Topic: Protecting Civilians in Conflict Zones
Country: Croatia
Delegate Name: Forest Hills Northern
School: Forest Hills Northern High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Croatia position papers GLIMUN 2018 committees
Since the mid 20th century, wars have increasingly used more guerilla tactics of fighting. This transition in combat has led to more civilian casualties of war as innocent people are cut off from necessary resources like food and water, or, are directly killed in combat. The Yugoslav wars, which occurred during the 1990s, is an example of the horrors civilians face during conflicts. An estimated 8,000 civilian Croats died during the conflict and nearly 800,000 were left as refugees of war. While Croatia recognizes the gravity of this situation, it is important that we maintain defined boundaries a cohesive national identity. Furthermore, Croatia doesn’t have the resources or the physical constitution to support an influx of immigrants of this current magnitude. Unfortunately, this means that Croatia will be strict when it comes to accepting refugees. Even so, our government believes that refugees facing more immediate dangers should be attended to. Croatia has set up a number of refugee camps in the past, like Opatovac and Bapska, that work as temporary locations before they are transported to larger European countries. At this conference, Croatia would like to see that the diversity of situations in which refugees currently find themselves is addressed. Specifically, that those who are in immediate danger are attended to while the root problems in their home countries are solved. It’s also important that larger countries who have more resources be willing to take refugees, as Croatia can only hold them temporarily.
