UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Afghanistan
Delegate Name: Harry Stern
School: Ann Arbor Community High School

The United Nation’s sole objective is to attain and maintain peace throughout the world. Of course, this is an extremely difficult task but the progress the organization has made so far is remarkable. One of the major issues the UN is addressing in many countries is sectarian and ethnic conflict. A couple examples of this issue include the civil war and genocide in Rwanda and the Yugoslav wars in 1992.

In Afghanistan sectarian and ethnic conflict is a primary obstacle against attaining peace. The Taliban is the cause of this conflict and has been for the last decade. There motive is to establish a pure Islamic society, initializing heavy restrictions on all citizens of Afghanistan such as women aren’t allowed to be in the presence of man who isn’t a blood relative, girls are not allowed to attend school, and any frivolous activity is banned including card playing, and listening to music.

After the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the United States, it was realized that immediate changes were necessary in Afghanistan. An anti-terrorism coalition headed by the U.S. supplied war materials and support to the Northern Alliance, which is an organization of various Afghan groups who are against the Taliban. Fortunately, the Northern Alliance has been able to retake much of the country, and since 2000 the alliance has been working with the United Nations to develop a new government. The Taliban has been driven out of the country into areas near the Afghanistan Pakistan border. Although the Taliban has been driven out, Afghanistan still remains a “failed state” with illegal opium being their primary crop and thousands of innocent civilians being killed by the violence between U.S.-U.K. troops and the Taliban rebels.

Lately the UN’s role in the country has been trying to set up a stable government, and registering voters for 2009 and 2010 elections. Other efforts include promoting the rule of law, and training of police. Unfortunately, the UN’s role is very limited because of the violence, drug production, and immediate dislike of foreigners by Afghanis.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Algeria
Delegate Name: Emily Stavale
School: Royal Oak High School

Algeria feels that sectarian conflict and ethnic conflict are very pressing, important issues in the world today. We feel that such issues are to be solved as soon as possible, yet carefully. Recently, in Algeria, there have been some outbreaks of youth sectarian violence. The most publicized of these recent riots took place in Berriane, in the past several weeks. The town of Berriane is located in the Mzab Valley, in the province of Ghardaia. Said violence began within Berriane’s youth population, but soon grew. The violence was a great disturbance to many of the town’s elders who filed police reports, trying to solve the problems. As noted, the people of Algeria, as well as the government, are definitely putting effort into ending violence within our borders.

When it comes to violence elsewhere, Algeria is fully prepared to cooperate with efforts by other nations to end such violence. We feel that all of the UN’s nations should work in cooperation to solve this problem carefully. It is definitely a priority, seeing as these outbreaks cause a lot of damage to not only the towns they take place in, but also each state’s infrastructure as a whole. This is due to the fact that these problems can throw the government’s focus off of the country’s other issues, which in turn, makes matters worse. As of recently, this violence is taking place in many nations. Some main locations are the war-torn areas of Iraq, Iran, and Afghanistan. Also, there is violence taking place in Algeria, Kenya, and Zimbabwe. Again, Algeria feels this chaos most definitely needs to be stopped.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Angola
Delegate Name: Joseph LoCascio
School: Roeper School

The Republic of Angola is very pleased to be here and to be addressing the international community regarding the issues of our time. We have found peace, stability and democracy; and we hope that we may aid countries interested in following suite.

The United Nations is a noble organization aimed at accomplishing and making perpetual, two inherent ideals. The first is world peace and above all, cooperation. The second is the safeguarding of the sovereignty of nations against outside interference. These principles bring us to our first subject: the specific role of the United Nations in addressing conflict of ethnic or sectarian violence within a nation. Angola, as will I’m sure most of my fellow sovereign nations, will seek to pursue a moderate stance in achieving this goal. We must balance what is truly right with what is truly legal.

Let me first outline what I mean by interference by using my own nation as the best of all possible examples. The Cold War affected us even more than it did most of the rest of the world. Two rival organizations with resolute and devoted followers, each backed by their own allies in the polar environment of the late 20th Century, were involved in a quarter century struggle in Angola. Foreign influences believing that they were doing what was best for my nation extended the fighting and extended the death toll. 25 years of civil war, fueled by ethnic conflict and then encouraged and perpetuated by outside sources, representing a complete ignorance of justness and an altogether obvious display of avarice, wounded us deeply. But it does not end there, my friends, oh no. What was the initial ethnic conflict ignited by? It was the slave trade; foreign powers, not unlike the ones described above, violating a land and a people for their own personal gain in defiance of human decency. Do not allow yourselves to fall into a pit of self-righteousness without first consulting this example. Aid given at the behest of a government (one recognized by this body as righteous) is of a different matter. Be careful with your power to influence another nation.

Ethnic conflict was seen in Southern Africa by the Angolan government, and we in a completely fair and unbiased manner brokered peace talks and provided humanitarian aid. Angola pledges her strong support to an operation directed at ethnic violence that may be of more forceful or potent means than the ones we embarked upon, but such situations must be in no danger of worsening because of UN involvement. Peace, not the destruction of an ethnic group, should be our objective. Violence within nations must be stopped quickly and in a manner which will produce long-lasting stability. The hatred of ethnic war, allow me to tell you, is the most horrible. It must be washed away, without turning ourselves into antagonists.

Delegates, there is no doubt in my nation’s mind that we as an organization are devoted to the principles Angola holds so dear, can do good beyond measure in this world, but we must be cautious. More powerful actions when peace talks fail. Thank You.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Australia
Delegate Name: Tracy Norcross
School: Forest Hills Northern High School

For years within the world there has been major conflict between different ethnic groups and issues with sectarianism. Ethnic groups have fought each other because of their belief that they are better than the other, or have been threatened. Sectarianism has gained strength over the last century because groups have felt more important and have also felt the need to aggressively fight for their beliefs. Both conflicts coexist with one another peacefully today, but in some parts of the world different groups have violently attacked and expelled others in different ethnic groups and those with different beliefs. Such happenings have brought upon the need for UN intervention.

Currently, such regions as the Middle East, India and Sri Lanka have been in sectarian conflict. Ethnic conflict today is also very heavy in areas previously affected by the Cold War. Australia is involved first off by it’s membership of the United Nations. Part of the UN’s mission is to aide countries in conflict. Also, the United States is a very prominent force in addressing most conflicts and because their military alliance with the US, Australia is associated with sectarian and ethnic conflicts that the United States aides. Australia also has a history of sectarian and ethnic conflict within its borders because of Irish immigrants and the diversity of religion in the country.

Proposals out today include those stated in Resolution 1830. The resolution underscores the need for Iraqi communities to reject sectarianism and states the decision to extend the existence of the UNAMI. This involvement, approved by Australia, outlines the importance of ending sectarian violence in the Middle East, as well as involving the new Iraqi government. Australia also has the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2005 which highlights the need for keeping terrorism out of Australia.

Australia proposes that the UN motivate the Government of Pakistan to prevent sectarian conflict and to help inform religious governments against religious discrimination and violence. The government should be pressed to do more than previously attempted. Australia also believes that the UN should call for a more strict enforcement of international humanitarian and human rights laws, especially in the Georgia-Russia region. Studies have also shown that greater governmental involvement in local economies has crippled ethnic relations because of the threat imposed. Australia believes that the UN should either aide the violence and ethnic conflict or call for countries to lessen their impact in affected areas.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Austria
Delegate Name: Matt Bacon
School: Forest Hills Northern High School

Sectarian and Ethnic conflicts have been troubling the world for many years. In today’s world, we have many issues about sectarian violence and ethnic conflicts in places such as Iraq, East Timor, Yugoslavia, and Rwanda. Austria believes that the UN must strive to prevent and end ethnic and sectarian problems by targeting these problems at their roots. We must take action against power-hungry leaders, break down the walls of structural inequalities, and prevent poverty. With Ethnic and social conflicts growing so rapidly, we must take a stand now and try to reduce the torn societies of today’s culture.

Austria believes that it is the United Nation’s job to protect the Sectarian and Ethnic conflict areas of the world by combining the world’s military and thereby forcing the civilians and leaders of the social and ethnic conflict torn lands to obey laws of peace and democracy. It would be in the UN’s best interest to carry this idea out because if we do not deal with it strictly at this point, it is inevitable that these areas are only going to have more sectarian and ethnic conflict.

Austria has experience with dealing with sectarian and ethnic conflict because of it’s former eastern European neighbor, Yugoslavia. Austria knows of the terrible blood that was shed in that divided country. It is extremely imperative that we make sure there isn’t another disaster like what occurred in Yugoslavia, which resulted in dividing an entire country. The violence is unbearable and we must work together to put an end to sectarian and ethnic conflicts. Lives are on the line and it is our job to save them.

In conclusion, Austria believes that is of the UN’s best interest to stop Sectarian and Ethnic conflicts.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Belarus
Delegate Name: Hannah Cottrell
School: Forest Hills Eastern High School

Belarus recognizes the significance of sectarian and ethnic conflicts within a nation and realizes their impact around the world. However, though the intervention of the United Nations can resolve problems within a country, such as in the case of East Timor, it can also create global strife. In the case of the civil wars between the Sunnis and the Shiites in Iraq, the intervention of the United States and the United Nations proved to be less than helpful. Opposition groups are widespread over the world and entire countries despise the war altogether. Thus, it is the opinion of Belarus that the United Nations respectfully obey the wishes of a country, and only attempt to resolve issues within a country if they have the full cooperation of said country.

Belarus fully supports the usage of preventative programs used to instill peace before a conflict can become violent. If a peaceful conciliation can be reached and a military conflict can be avoided, then Belarus is completely in agreement. However, we must stress the importance of a country’s right to choose their own path of development and to make its own decisions. It is entirely up to the discretion of a country what takes place in its own country.

Belarus is particularly against the issue of slavery and human trafficking. President Lukashenko has voiced global initiatives to enhance the battle against human trafficking and acknowledge the diversity of nations' progressive development. Ethnic conflicts within a nation can lead to a nation’s acceptance of slavery as a societal norm. Belarus is fully against this issue and supports any initiatives to end this despicable practice. But once again, Belarus must emphasize that only with full permission of a country, may the United Nations enter the country to prevent or stop conflicts.

In Belarus, sectarian conflicts regarding the issue of the Soviet Union. Dissent between those who wanted to disband from the USSR and those who wished to remain a part of it were rampant. These issues were resolved without the aid of the United Nations and now Belarus and the Soviet Union can cooperate on many issues. From the perspective of Belarus, there is no need to interfere in a country unless the country itself calls for it.

If the United Nations can respect the wishes of other countries, then Belarus fully supports involvement by the United Nations in sectarian and ethnic conflicts. Belarus is confident that the United Nations can accomplish this without a problem and calls upon all nations to resolve the issues without intrusion on other nation’s rights.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Cambodia
Delegate Name: Ashley Tuma
School: Forest Hills Central High School

Cambodia recognizes the issue of sectarian and ethnic conflict in nations throughout the world. Conflicts such as these originate from the many diverse religions, cultures and races that occupy various regions. The United Nations was created in order to keep peace, and help countries deal with conflicts that may arise not only between nations but also with them. Some countries have to deal with more serious situations of sectarian and ethnic conflicts then others.

Cambodia believes that countries should be involved with one another’s conflicts, but with limitations. Cambodia has strong support for the UN and believes that it should be involved with countries in the goal to reach a global unity of integration. It believes that a variety or different religions and cultures can come together to agree on peaceful manners in which then can be used to solve conflicts in nations.

With so many different opinions on the situations that involve this topic Cambodia is understanding to the fact that a resolution is going to take time. Getting the countries that experience sectarian and ethnic conflicts within their borders involved should be the first step. When an understatement is reached, the UN should then appeal to the nations that oppose its involvement. All nations must be involved in deciding how to handle the situations. Countries that have negative opinions should be heard, and there should be an agreement made with all nations.

The UN was created for the purpose of keeping peace; dealing with sectarian and ethnic conflicts is something that it should have a voice in. In addition, something that the UN should have control over. A resolution that has compromises from countries for and opposed is the only way the situation is going to be able to be handled.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Cameroon
Delegate Name: Calli Flotmann
School: Traverse City West High School

Sectarian and Ethnic conflicts are a problem caused in the differences of peoples heritage, lifestyle and different religious beliefs. The huge amount, of approximately 280 groups of people with different beliefs and/or ethnic backgrounds, in the Republic of Cameroon make this topic a problem in this country itself. Most of the problems in today’s world are solved politically, such as the Iraq war or the current conflicts in Georgia.

Cameroon believes in the fact that the main problem itself is not an ethnic conflict but rather a social problem which causes the conflict. Especially the former French and English colony parts of Cameroon still struggle with ethnic conflicts between and against each other’s groups.

Cameroon has experience with ethnic conflicts in bordering countries where the UN were involved as a helper or even solver. Dealing with the problems in the Republic of Congo is an important task for the UN. The conflict itself as a social problem must be taken by its roots, which is the only way to solve the ethnic and sectarian conflict permanently in Cameroon’s opinion.

Having formed the Republic of Cameroon, a central African country with a presidential democracy, they support the equal rights for every individual no matter on the ethnic heritage or social beliefs. The country’s motto supports those aims for a better world “Paix – Travail – Patrie” (Peace – Work – Fatherland). Nevertheless the fact that this country passed through a lot of different political leadings shows that it’s strong enough to form one Cameroon, with still a lot of different people, living in the same country under one government with a fair democracy.

Coming to a conclusion you can say that the Republic of Cameroon still has big problems with ethnic and sectarian conflicts what is not unusual for a country with an enormous number of different racial and religious groups, but improved its situation a lot during the last years. Especially the democracy helps a lot to make this country continually strong. Cameroon believes that one of the best interests of the UN should be to solve social problems for not even developing ethnic and sectarian conflicts within a nation.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Canada
Delegate Name: Mary Bryan
School: Forest Hills Eastern High School

Over the past years, there has been an ongoing conflict between the Sunni and the Shia. These two different ethnic groups have been fighting for their lives, family’s, and land. Sudan Hassain was the man who had been holding these groups together for so long, and once the United States captured and killed him, all civilization fell apart. Sectarian violence is conflict between two groups that have different feelings on a particular thought. In this case this conflict was a religious disagreement. The Sunni mean “followers of the Traditions of the Prophet.” Their need to spread their thoughts was on of the reasons that there was a violent civil war in Pakistan. Both religions wanted to promote their side all over the world and wanted their law to rule.

