Model UN Aldebaran 2019 Simulation

Background Guide

UNHRC United Nations Human Rights Council

Fredy Flores & Melvin Maradiaga

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Aldebaran Model United Nations Simulation - UNHRC

Dear Delegates,

Welcome to Aldebaran´s First MUN and UNHRC! We hold a great deal of expectation

for all delegates in relation to your preparation and performance.

We would like to introduce ourselves, Fredy Flores and Melvin Maradiaga, as your

committee chairs. We’re going to be discussing two topics of great global relevance

and importance: “Protecting the human rights of undocumented immigrants and

refugees”, and “Solving the humanitarian crisis in Venezuela”.

As your chairs, our main objective is to aid in your growth. We hope for every delegate

to adequately prepare and study for the conference. MUN will serve as an opportunity

for your development, whether it’s in knowledge or debate skills, you’ll experience an

increase in both. The committee will serve as a tool for all of you to acquire many skills,

such as critical thinking, abstract reasoning, problem-solving, learning to confront and

defend your position, learning to research, learning to investigate.

With both topics, we’d love to see a discussion, a confrontation. Multiple positions and

ideas put against each other, all to reach a peaceful resolution. In Model UN you’re not

representing yourself, you’re representing a country.

You all have a mission, and that is to become and defend your nation.

Good luck.

Fredy & Melvin,

UNHRC Committee Chairs.

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Table of Contents:

United Nations Human Rights Council .......................................................................... 1 Welcome Letter ............................................................................................................. 2

Introduction .................................................................................................................. 4

Mission Statement ................................................................................................................. 5

Overview of the Topics ......................................................................................................... 6

Topic A: Protecting the human rights of undocumented immigrants and refugees

......................................................................................................................................... 8

Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 8

Importance ........................................................................................................................... 10

History of the Issue ............................................................................................................... 11

Bloc Positions ....................................................................................................................... 14

Sources ................................................................................................................................. 17

Topic B: Solving the humanitarian crisis in Venezuela .............................................. 18

Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 18

Importance ........................................................................................................................... 19

History of the Issue ..............................................................................................................20

Bloc Positions ....................................................................................................................... 24

Sources .................................................................................................................................26

Key Terms ..................................................................................................................... 27

Writing a Position Paper ............................................................................................. 29

Bibliography ................................................................................................................. 30

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Aldebaran Model United Nations Simulation - UNHRC

INTRODUCTION

UNHRC

The United Nations human rights program started as a small division at United Nations

Headquarters in the 1940s. The division later moved to Geneva at the 1980s, and at 1993, during

the World Conference on Human Rights, the international community decided to establish a more

robust human rights mandate with stronger institutional support. Following this, the Member

States of the United Nations created OHCHR (UN Commission on Human Rights) by a General

Assembly Resolution in 1993.

However, following strong criticism for allowing countries with poor human rights records to be

its members. The Human Rights Council was created on March 15, 2006, by the United Nations

General Assembly to replace OHCHR.

Its first session took place from June 19 to June 30, 2006. One year later, it adopted its Institution-

building package as a guide for its work.

The Human Rights Council stands by the three pillars of the United Nations mission: International

peace and security, economic and social progress and development, and respect for human

rights.

The Human Rights Council discusses any and all topics related to human rights and their

protection. This in hopes of finally solving the many humanitarian crises the world is facing. Topics

such as migration and minority discrimination, family and gender rights, and countering

extremism and radicalism globally; are some of the topics that are discussed in this committee.

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Aldebaran Model United Nations Simulation - UNHRC

MISSION STATEMENT The Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body within the United Nations system

responsible for strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights around the globe

and for addressing situations of human rights violations and make recommendations on them.

It has the ability to discuss all thematic human rights issues and situations that require its attention

throughout the year.

In carrying out its mission UNHRC will:

Give priority to addressing the most pressing human rights violations, both acute and

chronic, particularly those that put life in imminent peril;

Focus attention on those who are at risk and vulnerable on multiple fronts;

Pay equal attention to the realization of civil, cultural, economic, political, and social

rights, including the right to development; and

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Aldebaran Model United Nations Simulation – UNHRC

OVERVIEW OF THE TOPICS

TOPIC A: Protecting the human rights of undocumented immigrants and

refugees.

Migration is commonplace in society, people often leave their country of birth in the hopes of

finding new opportunities. However, certain groups of people, out of fear for their safety and

future, may flee their country in hopes of a better life. These groups of people are refugees.

Large scale movements of migrants and refugees constantly take place around the globe. In 2017

alone, 65.6 million people were forcibly displaced worldwide because of persecution, conflict,

violence, or human rights violations. Those that flee often arrive undocumented at a foreign

country, possessing no knowledge of its policies, customs, or language. Due to the nature of their

arrival, they are often subjects of inhumane treatment and abuse.

Many countries have developed strategies to regulate and control migration. It is UNHRC’s

responsibility to find a solution in accordance with every countries’ policy that will help further

the protection of human rights.

