General Assembly, Third Committee

UGAMUNC XXIV

General Assembly, Third Committee

Dear Delegates,

I’m thrilled to welcome all of you to UGA’s 24th Model UN conference, UGAMUNC XXIV. No matter what degree of skill you have or how many of our conferences you’ve attended before, we’re excited to have you, and I feel confident that you’ll excel at this conference. During debate, you and your peers will have ample chances to discuss current global issues and the ideal solutions. As delegates for GA3, The Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee, you’ll have the privilege of drafting resolutions that could change the course of history for the world’s most disadvantaged citizens to its most well-endowed.

Before we get too engrossed in debate though, I should introduce myself. My name is Jay Bishop and I’m a fourth-year economics major at UGA. I competed in Model UN for three semesters before transferring to UGA, and I’ve traveled to both Emory and Chicago with the UGA team. While Model UN and schoolwork take up a large majority of my time, I also enjoy hiking, going to concerts, and playing games such as Ticket to Ride, Risk and Magic, the Gathering. After I graduate, I’m hoping to go on to graduate school for economics and later conduct policy research for an organization such as the Federal Reserve, World Bank or IMF.

I also have the pleasure of introducing my co-chair, Kamryn Lyle. Kamryn is a third-year majoring in International Affairs and French. This is her second year doing UGAMUNC, and she previously represented the UGA Model UN team in Chicago. On top of Model UN and her studies, she is a site leader for IMPACT’s Shelter and Resource Access trip to New River Valley, Virginia and a member of the women’s student pre-law organization. After graduation, she hopes to attend law school and later practice immigration and international law in Washington D.C. Since she’s never watched a single episode of Game of Thrones, hopefully she’ll do that sometime sooner.

Both of us are greatly looking forward to meeting all of you, and hearing the many unique ideas that you’ll bring to the debate stage. If you have any questions at all about the background guide, your role or the conference in general, please don’t hesitate to reach out to one of us. In the meantime, you should be researching your country, your topics and your positions on each of them. The more you prepare before the conference, the better you’ll do in debate and the better chance you’ll have at winning an award for your school. We hope you’re all excited to begin debating, and once again – Welcome to UGAMUNC XXIV!

P.s. Please submit your completed position papers to me [ and CC Kamryn [ before the first committee session.

Cheers,

Jay and Kamryn

Background Information

In 1945, the General Assembly of the United Nations was established as the premier global policy-making body and marked a new era of international cooperation. It is comprised of six different committees all responsible for addressing specific global issues. These global issues can vary from nuclear disarmament to decolonization[1]. The Third Committee was established to address social, humanitarian, and cultural problems in all regions of the world. It has also increased awareness of the plight of women, children, indigenous peoples, and refugees[2]. Members of the Third Committee work closely with intergovernmental entities to examine the state of human rights in various countries. For example, the Human Rights Council, established in 2006, has played a significant role in the Third Committee by holding states accountable for human rights violations.

The creation of the Declaration of Human Rights (DHR) in 1948 strongly influences the modern definition of human rights. The DHR defines human rights as the equal and inalienable rights of those who belong to the “human family”[3]. The document includes 30 diverse articles which list the specific rights that are entitled to everyone regardless of race, class, religion, or gender. For instance, Article XXIV states that all humans have “the right to rest and leisure” which addresses labor injustices such as over working for low wages[4]. The DHR was approved by the General Assembly under the recommendation of the Third Committee. Since then, the Third Committee utilizes these articles as parameters for policymaking and promoting a more equal global society.

The Third Committee of the General Assembly has served as the champion of international diplomacy through empowering people of all identities and encouraging countries to increase the standard of living for their citizens. Through this, countries have collaborated to achieve shared social development goals[5].

I. The Advancement of Gender Equality in the Middle East

Background

Gender equality is a modern global issue that affects both men and women of all races, nationalities, and religions. It is commonly defined as “women and men enjoying the same rights and opportunities across all sectors of society, including economic participation and decision-making”[6]. Recently, the definition has broadened to include those who identify as non-conforming as well. Gender equality has become an essential component of international institutions through decades of legislation and advocacy. In 2015, the United Nations featured gender equality as one of seventeen Sustainable Development Goals to accomplish by the year 2030. This goal was added as a continuation of the third Millennial Developmental Goal which sought to promote gender equality and empower women and girls.

Although the United Nations has championed the advancement of gender equality, many governments have not institutionalized women’s rights. The goal of women’s rights is to increase women’s participation in government, access to education, and socioeconomic status. This may be difficult in countries that have significant social and cultural barriers for women. Before 2009, Saudi Arabia’s conservative culture required women to have a male guardian who oversees their actions[7]. These male guardians may purposefully choose to restrict a woman’s access to income and education. Under this law, women will be considered “permanent legal minors”[8] Women’s rights activists in Saudi Arabia petitioned the government to abolish the male guardianship system, but it still remains largely intact today. This, among many other oppressive systems, have caused global condemnation. Specifically, Western institutions, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), have denounced these systems as counterproductive and socially backwards[9].