The citizens of Canada are very liberal and certain aspects of the Iraq war they are very against. The citizens of Canada are against other countries taking over and getting involved in their issues. With this said, Canada has a very conservative government right now. As the leader, Stephan Harper, is in close terms with George Bush, therefore Canada fully supports the war in Iraq. They did not support Iraq with soldiers and invading the actual country. But aided them with money and supplies. They also aided them with advice and advisors. Canada helped with training officers and police in the post-Iraq.

This conflict has been an issue for the United Nations for a while, they have tried many times to pass a resolution on the issue and find it very difficult to resolve this issue.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: China
Delegate Name: Ben Fallert
School: Roeper School

Ethnic conflict is one of the worst political problems of the last few decades. It has led to problems all around the globe, from China to Rwanda to the United Kingdom. As members of the United Nations it is our job to solve current disasters and prevent others from happening.

All nations have a sovereign right to make their own policies and solve their own problems. The People’s Republic of China has had to deal, and is still dealing with, quite a few ethnic conflicts within it’s own borders. There are over 50 ethnic minorities that are given special representation in the National People’s Congress. This is one of the many steps the PRC has taken to preserve peace and promote input among its many ethnic groups. The PRC has had much experience in dealing with ethnic tension, such as Tibet, or Xinjiang, so we know we will be able to bring a lot to the discussion of the topic. This experience has also taught us the best solution is a nation dealing with the conflict while the international community gives support.

The most effective way for the United Nations to help address ethnic conflict is to deal with it from the roots. The main causes of ethnic conflict are poverty, structural inequalities, and societies in transition. If the United Nations can assist nations from falling into these situations, or help relieve these circumstances, then ethnic minorities will be less likely to become involved in conflict. The PRC has helped prevent conflict in Angola by providing millions of dollars for the Angolan government. This is a perfect example of how giving governments support from the outside can help them solve their own problems on the inside. The PRC strongly advocates this approach as it effectively addresses problems of ethnic conflict while respecting and supporting national sovereignty.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Congo
Delegate Name: Kira Herman
School: Flint Central Academy

The Democratic Republic of the Congo recognizes that Ethnic and Sectarian violence and discrimination is a common problem in today’s world that repeatedly occurs. The recent war in Rwanda, between the Tutsi and the Hutus is an example of how much destruction, hatred and deaths come from violence towards a different ethnic group. This specific conflict has spilled over into many neighboring countries including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and is known as the widest interstate war in modern African History. Reasons for such conflicts usually include extreme poverty, lack of nutrition, and a stratification system based on ascribed status of ethnicity.

Our nation, of The Democratic Republic of the Congo has suffered many deaths due to this conflict, many of which are a side effect of the war such as starvation and disease. Since the Democratic Republic of the Congo has around 200 different ethnic groups, societal discrimination on the basis of ethnicity is widely practiced. On account of so many different foreign armies and rebel groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo this conflict has been a difficult one to solve. With our recent approval of a constitution and office elections The Democratic Republic of the Congo hopes to move towards peace between all the rebel and foreign factions in our country.

In conclusion, The Democratic Republic of the Congo believes that this body should act to prevent this conflict or similar conflicts from spreading to other countries.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Costa Rica
Delegate Name: Erica Cantor
School: Forest Hills Northern High School

Many countries do not have a successful government system. Some are flawed with minor imperfections while others are plagued with large dysfunctional portions that cause greater problems within themselves. Many of these problems result in conflict over ethnic divisions within a country. However, a good amount of sectarian violence does not revolve around ethnicity. Some countries harbor gangs and other types of division that create disturbances in the government and the community. One such country is Costa Rica. Though Costa Rica does not experience any large issues related to ethnicity, it is an active member in fighting the epidemic of sectarian violence.

Costa Rica is a member of many international organizations, such as the United Nations, that address such sectarian violence. It participates in meetings and conferences that contemplate the actions that should be taken towards resolving these issues. Costa Rica does not agree in forming a military or armed force against countries that exhibit ethnic division, but have taken many steps toward resolving these matters peacefully. The country believes strongly in human rights of all kinds and is willing to partake in non-violent peace-keeping actions.

Because they refuse to partake in violence, and because they have abolished their military, Costa Rica has sought other methods of resolution. In the past, Costa Rica has voted towards passing limitations on weapons in order to resolve sectarian conflict. This is a way for them to participate in settling ethnic disputes without starting a war or participating in violent acts. Costa Rica has maintained a peaceful nation and government for many years.

With this peace, comes Costa Rica’s permanent neutrality. It aims to become a carbon-neutral nation in the next few decades. This means that Costa Rica cannot partake in any military prevention of ethnic conflict. This makes it more difficult for Costa Rica to make a difference, but the nation still strives to do what it can peacefully. Protecting human rights and resolving political sectarian disputes is a priority in Costa Rica but acting to aid the cause can be difficult when maintaining carbon neutrality.

Ethnic conflicts have arisen in many countries, and most are unable to solve these conflicts on their own. Because these countries are not necessarily self-sufficient, international organizations have addressed these issues to help solve them. Costa Rica is a member of many organizations that deal with ethnic violence and helps find peaceful ways to do so. Because of their goal of carbon-neutrality, Costa Rica has limited means of solving sectarian violence but they do all they can within their morals to preserve human rights.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Czech Republic
Delegate Name: Isaac Shao
School: Cranbrook Kingswood

Ever since the United Nations was founded upon a principle of achieving world peace, the organization has been acting toward such an aim through many means. Today, as a result, most clashes between nations are resolved politically. However, half a century into its official existence, the UN has been unable to ameliorate the harsh reality that many parts of the world are still bound to seemingly endless turmoil, ravaged by wars caused by greedy divisions’ rejection of others based on diverse points of view or even sheer xenophobia. To just list a few, we feel disheartened to point out the UN’s failure to intervene in the 1994 Rwandan Genocide, the 1995 Srebrenica Massacre, the Second Congo War, and its continuing failure to prevent genocide in Darfur. Such absurd conflicts have been wrecking devastating havoc in those war-torn regions, hindering, if not completely impeding, any sorts of development. Czech Republic, having long been an advocate of human rights and world peace, feels obligated to make our voice heard on this issue.

Czech Republic has gone through a couple major political power shifts in the past, including the famous Velvet Revolution, all through successful and most importantly peaceful activism. Thus demonstrating to the world that our nation’s people values harmony and believes violence and terrors of war do not have a place in shaping competent governments or stable societies in the modern world.

Reviewing the past, it is easy to notice that sectarian and ethnic conflicts frequently evolve into what could be categorized as genocides, which tend to cause more and more concern in the international community during recent years. Czech Republic believes that in order to raise greater regards on such issue, the UN should further spread awareness among as well as within its member nations and states to ensure that the same indifference for which many mass killings had prolonged would be eliminated.

With the aim of ending on going conflicts as well as preventing future escalation of events, Czech Republic urges the UN to compel each nation state to impose stricter punishments against groups that either commit or indirectly support sectarian and ethnic conflicts. Czech Republic, as a successor state of Czechoslovakia that was one of the 51 original member states of UN, has been actively participating in resolving issues concerning human rights protection and seeks to promote the welfare of all world people. The problem of sectarian and ethnic conflicts we now encounter involves the livelihood and death of millions of people around the world, therefore a resolution requires the uttermost caution, decisiveness and the cooperation of the entire global community.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Ecuador
Delegate Name: Abbey Masotta
School: Forest Hills Central High School

Unfortunately, many countries experience ethnic conflicts within their regions. Although it may be difficult to change people’s thoughts on different ethnicity, it is important that something must be done when conflict breaks out. Once conflict in a region begins, the United Nations can give ethnic minorities that might otherwise lack a voice resources to more effectively engage with their governments.

Ecuador believes that all countries should first be given an opportunity to settle ethnic conflicts or disputes for themselves. If they cannot do this within a reasonable time period, the United Nations should then be given the right to step in to fairly solve the conflict. In order to provide the country with a suitable time table to solve the conflict, there must be a discussion. Those who are chosen to provide aid should be unbiased in order to have a fair resolution to the conflict.

It is the duty of the United Nations to assist in resolving conflict in nations that are faced with certain ethnic groups discriminating or threatening other groups. Countries that might oppose Ecuador’s position are those who believe that is up to only the country that is having the conflict to solve it. Those that support it should consider what the United Nations should do when it decides to be apart of the resolution. It is important that any resolution to a conflict is fair to both sides or else more conflict could be created in the future.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Egypt
Delegate Name: Seium Teshome
School: Forest Hills Central High School

Ethnic conflict is a huge problem. For years people have been fighting over race, even within their own countries. These fights often grow to have large scale violence. Genocide can even become a problem. As seen with Hitler, the situation can become very bad. Many people die all the time from ethnic conflicts and many countries are dealing with this problem. Other things that happen are forced mass-population transfers and secession. People have long sought to find a solution but it is a hard subject to come up with a resolution for. The United Nations has a duty to not only prevent these problems but to try and solve the current ones such as the situation in Iraq.

Egypt believes that this is a huge problem and needs to be addressed. Many people die from it every year. We as Egypt believe that countries should present periodic reports to the United Nations about the conflict situations. Egypt thinks though, that there should be criteria for selecting which countries require aid and help in conflict prevention though. Most efforts of stopping ethnic conflict are done on a national scale but it should be done on more local and regional scales. Doing that would help get more specific in the situations and the UN would be able to give better help. We believe that the United Nations should also work on preemptively stopping ethnic conflicts.

No countries oppose this. It is a sound plan and all countries want peace. Most countries agree with it. The only things that are disputed are the criteria for selection and which countries to help.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: El Salvador
Delegate Name: Veronica Dulin
School: Royal Oak High School

El Salvador recognizes the United Nations’ right and duty to ensure peace internationally and uphold the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and that the key to international peace is peace within all individual nations. When the government of a nation is unable or unwilling to uphold the Universal Declaration of Human Rights within it’s borders, or to prevent substantial acts of violence, murder, or degradation made against the residents of said nation by any conflict of differing ethnic or sectarian factions within the nation, the U.N. should take action to prevent the nation’s descent into anarchy. El Salvador is willing to explore and compromise on resolutions that provide for the promotion of innocents’ welfare, the furthering or stabilization of democracy and eventual accession of peace to a nation, and that in some way include these provisions.

When a nation is subject to open war or any substantial violation of universal human rights between two or more separate factions, that if the innocent citizens within are being directly affected by the conflict through violent acts, or indirectly because of the negative impact to the nation’s economy stemming from the conflict, which hampers the citizens ability to provide for themselves and their families sufficiently, it is the U.N.’s duty to intervene as peacefully as the situation allows on behalf of the citizens of the nation.

A primary mode of intervention by the United Nations should be mediated peace talks in which the factions involved in the conflict should be represented and the current government of the nation, if it is not one of those factions. The goal of these peace talks should be to form a reasonable compromise between the factions and the government that promotes the well being of the citizens, the promotion of democracy, and peace in the greatest expediency. El Salvador found the U.N.’s mediated peace talks a key to the resolution of our civil war in 1992, and believes they can still come to fruition for countries such as Rwanda, Iraq, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo today.

With the agreement of mediated peace talks by the U.N. a cease-fire should be agreed upon by the warring factions for a length of time necessary for the peace talks to be carried out without violence. During this cease fire, El Salvador believes that the nation in question should be open for humanitarian aid, and the extension of this aid will be defined and distributed by ECOSOC.

Should the conditions of a cease-fire be violated by any faction of the conflict, or if any or all of the factions prove themselves too belligerent to employ these peace talks, U.N. peacekeeping troops should be allowed access to the country with the first priority of defending the innocent citizens of the country in turmoil. These peacekeeping troops should have the right to infiltrate the country in turmoil, after approval by the Security Council as provisioned in Chapter VII of the U.N. Charter, and defend the nation’s citizens should the citizens’ human rights be violated.

El Salvador is firm in it’s belief that peace talks mediated by the U.N. can be an effective remedy to a conflict within a nation should all factions of a conflict be willing and able to participate fully and with the well being of the nation as a whole, and peace in mind, but recognizes the difficulty of finding such sagacious combatants, and the need for specific solutions for today’s complex and unique conflicts.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Ethiopia
Delegate Name: Daniel Jakubowski
School: Forest Hills Northern High School

The United Nations needs to make it a high priority to address sectarian and ethnic conflicts. These conflicts cause extremely dangerous outbreaks violence. There are many countries devastated by poverty and famine that undergo unnecessary violence resulting from sectarian and ethnic conflicts. If the UN took on a larger role in preventing these conflicts, then those people would already be better off.

There are many countries that are devastated by sectarian and ethnic violence. Iraq is a prime example of where these conflicts are currently happening. According to the UN page on the assistance in Iraq, “there is an estimated 1.5 million people displaced as a direct result of war and violence.” This is all because of disagreements about religion. The UN needs to consider how to improve those numbers in Iraq and in other countries in the same predicament.

I have researched about Ethiopia a lot in the last few weeks. There are major border issues with Eritrea. Eritrea broke off from Ethiopia in 1991 and caused Ethiopia to be completely landlocked from that point on. Obviously Ethiopia did not deserve to lose about a thousand miles of its coast on the Red Sea. It’s questionable whether the United Nations will take the step needed in order to resolve the pending issues between the countries.

The UN can help resolve sectarian and ethnic conflicts by serving as a mediator with the countries involved. If the countries can not make peaceful agreements after that, then the UN can use military force to keep the peace.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: France
Delegate Name: Amber Walters
School: Flint Central Academy

Ethnic and sectarian conflict has always been an issue throughout the international community. We are all aware of the horrendous acts of violence against different ethnicities, notably the situation that erupted in Rwanda, and the 1994 slaying of nearly one million people. The ongoing ethnic conflict in Iraq, between Sunni and Shiite Muslims and in other member states is also cause for alarm.

France feels this is a problem that affects every nation in some form. First and foremost, France believes disputes should be solved in a more humanitarian way, preventing them from escalating into life-threatening displays of violence. Also, we feel it is crucial that humanitarian laws be upheld and adhered to. The UN's role of addressing this issue is fairly limited. For most of their measures, the United Nations needs the permission of the country in question. Therefore France feels the best ways to help combat this issues is to have solid prevention measures, actions designed to “prevent disputes from arising between parties, to prevent existing disputes from escalating into conflicts and to limit the spread of the latter when they occur.” In circumstances where disputes that have already escalated into deadly violence, the UN's best option are peacekeeping forces and peace enforcing units. Finally, France would also like to reiterate the sovereignty of member states.