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Aldebaran Model United Nations Simulation - UNHRC

OVERVIEW OF THE TOPICS

TOPIC B: Solving the humanitarian crisis in Venezuela.

Venezuela is facing a major problem, for it is in the grip of a major crisis. Hundreds of thousands

of protesters against the government of President Nicolas Maduro have been met by riot police

almost daily.

Despite having the world’s largest oil reserves, Venezuela is suffering from a deep recession and

hyperinflation. Venezuelans have been living through triple-digit inflation, chronic shortages of

food and medicine, which are creating a humanitarian emergency. Shoppers, forced to wait in

long lines to buy basic supplies, are often met by empty grocery shelves. Hospitals are suffering

from acute shortfalls of everything from antibiotics to basic sanitation equipment like medical

gloves and soap. Venezuela seems locked in a downward political and economic spiral. However,

what happens in Venezuela has far broader implications for international security.

Venezuela’s crumbling political order could have a spillover effect on regional stability and

Colombia’s fragile peace — as well as encourage the global expansion of transnational organized

criminal and terrorist networks. The spread of violence may also give rise to a potentially massive

refugee crisis, as more Venezuelans seek to flee their homeland. This time Venezuela’s neighbors

may be even less prepared for a massive influx.

Overall, the potential knock-on effects of Venezuela’s crisis are alarming: new threats to regional

stability, the risk of renewed conflict in Colombia and the danger of unchecked criminal and

terrorist networks. These concerns should not distract from the plight and suffering of the

Venezuelan people that has been unfolding for many months, without respite. But they should

be additional red flags to the international community to urgently consider how to alleviate this

suffering — and prevent further escalation.

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Aldebaran Model United Nations Simulation - UNHRC

TOPIC A:

Protecting the human rights of undocumented immigrants and

refugees.

Introduction:

"Refugees didn’t just escape a place. They had to escape a thousand memories until they’d put

enough time and distance between them and their misery to wake to a better day."

- from When the Moon Is Low by Nadia Hashimi

-

Every day, all over the world, people make one of the most difficult decisions in their lives: to

leave their homes in search of a safer, better life. An estimated 258 million people currently live

outside their country of origin. There are many reasons why people around the globe seek to

rebuild their lives in a different country. Some people leave home to get a job or in pursuit of

higher education, others are forced to leave their homes due to persecution and conflict. Those

in the latter, sometimes for more complex reasons, such as poverty, lack of access to healthcare,

education, water, food, housing, the consequences of environmental degradation and climate

change.

While migration is an empowering and positive experience for many, an increasing group of

migrants suffer routine violations of their human rights, whether in international borders, in

transit, or in the countries they migrate to.

Migrants, in many cases, are deprived of their fundamental freedoms, exploited, and

marginalized. Human rights violations against migrants can include a denial of civil and political

rights such as arbitrary detention, torture, or a lack of due process, as well as economic, social

and cultural rights such as the rights to health, housing or education. The denial of migrants’ rights

is often closely linked to discriminatory laws and to deep-seated attitudes of prejudice or

xenophobia.

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There are many aspects to consider when tackling this topic, more so with the diverse policies

different countries have when handling the issue. The UNHCR (UN Refugee Agency) states the

following as goals in order to solve the problem:

Seeking to ensure that migration-management policies, practices, and debates take into

account the particular protection needs of asylum-seekers, refugees and stateless people,

and acknowledge the legal framework that exists to meet those needs;

Assisting States and partners to meet asylum and migration-management challenges in a

manner that is sensitive to protection concerns;

Supporting stronger governance and closer observance of the universal character of

human rights, including the rights of all persons on the move, regardless of their legal

status, in ways that reinforce the principles and practice of international refugee

protection.

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Importance:

Migration and refuge is a growing issue the world has to address. We are witnessing a massive

shift of humanity unlike any seen before. Today more than 70 million people around the world are

displaced from their homes.

To give an idea, based on multiple 2016 Census, London’s foreign-born population is 3,309,000,

37.8% of the city’s entire population; New York’s foreign-born population is 3,200,219, 37.5% of the

city’s entire population; Sydney’s foreign-born population is 1,961,977, 45.4% of the city’s entire

population.

More than a third of the world’s displaced population — some 25.4 million people — have been

forced to flee their own countries entirely, leaving familiar lands behind. Over two-thirds of

those refugees come from just five countries: Syria, Afghanistan, South Sudan, Myanmar, and

Somalia. The situation in these countries is massive in scale, most often plagued with extreme

poverty, famine, and war.

These crises aren’t the only ones, we saw the migrant caravan last year. Groups of people fleeing

from persecution, violence, and poverty; traveling more than 4,000km to cross Central America

and reach the Mexico-USA border in hopes of settling in the US, despite the many warnings

stating they will be arrested, prosecuted, and deported. We’ve also seen the refugee crisis in

Europe, which heavily affected all of the involved countries’ economy and led to many reforms in

their migration policies.

