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WASHMUN IX Social, Cultural, and Humanitarian
Committee (SOCHUM)
Chaired by:
Evelyn Centellas and Ben Stokely
Dear Delegates,
My name is Ben Stokely and I will be one of your chairs for SOCHUM at WASHMUN
IX this year. I am currently a sophomore, and have participated in Model United Nations since I
was in 7th grade. Although this is my first time chairing a committee, I look forward meeting
you and making this an incredible learning experience. Feel free to email me with any questions
or concerns you have.
Sincerely,
Ben Stokely
Dear Delegates,
Hello, my name is Evelyn Centellas, and I am a sophomore at Washington-Lee High
School. I will be one of your chairs for this committee. I have been doing MUN since 7th grade,
and I also am a part of the marching band here at WL. I have been a part of the marching band
since freshman year. I play the french horn and percussion. I have to say that MUN is more fun
than marching band. This will be my first time chairing and I hope you all stick to what your
country believes in. Don't mix your own beliefs into your position paper. I wish you guys the
best of luck!
Sincerely,
Evelyn Centellas
Topic 1: Prisoner's rights
General Overview
Under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), all human beings “are equal
in dignity and rights.” However, there are groups of people worldwide whose human rights are 1
ignored or diminished due to their status in society. One of these groups is prisoners, as they in
particular are often overlooked in the discussion of human rights because they are deemed
“unworthy” of basic protections by their governments. Around the world, many governments
choose to emphasize punishment over rehabilitation and return back into society.
One of the first international recognitions of the need to protect prisoners’ rights was at
the First International Peace Conference of 1899, in which diplomats discussed and addressed
concerns over the treatment of prisoners of war. After that conference, many more people and
nations around the world continued to advocate for the human rights of prisoners. The events of 2
both world wars had a profound effect on international law due to the widespread denial of civil
rights and liberties on the basis of racial, religious, and political factors. The systematic use of
violence, including murder and ultimately genocide, the use of slave labor, abuse and murder of
prisoners of war, deportations, and confiscation of property in these wars caused the international
community to pay attention to the treatment of prisoners around the world.
The need for revision of prisoner-related standards was discussed and emphasized in the
21st and 22nd General Assembly (GA) meetings in 2013. The Special Rapporteur on torture,
Juan Mendez, stated to SOCHUM that the UN standards for the treatment of prisoners were
1 “Universal Declaration of Human Rights.” United Nations, United Nations, www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/. 2 “Treaties, States Parties, and Commentaries.” International Committee of The Red Cross, ICRC, 12 Aug. 1949,
outdated. He emphasized that revisions were needed specifically in the areas of solitary
confinement and investigation of the validity of charges . In 2011, the General Assembly, 3
through its resolution 65/230 entitled “Twelfth United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention
and Criminal Justice,” stated that the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice
should establish “an open-ended intergovernmental expert group.” This group was established to
make recommendations to the commission on how to proceed with the treatment of prisoners. It
does this through exchanging information on best practices, best national legislations, and
existing international laws relating to prisoners’ rights. 4
Current Issues
Aside from the general prison population, there are specific groups of prisoners that are
extremely vulnerable in the current prison systems around the world, such as foreigners,
individuals with mental illnesses, and women. These groups either do not have the international
protection they need or many governments overlook these groups and do not abide by
international standards. Aside from acts of torture, prisoners have been subjected to other
ill-treatments such as inadequate health attention and overcrowded or poor living conditions.
Torture is when someone in authority intentionally causes severe pain or suffering for a
specific purpose, such as to get information or a confession, to punish, or to intimidate. It can be
physical, such as beating or forcing into a painful position, or sexual, such as rape . Torture is 5
illegal: it has been outlawed internationally since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in
3 OHCHR | Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Torture/SRTorture/Pages/SRTortureIndex.aspx. 4 “Twelfth United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, Salvador, Brazil, 2-19 April 2010.” United Nations, United Nations, www.un.org/en/conf/crimecongress2010/. 5 “Amnesty International.” Torture, www.amnesty.org/en/what-we-do/torture/.
1948. All forms of cruelty and humiliation are also outlawed. Yet some governments openly
continue to use torture despite their international commitments. However, other governments
also use torture in secret from the international community.