The nation of France realizes the issue of ethnic and sectarian violence is a global issue. We feel that preventative measures are the United Nations first step in combating this issue. Community coordination and the adherence to humanitarian documents like The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is key. Lastly, the use of peacekeeping forces and peace enforcing units is another option in combating this issue.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Georgia
Delegate Name: Evie Atwater
School: Forest Hills Central High School

One of the largest and most prevalent problems plaguing our world today is the horrible scourge of ethnic and sectarian conflict. While some evolved from deep-rooted feuds, many other forms are sparked by recent events and therefore very preventable and solvable with the proper steps taken. The UN has not been involved enough in preventing and solving ethnic and sectarian conflict, and Georgia has a strong plan for increasing involvement.

Georgia wishes to see definitive action taken in the UN to prevent and effectively solve problems arising from ethnic conflicts. We have drawn up a basic framework for action, and we hope to receive much cooperation from other member nations in tailoring and perfecting it. Our plan calls for the sponsoring of talks between feuding groups, the containment of conflict should it arise, and a worldwide investigation into areas where ethnic and sectarian conflict exist or are very likely to erupt. With a comprehensive view of the world in these terms, the UN can better distribute their preventative programs and specifically target these “conflict hotspots.” We also wish to prevent fractious leaders and opposition groups from attaining weapons, and in place use diplomacy and negotiations to come to the resolutions of issues. We will only support documents that provide a firm, structured, and involved plan for preventing, containing, and ending ethnic and sectarian conflict.

The United States of America, Israel, the United Kingdom, and most of the European Union will support and add to our initiative. We also hope to work with countries that are very dedicated to peace, stability, and taking action to prevent or solve ethnic conflict. This issue of addressing sectarian and ethnic conflict will not be solved by itself, and we believe that our stance on it is the best way to make progress.

Opposition to our plan will come from countries that do not care about preventing and quickly solving sectarian and ethnic conflict. Their laissez-faire approach that merely hopes the factions will fix themselves is completely unacceptable to Georgia. The International Declaration of Human rights is one of the world’s most important documents, and the UN should do everything in its power to end issues that violate it rather than sit around and let countries plead “sovereignty” as an excuse for genocide. In hope for a more peaceful world, Georgia wishes to create a comprehensive plan for making the UN more involved in addressing ethnic and sectarian conflict.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Germany
Delegate Name: Emily Ruff-Wilkinson
School: Roeper School

Germany has been an advocate for greater involvement of non-governmental collectives, such as NATO and the UN, in sectarian conflict. We advocated this during the Yugoslavian conflict in the Balkans, and we have actively reached out to those nations to build stronger ties in our new global world order. In a more recent situation, Germany has been a leader of the diplomatic efforts occurring after this summer’s armed conflict in Georgia. Germany helped to lead the OSCE efforts to secure Georgia, and we have advocated a stronger presence from the EU and others.

We are in a multilateral world. Our problems are not exclusive to countries or continents; we must strive to help the world develop in a new and more global way. Sectarian conflicts, which seem contained to one country, can become globally divisive. We have seen this, for example, with the conflict between the Jewish and Muslim peoples not only in Israel/Palestine, but adding to tensions in other parts of the world. Given Germany’s tragic history with the Jewish people, we must state unequivocally that we support the nation of Israel, but at the same time seek settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in a manner that would provide security and peace to both sides.

We must also be aware that sectarian and ethnic conflict is even more likely to erupt in countries where development is scarce. The UN must follow through in keeping underdeveloped countries stable. Countries such as Afghanistan, which Germany has been involved in, are beginning to steadily stabilize as they develop. Yet Germany calls on nations of the world to follow through on their development commitments, such as the MDG’s. Failure to do so can only exacerbate economic tensions which then can manifest themselves as ethnic and or sectarian strife. The tragic case of Rwanda, and currently Congo are examples of this.

The UN must stay involved in these sorts of sectarian conflicts. We cannot allow them to wage unchecked, and Germany has shown in the past to be a supporter of necessary UN intervention (as well as NATO, OSCE and EU), and we have every intention of supporting future efforts.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Greece
Delegate Name: Mike Weykamp
School: Forest Hills Northern High School

Conflicts between ethnic groups date back before the era of recorded history began. They typically stem from disagreements over: power, resources, and political views. The quandary that the United Nations faces now and has faced since its conception is what role does the United Nations play in addressing these conflicts? This has been a difficult question to address because the UN is an international organization that arguably has no business interfering in the internal affairs of a country. However, the UN also states in its charter that “We the peoples of the United Nations determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind.” The UN has been involved in a number of countries that have been ravaged by ethnic and sectarian violence such as: Bosnia & Herzegovina, Iraq, Haiti, Somalia, Sierra Leone, and several other countries. They have also been absent in other countries that face sectarian and ethnic violence such as Sudan. The United Nations have had, and will continue to have other roles in sectarian conflicts other than having a military presence in the form of peace keepers. They have organized refugees and found them safe places to stay (Often the refugees stay in member countries), getting aid to the people of a country that are experiencing ethnic conflicts.

Greece, which is in the Balkans, is surrounded by ethnic and sectarian conflicts, for example the Bosnia & Herzegovina conflict in which the United Nations had peacekeepers involved. Greece is also involved in accepting refugees from countries that are experiencing ethnic conflict, there are over 20,000 refugees in Greece most of which are Catholic and are relatively well tolerated in Greece because of 98% of Greeks are Catholic.

The current United Nations criteria for addressing sectarian/ethnic violence is that in order for a UN peacekeeping force to be deployed to the region they must be invited by both parties. This is highly unusual especially when one side of the conflict holds a significant advantage militarily or in a genocide or ethnic cleansing situations. The UN does however have many organizations that deal with helping refugees from these war torn countries and getting aid to those in the countries that are ruined by ethnic fighting. These organizations include: The International Refugee Organization (IRO), The United Nations High Commission for Refugees, UNICEF, and many more. The UN peacekeepers and organizations are active all over the world and will continue to work for the good of those who need it in countries that are being divided by sectarian conflicts.

The United Nations needs to draft and employ a specific set of rules that state when the UN can intervene in the domestic conflicts of a country and when it cannot. This will take any variables of specific situations that would persuade or dissuade the UN from intervening. Also the United Nations needs to improve its coordination of refugees to avoid their mistreatment in their respective countries of refuge, for example send Christians to predominantly Christian countries and Muslims to predominantly Muslim countries.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Guyana
Delegate Name: Kiley Matulaitis
School: Forest Hills Central High School

Everyday around the world, countries are facing struggles with violence, ethnicities religion and overall just maintaining peace within their country and with their borders. The United Nations was created to help countries maintain peace and countries look to the United Nations to help them take care of the many troubles they encounter. One issue the UN is trying to address in many ways is the problem with many countries sectarian and ethnic conflict.

Guyana strongly supports the concept of regional integration. It is believed that regional integration would help in the process of making a region or country one that does not have sectarian and ethnic violence. Guyana would like to see some kind of resolution to pass that can be used to prevent this unwanted violence and is in full support of a peaceful resolution being brought about to countries experiencing sectarian and ethnic violence.

Guyana realizes that this issue is not going to be solved easily due to all the different points of views on what should be done from all the countries. There will be opposing countries to Guyana’s beliefs and it is clear that there should be long thought out discussion before anything is decided.

This topic needs to be addressed by the UN and should not be ignored. There should be a strong support not only from the UN but also from individual countries to help resolve this issue. Guyana believes that the UN should continue to keep this topic one of their top priorities.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Holy See
Delegate Name: Caitlin Donnelly
School: Forest Hills Central High School

The Holy See recognizes the dramatic consequences sectarian and ethnic conflict has caused the entire globe. This harsh reality of turmoil has been apparent for as long as diverse and contrasting ideas have been on earth. This conflict is a result of different dominations of a religion, different factions of a political movement, or diverse ethnicities. All of these things occur within one nation or member state and usually involve such gruesome things as genocide. So far, the UN has been unsuccessful with it’s efforts to put and end to this problem. Some areas of quandary the UN is currently dealing with include East Timor, Yugoslavia, The Democratic Republic of the Congo, Darfur, Rwanda and Iraq. These nations are just a sliver of the entire pie that makes up the nations that are experiencing sectarian violence all around the world. Some of the UN’s attempts in addressing and intervening with the conflict have not lessened the continuation of genocide in Darfur and the Rwandan genocide that occurred when refugees returned in 1994. The UN has made many efforts to address the problem with some resulting in epic failures like these, while few others have pushed the world closer to peace by extenuating the underlying causes of sectarian conflict. As this problem unacceptably increases around the world, it is the duty of the UN to do what it can to end such conflicts in as many places in the world as possible.

The Holy See itself is a great example of how sectarian conflict is unnecessary to nations facing different dominations of religion or any other difference. The See has faced some difficulties of Papal control of the state in the early twentieth century, but these were resolved without violence following the cessation of Papal states by signing the Lateran treaty in 1929. The Holy See believes it would be in best interest of all parties if the UN continues to serve as an open forum for diplomacy between any nations experiencing conflict and seeking help and ideas to end their struggles. The UN, however, should not place or enforce dramatically strict regulations on any nation causing these problems. This contradicts with the idea of peace among the international community and is not an ideal way of transforming social attitudes. The UN’s role should be as a mediator, hopping on any ethnic tensions that come about at any point in conflict (before, after or during). The UN’s aid and interference must also be accepted by both parties for them to be an influential peace-keeper. The belief of a higher-power helping to resolve this issue is also an idea of the Holy See.

Countries in this committee which will support my policy include those that see the UN as a peaceful mediator in these conflicts and want to take a less-aggressive, but more detailed approach in creating peace between any nations experiencing sectarian or ethnic conflict. Most countries, however, will probably agree for they see the Holy See as a peaceful use of conscience for the body to follow. Those countries that do agree with my policy will be able to help achieve the goals of the Holy See. Since the Holy See is an observer and unable to vote, they can do this by keeping in mind what we believe is the right way of action to take on this topic and voting for resolutions we would agree with and against those we would not.

Any country who envisions a more belligerent way of handling the conflict will oppose my policy, for that is everything we stand against. Countries that believe the parties involved should be “punished” in any way will not sponsor the Holy See’s goals dealing with the mediator role the UN must take to address the sectarian and ethnic conflict consuming our world. Some documents that the Holy See will reference include past resolutions, related to this topic, issued by the UN that have failed ( Security Council Resolution 955), those that have been successful, and the treaty that made the Holy See an independent state (Lateran Treaty).

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: India
Delegate Name: Karly Lawniczak
School: Royal Oak High School

The Republic of India fully supports the global development of increasing the human rights of all people in a nation, noting the prominent importance of the individual citizen. The Indian Constitution has often been considered one of the most comprehensive and self-contained documents on Human Rights.

India’s own people and culture have influenced the social and political organizations along with government. Because of this strong influence, certain precautions have been taken to protect the rights of the majority and minority, helping keep the people safe from ethnic conflict. Although 81% of our population practices the Hindu religion, discrimination based on caste is illegal and the Indian government has made unyielding efforts to minimize the importance of the caste system through active affirmative action and social policies.

Our growing economic prosperity has also helped to dilute any discrimination. The Indian government has recognized 18 official languages, English and Hindi among them. We believe that for other nations to eradicate sectarian and ethnic conflicts, they must first prove to be stable, transparent, and democratic nations.

In many parts of the world, states structures gradually weaken over time. With this, violent conflict often ensues. Ethnic groups that were oppressed by an authoritarian government seek new and violent ways to assert their power. If governments are built upon the idea of ethnic distinctions, rather than fair and equal rights, sectarian and ethnic conflict may develop.

India believes that by basing resolutions on pluralism and tolerance, we can eradicate these atrocities. We must create international standards to protect all citizens, namely ethnic groups that feel the political and legal constraints against their inalienable rights. India fully accepts the need for human rights to be upheld and protected at all times. Without aspiring to these basic rights as stated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we believe that these cultural genocides will continue.

India believes that to prevent such conflicts from occurring governments must make no distinctions to race, sex, language, or religion as is stated in the Charter of the United Nations. If a government has the ability to preserve these rights while maintaining a stable and democratic government, we believe that the eradication of sectarian and ethnic conflicts can continue peacefully.

To prevent the atrocities that result from ethnic or sectarian conflict, India adheres to the idea of power sharing. Throughout this difficult and often necessary process, nations should be pressured to maintain transparency and peace. As was seen in Yugoslavia, the separation of state can often cause catastrophic effects. With power sharing, national identity, and government institutions, a nation’s legitimacy can remain stable and will continue to meet the status quo.

To implement power-sharing, nations must follow a rigid and indisputable plan that promotes transparency and democracy. A clear definition of the responsibilities between the head of state and head of government must be created. Some senior civil servants positions may need to be shuffled to promote the adaption of both parties. The only genuine guarantee for implementing such a comprehensive agreement would be a constitutional amendment. India believes that in such situations, negotiations and compromise are needed between both parties. Although this process may take time, the nation in question must move with all possible speed so as not to endanger its credibility, or endanger its people.

India believes that even if no concrete results occur because of the power-sharing agreement, review of the agreement must me made along with international, economic, or social incentives to promote the nation’s democracy and lessen the chance for later violence. As long as negotiations are continued, India resolves that a successful conclusion can occur. We express hope that through this process the international community will continue pressuring the nation in question to carry on such compromises and agreements to promote peace and democracy. Through the power-sharing agreement we hope that a new balance of government can be found. With this balance, government credibility can be given as nations continue the eradication of ethnic and sectarian conflicts.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Indonesia
Delegate Name: Ryhan Nadji
School: Traverse City West High School

For ages, Indonesia has had a reputation in striving for equality and social unity of its many peoples. Unfortunately, there have been instances of people acting outside of what can be described as the common good, and though these violent actions have tarnished Indonesia's past, we hope that the rest of the world community can learn from the mistakes of our citizens and the tremendous progress we have made in achieving peace between religious groups, thus bringing an end sectarian violence internationally.

Chapter one of the charter of the United Nations states as a goal, “promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion” Indonesia's actions work towards this same goal, and recognizes that when sectarian violence and ethnic conflict are prevalent within a nation, harmony between all peoples on a global scale is impossible. Indonesia is therefore, a major supporter of the United Nations becoming more actively involved in the promotion of ethnic peace and tolerance.