Seeing the rise of refugee crises and illegal immigration worldwide, as well as its consequences

it’s absurd to ignore the importance of this issue.

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History of the Issue:

The idea that a person who sought sanctuary in a holy place could not be harmed without

inviting divine retribution was familiar to the ancient Greeks and ancient Egyptians. However,

the right to seek asylum in a church or other holy place was first codified in law by King Æthelberht

of Kent in about AD 600. Similar laws were implemented throughout Europe in the Middle Ages.

It was until the nineteenth century that a recognizably modern form of mass migration was made

possible by new forms of transport, colonial settlement and the expansion of the United States.

Between 1846 and 1914, over 30 million migrants left Europe for America. For decades, this

migration was largely unimpeded, and the most important paper carried by the immigrant was

not a passport or identity document but a steamship ticket.

However, by the late 19th and early 20th century, the US and other countries sought to control

immigration, to be more selective as to who might enter, on what terms and with what rights.

This shift to border controls, quotas, literacy tests and the like was accelerated by the First

World War and the 1917 Russian Revolution (followed by the Russian civil war), which created

Europe’s first refugee crisis. Between 1914 and 1922, perhaps five million refugees were created,

and in 1923 the ‘unmixing’ of people between Greece and Turkey saw 1.7 million people moved in

both directions. The inter-war years also saw the first norms and institutions developed to

manage the phenomenon of stateless migrants: a High Commissioner for Refugees and the issue

of Nansen passports.

In 1930, the Nansen International Office for Refugees (Nansen Office) was established as a

successor agency to the Commission. Its most notable achievement was the Nansen passport, a

refugee travel document, for which it was awarded the 1938 Nobel Peace Prize. The Nansen Office

was plagued by problems of financing, an increase in refugee numbers, and a lack of co-operation

from some member states, which led to mixed success overall.

However, the Nansen Office managed to lead fourteen nations to ratify the 1933 Refugee

Convention, an early, and relatively modest, attempt at a human rights charter, and in general

assisted around one million refugees worldwide.

However, the situation took a turn for the worse when Nazism rose to power. The earlier human

tide was dwarfed by the flood of misery created during and immediately after the Second World

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War. In the first four years of the war Germany and the USSR “uprooted, transplanted, expelled,

deported and dispersed some 30 million people. The rise of Nazism led to such a very large

increase in the number of refugees from Germany that in 1933 the League created a high

commission for refugees coming from Germany.

On 31 December 1938, both the Nansen Office and High Commission were dissolved and replaced

by the Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees under the Protection of the League. This

coincided with the flight of several hundred thousand Spanish Republicans to France after their

defeat by the Nationalists in 1939 in the Spanish Civil War.

In 1943, the Allies created the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA)

to provide aid to areas liberated from Axis powers, including parts of Europe and China. By the

end of the War, Europe had more than 40 million refugees. UNRRA was involved in returning over

seven million refugees, then commonly referred to as displaced persons or DPs, to their country

of origin and setting up displaced person camps for one million refugees who refused to be

repatriated. Even two years after the end of War, some 850,000 people still lived in DP camps

across Western Europe.

Two aspects of this crisis are noteworthy. First, an extraordinary exercise was carried out by the

UNRRA. By 1947, UNRRA was running nearly 800 resettlement camps, housing seven million

people. Through herculean efforts, by 1951 only 177,000 displaced persons remained in the camps.

Millions had been resettled; even more were repatriated, and significant numbers emigrated.

Secondly, by 1951, a new legal and institutional framework existed in order to respond to the

phenomenon of refugees, with the creation of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

to succeeded UNRRA and the passage of the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees.

From about 1950 to 1973, European nation states prospered during the longest sustained boom

that global capitalism has ever experienced. Up to this point, for about 300 years, European states

were sources of mass emigration – conquering, colonizing and settling swathes of the less

developed world. But now West and Northern European nations hungrily welcomed foreign

workers; they became countries of immigration and settlement, their immigrant populations

growing at the same rate as in the US during its years as a classic immigrant nation.

Although by the 1980s asylum seekers from Africa, Asia, and Latin America were entering Europe,

European states remained – comparatively speaking – largely insulated from events in those

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continents. But in the 1990s, Europe was suddenly precipitated into its third refugee crisis. It had

a number of components. Firstly, the break-up of the Soviet bloc and the wars in what had been

Yugoslavia. Secondly, wars by Western powers in Iraq and Afghanistan which made those two

countries the largest sources of refugees. Thirdly, 9/11 and the ‘war on terror’ which triggered a

wave of new attempts to restrict, control and deny entry. As night follows day, the new apparatus

of control led to efforts by migrants and refugees to find other ways to enter; harsher border

controls, desperate migrants and opportunistic smugglers are intimately linked.