Government officials in the Middle East have begun to make an effort to address gender inequality. Recently, five member states of the European Union voted to include Saudi Arabia on the UN Commission on the Status of Women[10]. Saudi Arabia will serve four years on the commission and will be expected to uphold standards of gender equality and promote women’s empowerment. Many countries have expressed doubt that the Saudi Arabian government will take the necessary steps to create a gender-fair society, however, this decision was a significant stepping stone towards progress on women’s rights. In addition, the United States Agency for International Development has partnered with the government of Jordan to initiate programs to increase female participation in government, expanding gender-specific social services, and “[empowering] civil society institutions”[11]. As more countries collaborate with intergovernmental bodies and humanitarian organizations, the advancement of gender equality will grow exponentially in the Middle East and foster a freer global society.

Brief Geography and Culture of the Middle East

[12]

The Middle East is a transcontinental region that encompasses 18 different countries in North Africa, West Asia, and southwestern Europe. The Mediterranean Sea is considered to be the western border while Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan mark the northern border. This region also includes stateless nations, or ethnic minorities who share a common culture but do not have access to citizenship in their geographical state or state recognition by the United Nations[13]. This includes Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip region located around Israel and Kurdish peoples in northern Iraq. It is an extremely diverse region with nearly 619 million people and approximately 60 natively spoken languages[14].

The Middle East is one of the most religiously diverse regions in the world. The three Abrahamic religions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, were founded in the Middle East, specifically the Mesopotamia region. Nine out of ten Middle Easterners identify with the Islamic faith (approximately 93%) or over 552 million people[15]. Christianity is the second most popular religion with 12 million followers, and the Jewish population rest at nearly 6 million[16]. The large Muslim population has produced theocratic governments that operate under Islamic fundamentalist ideals. Current Islamic theocracies include Afghanistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Yemen[17].

Gender Segregation: Education and the Labor Market

One of the most significant barriers to gender equality in the Middle East is gender segregation. Gender segregation is both socially constructed and institutionalized by theocratic regimes to divide interactions between men and women in the education system and the labor market. Theocratic governments, particularly those that are Islamic, enforce gender segregation because of long-standing, conservative standards.

Segregation between men and women is a prevalent issue in the Middle Eastern labor market. For instance, Saudi Arabian labor regulations restrict women from working in predominantly male sectors. If men and women do work in the same industry, women are required to work in separate offices with separate entrances and separate security guards[18]. These regulations cause employers to view hiring women as a financial burden, and many choose to hire men instead. Because of this, women suffer extremely high unemployment rates. In 2013, women made up nearly 75% of the unemployment rate (~1.2 million) in Saudi Arabia and 40% of those women held advanced degrees[19]. In contrast, Iranian women have experienced increased levels of “labor force participation”, but this can mainly be attributed to decreased fertility rates[20].

Public education systems in the Middle East are also segregated by gender though women have grown to be one of the most educated demographics in the region. For instance, Saudi women comprise 47% of undergraduate graduates and 58% of higher education graduates respectively[21]. In 2009, Saudi Arabian officials appointed the nation’s first female deputy education minister, Noura al-Fayez, to further increase the literacy rate among women and girls.

The Problem with Gender Inequality

The institutional oppression of women and girls has created a plethora of social, political, and economic issues in the Middle East. These issues could result in the loss of millions of dollars and alienation from the international community. The United Nations Security Council has repeatedly sanctioned countries that are known to abuse women’s rights or enforce regulations that foster hostile environments for women[22]. According to the Arab Human Development Report, deep-rooted gender inequalities have continued to prevent women from acquiring “and using their capabilities to the fullest”[23]. Women are not able to contribute to the domestic economy, because they are subjected to gender bias on the labor market. This ultimately reduces the overall GDP of a given country and increases the unemployment rate tremendously. Gender discrimination has also prevented women from participating in decision-making bodies. This means that women are being denied representation in government which could lead to more gender biased policy making. It was not until 2015 that Saudi Arabian women were allowed to vote in municipal elections[24]. The United Arab Emirates allowed women to vote and participate in government only nine years earlier[25]. These political developments are momentous gains for women in the region, however, it could take decades for these legislations to be normalized in Middle Eastern society. Social and cultural barriers have prevented these government regulations from reaching its full potential.

Terrorist organizations have heavily contributed to the cultural discord with women’s rights and Islamic society. Many Middle Eastern terrorist organizations practice Islamic fundamentalism which capitalizes on the oppression of women and girls. For instance, the principles of Sharia law require that women defer to men in all sectors of society. This could potentially harm the gains made by women’s rights activists.