In 1998, the first major acts of sectarian violence within Indonesia emerged in the the coastal town of Poso, and progressed in severity. In November of 2003, the treasurer of the Central Sulawesi Protestant Church was killed by Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), the Al-Qaida-linked terrorist group within Indonesia, and its leader, Hasanuddin. The JI is also responsible for the bombing of Poso's central market in November the same year, that killed six people. Then in May of 2005, 22 lives were lost in the bombing of the Tentena central market, though the recent attack that amassed the greatest uproar, both within Indonesia, and internationally, occurred in October 2005, as the beheading of three Christian schoolgirls. The Indonesian government responded to these attacks by sending the police force on a mission to find all that were linked to JI and the attacks, and in May of 2006 the government had placed Hasanuddin under arrest, and used his confession to develop a list of the 29 most wanted terrorists based in Poso. By January 22, seventeen of the suspected terrorists were killed, including two senior members of the JI that were also veterans of Afghanistan. The Indonesian government is also working to end the acts of sectarian violence by promoting peace with moderate Muslim leaders in recent peace negotiations.

Also, in previous bouts of violence in the region, Indonesian Minister for the people's welfare assembled negotiations between twenty-five Muslim delegates and twenty-four Christian delegates, regulated by Major General Achmad Yahya, chief of military command. These negotiations were the source of the Malino Agreement, which contains operatives applicable to the international environment, and key to the United Nations' ultimate goal of world-wide peace. The United Nation's role in working towards an end to sectarian violence and ethnic conflict should consist mainly of supporting efforts of the nation at conflict with its goals for peace. The United Nations should understand that many cases of ethnic conflict are the result of social tensions due to poverty, refugees, and the like, and that by alleviating these tensions, the source of many conflicts would be terminated. Indonesia believes that the best way for the United Nations to address these ethnically charged attacks is through negotiations between the parties involved as well as a zero-tolerance plan against the violence from either side. When staging these peace talks, it is also imperative to have a non-partisan authoritative presence to ensure the equal treatment of both sides. The purpose of the negotiations will be to not only come to a fair agreement, but also to discover the source of conflict, be it poverty or religious persecution, and formulate a plan to dissolve the sectarian and ethnic violence at its source. If all of these guidelines are regarded, Indonesia believes that nations involved in conflict of this sort, as well as the entire international community will be able to thrive in adherence to Indonesia's unifying motto of “Bhinneka tunggal ika,” in English, “many, yet one.”

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Iran
Delegate Name: Chris Ransom
School: Traverse City West High School

“To maintain international peace and security, and to that end: to take effective collective measures for the prevention…of threats to the peace.”

This is the first line in Article I in the Charter of the United Nations. The entire purpose behind creating the United Nations was to prevent another world war and to see that peace was a global commonality. It is in today’s world that this goal is more imperative than ever. As a member of the United Nations, Iran has always been an advocate of peace and development, and in turn fully supports the United Nations in preventing and mediating problems of sectarian and ethnic violence within a country.

However, it is of great importance to preserve a country’s inalienable right of sovereignty. To this, regulations and guidelines must be made to with absolute clarity of when and how the United Nations is to take action upon situations such as these. Iran believes that through mediation and consul that a country can make great advances towards solving ethnic and sectarian conflict. It is when that consultation turns into foreign entity’s political agenda, with goals stretching outside the intended purpose, which it turns into a violation of the founding principles of the United Nations.

Iran strongly affirms that if a country is dysfunctional, whether in its sociological parameters or within the governmental system that a country cannot operate to its proper potential. While all avenues of solution should be observed, it is with absolute desperation and final measurement that the use of force should be implemented into a country suffering from such blight. History has time and time again, what rash and ill thought out actions in regards to the application of military force, can have not only on a country and its people, but the entire world.

Iran also strongly states that countries must strongly adhere to respect the governments in power within the nation involved. It is also that the United Nations, should it choose to become involved within the conflict, needs to include (if available) the current government in power when dealing with issues in its boarders in all mediations and negotiations concerning the conflicts at hand.

War shall, without a doubt, continue to touch this world. It is our job as delegates and representatives of such a world, to make sure that as little life as possible is lost, and that it is the rightful powers that hold rule over the land.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Iraq
Delegate Name: Chris Goldsberry
School: Flint Central Academy

The United Nations has always been an organization that has upheld peace, human rights, and the forward progress of mankind. They also have great influence in international affairs. Their great programs have bettered many nations around the globe. The United nations has to respect nations' national sovereignty, and quite frankly, those nations that do not allow the UN to help them are most likely having serious internal problems, such as the regime that once ruled our country. The limitation of the UN's power and ability is a major issue. If one nations internal conflict could harm surrounding nations, and those bordering nations ask the UN to help, then by all means the UN should have the right to contain and at least attempt to calm the situation.

Iraq has a long history with help from the United Nations. Without the help of the UN, the violence in Our nation could be completely uncontrollable. We still have a way to go, but we have come a long way from the tyrannical rule of Saddam Hussein. The programs that the UN has in place have helped rebuild our nation after the former corrupt government was disbanded following of the heroic liberation of Iraq by certain democracy spreading troops. Without the United Nation's generous efforts, Iraq would still be just another self-destructive, corrupt nation.

In the coming conference we hope to do anything but further restrict the power of the UN. It would be completely beneficial to all nations if a little less limitation was imposed on the UN. Remember, we are the UNITED Nations. Let us not bicker and blame other nations. We must come together and form a solution for the good of all mankind.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Israel
Delegate Name: Jenna Pope
School: Forest Hills Central High School

The United Nations has continuously striven for peace, in all aspects of society, for each member nation. There are countless motives for violence today, and it is the United Nations’ responsibility to deal with these troubles that concern many, and organize a realistic solution in every country. This specific case of sectarian and ethnic conflict is imperative to discuss because of the unending aggression in countries such as Iraq, Rwanda, and Sudan, and according to the UN Charter and Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we, as the United Nations, have a duty to aid and support these countries in need. By increasing the options for education, expanding the rights of women, creating stronger human rights’ requirements, and establishing an effective government in every member nation, we could successfully discuss this crucial topic.

Israel believes that in order to effectively tackle this issue, we must discuss the sectarian and ethnic conflict cooperatively and honestly as the United Nations. Israel is currently one of the most progressive nations regarding women’s rights legislation and we hope to encourage other member nations to expand their current women’s rights. We also believe in the creation of a stable, and preferably democratic, government to lessen corruption and violence. We must increase the opportunities for education in each nation, but we must also respect the rights of a member to ask for aid. Human rights’ requirements should also be specified and followed through upon. Israel strongly supports a peaceful resolution that will lend assistance quickly and efficiently while accurately addressing this imperative topic.

As the United Nations, we must work together to create a realistic and successful solution. We hope that all our member nations can come openly to discuss the sectarian and ethnic conflict and attempt to produce a peaceful solution that will actually deal with the hostility at hand. Our involvement is obviously questionable for each specific country, but the right to ask for assistance is always an option and the United Nations should be willing to support any member rapidly. Any countries within this committee that support a realistic and peaceful solution are welcome to work with Israel in this struggle worldwide.

Many resolutions have been attempted in the past regarding particular issues, and Israel is completely willing to learn from those and create another, more successful, resolution relating to the sectarian and ethnic conflict. Regarding the violence that occurs either internally within nations or with neighbors, the United Nations should be willing to help when asked, immediately, and have a definitive plan of action for any issue possible. Israel has a variety of ideas to be discussed and is hoping for the complete cooperation of every nation involved. A peaceful solution would be the best choice and Israel is willing to help as much as possible.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Italy
Delegate Name: Joe Watt
School: Royal Oak High School

The Republic of Italy recognizes the gravity of the situation at hand. Sectarian violence within a nation is a severe security concern. Italy understands that reactionary measures prove dismal, particularly in cases such as Yugoslavia. As things stand, we believe that the most effective and efficient course of action is a global investment in prevention-based programs.

There is massive ethnic infighting within Kenya over disputed election results. Italy believes that it is the duty of the international community to uphold the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and refuse to allow these atrocities to occur. Sending peacekeepers and humantarian aid workers to the area with the purpose of providing the economy with sustenance would be the most beneficial solution as precedent shows that international action is not a viable option. In the former Yugoslavia, an offensive response was too late to stop the ethnic cleansing.

Holding to the EU policy of prevention, not reaction, Italy feels that "only by addressing the root causes of tension can we can prevent conflicts becoming violent, or effectively resolve them, and then build peace, or prevent a renewal of hostilities. These are not things that we do well, and the international community always seems to be reacting, rather than anticipating." (Promoting Conflict Prevention 2001/01/25, Speech 04/01) Our firefighting approach is not working, however, this is the world's opportunity to come together and transcend its bounds.

The Italian Republic further recommends that the world community discourage any reactionist sentiment and focus on continuing education in all corners of the globe in order to pursue peace through the reconciliation of the misinformed. No political, economic or social stone can go unturned when addressing sectarian violence within a nation.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Japan
Delegate Name: Philip Bernstein
School: Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy

Japan believes that the United Nations must have a substantial role in resolving sectarian or ethnic conflicts that are present or imminent in nations. The United Nations recognizes that each member of the human race is equal, and therefore none should be subjected to violence due to cultural differences.

Japan believes that the best way to approach ethnic or sectarian conflicts is through comprehensive methods. This means that anything that could continue to divide the nation in question must be absolved. The UN must encourage dialogues with a nation if a conflict seems probable; it must attempt to end conflicts once they have started using force if necessary. Finally, the UN must remain actively seized of the matter after the conflict has been resolved to ensure that peace is lasting.

As a member of the G8, Japan has aligned with many of the most powerful nations of the world on addressing these conflicts. We believe that the precedent set by the G8 and Japan should be used as a guide in similar dialogues about ethnic and sectarian conflicts in the United Nations. The nations of the G8 comprise a large percentage of the world, in both population and land area, and their unity on this issue is an important step in creating true and enduring peace.

Often, nations will claim that national sovereignty conflicts with this philosophy. However, sectarian and ethnic groups are not contained by a nation’s borders. Therefore, if a sectarian or ethnic conflict is present within any country, there is a large possibility that it will spread. Soon, whole regions may be unstable. We have seen this in the Middle East with Islamic extremist groups, what started in Iraq and Afghanistan has escalated, and now the region is in tumult. It is, then, in the interest of the United Nations to act quickly and directly, before a larger problem develops.

Conflicts between sectarian and ethnic groups in a nation can be economically devastating. The nation’s economic situation deteriorates as displaced persons take refuge in other regions, and stop fueling the home nation’s economy. Trade and investments dwindle, too, as no one can be certain that their investment is safe in a war-torn country.

Further, the nation cannot have coordinated diplomacy with the world, as the ruler or ruling party cannot speak for the interests of the people as a whole, and cannot show that they are, indeed, capable of keeping their country secure.

In conclusion, the nation of Japan encourages the United Nations to set uncompromising standards on how to properly address sectarian and ethnic conflicts. The United Nations has the potential to prevent all sectarian and ethnic conflicts.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Kazakhstan
Delegate Name: Ellen Vial
School: Royal Oak High School

Ethnic conflict has plagued mankind throughout recorded history. The terms “ethnic conflict” and “sectarian violence” are subject to many definitions, and have been exhibited in varying levels of severity, from heated debate to mass genocide. The United Nations has done much work to prevent ethnic conflict before it even starts, let alone spreads to other nations or escalates within a nation. In spite of our efforts, such conflict still exists. The Republic of Kazakhstan believes that there is still much more we can do, to put a stopper on the bottle that is intra-national ethnic conflict.

In order to address sectarian violence, one must find the root of the problem on a conflict to conflict basis. According to Jenny Gustafsson’s The Role of the United Nations in Preventing Violent Ethnic Conflicts, the three initial causes of ethnic conflict within a nation are structural inequalities, poverty, and the transition of a society. The state of Rwanda was plagued by genocide in 1994 when tensions between the Hutu majority and Tutsi minority finally reached their breaking point. The War in Darfur began between Arab nomads and Black African farming communities during a period of immense drought and overpopulation, when Sudan was facing a number economic hurdles, many of which they have yet to overcome. More recently in Iraq, the nation has seen heightening of conflict between the Sunni and Shi’a Muslims since the U.S. invasion in 2003.

The Republic of Kazakhstan has managed to avoid escalated ethnic conflict in part thanks to the formation of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence building Measures in Asia (CICA), which aims to promote cooperation, peace, confidence, and friendship throughout Asia. The Republic of Kazakhstan believes that building regional support the way CICA does would help address national interests and heighten security considerations of states at risk of unstable ethnic conflict. We would also recommend stressing tolerance and education beginning at a young age. Lastly the Republic of Kazakhstan would like to see an enhancement of the United Nations Peacebuilding Commission, which aids nations after the culmination of a violent conflict. If the Peacebuilding Commission was more active in addressing the conflict before it could climax, many lives would be saved in addition to money and resources. The Peacebuilding Commission could focus on, among other things, the abovementioned tolerance education program. If international education stressed tolerance as much as it ought to, we as a united community could begin to decrease ethnic conflict generation by generation.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Kenya
Delegate Name: Meaghan O’Connor
School: Forest Hills Northern High School

One of the most important aspects of the United Nations is its role in handling conflicts peacefully within a country. The UN plays a significant role in preventing these conflicts while maintaining peace as well. When dealing with ethnic and sectarian conflict in a nation, it is best to prevent the conflict from emergence, rather than trying to fix a deeply-rooted issue. Because the role of the UN in ethnic conflict may be limited, it is hard to fix these problems when they have escalated to violence. The UN plays an important role in ethnic conflict prevention, providing tools for governance, an attention towards human rights, and promoting higher education as well as advancement of women in society. The pursuit of human rights was a central reason for creating the UN; however these human rights are not prevalent in some nations. In most cases there is a need for a stronger institution that can effectively pressure the government of a nation to address ethnic or sectarian conflict.

Kenya firmly believes in the implementation of stronger and more effective institutional mechanisms to ensure the prevention of ethnic and sectarian conflict within a nation. Kenya has made continuous efforts to transform social attitude through political, legislative, administrative, and policy measures, in an effort to prevent ethnic conflict from emerging. The UN’s role in conflict mediation should be expanded to break down ethnic tensions, before, during, and after a conflict has emerged. The government of the Republic of Kenya will continue to work with the international community and the civil society in the pursuit of peace, justice, and development for all.