Finally, we can identify a fourth refugee crisis in Europe, dating from about 2011, with a spike in

2014-15. Its components include war in Syria; failed or fragile states in Libya, Afghanistan, Iraq,

Somalia, Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo; a growing inability of states in the Global

South to handle their refugee populations; and the rapid establishment of new routes for mass

migration through the Balkans and Eastern Europe towards favored destinations like Germany,

Sweden, Denmark and the UK.

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Bloc Positions:

United States

Public opinion around illegal immigration in the US is related to unemployment. Anti-illegal

immigrant sentiment is highest where unemployment is highest and vice versa. In general, some

say that illegal immigrants are taking away jobs from Americans; however businesses and

agricultural groups disagree and say that migrant workers are needed to fill unattractive jobs.

Under the Trump administration, there has been a drastic reduction in the maximum number of

refugees that can enter the US. The US has imposed new security vetting procedures on refugees

before they can be admitted into the country, which has greatly lengthened waiting times

(reported of taking an average of 18 – 24 months to complete) and left many refugees in

dangerous situations for prolonged periods of time.

This change came in 2017. In January of that year, President Trump signed an executive order that

suspended the entire U.S. refugee admissions program for 120 days. In addition, the Trump

administration suspended indefinitely the entry of Syrian refugees into the country and lowered

the FY 2017 refugee admissions ceiling from 110,000 (set under the Obama administration) to

50,000. This pause in refugee resettlement was meant to give DHS and the State Department

time to conduct a security review of the application and adjudication procedures for refugee

admissions.

The refugee program did resume—with the exception of nationals from 11 countries (Egypt, Iran,

Iraq, Libya, Mali, North Korea, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen) who were subject

to an additional 90-day ban.

Syria

Syria is the top country of origin in the world for refugees, with 5.6 million refugees in foreign

countries. This, of course, due to the crisis they have faced since 2011. Most Syrian refugees flee

to nearby regions such as Turkey, but they are as a whole spread throughout Europe. About 13.1

million people in the country need humanitarian assistance.

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Syrians have been fleeing bombings, death, and years of war. All in wish of finally reaching that

safety and stability they’ve been looking for. 6 years after the war started more than 5 million

people have fled conflict in Syria, with more than 900,000 Syrians displaced in 2017.

Germany

Ever since the refugee crisis in 2014-2015, Germany has been adopting a more reserved policy

when taking in refugees/migrants. On Wednesday, January 23, Interior Minister Horst Seehofer

announced that in 2018 Germany received about 185,000 asylum applications, a drop of 17% from

last year, and far fewer than the 2015 peak of 890,000. Why is this? Germany has decided on

stricter policies when it comes to migration. Last year, more than 8,000 people were sent back to

the European Union states they first arrived in. Following the migrant crisis the number of

deportations nearly doubled to 20,000 a year and have stayed roughly at that level ever since,

despite the steep drop in arrivals. This in opposition with their previous “Wilkommenskultur” or

“welcome culture” that they adopted throughout the crisis. Germany’s previously “open

borders” has been waning with the passing policies and stricter and stricter regulations.

Turkey

Since the beginning of the recent Middle East crises, Turkey hosted over 2 million refugees from

different conflict-affected countries. The majority of refugees and asylum seekers are Syrians

who fled the war and arrived at the bordering provinces of Turkey. Hundreds of thousands of

refugees are in camps established along the border with Syria. However, the majority (85%) are

scattered through Turkish provinces far from border provinces trying to survive in urban

communities around Istanbul, Izmir and Canakkale and other cities.

The Disaster and Emergency Management Authority and the Directorate General of Migration

Management are the state bodies dealing with the emergency response to Syrian refugees. The

government officially continues its open-door policy. It has spent nearly €5 billion since the

beginning of the crisis and is providing assistance in 25 camps at a monthly cost of €2 million.

However, as the number of refugees is growing, the authorities started to apply alternative

approaches. For example, the state supports the NGOs that provide assistance to the IDP camps

on the Syrian territory. Also, border-controlling authorities started to introduce stricter control

procedures to restrict the flows.

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Italy

Between October 2013 and October 2014, the Italian government ran the search-and-rescue

operation Mare Nostrum in the Mediterranean sea. In November 2014, Mare Nostrum was

replaced with the EU-run operation Triton, the latter focusing more on control and prevention. In

October 2015 the EU began operation Sophia, aimed against human smuggling.

The Italian Prime Minister, Matteo Renzi, has repeatedly asked for European solidarity as the

inflows continued. In June 2015, he threatened the EU with the provision of Schengen visas to

migrants if there was no deal involving other Member States sharing the burden of the refugee

crisis.

The government appealed to the regions to host asylum seekers arriving in Italy. Roberto Maroni

– governor of Lombardy, a northern region of the country, and member of the anti-immigrant

party Northern League member– threatened municipalities accepting migrants with financial

cuts. A similar stance was taken by Veneto and Liguria regions’ leaders.

In spring 2015, almost one in three Italians declared that immigration is one of the main issues

facing the country. This was an increase of 13 percentage points from autumn 2014.