The UN Response

Since the creation of the Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations has listed equal access to education and economic prosperity as fundamental human rights which all human beings are entitled to regardless of race, nationality, religion, and gender. The UN Security Council is the primary enforcement mechanism for protecting human rights across the world. Member states may enact sanctions against those countries who are in violation of these regulations. However, economic sanctions are largely considered to be human rights violations within themselves. Sanctions on Middle Eastern countries could negatively affect the economy which ultimately hurts the citizens of the respective countries. The Third Committee of the General Assembly has expanded its capacity to address the grievances of women in the Middle East by operating alongside humanitarian organizations and pillars for human rights. Moving forward, cooperation is the most important factor in improving the state of women and girls and advancing gender equality in Middle Eastern countries.

Questions to Consider

1. What incentives exist for Middle Eastern countries to advance women’s rights and how can these incentives be leveraged?
2. What cultural aspects prevent the implementation of women’s rights in the Middle East, and is it the responsibility of the UN to change or remove these aspects?
3. How has the UN Declaration of Human Rights influenced modern day feminism?
4. What political consequences could Middle Eastern countries endure by not advancing gender equality?

Suggested Readings

1. Can and Should Human Rights Be Universal?

Lower, Matthew. “Can and Should Human Rights Be Universal?” E-International Relations, 1 Dec. 2013

1. Interview with Isobel Coleman about Feminism in the Middle East

Coleman, Isobel. “Islamic Feminists Transforming Middle East.” NPR, NPR, 27 Apr. 2010.

1. Women’s Rights in Afghanistan

Gopal, Anand. “What You Should Know About Women's Rights in Afghanistan.” The Huffington Post, TheHuffingtonPost.com, 13 Apr. 2009

II. Investor-State Disputes and Expropriation

Introduction

Expropriation is the forceful taking of foreign held assets such as land and technology by a government for a public purpose. It has long been a chief concern of investors in foreign nations and the governments of capital exporting countries with investments in many parts of the globe. As it stands, “the classical rules of international law have accepted the host state’s right to expropriate alien property in principle,”[26] but a legal expropriation must adhere to four key rules.

a) Property has to be taken for a public purpose,

b) On a non-discriminatory basis,

c) In accordance with due process of law and

d) Accompanied by compensation.[27]

For many reasons, direct expropriations in the form of forceful taking of assets from foreign investors by government agents have become rare over the years.[28] However, governments may and often do utilize indirect expropriation which “leaves the investor’s title untouched, but deprives [them] of the possibility to utilize the investment in a meaningful way.”[29] Investors can lose large investments when faced with an expropriation, and many choose to sue in international tribunals that exist for these types of investor-state disputes and others. While these tribunals have proven popular among investors, many small nations find themselves burdened by the legal costs associated with them and often cave to pressure from foreign businesses. A power struggle between sovereigns and corporations exists within these disputes, and it is yet to be determined who will be the victor.

A Brief History

Throughout modern history, there have been many expropriations around the globe, and in more recent times, a large number of investor-state disputes to accompany them. In general, expropriations have more often tended towards land and natural-resources as these are assets and commodities that are in a sense, tied to the geographic area where they occur.

One historically relevant expropriation was conducted by the democratic government of Guatemala over the United Fruit Company in 1952. Jacobo Árbenz was Guatemala’s 2nd democratically elected president, and as a part of his progressive land reforms, Decreto 900, he expropriated huge swaths of unutilized land from wealthy Guatemalan land owner’s, businesses and even 1700 acres from himself.[30] The bill redistributed land from about 1700 estates to 500,000 families in the country, and it compensated each estate owner with bonds equal to the reported value of the estate for tax assessment. Many US officials considered it “constructive and democratic in its aims” as it shared similarities with US sponsored agrarian programs in Japan and Formosa.[31] However, the United Fruit Company stood to lose 234,000 acres from the deal, and due to their habit of under-reporting value for tax purposes, they only received 1.2 million for land they considered to be worth around 16 million.[32] In response, UFCO began aggressively lobbying U.S. congress and spreading propaganda against the “revolutionary” government.[33] Some of the propaganda stuck with U.S. officials and Guatemalan citizens, and in 1953, President Eisenhower authorized operation PBSuccess, a secret CIA mission with the objective of overthrowing Jacobo Árbenz. The CIA assembled and armed self-proclaimed “counter-revolutionaries” within Guatemala, and a bloody conflict ensued for power over the region. In 1954, when a U.S. embargo prevented Árbenz from arming his own troops, military officials forced him to resign into exile, and Guatemala’s short romp with democracy came to an end.[34] The new CIA backed dictator, Castillo Armas, promptly reversed Decreto 900, returning the expropriated land to United Fruit and other estate owners and killing or arresting thousands of “squatters” in the process.[35]