The primary function of the UN when it comes to ethnic conflict is prevention. The United Nations has developed several human rights procedures to aid in preventing tension, along with the implementation of collective standard-setting. Collective standard setting helps to search for common solutions to common issues. However, these issues are far too broad and common to solve complex ethnic conflict. Although many standards have been set to oversee possible conflict, the implementation of these standards is not good enough. When dealing with conflict mediation, the UN must adhere to strict standards that may prevent a great deal of progress. The UN must be invited in by both parties as a peace-keeper. It has been proposed to strengthen the role of the UN in violent ethnic and sectarian conflict, which in turn would aid in peace-agreement and help the country transition back into a stable state. With stronger involvement in the conflict within a nation, the UN can achieve much more success when it comes to conflict mediation.

The Republic of Kenya proposes the strengthening of the UN’s role in conflict mediation. Kenya suggests the creation of more country-specific organizations that target ethnic conflict, as well as a stronger implementation of ethnicity codes that countries have to adhere to. Countries should be evaluated every year in terms of progress, amount of social tension, current issues, and social unity. If a country falls short in any of these categories, the UN should have the right and responsibility of stepping in to aid in peace-agreement. An organization should be created that specifically targets the root or structural causes of the conflict within a nation as well. This organization would create conditions for peace, while also addressing the threat of immediate violent ethnic conflict. Many violent conflicts can be prevented through the influence of international organizations; therefore, it is necessary to create and maintain a strong organization that can aid in this process.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Lebanon
Delegate Name: Cimone Greene
School: Flint Central Academy

Throughout the international community, ethnic and sectarian conflict have been continuous complications that affect several nations in some way. Everyone throughout the international community has some type of understanding of the inhumane acts of injustice taking place in various nations because of ethnic discrimination. When it comes to the issue of a sectarian rule in a nation, there are multiple issues to be addressed, starting with a internal examination of that particular nation.

The different conflicts in Lebanon, in regards to ethnic and sectarian issues include the current situation taking place between the pro-government workers, and opposition armed militias. The Lebanese Army splintered along sectarian lines and left Lebanon hostage to scores of militias, "liberation groups, and street gangs that align themselves with foreign powers to gain advantage in the bloody internecine warfare. In our nation sectarianism is the dominant social, economic, and political reality. Lebanon is a crazy quilt of clannish ethnic and religious groups that historically have been suspicious and resentful of central government. We are aware of the limitations of the UN peacekeeping troops, and suggest that they provide aide to all the nations that need it, while also respecting the sovereignty of the nation

The nation of Lebanon is clearly aware of the importance of sectarian and ethnic conflicts within a nation and is pleading for the aid of the international community to help turn that around. We also ask the UN to continue to stay involved in these sectarian and ethnic conflicts until there is progress.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Libya
Delegate Name: John Lee
School: Cranbrook Kingswood

The Libyan Arab Jamahiriya recognizes the importance of addressing conflicts between populations divided along sectarian and/or ethnic lines. The ethnic conflicts of the 20th and 21st century stand as testaments to the destructive potential of such conflicts. In Rwanda, hatred between Tutus and Hutus led to a mass-genocide. At that conflict’s conclusion, hundreds of thousands lay dead and millions of refugees had spilled over into neighboring territories, with ramifications that continue to affect Central Africa to this day. Likewise, Iraq has witnessed a sudden revival of ethnic and religious intolerance, devolving the nation into a state of near civil-war. Anarchy and destabilization of the entire Middle East region has been tempered solely by the presence of NATO forces.

Such ethnic-conflicts follow gruesome patterns. Habitants are displaced, sexual abuse runs rampant and countless are killed, often as a part of a systematic program of genocide. Though ethnic conflicts are often limited to a single country, they tend to involve neighboring nations, negatively impacting regional stability.

The Libyan Arab Jamahiriya puts full support behind the United Nations, and proposes several methods to prevent such conflicts from escalating. Firstly, emphasis must be placed on the use of preventive measures, chiefly the use of preventive diplomacy that serve to ease ethnic tensions. The UN must continue to serve as an open forum for international discussion, and this includes sectarian/ethnic divides. The member states of the United Nations must also comply with article 56 of the Charter and therefore work to promote the observance of human rights. The Libyan Arab Jamahiriya urges member nations to comply with international decisions and supervision in order to prevent ethnic conflicts from erupting. In the case that a conflict is unavoidable, a general standard must be agreed upon, outlining the procedural measures that should be taken by the United Nations.

In the case that a conflict escalates to an intolerable level, international peacekeeping forces should be deployed. Peacekeeping/peacebuilding forces have proven to be effective; bodies such as the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have been deployed with positive results.

However, the international community must move with caution. The Libyan Arab Jamahiriya warns against the use of force except under extenuating circumstances. A nation’s sovereignty must not be in intruded upon without reason.

With resolve, diligence, and cooperation most of all, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya is optimistic of this committee’s ability to effect positive measures. Let this committee work together to create a more peaceful and prosperous global society.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Mexico
Delegate Name: Zeky Nadji
School: Traverse City West High School

The topic of sectarian conflicts has concerned us for many years. The sectarian violence in Mexico like the fighting between the Zapatista and the wealthier parts of Mexico has been going on for the past 6 years. The cause is the “oppression” of the Mexican nationals for at least for 70 years and indigenous people for the last 500 years. The Zapatistas think the cause of this is the wealthy who were doing the oppressing. So these end up with things like the killings and assassinations of political figures like Interior Minister Juan Camilo Maurino on November 5th 2008 as he was flying over Mexico City when his plane suddenly burst into flames and crashed in the city’s financial district. It is thought that the cause of the accident was from the group the Zapatistas. Religious, social and economic divisions have been made worse by the armed Zapatista rebellion, with the violence claiming about 300 lives and destroying communities.

The Zapatista group is mostly in a very poor part of southern Mexico and is fighting against the higher group (the rich and state of Chiapas) of people in the social ladder until their part of Mexico is helped by the wealthier groups or by the government.

The problem of sectarian and ethnic conflicts is not only based in Mexico it is a worldwide problem. It is hard to say exactly how many of these ethnic struggles are taking place but it thought to be that 47 countries are involved in violent ethnic conflicts. I think that the U.N should get the following help to solve ethnic conflicts throughout the world:

1. Military support from allies (like Israel and the U.S).

2. Financial support from allies.

3. Reconstruction support from allies after the fighting stops.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Mozambique
Delegate Name: Drew VanHouten
School: Forest Hills Central High School

Throughout the world’s history there have been many, many wars but they are all eventually solved because the war is fought over something, and when one side gets what they want the war is over. This however is not the case with wars between two sects or ethnicities. These wars are usually based on the want to obliterate the other entirely. There have been many instances of this happening and the UN has done nothing to intervene in countries such as Rwanda, Darfur and Sudan. Had the UN put the effort in to solve these conflicts before, they would have saved millions of lives

Mozambique has long been a proponent of peace. We have a diverse population in language and religion and have showed that it is possible to live in peace with one another regardless of race or religion. We want to promote education about the outside world and other races. One of the main reasons that there are ethnic conflicts is because people are afraid of each other. If we get rid of that fear we get rid of the need for conflict. Also we believe everyone should be taught to have a sense of unity with one another. If everyone has a sense of unity then there would not be any strife or conflict between religion or race.

My country believes that the only thing that will oppose us will be certain ethnic groups or religious sects who are bent on wiping other ethnicities or sects from the face of this Earth. Otherwise my country advocates that who wouldn’t support us. No country wants war between its own people.

Mozambique is believes that the UN needs to more effectively combat ethnic insurgents who would wish to cause others harm. Also the UN needs to develop policies for negotiation or communication with these people. If they had a policy for dealing with ethnic cleansing many conflicts could have been peaceably solved without bloodshed.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Myanmar
Delegate Name: Maxwell Boughton
School: Forest Hills Central High School

The ongoing issue of ethnic conflict has been going on for thousands of years. Many different outside groups have tried to compromise the problem within fighting nations on several occasions. Most of these resolutions however have not been upheld by either side and as a result have continued to attack each other. Countries such as Myanmar are currently being affected by the ongoing issue and have tried to make amends and for treaties but have obtained more bloodshed than peace in each attempt. Ethnic conflict within nations should be more closely monitored by the United Nations as well as kept under control when it arises.

As Myanmar is clearly involved in such conflict it wishes to halt all attacks at once. The United Nations need to take control of the nations with governments in support of this conflict. Achieving this by placing new more suited members of either the U.N. staff or outside supporters of peace could be accomplished with a few years depending on the dedication of the U.N. and its outside support. Myanmar also wishes that any countries supporting or have supported conflict be carefully and closely observed in order to maintain a steady peace.

Most countries will actively support these goals as the United Nations were formed as a group made for peace. Since this issue has affected most countries in the United Nations clearly all countries should in theory support this goal. Any opposition in question should be debated by U.N. members and should question the defending nation’s intentions.

Unsuccessful documents in the past have been Security Council Resolution 955 as well as several other resolutions. Though many have been unsuccessful some have worked in the past such as Lateran Treaty concerning the Holy See.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Niger
Delegate Name: Seung Hoon Lee
School: Cranbrook Kingswood

Niger recognizes the sectarian and ethnic conflict that causes profound tensions around the globe. In such cases like Congo, the situation is serious where opposing sides or tribes have been involved in military combat since the late nineteen hundreds. In Rwandan massacres of 1994 thousands of tribes were slaughtered, and still over a thousand people are killed each day. Another neighboring nation Nigeria suffers from Niger Delta conflict which is affecting the economy and welfare of the people. Key factors of such tragedy include extreme poverty which entails lack of food, poor hygiene, and spread of disease, social inequalities, and absence of understanding between the opposed groups which worsens the hostility.

Our nation of Niger also suffers from several sectarian and ethnic conflicts as well. As one of the countries having worst destitution, people try to flee their unstable situation in search for their needs and cause revolts. The disastrous famine that hit Nigeria during 2005-2006 aggravated the widespread poverty that has covered the nation since its independence, and the shortage in food and abrupt rise in food prices put people into violence. Niger’s ethnic diversity also contributes to the issue. Rather than understanding and helping each other, they fiercely fight and compete for dominance in leading the country. Foreign aid from nations and international organizations is alleviating the chaos, but there is still a long way for improvements.

Many nations all over the world are in constant internal clash between groups in disagreements and bloodshed. A step for solving this problem, governments should try to meet the basic needs of their citizens such as food and shelter and enforce education that help learn different groups’ culture. Nigeria calls all members of United Nations to aid in for world peace.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Nigeria
Delegate Name: Nick Van erp
School: Forest Hills Northern High School

Sectarian Violence is not a new challenge to the world. Its origins go back to the earliest tribal warfare. However, in recent years, there has been an unacceptable increase in sectarian violence around the world. From Ireland to the Middle East, these groups around the world have declared war on each other within the borders of countries. Even within Nigeria, religious groups’ battle, spilling blood on our soil. Therefore, Nigeria believes it is imperative that these groups be dealt with swiftly and decisively. While terror and sectarian violence groups are allowed to exist, civilization will never be completely secure; and without civilization, there can be no peace. If we do not act, if sectarian violence is allowed to thrive; then all we have fought so hard to build this century may still be lost. But if we stand united, if we attempt to find and enforce peaceful solutions, we may yet be able to bring peace and civility to the world.

Having experienced the disruption of internal and sectarian violence, Nigeria believes that it would be in the best interests of all countries if we began to take formal and more aggressive, though not necessarily military, action against these groups. Nigeria supports the banning of illicit small arms trade, which supports most of these groups, along with the rest of ECOWAS.

Within developing countries, like those of Africa, internal fighting is a major disruption, one that these countries cannot afford. As a member of ECOWAS, which is committed to peace and prosperity within Africa, Nigeria believes that the best solution to this problem is a combination of improvement to the general society (everyone’s rich, everyone’s happy) and increased attempts at mediation between groups. However, there are times where mediation between groups is not possible. For these, Nigeria fully supports the use of peacekeeping operations in situations that are unsalvageable through peaceful means. Having experience with peacekeeping operations in countries like Sudan and Somalia, Nigeria also is willing to support such operations, as long as the operation is reasonable. In addition, Nigeria will begin to crack down on violence within its own borders. Since 1999, nearly 10,000 Nigerians have been killed in Sectarian clashes. This is unacceptable and will not be allowed to continue, in Nigeria or anywhere else.

In conclusion, Nigeria believes that this body must act and act now. We must make efforts to resolve these conflicts peacefully so that countries may have peace. The plan and resolution we put forward must be both flexible, but also strong, in an effort to end Sectarian violence and restore peace.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: North Korea
Delegate Name: Erika Boll
School: Forest Hills Central High School

The United Nations, from the start of its existence, has worked to maintain peace throughout all member nations. Between clash of religion, ethnicities, and violence, countries use the United Nations to cope and implement innovative measures in order to compensate for the troubles flooding the world today. Based upon the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the UN Charter, the world today strives to fit this perfect mold. As countries proceed into the future with inconceivable disputes and violent terrors infesting nearly all areas around the globe, the aid and firm hand of the United Nations is clear. Within reason, areas of UN involvement such as implementing educational systems in human rights, expanding the strength of education throughout the country, or incentives for strong leadership. Although copious measures can be taken to assist in the slowing of ethnic or sectarian conflicts, national sovereignty expands in bitterness, thus, creating a much different factor to finding an ultimate peace.

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is fully and willing able to help in the creation of a peaceful resolution in combating ethnic and sectarian conflicts. In means of which a legitimate governing body supports and is need of assistance, any resolution in supporting the availability of the United Nations in helping would make nothing but perfect sense. As we proceed though, into other avenues of where help and aid is called upon by the United Nations, many stipulations must be noted when handling such internal conflicts. If, and when, leaders call upon aid, aid should be easily accessed and available.

As the global community looks further into the topic of sectarian and ethnic conflict and with time passing, many begin to note what is of rule in which the United Nations can take. Because the means of actions is decided upon us of the United Nations, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea believes firmly in all of the global community to work together on this specific issue, emphasizing the magnitude in which it can hold. Although numerous debates are brought up against the amount of involvement necessary as given by the United Nations, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea are strong within these beliefs of asking for aid.

Steps taken to prevent ethnic conflict within the state are apparent, as conflict is not an issue within borders of Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. Because of the growing numbers, though, in conflict between other borders, whether it be internal or clashing between neighbors, solutions from education can be of aid. In forums and summits learning and coping with tight conflict, hope for the governing bodies may see different and innovative ways in which to resolve disputes causing violence and casualties to own civilians. For this reason, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea would like to further state a strong support into the aid of helping replenish countries asking in help to rebuild and resolve.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Pakistan
Delegate Name: Sam Calloway
School: Forest Hills Northern High School

The United Nations is an international body that has a moral and pragmatic duty for peacekeeping. Peacekeeping is defined by the United Nations as a way to help countries create conditions for peace that have otherwise been torn apart by conflict. This help comes in many forms, including law reform, and economic and social reorganization. Ultimately, the goal of the United Nations is to protect human beings from discrimination or danger on the basis of race or religion. It is the duty of the United Nations to assist in resolving conflict in nations that are faced with sectarian and ethnic violence.

