Topic: Protecting Civilians in Conflict Zones
Country: India
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All India position papers GLIMUN 2018 committees
As our global family persists and develops through the twenty-first century, conflict zones and their implications on the lives of civilians expose the imperfections in the order of societies. Often the breakdown of social structures leaves citizens, especially marginalized social groups, exposed to increased volume and frequency of violence. A society, a culture, is built by its citizens, and it is the duty of the sovereign entities gathered in this body to protect the right to life of our civilians. The United Nations is our global platform to plan solutions and route maps to make the world a better place, and in DISEC we explore and seek cohesive, representative solutions in the hopes of maintaining international peace and security.
The Republic of India is no stranger to violent conflict, nor chronic conflict. We are also no stranger to the protection of civilians within conflict zones. As part of our UN Mission, India has protected numerous citizens over the course of decades, and we continue to demonstrate the will to do so. The High Commissioner for Human Rights gave our state an A rating in compliance with the Paris Principle, a rating we value and continue to pursue. Our primary concerns with the facets of this issue lie in enhancing the UN’s Peacekeeping operations, enhancing compliance by non-state actors, enhancing accountability for violations of existing civilian protections, and improving humanitarian access. The architecture of resolutions which build protections for civilians is immense, but the failure of effective implementation of these devices have continued to expose thousands of civilians to targeted attacks by armed groups. This body must not allow idle action to collapse the influence of this institution. The United Nations has the potential to bring forth the full force of a mobilized global populations.
Beginning in the 1990’s the Security Council made civilian conflict casualty a primary concern. The most immediate and pressing question in any conflict is the flow of access to basic needs such as food, water, shelter and medical equipment. Article 25, sub-clause (1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) states that “(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.”. Oftentimes transporting these essential items where they are allocated presents a huge challenge because of the facet of non-state actors. Non-state actors are defined by the United Nations as “individuals or groups which exert influence on international relations but are wholly or partly independent of any state government”. Primarily, in the context of our issue, they add to the tumult of conflict through subversive warfare techniques such as guerilla fighting, terrorism, and by extension, the disruption of supply routes for aid. It is the threat of non-state actors which beg for the reiteration of concise operating procedures.
Peacekeeping operations are coming under increasing attack, parallel to the trend of increase in civilian targeting. In order to effectively administer aid through UN Peacekeepers, the system of administration for those operations must be reformed. The standard operating procedures for UN operations are clear, but without a strategic directive for where we execute these operations, they will proceed with much less functionality. This committee should discuss the conditions which would define need of peacekeeping operations. With those guidelines set, the most volatile conflict zones can be targeted with our efforts. Using the same processes which protect our Peacekeepers, we can ensure the stability of humanitarian access. Formed Police Units are often used in order to safely insert Peacekeepers into conflict zones, and by modifying that procedure in order to better fit the movement of resources, we may very well begin to see a higher level of success in the supplication of these basic needs. India is proud to provide one of the highest volumes of Peacekeepers to the United Nations, and we have and will continue to support the system of international aid which has the capacity to benefit our entire globe. Countries which are able should always be willing to provide aid and support to the United Nations effort to globalize peace and prosperity.
The accounts of violations of human rights in a conflict such as rape, slavery, and other sexually motivated crimes of war committed against civilians and combatants should be addressed with the utmost urgency and those parties involved and perpetrating the crimes should be tried for the violation of human rights as defined by the UDHR. It is crucial that countries report cases promptly to international monitoring bodies. For developing countries, this can pose a huge challenge fiscally and in terms of accessibility. This committee should seek to form or define a consistent, singular body which will receive and sort cases, assigning them to the appropriate jurisdiction. A crucial function of the United Nations is to afford justice in the case of humanitarian violations, and multiple bodies have been tasked with doing just that. Any solution which the committee decides upon must also include a system of support for developing countries in developing their prosecution in accordance with international propriety. It is important that we as nations use guidelines such as the manual on the Domestic Implementation of International Law, as per the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Throughout all of this we must bear in mind the value of sovereignty, both in the respect of it as well as our responsibility to our own sovereign duties. We must work with impartiality, autonomy and consent of all parties, but we must also remember the necessity of this work, and open ourselves to giving and receiving aid. Non-violence is the policy of a prosperous nation, and of a prosperous world. In the event that we cannot keep our promise of peace to the people of this world, it is the responsibility of our nations to come together within this body and resolve the conflicts we face, while creating and implementing protections for our civilians which will allow for a prosperous and stable future.