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Sources:

“Refugee.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 30 May 2019,

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refugee#League_of_Nations.

“Migrants, Refugees, History and Precedents.” Migrants, Refugees, History and

Precedents | Forced Migration Review, www.fmreview.org/destination-europe/bundy.

“Germany in the Refugee Crisis – Background, Reactions and Challenges.” Vocal Europe,

11 May 2016, www.vocaleurope.eu/germany-in-the-refugee-crisis-background-reactions-

and-challenges/.

“Illegal Immigration to the United States.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 15 June

2019,

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illegal_immigration_to_the_United_States#Public_opinion_and_co

ntroversy https://www.dw.com/en/refugees-in-germany-legal-entry-without-asylum/a-

48515382.

“An Overview of U.S. Refugee Law and Policy.” American Immigration Council, 17 Sept.

2018, www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/research/overview-us-refugee-law-and-

policy.

“Turkey.” Migration Policy Centre - MPC, 1 June 2016,

www.migrationpolicycentre.eu/profile-turkey/.

“The World's 5 Biggest Refugee Crises.” Mercy Corps, 10 Jan. 2019,

www.mercycorps.org/articles/worlds-5-biggest-refugee-crises.

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Aldebaran Model United Nations Simulation - UNHRC

TOPIC B:

Solving the humanitarian crisis in Venezuela.

Introduction:

The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela is located on the northern coast of the South American

continent. It occupies a triangular area and is bounded by the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic

Ocean to the north, Guyana to the east, Brazil to the South and Colombia to the southwest and

west.

Venezuela is a Latin American country that in the past represented one of the greatest

economies and a country with one of the biggest oil reserves in the continent. Venezuela’s

elections in 1990 concluded with Hugo Chavez as the president of this Republic. He created many

projects that depended in the oil market prices. Unfortunately, the prices faced a crisis that

negatively affected this country’s economy. In 2013, Hugo Chavez died, starting a whole new

phase of Venezuelan history. Now involving another big character elected by Chavez, the new

Venezuelan president, Nicolas Maduro.

Nicolas Maduro’s government brought no positive change to Venezuela. Throughout his ruling, a

crisis involving not only political issues has been in continuous growth. The major economical

deficit that made 80% of its people live in extreme poverty serves as a wakeup call on the

changes that this country needs. The actual government in Venezuela presided over an economic

and humanitarian crisis. This crisis has led to a decrease in its population. It’s estimated that more

than 3 million people have fled from Venezuela seeking better opportunities.

This topic serves as an opportunity to seek solutions, to come up with ideas to solve this crisis.

Since the elections in 2018, hundreds of people have been murdered, imprisoned and attacked.

This is a major violation of the Human Rights from Venezuelan citizens. A solution must be looked

for immediately to solve this major problem.

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Importance:

On 6 June 2017, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)

established a team to document and report on human rights violations in the context of mass

protests in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela between 1 April and 31 July 2017. In the absence

of authorization from the Government to enter the country, the OHCHR team conducted remote

monitoring activities in the region that included 135 interviews with victims and their families,

witnesses, representatives of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), journalists, lawyers,

doctors, first responders and the Attorney- General’s Office. OHCHR received written information

from the Ombudsperson’s Office and the Permanent Mission of the Bolivarian Republic of

Venezuela to the United Nations in Geneva.

OHCHR findings detailed in this report point to an increasingly critical human rights situation

since the protests began, with mounting levels of repression of political dissent by national

security forces, and increasing stigmatization and persecution of people perceived as opposing

the Government of President Maduro. OHCHR documented extensive violations of human rights

by national authorities in the context of country-wide demonstrations aimed at curbing any type

of anti-government protests.

Nearly 40 Member States participated in a following meeting, including Jorge Arreaza,

Venezuela’s Minister of the People’s Power for Foreign Affairs, who accused the United States of

using humanitarian assistance as a cover for aggression. Credible and consistent accounts of

victims and witnesses indicate that security forces systematically used excessive force to deter

demonstrations, crush dissent and instill fear. The Bolivarian National Police (PNB) and the

Bolivarian National Guard (GNB), which is part of the armed forces, used tear gas and other less

lethal weapons, such as water cannons and plastic pellets, during demonstrations without prior

warning, in a non-progressive manner, and in violation of the international legal principles of

necessity and proportionality.

The humanitarian crisis affecting Venezuela is one of high proportions. It’s imperative that a

proper solution is found, for a conflict of this magnitude and importance must be stopped

before it develops further.

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History of the Issue:

To explain the crisis in the country of Venezuela we have to look back to 1999. Hugo Chávez was

the elected as president. His views resonated with a great majority of the population. He believed

that the corruption in the country was responsible for the disparity and poverty that it was

currently suffering from.

As 2004 came, oil prices skyrocketed and the oil dependent economy highly profited from it.