One such nation is Pakistan. Pakistan joined the United Nations on September 30th, 1947, and throughout their history Pakistan has been faced with sectarian violence. Sectarian violence does not always derive from religion, but in Pakistan the violence erupted between two major sects of Islam, the Shia and the Sunni. The conflict began over who should lead the state of Medina after the death of Muhammad. This tragic incident caused deep conflict in Muslim society and the two rival organizations were established. Sectarian violence in Pakistan has become increasingly impossible to ignore, and, as a result, there have been a number of unfortunate consequences, including Pakistan’s possession of nuclear weapons.

Another dangerous consequence is that the religious and ethnic organizations representing their respective sides are increasingly using violent methods, including terrorism, to achieve their goals. As a result of the Afghan war in South Asia, Pakistan began backing militant groups such as the Taliban. These groups are often fueled through drug trafficking operated by the drug mafia in Pakistan. Drug trafficking is now the most important source of finance for most militant groups. Terrorism certainly poses a threat to Pakistani peace and to world peace.

The United Nations has a moral obligation to utilize its power to achieve world peace. However, the reality is that Pakistan, and many parts of the world, are faced with endless turmoil and violence. The problem with sectarian and ethnic conflicts is that they threaten the life of millions of people. Pakistan is just one example of these kinds of conflicts. Therefore, it is the duty of the United Nations to represent our global community and to intervene with a vigilant resolution to end the ethnic and sectarian violence in Pakistan.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Palestine
Delegate Name: Brenna Cleary
School: Forest Hills Eastern High School

When the United Nations was founded in 1945 to keep the peace between nations. The United Nations has an obligation to not only keep the peace between nations, but also within nations. The UN should step in and solve sectarian and ethnic conflicts, because a negative conclusion will occur if internal conflicts continue to disintegrate the countries well being.

In Iraq, the Sunnis and the Shiites are involved in a bloody sectarian conflict. The country has been completely consumed by violence between the two groups. In February 2006, Sunni insurgents bombed a Shiite shrine north of Baghdad. The bombing unleashed an enormous sectarian conflict in Baghdad and its surrounding areas. The area is still not under control. The Sunnis are the majority of Arabs. The ties both of these groups have to the new government could result in deathly consequences for the citizens of Iraq and the rest of the world. If the United Nations does not step in, and do so quickly, the fighting could result in a full-out sectarian war. The United Nations has a responsibility to the world to prevent the collapse of Iraq.

The obligation the United Nation has needs to be fulfilled. If sectarian conflicts are ignored by the United Nations, there will be a breakdown in countries across the world. Palestine encourages the United Nations to keep the peace and protect the well being of the world.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Panama
Delegate Name: Kelly Neckels
School: Forest Hills Eastern High School

One of the key roles and responsibilities of the United Nations is to promote and preserve peace in the world, both between nations and within individual countries. While the first is not typically disputed, there have been many controversies regarding how much power the United Nations holds in dealing with and involving itself in the affairs of any individual country, especially those undergoing ethnic conflict or another type of turmoil.

Throughout the past few years, ethnic conflicts as well as violence have become prevalent in such countries as Iraq, East Timor, Yugoslavia, and Rwanda. Such conflict has been greatly publicized and the question of should the United Nations become involved in the affairs of these countries, as well as to what extent they should extend their influence, has been both discussed and debated.

Article 2 (7) of the UN charter prohibits the UN from intervening in another state’s jurisdiction unless there is a threat to international peace and security, at which point the Security Council can then decide the best plan of action. As part of the Security Council, Panama believes in the need for preventative action, or the act of working towards preventing future wars or disputes as opposed to military or some other form of action succeeding the actual conflicts. If methods such as negotiation, mediation, conciliation and arbitration are initiated and can therefore remove such threats, then there will be no need for military involvement which may then infringe upon the sovereignty of a particular country.

It is first and primarily the responsibility of an individual country and its ruling powers to protect its citizens and promote justice and peace. When there are threats to the well-being of the nation, or other nations become involved then it is the job of the United Nations to step in as an arbitrator or mediator, to provide added assistance and maintain the balance of power.

That being said, there is a limit to how much power the UN should extend. It is difficult to pin point exactly how much power the UN can and should use when another country's sovereignty is concerned. There are many past examples of countries stepping in to aid other countries in military conflicts, with little to nothing to show as a benefit of this assistance. Sometimes it is best to let a nation deal with its own problems. It is therefore important to rather try and prevent future problems so that there will not be a need for any military action.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Paraguay
Delegate Name: Adam Berman
School: Forest Hills Central High School

Throughout history, sectarian and ethnic conflicts have dominated the world as the struggle for political, religious, and military power has raged since the beginning of mankind. Obviously it is extremely difficult for the UN’s intervention in an increasingly hostile region. We’ve seen this in the current genocide in Darfur, as well as past conflicts in Rwanda, Vietnam, the Congo, and many more. Thus, it is increasingly important for the United Nations to nip these ethnic and sectarian conflicts in the bud and promote political and social stability in these currently volatile and impoverished nations. By instituting anti-poverty programs throughout the world, we can hope to prevent conflict and spread the call for a peaceful and arbitrary resolution to rising hostilities. The implementation of educational programs regarding ethics is vital, as well as a call for women’s rights and equal rights for all subordinate ethnic, political, and religious groups. By strongly promoting education and human rights, we can work together to prevent future sectarian and ethnic conflicts and work towards a common and unified well being.

Paraguay is no stranger to sectarian and ethnic conflicts. In the War of the Triple alliance (1864-1870), Paraguay fought in a bitter border dispute between Brazil and Argentina, subsequently losing over half its population and political leader. Paraguay, with a large impoverished population itself, believes in instituting a wide variety of anti-poverty and educational reform programs focused on ethics and promoting human rights. Regarding current ethnic and sectarian conflicts, Paraguay believes in extending the capacity of the United Nations, giving them the absolute power to assist any nation engaged in a conflict, with the hope of promoting peace and saving human lives.

Paraguay firmly believes that in order to stem ethnic and sectarian violence, global cooperation is of the utmost importance. Paraguay believes in a peaceful and nonviolent resolution to these conflicts, however understands that proper mediation by the United Nations is necessary to fully resolve some of the extremely bitter disputes. With global support, the United Nations can much more easily intervene in the time of a conflict, and with that they can work to promote peace and understanding in a timely and efficient manner.

Paraguay firmly believes that by instituting anti-poverty programs to countries with currently unstable governments (see Political Risk Index) as well as strong education and equal rights programs, we can help to abolish what has already been such a costly and powerful issue. Through global cooperation and the passing of a resolution that expands the power of the UN, we can hope to promote lasting peace within countries that have for so long been engaged in such long and bitter conflicts.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Philippines
Delegate Name: Alden Solon
School: Forest Hills Northern High School

Ethnic conflict has been around almost as long as there have been people, government, and religion on earth. Ethnic conflict arises as a result of many different factors. Religious views and disputes are most often the cause. Other causes include: territorial claims, cultural differences, and ethnicity. A small conflict can easily escalate into a much larger one, many times leading to thousands of deaths. The violent histories between differing ethnic groups often cause the conflict to grow. Genocide and war crimes are common in areas that are continuously caught up in these bloody battles. Between 1900 and 1987, 170 million human beings were murdered by their own governments worldwide; more than all of the people killed in wars between states during that period.

For the Philippines this hits close to home. Indonesia, a neighboring country was involved in ethnic conflict with Timor, where over 1,000 people were killed which caused another 250,000 to flee to neighboring countries. At the present time in the Philippines there are issues with Islamic Separatists and with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front after a ten-year cease-fire on the island of Mindanao. The insurgents have caused 160,000 deaths and have displaced over 2 million people throughout the Philippines.

Ethnic conflict varies a tremendous amount from situation to situation making it impossible to find an absolute solution to the problem. We can however work to resolve the conflicts one at a time. Each conflict needs to be dealt with in a different way due to the nature in which the conflicts differ form one another. Where there are extreme levels of violence with no foreseeable end it is in many cases necessary to send in peacekeepers; as was done to help lessen the violence between the Serbs, the Croats, and the Muslims, in modern day Bosnia. If sending in peacekeepers doesn’t hinder the violence it then is necessary to put further pressure on the groups involved through economic sanctions and work to stop the flow of weapons and ammunition to the people fighting. Finally if nothing else works, an ultimatum demanding a cease fire needs to be issued. Once the violence has stopped additional peacekeepers are necessary to help keep the peace. The UN can also be used to arbitrate an agreement between the ethnic or religious groups to help assure that there will not be anymore fighting or crimes against human rights in the involved countries.

The Philippines believes that key to stopping ethnic conflict and even avoiding it all together is communication between different religions, cultures, and civilizations. The Philippines has introduced a resolution to help facilitate this communication. The Philippines has also started The Bishop and Ulama Conference in their country to help make possible the communication between Christians and Muslims. Through communication the Philippines hopes to bridge the divide through the alliance of civilizations as to advance the common good of humanity.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Poland
Delegate Name: Elena Misailedes
School: Forest Hills Eastern High School

For as long as the United Nations has existed, it has had the unenviable duty of intervening in sectarian conflicts inside a nation when such conflicts threaten the overall peace and security of the nation and the world. Although this pattern has persisted throughout history, developing wherever several ethnic groups or tribes must coexist within close geographical borders, it often expands rapidly to affect more than just the nation itself. Neighboring countries must deal with the sudden influx of refugees from the effected nation, and power-hungry leaders may attempt to expand their dominion outside of their national borders, all of which directly affects the nation’s geographical neighbors (as well as trade partners and allies). Throughout history, the United Nations has attempted to halt this progress after it has begun, a strategy which has had an extremely limited effect.

Thus, the challenges that arise from the United Nations’ duty to intervene have stymied the progress of most UN attempts to resolve sectarian conflict, unfortunately resulting in a high mortality rate and often the development of full-blown genocide (as in the cases of Rwanda and the Darfur region of Sudan). For this reason, the Republic of Poland would suggest several steps to be taken in order to bypass these challenges and resolve the conflict swiftly. The first of these suggestions must be to act in a preventative manner in order to prevent the development and exacerbation of existing tensions. Through preventative diplomacy and economic measures, great violence and turmoil can be avoided if the UN treads carefully and its members recognize the prevention of sectarian conflict as a matter of more importance than their own benefit or gain.

While assessing the United Nations’ role in addressing sectarian conflict, the issue of national sovereignty inevitably comes up, often in an attempt to avoid UN intervention in the inner workings of an independent nation. However, the Republic of Poland would like to argue for the fact that every nation has a right to sovereignty over its own people up until the point when it purposefully imposes harm on its people or fails to prevent harm from befalling them. At this point, the nation in question forfeits its right to sovereignty, and it becomes the duty of the international community, and the United Nations in particular, to intervene in order to prevent a significant abuse of human rights.

In keeping with all of the aforementioned issues, the Republic of Poland would like to remind the international community that the greatest possible purpose that the United Nations can serve is to facilitate diplomacy and international aid in an attempt to create and preserve a fragile peace between nations. Therefore, the United Nations must make every attempt to streamline the judgment and intervention process while dealing with sectarian conflict in order to serve its true purpose.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Portugal
Delegate Name: Mike Jones
School: Traverse City West High School

Portugal is a country that is wholly devoted to the end of ethnic violence and secretarian attacks. In particular, Portugal has helped finance and assist East Timor in its efforts to halt ethnic violence and attacks. This condition arose from the violence between Lorosae and Loromonu, or “easterners” and “westerners” in East Timor after its independence from Portugal. The Portuguese government worked alongside UN bodies to end this violence. Having said, Portugal hopes to assist the fight against ethnic violence and secretarian attacks.

Portugal realizes that there is ethnic and secretarian violence in many places around the world, and particularly in developing nations in Africa, South America, and Asia. We realize that in order to completely combat these issue, a resolution would require a wide scale settlement as well as regional solutions. Portugal hopes that during the committee we decide and several basic areas to work on, which it hopes include Hutu and Tutsi peoples in the Rwandan-Congo area, the Abkhaz and Georgia peoples in Georgia territory, and the Darfur region of Sudan. We, again, also hope to establish a basic code (which may contain suggested laws, rights, organizations, etc) for nations to attempt to implement to help stop the ethnic violence and attacks that result.

As some solution ideas, Portugal hopes that the UN continues to sponsor its official bodies that make great effort to stop violence and ethnic issues in particular countries. It further thinks that more nations should take a greater part in assisting these nations that have violence issues in their ethnic populations, either with available resources and finances. It also hopes that nations that have ethic conflict and violence will receive support from the international community to help resolve its issues. We believe that solving this kind of violence is one of the first steps developing nations need to become politically and economically stable and allow for greater success. Portugal finally supports the creation of missions for each state that would benefit from one to help it administer and finance its riddance of ethnic conflict.

Portugal hopes that nations with their own ethnic violence issues use their obviously available resources(that they are channeling into other nations with similar ethnic conflicts) to put an end to their native secretarian attacks. Portugal speaks of the Russian Federation, whose own movements and passion in the Georgian/Abkhaz conflict heavily outweighs it own Chechen conflict. Also, on the opposite end from Russia, Portugal would like to specifically target the Sudanese government for refusing and denying assistance and human aid from other states and the UN to help its situation which is developed from secretarian and ethnic violence, resulting in large-scale genocide. Both of these nations should use available (or made available) resources to end its ethnic an secretarian violences.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Romania
Delegate Name: Enxhi Merpeza
School: Royal Oak High School

Sectarian and Ethnic Conflicts have instigated much of the havocs that have evolved, especially those in war-torn countries. The sectarian and ethnic conflicts have sprung out such turmoil as the infamous Rwandan Genocide of 1994 and the civil war between the Sunnis and Shiites in Iraq. Through out history we have seen the United Nations come to the rescue of many of these conflicts, perusing in political ties considered necessary to convey the peaceful resolution within a nation. The UN was present in elucidating the sectarian conflicts in disputed areas of Yugoslavia in 1992 as well as in the conflicts that were found ongoing in East Timor. The UN remains at a crossroads, due to the reality that they can’t elude into every state’s agendas; they cannot be everywhere all the time. The actuality of the matter is that the UN has to try and envisage a new approach to the peacekeeping method, seeing as one method doesn’t decipher the ethnic conflicts of each nation.

