Topic: Protecting Civilians in Conflict Zones
Country: Pakistan
Delegate Name: Mia Tepic
School: Forest Hills Eastern High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Pakistan position papers GLIMUN 2018 committees
With conflict zones growing at an alarming pace, the safety and security of civilians continues to be a pivotal issue. Newly developed warfare and counterinsurgency appears to be changing the landscape of battlefields. No longer are civilians watching from the sidelines, but they are involved and affected by the conflict. Humanitarian aids, volunteers, and peacekeepers experience extreme dangers and risks while working their jobs. Due to situations experienced in the 1990s in Rwanda and Yugoslavia, the UN has placed civilian protection on their agenda. Just this year, the Iraq War had 2700 civilian casualties, and the number is continuing to grow. For Pakistan, the topic of civilian protection is extremely important as wars and attacks have taken place in the country for the past decade. Over 61,000 civilians have been directly killed since the beginning of the war. Another 800,000 deaths are reported to have been killed from indirect results of the wars. Therefore, it is extremely important for Pakistan to improve on the protection of civilians, humanitarian aids, peacekeepers, and volunteers not just in Pakistan, but around the world.
As a country who experienced a decade of terrorism attacks, Pakistan understands the importance of civilians on the battlefield. According to Our World in Data, 861 terrorism incidents were confirmed in the country in 2016. Just recently, Pakistan mourned the loss of 149 lives due to the country’s second deadliest terror attack. Some of these deaths and injuries have been caused by people being used as a human shield. In April of 2017, Farooq Ahmed Dar, an artisan, was tied to the back of a jeep by soldiers and used as a human shield against stone pelters. Although Pakistan accepted 18.8 billion dollars from the US in 2002 to 2016, it believes that many of these atrocities and dangers are caused by inadequate countries not addressing the issue. As one of the world’s leading contributor of troops, Pakistan has proudly performed the task of protecting civilians in other parts of the world including in missions in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, and the Central African Republic. They have voiced their concern with the UN Security Council, and they are working to better provide protection for civilians around the world. Mahalia Lodhi, permanent representative of Pakistan to the UN, said in May of 2017, “We underscore the critical importance of troops contributing countries not only in the formation of mandates, but also in their implementation, review, renewal or change, especially in case of rapid deterioration of the ground situation.”
Pakistan recommends that in order to better protect civilians and humanitarian aids in conflict zones, the Disarmament and International Security Committee must first prevent the outbreak of armed conflicts. It also recommends for the prioritization of protection of civilians in UN peacekeeping missions. Parties to an armed conflict must also ensure an unimpeded passage and sustained humanitarian access to things like hospitals, which have become a target rather than a sanctuary. In a country traumatized by war and terror attacks, Pakistan fully understands the impact of civilian casualties. It understands the damage it can do to a family, a community, and a country. Therefore, it would like to see the international committee as a whole effectively work to resolve this calamitous issue and protect civilians. It strongly recommends the UN to not only protect civilians in its country, but around the world.