The populist leader took billions from the profits the Venezuelan oil was providing, and funneled

it towards social welfare programs aimed at eradicating poverty. He largely improved sectors

such as food, education and healthcare. These programs were extremely successful, reducing

poverty by half. The following years Hugo Chávez continued unrestrained spending on these

programs while also not reducing dependency of oil in the economy of Venezuela. This excess

expenditure lead Venezuela to a large deficit. This meant that these social welfare programs

were unsustainable if there was a drop in oil prices. This is exactly what happened in 2014 when

Nicolas Maduro took over presidency, oil prices completely deflated. This meant that the

economy could not support its expenditure.

Following the drop in prices came hyperinflation. The history of Venezuela is marked by the

discovery of oil and profits from its exploitation. The huge public spending and accumulation of

internal and external debts by the government and the private sector during the Petrodollar years

of the 1970s and early 1980s, followed by the collapse of oil prices during the 1980s, crippled the

Venezuelan economy.

Nicolas Maduro, Hugo Chavez's chosen successor, was elected president by a narrow margin,

illustrating the lack of extensive support that Maduro would have liked to have received. From

this point in Venezuela’s history, wages stagnated and unemployment was high. By the mid-

1990s, Venezuela saw annual inflation rates of 50- 60 percent, and an inflation rate of 100 percent

in 1996. The country also suffered a severe bank crisis. Throughout Maduro’s presidency, the

economic situation in Venezuela has not changed: high rates of inflation, unemployment, and

criminal activities continue to harm the country at its core. The black market is constantly rising

and exactly because of that the shortage of food and energy has worsened. Nicolas Maduro

inherited a country with an unstable economy and has up until now done nothing effective to

tackle the problem. His few actions include printing money, which fueled more inflation. He is

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running through the country’s gold reserves to pay its international debt service and finance at

least some basic imports, but those reserves are now dwindling, and Maduro will either have to

default or stop importing food. Recently, in January 2017, he announced a 50% hike in the

minimum wage and pensions - the fifth increase over the last year, to help shield workers from

the world's highest inflation rate. The core of the problem, though, is not being addressed, and

the economic crisis continues to torment Venezuela's society.

One thing that has changed is the amount anti-government protests under Maduro. Protests

throughout 2017 have left over a hundred dead and many more injured. Venezuelans are

unsatisfied with the government’s approach to managing the economy and increasingly

concerned about the current regime’s attacks on democratic institutions. The government has

repeatedly blocked any attempts to oust Maduro from power by a referendum vote. It has also

delayed local and state elections. The last vote held in Venezuela, the parliamentary election of

2015, gave the opposition a majority. Currently, Venezuela is in complete chaos and crisis. Food

shortages have become severe. Venezuelans have endured weeks, in some cases months,

without basics such as milk, eggs, flour, soap and toilet paper. When there is food on the shelves,

prices are so high that few Venezuelans can afford it. Many have taken to eating out of the trash.

Medicine remains in short supply, too. Venezuelans hunt for penicillin and other remedies at

pharmacies everywhere, often without success. Public hospitals have fallen apart, causing people,

including infants, to die because of the scarcity of basic medical care. Venezuela recently asked

the United Nations for help to relieve serious shortages of medicines. The country is spiraling

further into a humanitarian disaster spurred by the government's economic policies, which have

caused the currency, the bolivar, to plunge in value and prices to skyrocket. By 2017, the bolivar

had lost 96% of its value.

The elections have been set to April of 2018, but was originally planned for December 2016. In

January 2019, hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans took to the streets, following an appeal by

National Assembly president Juan Guaidó, who asked the Venezuelan people to mobilize in

support of restoring constitutional order in the country. During a massive protest on January 23,

Guaidó claimed that he was taking power as interim president of Venezuela and said he would call

for free and fair elections. More than 50 governments have since recognized him as Venezuela’s

interim president, but Nicolas Maduro continues to exercise firm control over all Venezuelan

institutions, except for the opposition-controlled National Assembly. While this political power

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struggle unfolds, one of the major underlying concerns for the Venezuelan people is the dramatic

humanitarian crisis they are facing. In one of his first public speeches since becoming the National

Assembly president on January 5, Guaidó said Venezuela was facing a humanitarian emergency

and asked the international community for aid to address it.

It is impossible to know yet the full extent of the health and food crises in Venezuela. This is largely

because the Venezuelan authorities have failed to publish health and nutrition data and retaliated

against those who did. This report is based on interviews with more than 150 health care

professionals, Venezuelans seeking or in need of medical care who recently arrived in Colombia

and Brazil, representatives from international and nongovernmental humanitarian

organizations, United Nations (UN) officials, and Brazilian and Colombian government officials.

In addition, researchers analyzed data on the situation inside Venezuela from official sources,

hospitals, international and national organizations, and civil society organizations.