In the uprising of governments and of society, ethnic conflicts have always been a quandary that humanity has been engaged in. Romania finds itself dealing with this dilemma continuously. One of the major reasons Romania finds itself in this boat of ethnic predicament is due to the enormous shift of governments. From being a total Communist nation to breaking free of the USSR and becoming a nation plummeting in debt, poverty, uncertainty, Romania was left to build it’s democracy from the bottom up, as the people themselves squandered to survive. With the help of the UN Romania has sufficiently gotten its roots well planted and involved in ethnic resolutions.

The language spoken by most of the population in Romania is Romanian with the exception of an 8 percent Hungarian, a 2 percent German speaking population and less than 1 percent speaking other Eastern European languages. The majorities of the Hungarian speaking folk live in Transylvania, which was once a part of Hungary. The Hungarian populations in Romania speak Hungarian, a Fino-Ugric dialect and are either Roman Catholic or Protestant, in contrast with the majority population, which speaks Romanian and is in majority Christian Orthodox. The language barrier between Romanians and Hungarians living in Romania once resulted in major protests and rebellions. These ethnic differentiations have made quite the impact on the Romanian people’s movement towards rights and regulations. Today, these ethnic conflicts don’t appear to be as strained in Romania, though they still have their minor disparities.

Romania is open to the differnt ideas and models of any other nations as to how to resolve ethnic identification morales and also believes that more UN involvement and activism would be a tremendously helpful step to take in making ethnicity more acceptable in all its forms for all nations involved and in need of the aid. The UN should presumably do this in a manner that would both, preserve the cultural identity of a nation and furthermore establish a unified respect of other’s freedoms and rights.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Russia
Delegate Name: Nicholas Triantafillou
School: Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy

The Russian Federation recognizes the threat sectarian and ethnic conflicts pose to human rights in many nations worldwide. Ethnic minorities in nations throughout the world have been repeatedly suppressed, often with violence or even genocide. The United Nations as a body must learn from the tragedies in Rwanda, the former Yugoslav Republic, Iraq, and many other nations to better protect the rights of ethnic groups and to prevent sectarian violence worldwide.

Diplomacy is the most important tool the United Nations has in preventing human rights abuses as a result of sectarian and ethnic conflicts. Once a potential breach of these rights has been identified by the United Nations, the Russian Federation believes that nations in and around the region where conflicts are taking place should be given the first chance to resolve the situation. Surrounding nations are likely to have similar ethnic populations, and, as such, will more fully understand the conflict at hand. There is no need for imperialist nations from the opposite side of the globe to step in and strip nations of their sovereignty when other countries in the region could handle the conflict more successfully. Only when regional efforts fail should the United Nations intervene, and even this action should be as limited as possible to resolve the situation.

Unfortunately, many of the hotspots for sectarian and ethnic conflict are located in regions where the ability of neighboring nations to deal with outbreaks of violence is severely limited by poverty, food shortages, and internal turmoil. The genocides in Rwanda, the Sudan, and other African nations have been difficult to deal with, as the nations surrounding the conflict regions have limited means to promote peace and protect refugees. In the Middle East, the prevalence of both internal ethnic violence and deep-rooted conflicts between countries has prevented nations from helping others in the region. Only in such extreme cases, when regional efforts fail, should the United Nations take action. Even then, we must ensure that the surrounding nations support our actions. In the words of former Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan, the crisis in the Sudan is “a potent reminder that the Security Council could build peace and stability only where there was sustained local political support.” We must take these wise words into account when dealing with sectarian and ethnic conflicts throughout the world.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Rwanda
Delegate Name: Whitney Morris
School: Royal Oak High School

Rwanda is extremely aware of the high consequences that can come from ethnic conflicts within a nation. In 1994, we experienced a massive genocide in our country, which killed hundreds of thousands of people, due to a ethnic division among our people. Ever since, we have been trying to pull our country back together. National courts have been established to try many of the hundreds of prisoners in relation to the genocide, as well the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. This is the start to putting our horrible past behind us.

But Rwanda is not the only country that has been affected by ethnic divisions in its country, nor is it the most important at this time. During the time of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, which lasted 100 days, little help was given to our country by the United Nations until after the main crisis was over. This is a key flaw in this system that Rwanda would like to see addressed. Had the UN intervened more in Rwanda, thousands of lives could have been saved. Right now a crisis is occurring in Darfur, and yet again help is not getting to the people who need it. Let’s not make the same mistakes time and time again. This body needs to design a clear action plan for dealing with sectarian conflicts quickly and efficiently. Diplomatic procedures should be attempted to solve sectarian conflicts, but if these efforts fail, there needs to be some other form of action to be carried out in order to save the live of the people of the effected country.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Saudi Arabia
Delegate Name: Eric Brichetto
School: Forest Hills Central High School

Sectarian and ethnic violence are serious hindrances towards peace for a country. Indeed, a country with such violent ongoing disputes occurring within its borders finds itself in a somewhat poor position for international activities; furthermore, such violent conflicts have a tendency to spill into that country’s neighboring nations, thereby spreading and magnifying the problem rather than solving or containing it. Sectarian and ethnic violence has been occurring for many centuries; it is a problem brought about by civilization, and it is the duty of civilization to eliminate the problems it causes in working towards everlasting harmony. This is particularly true in light of the disturbing increase in such acts of violence in recent years: ‘The Troubles’ of Northern Ireland, the Ku Klux Klan of the United States, and the Moscow market bombing in Russia in August 2006, to name a few. As a symbol of civilization and cooperation, it is the duty of the United Nations to put an end to such violence.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia does not believe in interfering in the affairs of other countries. As such, the Kingdom does not support the United Nations taking action to resolve disputes inside countries’ borders, as this would be in violation of their sovereignty. However, the Kingdom would support programs and dialogue to reduce tensions among peoples and settle disputes between countries (particularly border disputes). These could include financial incentives, humanitarian aid, new lucrative partnerships with other countries, and/or access to useful technological innovations from other countries – within certain limits, of course. Although the Kingdom fully supports efforts for international security and peace, and though She is proud to be a founding member of the United Nations, She believes that the United Nations should not attempt to resolve conflicts inside its member nations – it should not try to fix other countries’ problems, if you will. Instead, the Kingdom believes that the United Nations should make efforts to help countries deal with their problems *without* imposing themselves on those nations. Should disputes arise, Saudi Arabia believes that the dispute should become the concern of the involved country and only that country. Be that as it may, the Kingdom feels that aid should be readily accessible to that country, should the nation require it.

Saudi Arabia feels that Her position will be supported by those who hold similar views on the United Nations’ right to interfere in the affairs of other countries. Although the Kingdom does not necessarily support the policies of the following nations, She would expect understanding and support from such countries as Zimbabwe, Iran, Angola, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, and possibly the People’s Republic of China, who feel that there are certain inalienable rights that all nations have and that the United Nations has little right to violate those rights.

It must be made clear that there is a possibility in any conflict that the United Nations will make tensions escalate if it attempts to step in and soothe them. This was recognized at a 1994 United Nations seminar organized by UNRISD and UNDP, which came to the conclusion that third-party intervention in ethnic conflicts to come up with and enforce external solutions is generally unsuccessful. At most, the United Nations should serve as a mediator and facilitator for negotiations between conflicting countries or ethic groups.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Somalia
Delegate Name: Cassie Hutchinson
School: Traverse City West High School

Conflicts within a nation have been present before history has even been recorded. Whether it was a conflict over power, politics or territories, it didn't matter. The result of those problems ended with wide-spread epidemics, starvation, civil wars and ultimately death. But how far is too far? When did it get so bad that the United Nations needed to step-in and provide aide and help?

By not having a national government since 1991, Somalia faces more sectarian and ethnic problems than most other nations. There has been constant fighting between rival leaders to obtain the power of the country, and with that come very violent disagreements and fights, which can very easily turn into civil wars. In a result from that, citizens are facing starvation, diseases and death. Turning into a humanitarian disaster, the United Nations intervened in 1992. Although decreasing Somalia’s starvation levels, the causalities for the United States and other nations were just too high and they pulled out only a few years later. In the year 2000, a transitional government appeared, but controlled just ten percent of the country. A couple of years later, they lost power very quickly.

Somalia was in such bad shape, that a new government was formed consisting of a 275 member parliament. They selected a president, Abdullahi Yusuf. However, because the country was so violent and unstable, the government couldn't stay there, they operated out of Kenya.

In 2006 Ethiopia bombarded Somalia, and within a week gained control of the country, stating that the would remain there until a central government was in tact. The fighting continued and created another humanitarian crisis, causing the UN to once again intervene.

For the last seventeen years, Somalia has remained without a central government. The UN has done it's best to stay involved, without getting too dangerous. Although there are no representatives currently there now, the UN is strongly encouraging the political leaders to get together and solve their issues to gain peace throughout the entire country. We are in dire need of help and aide. We need to stop the civil wars, and the constant fighting within our own country. We need aide to help all of our people who are starving, with no place to live. We, Somalia believe that something drastic needs to happen soon, before the country gets divided into something that can not be fixed, and something that can not get any help.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: South Africa
Delegate Name: Benno Pueppke
School: Williamston High School

South Africa believes that ethnic and sectarian conflicts should be solved at once within a country. If a country has sectarian conflict it should seek the help it needs from other avalaible countries. The United Nations should also assist in sending aid, and holding peacekeeping talks between the two groups involved. South Africa has limited resources but, just as we did with Zimbabwe, we can assist in mediating talks between the two groups involved.

South Africa lacks the power or the money to finance such projects but it will give its full support in these situations, generally speaking of course. We feel that in helping other countries out, we improve ourselves in this world, because we need as many friends as we can get. Our major trading partners right now are not very diverse, and in improving our diplomatic stand to other countries, we hope to gain trust as well.

We feel that in many circumstances, such as the problems within the Congo and Sudan, we can be of some assistance. If anything we will do our best to back up the ideas presented by the United Nations, and perhaps send aid and other resources. Speaking in South African's best interest I must add that our country cannot supply as much as others due to domestic problems, but will do its best. Our trade is doing well with countries such as the United Kingdom yet we, just like every other country, have had to make changes to face the new global economic problems.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Sri Lanka
Delegate Name: Leighanna Whiting
School: Traverse City West High School

The United Nations were founded on a principle of achieving peace. In many countries, though, peace is not what is being achieved. In Sri Lanka, there has been a civil war being fought for nearly two decades because of ethnic differences. Other countries also know what it is like to have their country ripped apart by civil war. The UN should help these countries because the UN was created on the foundation of achieving world peace.

Sri Lanka knows what it is like to have a country torn in half. A ceasefire was signed back in 2002 but has since been undermined by clashes between the rebels and government. In Rwanda, there has been tension between the unequal minority and majority, and they have been though civil war as well. In Iraq, it is the same thing, there is a separation between Sunnis and Shiites. East Timor, had a hard time after Indonesia decided to let them choose independence or local autonomy in 1999. East Timor has to be one of UN biggest successes though, with the start of Unmit. There has still been violence and the President, Jose Ramos- Horta was shot early this year but he returned to take up his duties. There are many other countries that have been split by ethnic differences and they all follow the same terrible paths.

Sri Lanka's Prime Minister says the solution to this conflict lies in a unitary state and he promises to talk directly to the rebel leaders. In Rwanda, the President Kagame has kept Rwanda stable by presenting himself as a Rwandan and not a Tutsi minority, and he is trying to lessen the distinction between the ethnic Hutu and Tutsi areas. Helping East Timor has been one of UN successes, it should now help a number of other countries to go down the same path and continue to help East Timor on its path for peace.

In conclusion, there are countries out there that are literally split down the middle and the UN should institute ideas that will help ease the tensions in these countries. The UN must follow the steps it took when East Timor needed help after Indonesia left them torn.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Sudan
Delegate Name: Jane Van Velden
School: Ann Arbor Community High School

The *Universal Declaration of Human Rights* (UDHR) adopted by the United Nations sixty years ago states that, “Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.” However, all over the world there is separation by race, class, religious beliefs, ethnicity, or another status. This separation has led to multiple conflicts, including the current Darfur crisis. The Sudanese government is committed to bringing an end to this long and bloody civil war between the Northern and Southern provinces. The government of Sudan is confident this ethnic conflict can be resolved with time.

The Republic of Sudan believes that in order to end sectarian and ethnic conflicts the government of the country must be responsible for the course of action taken. While we respect the opinions of the countries of the United Nations, we believe beyond discussion the UN should have no additional role. The UN should be a place for discussion, not enforcement. President Omar al-Bashir stated that he will not allow any UN peacekeeping forces to enter Sudan and denounced any such mission as "colonial forces." If the United Nations wants any additional role they must allow their peace keeping missions to establish a joint force with the African Union.

In cases where other nations and/or the UN have had an additional role there has been a negative influence and reaction. In 2007 the UN passed resolution 1590, a resolution which called for meetings between Northern rebel forces and the Sudanese government. The rebel forces have shown little commitment towards peace and we believe this resolution only further agitated them. Initial ethnic divisions were further accentuated by the British policy of ruling the north and south of Sudan under separate administrations. The British government in Sudan passed laws making it illegal for people living above the 10th parallel to go further south and for people living below the 8th parallel to go further north. These laws only deepened the growing rift between the people of Sudan and made the conflict worse.

Recently the Sudanese government has made strides towards peace, with the Darfur Peace Initiative exercised by President Omar Hassan al-Bashir. The Republic of Sudan is confident that the Darfur Peace Initiative will effectively help to bring about peace. The initiative includes $250 million in development projects through out the Darfur region as well as a promise of national elections. The Republic of Sudan is committed to this peace initiative and spreading religious and ethnic tolerance throughout the nation.

In order to prevent religious and sectarian conflict, the United Nations must work together to spread tolerance. Each country should decide the course of action to be taken in their nation. The Republic of Sudan looks forward to the continuation of spreading the UDHR and tolerance throughout the world.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Sweden
Delegate Name: Noel Tamboer
School: Forest Hills Northern High School

With differences among people comes conflict. Whether it’s a difference in beliefs, traditions, or the way of life, it could bring about problems within a nation’s walls. Samuel P. Huntington proposed a theory called the Clash of Civilizations that states that culture and religious identity will be the primary source of conflict within a nation in the post-Cold War world.