All around the world many governments use torturous methods of interrogation. For
instance, the United States has been known to use torture on prisoners taken in Afghanistan and
Iraq. Today, laws against torture are in place almost everywhere. However, laws are not enough.
Torture survives around the world because rather than respecting the law, many governments are
either actively using torture or turning a blind eye. 6
High conviction rates have resulted in a huge growth in the prison population, making
prisons around the world faced with more people than supplies. It is important to note that
overcrowding is a consequence of criminal justice policy, not of rising crime rates, and
undermines the ability of prison systems to meet basic human needs, such as health care, food,
and accommodation. Convicting more people is neither in the interest of the economy or the
prisoner, as overcrowded facilities are more dangerous and more expensive to maintain . In an 7
attempt to curb the prison population, some nations have resorted to the death penalty for the
most severe offenders, but that presents an ethical dilemma about capital punishment. 8
The world is currently very divided on the use of capital punishment. The methods of
capital punishment vary from lethal injection, to firing squad, to public execution. As of 2017,
6 “Amnesty International.” Stop Torture, www.amnesty.org/en/get-involved/stop-torture/. 7 “Prison overcrowding.” Penal Reform International, 2016, www.penalreform.org/priorities/prison-conditions/key-facts/overcrowding/. 8 “The Death Penalty: An International Perspective.” The Death Penalty: An International Perspective | Death Penalty Information Center, deathpenaltyinfo.org/death-penalty-international-perspective.Koschyk, Maximiliane.
there are 57 countries around the world that use capital punishment as a punishment for prisoners
. 9
Questions to Consider
1. How is your country known for treating its prison population? Does your country practice
capital punishment?
2. What further steps can be taken to ensure that prisoners have access to their human
rights?
3. Should certain types of prisoners be treated differently than others? Why?
4. What actions has your country taken to prevent torture in prisons?
5. Should the United Nations take a position for or against capital punishment?
6. Can the United Nations establish minimum standards for treatment of prisoners by its
member states, particularly in regard to solitary confinement, safety of certain prisoners
(like women), and rehabilitation?
9 “Amnesty International: Fewer executions worldwide, but more death sentences | News | DW | 10.04.2017.” DW.COM, Amnesty International, 4 Oct. 2017, www.dw.com/en/amnesty-international-fewer-executions-worldwide-but-more-death-sentences/a-38375363.
Topic II: Protection of International Journalists
General Overview
With a rise in globalization and the internet, information is now easier than ever to
access. However, not all countries provide equal opportunity to obtain information. In 2005,
Reporters Without Borders and UNESCO drafted a "Handbook for Journalists," listing laws that
protect the work of a journalists and describing the correct ways to act should journalists feel
threatened. In addition to the handbook, UNESCO came up with a "UN Plan of Action on the
Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity", a document detailing the recommended steps to
improve the situation of journalists under threat. The effectiveness of these documents varies
depending on the region and or country. In cases such as China, journalists are often put in
prison for speaking out against the government. There are many clauses in regional Human
Rights conventions and charters, such as the European Convention for the Protection of Human
Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (Article 10), and the American Convention on Human Rights
(Article 13) that have been implemented to ensure the safety and impunity of journalists. 10
Another problem that journalists are forced to encounter are the legal restrictions put on
them by the authority of different states. Globally, the majority of governments across the globe
recognize and regard freedom of expression and freedom of press as crucial to a functioning and
well-educated society. However, this is not the case in every country as there are still states
where the public only has access to news and media that the government approves of. It is not
uncommon to have journalists silenced by being killed or imprisoned, and though many get
killed because they cover dangerous areas, the safety of journalists remains a pressing issue.
10 “Safety of Journalists.” UNESCO, United Nations Educational Social and Cultural Organization, 24 Jan. 2018, en.unesco.org/themes/safety-journalists.
Current Issues
In 2017 alone there were 65 international journalists killed - of those 65, 18 of them were
murdered and 18 were caught in the crossfires, and 9 were killed while being on a dangerous
assignment. Twenty other deaths have unknown motives behind them . As of January 23, 2018, 11
there has been one reported death as a murder. In 2017, 262 journalists worldwide were
imprisoned . These statistics shows that there needs to be some form of reform in the rights of 12
journalist, and that the safety and freedom of journalists is still a global issue. Despite the action
and laws protecting these journalists, more action is needed in order to ensure journalists are safe
around the world.
