MODELO DE LAS NACIONES UNIDAS SECWILLMUN 2013

UNITED NATIONS

SECURITY COUNCIL

UNITED NATIONS MODEL SECWILLMUN 2013

SECURITY COUNCIL:
The Security Council held its first session on 17 January 1946 at Church House, Westminster, and London. Since its first meeting, the Security Council has taken permanent residence at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. It also travelled to many cities, holding sessions in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in 1972, in Panama City, Panama, and in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1990. A representative of each of its members must be present at all times at UN Headquarters so that the Security Council can meet at any time as the need arises. Under the Charter, the Security Council has primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. It has 15 Members, and each Member has one vote. Under the Charter, all Member States are obligated to comply with Council decisions. The Security Council takes the lead in determining the existence of a threat to the peace or act of aggression. It calls upon the parties to a dispute to settle it by peaceful means and recommends methods of adjustment or terms of settlement. In some cases, the Security Council can resort to imposing sanctions or even authorize the use of force to maintain or restore international peace and security. The Security Council also recommends to the General Assembly the appointment of the Secretary-General and the admission of new Members to the United Nations. And, together with the General Assembly, it elects the judges of the International Court of Justice.

TOPIC A: The Violation Of Human Rights In Syria

Three weeks after the Security Council expressed alarm at the significant and rapid deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Syria, urging all appropriate steps be taken to protect civilians, the international response on the ground remained severely insufficient, the top United Nations humanitarian official said today. Briefing the Council, Valerie Amos, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, describing the situation as a race against time, said that, without real and sustained pressure from the Council on the Syrian Government and opposition groups, it would be impossible to make progress. No one is taking their obligations under intentional humanitarian law and human rights law seriously. The presidential statement of 2 October was a clear and united recognition that the appalling suffering inflicted on ordinary people including children by the conflict was completely unacceptable, she said. Words, despite their ability to shock, cannot really paint a grim and gruesome reality of Syria today. Ongoing assessments revealed a substantial increase in needs and in internal displacement. As winter began to fall across the country for a third year since the conflict began, millions lived in makeshift shelters, exposed to the elements. All Palestinian refugee camps had been affected by the conflict, she said, tens of thousands of those refugees had their homes damaged or destroyed and more than 50 per cent had been displaced. Diseases, including those easily prevented by basic hygiene and vaccination, were spreading at an alarming rate. Reports had emerged of what could be the first polio outbreak in the country in 14 years and of rapidly increasing malnutrition. People suffering from chronic illnesses, such as cancer and diabetes, lacked access to treatment and were also dying. There were reports of both Government and opposition military positions in populated areas and of occupation of, and indiscriminate attacks against, civilian infrastructure, including schools, hospitals, power plants and water points, Ms. Amos said. Since the war began, more than 3,000 schools and a significant number of mosques had been damaged or destroyed. Around 60 per cent of hospitals, 38 per cent of health centres, 90 per cent of ambulances and 70 per cent of pharmaceutical plants had been affected by the crisis. The deliberate targeting of hospitals, medical personnel and transportation remained a daily reality. She stated that, despite the intensification of the conflict, United Nations agencies and partners continued to work in extremely dangerous and difficult conditions to

reach millions of people. Yet, an estimated 2.5 million were trapped, despite attempts to use the provisions outlined in the presidential statement to do much more. Pointing out bureaucratic impediments, she said all humanitarian staff missions and convoys required written approval, and the processing of visas remained pending. While the number of national non-governmental organizations approved to work with the United Nations had increased, the number approved to operate in areas with the greatest needs remained extremely limited. Describing the situation on the ground as increasingly complex and dangerous, the Under-Secretary-General said fierce clashes within the estimated 2,000 armed opposition groups cut off key humanitarian routes. Kidnappings and abductions of humanitarian workers were increasingly common, as were hijackings and seizure of aid trucks. Her Offices humanitarian appeal for work in Syria and neighbouring countries was only 54 per cent funded, she said, stressing that a winterization plan required $1.8 million immediately. Reiterating that only a genuine political process could stop the suffering of the Syrian people, she said that more humanitarian action was needed to reach the ordinary men, women and children who, through no fault of their own, were caught up in the conflict. Humanitarian pauses were needed in all locations where communities were being held hostage by one party or the other, she said, in order to deliver food medicine and shelter. People must be allowed to move to safer areas without fear of attack, while those who controlled the checkpoints needed to ensure the safe and unhindered passage of humanitarian convoys. The Government must immediately lift all bureaucratic impediments. Each day that passed without the parties upholding their most basic obligations resulted in more lives lost, more people displaced, and more people denied access to the most basic services, she concluded. I call upon all Members of the Council to exert influence and take the necessary action to stop the brutality and violence.

QUESTIONS:
Include the answers to these questions in your position paper.

1. How is your delegation helping or contributing in this conflict 2. What is your delegations position toward this topic? 3. What are the actions that your delegation has implemented to stop this conflict? 4. What are some of the proposals that your delegation has in order to stop this worldwide problematic? 5. Which rights are being violated in Syria and the Middle East? Why? 6. What is the main reason for this? 7. When did the conflict in Syria start and why? 8. What is the Security Council doing to help in Syria? 9. Why is the Security Council important? 10. Is your delegation directly involved in this conflict? How?

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Un.org. 2013. About the United Nations Security Council. [Online] Retrieved from: http://www.un.org/en/sc/about/ [Accessed: October 24, 2013]. USATODAY.COM. 2013. Deal reached on UN resolution on Syria USATODAY.com. [Online] Retrieved from: http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/USCP/PNI/Nation/World/2013-09-27Syria-Diplomacy-926_ST_U.htm [Accessed: October 24, 2013]. Un.org. 2013. Humanitarian Situation in Syria to Race Against Time, Under-Secretary-General Tells Security Council. [Online] Retrieved from: http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2013/sc11160.doc.htm [Accessed: October 24, 2013].