On the surface, this idea applies directly to Sweden, even though today it is a relatively homogeneous country and has been spared from internal and external conflict because of this. So being free of conflict paired with the fact that it is a neutral nation, helps to reduce conflict within its borders. This could change though, due to the recent increase in migration, bringing a new range of diversity to the country. Thankfully, it has not yet provoked ethnic or cultural conflict.

There are many countries dealing with ethnic conflict today. There have been recent proposals to help eliminate it by giving parliaments the power to delegate duties to regional courts to work through these issues at a more personal level or to create laws and regulations to help in prevention. The proposals deal with subjects such as agriculture, land area, religion, education, and health and social services. This could potentially help to put an end to disputes based on cultural differences among people, although it could take a while.

Sweden, although not currently troubled with these issues, should do its best to help neighboring nations when facing conflict relating to ethnicity. We need to help spread the idea of peace and serenity within a nation’s borders. Sweden could give aid to those who have already faced problems resulting from those who can’t work past differences. Also countries could work together to help with the prevention of further disputes by sending peacekeeping people to show how much countries will benefit by its people being united. There are many different ways we can deal with the ethnic problems we face; we just need to all work together to come up with the plan to address them.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Syria
Delegate Name: Chase Wagner
School: Traverse City West High School

Syria recognizes that solving sectarian and ethnic problems within our nation is a top priority. We've seen what can happen when these conflicts turn into something much bigger. We've heard of the mass genocides taking place in Rwanda and we've heard of the result of outbreaks in countries like Kenya. Some of these same countries are even fighting within there respective countries as we speak because of the outbreak of the sectarian and ethnic problems. We can't allow such problems to expand and take over our country like we've seen in so many other countries.

Syria realizes that is is the UN's role to keep peace within countries however, when one individual or a couple of individuals cause chaos that affects the whole country in a negative manner, those individual(s) must be removed from there point of power. Syria also realizes that if we were to act upon a certain group for their actions, we should also act upon the group(s) opposing them for their actions as well. We have seen so many cases in which one group is taken out of power while the other opposing group(s) ends up growing and expanding and eventually taking power within their respective country. We can't let this happen because this too may cause more unnecessary conflicts within a nation.

Syria believes that it would be in the best interest of the UN to work at solving these problems by tracing the source of these problems. If the leaders of these groups or clans that ban together to hate another group of people lose their central figure of determination and fight, they would relatively be nothing. From there, the home country could address any remaining conflicts that they wish to address. Syria believes this idea would be best for all because we, along with other countries, have had experience dealing with rebels who persist on creating racism and to take their “ring leaders” out of power would be beneficial to everyone they affect.

If allowed to carry out our plan, Syria fully believes that the main sectarian and ethnic conflicts within our country and many other countries would be undermined and put into a downward spiral. This would lead to better security and an overall better atmosphere for the people in Syria.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Turkey
Delegate Name: Parker Bush
School: Forest Hills Northern High School

Ever since the United Nations was founded in 1945, their goal was to achieve world peace. Today, many problems between countries or within countries are resolved politically. However, in some cases the UN has not been able to resolve all violence and turmoil through out the world. Many of these problems through out the world deal with ethnic conflict in which the UN has not fully resolved. The UN has failed to take part or conflict within the following terms; 1994 Rwandan Genocide, the 1995 Srebrenica Massacre and the 1970-1971 Yahya Khan of Pakistan. Such conflicts have been hurting these countries and surrounding countries. Turkey feels that the UN should take part in resolving these world wide issues and should address sectarian and ethnic conflict within a nation.

Turkey, fully aware of ethnic conflict in other countries, due to a particular group in power, believes that ethnicity and race should not be discriminated against or treated unjustly. Republic of Turkey has two main ethnic groups, Turkish and Kurdish, who cooperate well with each other. These two main forces don’t put a burden on Turkey. Therefore Turkey should be known as a country who addresses the problems of sectarian and ethnic conflict within a nation. Turkey is also willing to help promote the UN’s role of addressing these problems.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 1 states, “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.” Meaning there shouldn’t be discrimination toward a certain ethnic group or unfair treatment of certain ethnicities. Turkey believes that in order to solve ethnic conflict the UN must portray a better role in making the awareness of the problem. To do this they must promote peaceful government and anti-poverty programs along with spreading awareness to neighboring nations about the topic at hand. With the help of the UN Turkey believes we can, together, eliminate sectarian and ethnic conflict.

To address this awful conflict, which is conflicting much of the world, Turkey, itself, has a few proposals. First proposal is enforcing stricter punishment on any person or group of people who commit or support sectarian and ethnic conflict. By enforcing greater punishment on people who commit these crimes will hopefully persuade them not to. Many times ethnicities are discriminated against due to their poverty. Anti- poverty programs could help these less fortunate people be equal. This delicate situation needs to be handled with care. To fix this problem the governments of the whole global economy need to share the same ideas and help promote the problems of sectarian and ethnic conflict within a nation.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Uganda
Delegate Name: Ian Sheets
School: Williamston High School

Uganda has a very diverse makeup much like that of many other African countries. This diversity in the past and the present has led to conflict. The threats of ethnic problems cannot be eliminated in the short run. There are man made problems which have to be overcome, such as the security of the individual minorities and of our borders. Often ethnic problems are not neatly intrastate problems-they involve regional conflict.

Intervention by the UN is, by its very nature, antithetical to our sovereignty. It is important that government is firmly established and intervention often appears to be similar to colonial rule. The UN promotes dialogue between conflicted parties. It does not have the resources or the mandate to govern. It may be able to hold the parties in a conflict at arm’s length for sufficient time to seek peaceful resolution of the conflict. The U.N.’s function is to propose a resolution to the conflict which may involve many years of differing strategies. It is possible that the African Union may also provide peace keeping forces but in a regional conflict, that may be more difficult as peace keepers must be seen to be neutral.

The people of Uganda desire to establish a firm state where all people are accorded human dignity and rights. This has to go hand in hand with economic development. The prosperity will obviate the need for sustained intervention. There must be home grown initiatives to help leaders develop. Africans have to help themselves too. Aid in the form of money has not solved problems in the past and must be directed wisely and into the right hands. Hopefully the UN will provide a peaceful framework so that the parties may discuss how to resolve these problems without entering into armed conflict.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: United Kingdom
Delegate Name: Dan Vredenburg
School: Forest Hills Northern High School

The United Kingdom realizes the very real threats that emerge from sectarian and ethnic violence. The United Kingdom has experienced the effects of these conflicts in the past, arising from religious differences and resulting in acts of terrorism within the UK. In order to deal with sectarian conflict, we recognize the invaluable assets of dealing with the root causes of these problems—basic socioeconomic discrepancies within a population, differing religious viewpoints, and a history of said violence. When one ethnic group has a position superior to, ruling over, or in some way advantageous to another, conflict begins to become a possibility. As is also seen, the melding of cultures can often result in imperfections that require time and strategy to mend.

The United Kingdom has a lasting interest in regions where sectarian and ethnic violence runs amok. Much of the Middle East was once controlled by the UK and other European nations, and we still feel the responsibility to maintain stability. As a member of the United Nations Security Council, it is our responsibility to maintain inter and intra-national security.

Traditionally, ethnic and sectarian violence is dealt with by partitioning countries, attempting to build up a national identity, or reforming the state into a confederation of states. These methods may not be viable within the Middle East, however, due to the large resource discrepancies and the largely ethnic control over these resources.

In order to stem sectarian violence in developing nations, the United Kingdom supports the United States in offering direct intervention to the nation’s interests. Preferably with the nation’s compliance, the United Kingdom believes that the subject state should be partitioned into multiple countries, or, depending on resources allocation and other factors, formed into a coalition with limited political autonomy. Through these methods sectarian and ethnic violence can ideally be eradicated and reduced.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: United States
Delegate Name: Christina Li
School: Forest Hills Central High School

“We live in a world of conflict and resolution.” Our world without borders presents the United Nations with many challenges. Our goal? To rise and try our best to resolve these problems. Article one, paragraph one of the Charter of the United Nations states that the purpose of the UN is “to maintain international peace and security, and to that end: to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace.” The very foundation of the UN builds on the purpose to prevent war and promote world peace. Upon this very idea is the UN’s responsibility to appropriately address sectarian and ethnic conflict within a nation. The United States of America is confident in the power and ability of the United Nations to unite and solve these conflicts.

The United States of America believes that the main principle to solving ethnic and sectarian conflicts is to tackle the problems at its roots. No doubt the causes of ethnic and sectarian conflicts are many, but if we attack the root causes, the USA believes the chances of preventing and alleviating these conflicts are much greater. We should put together a toolbox with strategies aimed at, especially (1) domestic building linked to specific cultural contexts, (2) poverty reduction, (3) policies reducing group equalities. The UN should also work to provide stable environments. The issue of leadership is also vital in this area, and the United States believes that when talking to these leaders, the UN must remain firm. Succeeding with conflict prevention calls for cooperation with local and regional actors. This is because actors with experience and knowledge of a specific culture have better opportunities to understand local dynamics playing significant roles in the transformation of conflicts. The UN should encourage and strengthen local conflict prevention efforts as well.

Preventative measures should be conducted in a more open and transparent international environment. States searching for help need to be confident in the UN and not be afraid of losing their sovereignty. The United States of America believes that the United Nations has everything it needs to be able to resolve this problem. We should keep in mind the numerous sub-organizations that we have at hand to help us: for instance, the UNDP, UNHCR, UN-HABITAT, etc.

The United States is extremely open-minded and eager to solve this conflict with fellow countries. We cannot stress enough the importance of shared willingness and the willingness to act coherently within the entire United Nations. The United States genuinely encourages the opinions of other countries. We are excited and honored to be working with everybody at our next conference.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Venezuela
Delegate Name: Nell Cunningham
School: Traverse City West High School

Ethnic conflict is one of the greatest threats to the stability and prosperity of a state. Without internal peace we cannot expect a state to participate actively on the world stage. Most attempts of the solving of internal, ethnic conflict have involved the complete alienation of one of the waring groups. History has taught us that the method of ignoring one group of people while favoring the other will simply lead to one of two ends, either continuing conflict or the rise of a dictator. As world leaders it is our responsibility to ensure that those countries experiencing such conflict are given a fair opportunity to solve their dilemmas.

It is the goal of the United Nations to prevent violence in all its forms, however, more than often not the UN stands idle, ignoring the voice of those trying so vehemently to be heard. The United Nations is most powerful as a forum for discussion between conflicting groups. Excluding any groups from this participation is not only in direct opposition to the spirit of the United Nations, but also is not a rational way to deal with conflict resolution.

As an international body we must work to include the entirety of the global population. We must engage in discussion with those threatening the proletariat, no matter who that threat might be. We must look beyond such labels as “terrorist,” and see that they are a legitimate organization and should be treated as one when brought to the negotiating table. Having stated this, Venezuela will not allow any organization whatsoever to harm its citizens, in any way. The moment a group engages in the act of killing or harming innocent civilians that group compromises all of its legitimacy and should be punished. Governments are by no means above this same rule, and can therefore be overturned by the people just as all other groups are subject to disillusion should they become violent.

Each group that maintains its legitimacy should be given the opportunity to represent the people it is fighting for, therefore elections should play a key part in the resolution of conflict. A group that is allowed to participate in a fair election will come to understand the feeling of the entire nation and will thus be given the representation in the government that it seeks to change.

In an area of conflict calling for greater number of UN troops is not an effective manner of combating violence. Only through calm and decisive negotiating can a real and lasting peace be archived. Therefore Venezuela feels engaging in negotiations with all groups, from freedom fighters to political parties, is the best method of bringing peace to the world.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Vietnam
Delegate Name: Young Joon Kim
School: Cranbrook Kingswood

The Socialist Republic of Vietnam recognizes how sectarian and ethnic conflicts within a nation can influence the whole world. Factions and violence involving different kinds of groups have always been present with us. The reasons of such conflicts vary from country to country. In Iraq, for instance, there have been persecutions and separation between Sunnis and Shiites due to contrasting ideas about their religion. Also we all have a painful memory of Rwanda’s sectarian conflict between Hutus and Tutsis, occurred by the unbalance of social power. Vietnam views the main cause of the conflict is lack of dispersion of social authority.

The Socialist Republic of Vietnam is fully aware of the impact that a nation’s sectarian clash, caused by a particular group’s supreme power on others, would bring to the global society. Hence, proposes the UN to actively intervene with a nation’s political power dispersion. We, The Socialist Republic of Vietnam, have 54 ethnic groups in our country, and about 12.7 percent of our population is minorities. However, they don’t have any disadvantage to be successful. Therefore, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam should be listed as an exemplary nation which demonstrates a peaceful atmosphere of sectarian and ethnic groups. We propose to give an honor to the nation nominated publically.

Suggesting the UN to declare ethnically well-balanced nations and to honor these, we expect no need of extra expense or any kind of sacrifice but competition among conflict generating nations to earn the glorious title. Therefore, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam strongly suggests the UN to make an official list of those countries, which cope with their diversity fairly and peacefully, that clearly states the honor of them.

Topic: UN's Role of Addressing Sectarian and Ethnic Conflict within a Nation
Country: Zimbabwe
Delegate Name: Bilal Javaid
School: Forest Hills Central High School

Ethnic and sectarian disputes happen in many countries and can lead to instability and outbreaks of violence. Some of Zimbabwe’s African neighbors have major problems with sectarian violence. Zimbabwe has very little instability or sectarian disputes. Occasionally there is an outbreak but our government works very well in establishing peace. Human rights abuse is also something that may cause an outbreak of violence.

UN should provide humanitarian aid to all nations that need it. However, the sovereignty of these nations has to be respected and UN peacekeeping troops should not be deployed because that would be an invasion of the state’s internal affairs. Anti-poverty programs, food aid, and financial aid would be accepted by us because those things would greatly help our nation in its economy but will be an invasion of our affairs. Zimbabwe believes the UN should have a limited role in addressing ethnic and sectarian violence because the UN should not influence other nations’ governments.

Other nations supporting us may be North Korea and Iran because of their belief that the international community needs to respect the sovereignty of any nation that is experiencing instability or violence. China and South America may also support our position.

In 1994, over 150 policy makers held a conference in the United Nations in New York. One conclusion that they came to was that external intervention is relatively unsuccessful where it attempts to define and enforce external solutions to the conflict, rather than to serve as a facilitator of negotiations between the combatants. Zimbabwe would agree. If there is a dispute between two sects, an intervention involving policies of a third group may cause more tensions.