We found a health system in utter collapse with increased levels of maternal and infant mortality;

the spread of vaccine-preventable diseases, such as measles and diphtheria; and increases in

numbers of infectious diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis (TB). Although the government

stopped publishing official data on nutrition in 2007, research by Venezuelan organizations and

universities documents high levels of food insecurity and child malnutrition, and available data

shows high hospital admissions of malnourished children.

A massive exodus of Venezuelans—more than 3.4 million in recent years, according to the UN—

is straining health systems in receiving countries.

International humanitarian aid to Venezuela increased in 2018, after a shift in the government’s

discourse from entirely denying the humanitarian crisis to recognizing an economic one. The

government, however, blamed the shortages on US imposed sanctions, even though the

humanitarian crisis preceded sanctions on the oil sector that could potentially have an impact on

the importation of food and medicines. Humanitarian actors from international and non-

governmental organizations have consistently reported that aid to Venezuela is not enough to

cover the population’s urgent needs.

23

Poverty and lack of opportunity are exacerbating Venezuela’s high rates of violence. In 2016,

Venezuela experienced its highest-ever homicide rate at 91.8 homicides per 100,000 residents,

according to the Venezuelan Violence Observatory, an independent monitoring group. (The U.S.

rate, by comparison, is 5 per 100,000.) Maduro’s administration has deployed the military to

combat street crime, but rights groups and foreign media have reported widespread abuses,

including extrajudicial killings. Thousands of desperate people have crossed into neighboring

Colombia and Brazil, while others have left by boat to the nearby island of Curacao. By some

estimates, as many as 150,000 Venezuelans left the country in 2016 alone. Furthermore, a

concerted and comprehensive plan to assist displaced Venezuelans outside of the country, which

recognizes that such displacement tends to be protracted, needs to be created and implemented.

24

Bloc Positions:

United States of America:

Since recognizing the Guaidó government on January 23, 2019, the United States has coordinated

its efforts with Interim President Guaidó and encouraged other countries to recognize his

government. The Trump Administration has imposed more targeted sanctions (visa bans and

financial sanctions) on Maduro officials and their families and blocked the Maduro regime’s access

to revenue from Venezuela’s state oil company. In addition to increasing humanitarian aid to

countries sheltering Venezuelans, the Administration has pre-positioned emergency aid for the

Venezuelan people in Brazil, Colombia, and Curaçao. US purchases of that oil have declined

sharply - but companies still import about 500,000 barrels from the country daily. This amounts

to about 41% of Venezuela's total oil exports, the Associated Press reports. Crucially, unlike other

countries that Venezuela is indebted to, American firms pay for that oil in cash.

Colombia:

Colombia is one of the countries deeply affected by the Venezuela’s crisis. Almost 25,000 people

cross the Simon Bolivar International Bridge. Thousands of Venezuelans are currently living and

searching opportunities in Colombia. The crisis in Venezuela has created another crisis in

Colombia, since the country struggles to adapt to a new role for migrants and refugees. Colombia

announced that it would grant temporary status to over 150,000 Venezuelans who entered the

country legally before 25 July but overstayed their visas. They will be permitted to work and have

access to social services. An estimated 100,000 who crossed illegally will not have access to the

new measure.

Brazil:

The government of President Jair Bolsonaro is among those which recognizes Mr Guaidó as

Venezuela's legitimate leader, pending elections. Presidential spokesman General Otávio Régo

Barros said on Tuesday that, in co-ordination with the US, food and medicine would be available

in the border town of Pacaraima to be collected by Venezuelans in charge of the interim

presidency. "Brazil is taking part in this important international initiative to support the Guaidó

government and the Venezuelan people," said the Brazilian government.

25

Cuba:

Cuba is a strong supporter of Mr. Maduro's position as president. With similar ideologies, the

two countries are allies whose governments have become increasingly interdependent across the

last two decades. Venezuela has reportedly subsidized oil exports to Cuba in exchange for

support in areas like medicine and military advisors. Longstanding socialist allies Nicaragua and

Bolivia have voiced direct support for President Maduro. Mexico has said it will maintain a position

of "neutrality" but said "there is no change in its diplomatic relations" with the government. Cuba

and Venezuela became close allies in the late 1990s under the respective leaderships of Fidel

Castro and his younger disciple Hugo Chavez, both now deceased. Their close personal and

political relationship resulted in extensive Venezuelan aid to the Caribbean island and a shared

strategy for promoting Latin American unity against U.S. influence in the region.

