Topic: Legitimacy of Government during Popular Uprising
Country: Switzerland
Delegate Name: Austin Pittsley
School: Fishers High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Switzerland position papers GLIMUN 2011 committees
The Swiss Confederation has upheld the principles and purposes of the United Nations in all of its international relations and has always strived for peaceful, diplomatic solutions to conflict. For example, in the recent uprising and subsequent human rights abuses in Libya, the Swiss Confederation has condemned government-sponsored violence against non-violent protesters, imposed sanctions against Libya, and supported other UN efforts aimed at ending violence and suffering in Libya. [1]
In accordance with our stance on international conflict negotiation as described in the above paragraph, the Swiss Confederation believes that the legitimacy of any particular government should be derived from meeting at least one of the following conditions: adherence of said government to Article 1 of the Charter of the United Nations or the presence of a clear intention, and faithful attempt, to achieve the above condition. Article 1 of the Charters of the United Nations states the purposes for which the United Nations was created, namely to advance international peace and security, develop respect for the equal rights and self-determination of peoples, encourage respect for universal human rights, address international problems of various character, and facilitate cooperation among Member states to achieve these ends. [2] Article 2 Section 2 likewise states that all Members are required to uphold the obligations presented in the Charter. [3] Finally, Article 2 Section 6 further requires nations that are not Members to abide by the Charter in ways necessary for the maintenance of international peace and security. [4] As such, the Swiss Confederation believes it is the imperative of the United Nations to evaluate the legitimacy of governments, and take appropriate action herein prescribed, using the standards set forth in the Charter for Member states, specifically Articles 1 and 2. In cases in which the nation and its government under scrutiny are not a Member, we again refer to Article 2 Section 6, which compels the United Nations to intervene when international security is threatened.
To further the purpose of the United Nations, as enumerated above, the Swiss Confederation believes the Security Council to be the most effective machination. Article 5 of the Charter delegates to the Security Council the sole duty of maintaining international peace and security. [5] As such the Swiss Confederation feels that three obstacles hamper the effectiveness of the Security Council: the ability for any one member of the Security Council to veto a proposition, thus nullifying it, the presence of permanent members on the Security Council, which undermines the principles prescribed in the Charter as well as ceding too much power to certain nations, the inconsistency and ineffectiveness with which Security Council resolutions are executed. In order to eliminate these obstacles, the Swiss Confederation proposes requiring three instead of one “no” votes in order to veto a resolution, eliminating the permanent status for those nations holding it, and increase funding for the tools used by the Security Council to execute resolutions.
Bibliography
[1] Switzerland. Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. Situation in Libya. Web. 07 Nov. 2011. <http://www.eda.admin.ch/eda/en/home/recent/actu/arab/libyen.encoded-Show=1&print=1.html>. [2][3][4] "Charter of the United Nations: Chapter I: Purposes and Principles." Welcome to the United Nations: It's Your World. United Nations. Web. 07 Nov. 2011. <http://www.un.org/en/documents/charter/chapter1.shtml>. [5] "Charter of the United Nations: Chapter V: The Security Council." Welcome to the United Nations: It's Your World. United Nations. Web. 07 Nov. 2011. <http://www.un.org/en/documents/charter/chapter5.shtml>.