Topic: Protecting Humanitarian Workers in Conflict Zones
Country: Saudi Arabia
Delegate Name: Ashton Bosstick
School: Fishers High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Saudi Arabia position papers GLIMUN 2011 committees
The United Nation humanitarian workers are being brutally attacked in conflict zones in many nations such as Bosnia and Herzegovina , Rwanda, and Afghanistan. The people of Saudi Arabia would like to state that without the protection of our humanitarian workers our resolutions are absolutely pointless, considering we are placing innocent civilians in harms way and not even helping our cause. We recognize that most of there outbreaks of violence our in the Middle East , First we shall provide protection for these workers while creating some sort of domestic stability for these humanitarians to work in. We must recognize the bombing of the UN compound in Baghdad in August 2003 because it was deprimental to the UN safety. As well as the murder of 17 staff from the French non-governmental organization (NGO) Action contre la Faim in Sri Lanka in 2006 as examples of the many attacks upon humanitatians. Humanitarian workers also face such security risks as rape, sexual assault, armed robbery, and harassment in seeking to assist people in need.
In the past we have tried to use armed forces but humanitarian, Conor Foley, stated “The use of armed force to deliver aid was tried in Somalia in 1993 and was one of the UN's greatest failures setting the scene for the debacles that followed in Rwanda and Bosnia and Herzegovina.” Foley also stated,”A couple of years ago a senior official in the UN mission to Afghanistan told me it was a point of basic principle to rely on the Afghan police, rather than private security guards, to protect their staff and premises. This was the only way, he believed, Afghanistan could ever have a peaceful future freed from the various armed militias that exercise de facto control over so much of the country.” Following Foley’s thought of improving individual police force in a nation instead of calling upon other nations armed forces creates a domestic improvement as well as protecting humanitarians.
The nation of Saudi Arabia would propose a long term solution by improving the legal inforcement in there conflict zones either within the nation or the use foregin officals. Secondly we must see PVOs, NGOs, or the Red Cross orgainzations to create some sort of aid and protect for all these workers The DISEC should make this issue there first priority due the endangerment of people trying to help the situation.
