul by force, the
movement will not be recognized as a legitimate government and it will lose all but humanitarian
assistance.

- Deliberation upon solutions to reduce the threat posed by the Taliban

insurgency on global peace and security.
- It is clear that, whatever standards are applicable or agreed upon, monitoring will be an essential
element in supporting their implementation. Such monitoring should build on the work of the UN
and human rights and humanitarian non-governmental organizations, and through initiatives that
engage the Taliban as well.
- Negotiating with the OIC, organization of Islamic cooperation instead of the Taliban would boost
the chances of the Taliban granting rights since the Taliban would take into account the decisions
of an islamist collaboration
- It is important for National Commissions and relevant bodies to keep an accurate account of the
PoA activities that have been provided or received and for handling requests for assistance.
- It is absolutely crucial for India to effectively maneuver its influence as the chair of the UNSC in
mobilizing international isolation of the Taliban. Only then can there be a sincere attempt at
regaining the Afghani land for the Afghan people.