China:

Though Russia has invested heavily in the country, China is by far Venezuela's largest foreign

creditor. Chinese companies have invested billions in projects in the Latin American nation,

including in oil ventures. The country is estimated to have supplied more than $62bn in loans since

2007 - a third of which is reportedly outstanding. In September last year, President Xi Jinping

promised to "provide whatever help it can offer" to the struggling nation - and extended another

$5bn credit line. Responding to escalating tensions, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua

Chunying called on "all parties to remain rational and keep calm" to reach a peaceful political

settlement. "China opposes foreign forces from interfering into Venezuela affairs," she said,

clarifying their support of Mr. Maduro. Both China and Russia serve as permanent members, with

veto powers, at the UN Security Council. After the crisis was brought up at the UN by the US, both

countries' ambassadors criticized international interference in Venezuela's internal affairs

26

Sources:

United Nations Peacebuilding Commission. (n.d.). Retrieved November 13, 2017, from

http://www.un.org/en/peacebuilding/

Renwick, D. (n.d.). Venezuela Is in the Midst of an Unprecedented Crisis. Retrieved

December 17, 2017, https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/venezuela-crisis

Organization , United Nations. “ Legitimacy of Contending Parties .” United Nations,

www.un.org/press/en/2019/sc13719.doc.htm.

“Maduro and Guaidó: Who Is Supporting Whom in Venezuela?” BBC, 5 Feb. 2019,

www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-47053701.

27

Aldebaran Model United Nations Simulation - UNHRC

KEY TERMS:

Topic A

1. Border: The line that separates one country, state, province, etc., from another; frontier

line.

2. Border control: Means measures adopted by a country to regulate and monitor its

borders.

3. Civil War: Also known as an intrastate war, is a war between organized groups within the

same state or country.

4. Illegal Immigration: Refers to the migration of people into a country in violation of the

immigration laws of that country, or the continued residence of people without the legal

right to live in that country.

5. Migration: Is the movement of people from one place to another with the intentions of

settling, permanently or temporarily at a new location.

6. Refuge: The state of being safe or sheltered from pursuit, danger, or difficulty.

7. Refugee: Refugees are people who are outside their country of origin for reasons of feared

persecution, conflict, generalized violence, or other circumstances that have seriously

disturbed public order and, as a result, require international protection.

8. Refugee crisis: Can refer to movements of large groups of displaced people, who could be

either internally displaced persons, forced displaced people, refugees or other migrants.

It can also refer to incidents in the country of origin or departure, to large problems whilst

on the move or even after arrival in a safe country that involve large groups of displaced

persons, asylum seekers or refugees.

28

Topic B

1. Capitalism: an economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are

controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state.

2. Socialism: a political and economic theory of social organization which advocates that the

means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the

community as a whole.

3. Hyperinflation: monetary inflation occurring at a very high rate. This means, is when the

prices of goods and services rise more than 50 percent a month. At that rate, a loaf of

bread could cost one amount in the morning and a higher one in the afternoon.

4. Interim president: An interim is a period of time between one event and another. If you

use this word, you will be speaking Latin, since interim is a Latin adverb meaning "in the

meantime."

5. Lima Group: is a multilateral body that was established following the Lima Declaration on

8 August 2017 in the Peruvian capital of Lima, where representatives of 12 countries met in

order to establish a peaceful exit to the Crisis in Venezuela.

6. International intervention: is the term for the use of force by one country or sovereign

state in the internal or external affairs of another. In most cases, intervention is considered

to be an unlawful act but some interventions may be considered lawful.

7. Nonviolent Protests: Nonviolent resistance (NVR or nonviolent action) is the practice of

achieving goals such as social change through symbolic protests, civil disobedience,

economic or political noncooperation, or other methods, while being nonviolent.

8. Economic crisis: A situation in which the economy of a country experiences a sudden

downturn brought on by a financial crisis.

29

Aldebaran Model United Nations Simulation - UNHRC

WRITING A POSITION PAPER:

A Position Paper is a one-page document that consists of three paragraphs that summarizes:

1. The background of the topic under discussion.

2. The policies and statements of your country regarding the topic.

3. The possible solutions your country proposes to solve the issue based on its policies.

It is required that delegates present on position paper for each or their Committee Topics. To be

considered for an award, you must present your position papers on time. For a detailed

description of a position paper, please refer to the MUN Aldebaran Website. Good luck!

If you have any questions or concerns, do not doubt to contact us!

Submit your position papers to these e-mail addresses:

fredy.flores@aldebaran.edu.hn

melvin.maradiaga@aldebaran.edu.hn

30

Aldebaran Model United Nations Simulation - UNHRC

RESOURCES Forced Migration Review, Refugee Studies Centre, Oxford Department of International

Development, www.fmreview.org/.

“Refugee.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 30 May 2019,

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refugee.

United Nations. “Media Centre.” UNHCR, www.unhcr.org/media-centre.html.

MUN, Indianapolis. “Background Guide .” Indianapolis MUN , Indianapolis School, 20 Jan.

2018, liberalarts.iupui.edu/modelun/files/documents/pdf/Background Guide 2018.pdf.

Renwick, D. (n.d.). Venezuela Is in the Midst of an Unprecedented Crisis. Retrieved

December 17, 2017, https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/venezuela-crisis

“Human Rights Violations in Venezuela.” OHCHR, 1 Apr. 2017,

www.ohchr.org/Documents/Countries/VE/HCReportVenezuela_1April-31July2017_EN.pdf