Questions to Consider
1. How can current efforts the UN takes to protect journalists be improved?
2. How should the UN respond to the killing and unjust imprisonment of international
journalists?
3. Should the governments of UN member states be expected to uphold the right of a free
press and to ensure that journalists are not unfairly persecuted for doing their job?
4. What action(s) has your country taken to protect journalists and their rights as well as
their safety?
11 “Explore CPJs database of attacks on the press.” Press Freedom Online - Committee to Protect Journalists, Committee to Protect Journalists, 2017, cpj.org/data/killed/2017/#~(status~Killed~motiveConfirmed~(~Confirmed)~motiveUnconfirmed~(~Unconfirmed)~type~(~Journalist~Media*20Worker)~cc_fips~(~)~end_year~2017~group_by~location). 12 “Explore CPJs database of attacks on the press.” Press Freedom Online - Committee to Protect Journalists, Committee to Protect Journalists, 2018, cpj.org/data/killed/#~(status~Killed~motiveConfirmed~(~Confirmed)~motiveUnconfirmed~(~Unconfirmed)~type~Media*20Worker~cc_fips~(~)~start_year~1992~end_year~2018~group_by~year)
Position Paper Guidelines
Preparing a position paper is essential to being fully prepared for any conference. At
WASHMUN, delegates must submit a position paper if they wish to be considered for awards.
We suggest that position papers follow this format:
● A cover page with your name, school name, position title, and country/state flag
● About 1-2 pages written in response to each topic, including background
information, past action, and suggested solutions
● Suggested solutions should be the most in depth section of the paper
● Bibliography
Do not forget to cite your sources in a bibliography. Under WASHMUN conference
policy, any paper without citations will be considered plagiarized.
Position List
● China ● Russia ● France ● Great Britain ● United States of America ● Iran ● Germany ● Egypt ● South Africa ● Indonesia ● Cuba ● Sweden ● Saudi Arabia ● Vietnam ● Bolivia ● Greece ● Japan ● Republic of Korea ● Australia ● Mexico
Works Cited
1. “Universal Declaration of Human Rights.” United Nations, United Nations, www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/.
2. “Treaties, Staes parties, and Commentaries.” International Committee of The Red Cross,
ICRC, 12 Aug. 1949, ihl-databases.icrc.org/applic/ihl/ihl.nsf/7c4d08d9b287a42141256739003e63bb/6fef854a3517b75ac125641e004a9e68.
3. OHCHR | Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment, www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Torture/SRTorture/Pages/SRTortureIndex.aspx.
4. “Twelfth United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, Salvador,
Brazil, 2-19 April 2010.” United Nations, United Nations, www.un.org/en/conf/crimecongress2010/.
5. “Amnesty International.” Torture, www.amnesty.org/en/what-we-do/torture/.
6. “Amnesty International.” Stop Torture, www.amnesty.org/en/get-involved/stop-torture/.
7. “Prison overcrowding.” Penal Reform International, 2016,
www.penalreform.org/priorities/prison-conditions/key-facts/overcrowding/.
8. “The Death Penalty: An International Perspective.” The Death Penalty: An International Perspective | Death Penalty Information Center, deathpenaltyinfo.org/death-penalty-international-perspective.Koschyk, Maximiliane.
9. “Amnesty International: Fewer executions worldwide, but more death sentences | News |
DW | 10.04.2017.” DW.COM, Amnesty International, 4 Oct. 2017, www.dw.com/en/amnesty-international-fewer-executions-worldwide-but-more-death-sentences/a-38375363.
10. “Safety of Journalists.” UNESCO, United Nations Educational Social and Cultural
Organization, 24 Jan. 2018, en.unesco.org/themes/safety-journalists.
11. “Explore CPJs database of attacks on the press.” Press Freedom Online - Committee to Protect Journalists, Committee to Protect Journalists, 2017, cpj.org/data/killed/2017/#~(status~Killed~motiveConfirmed~(~Confirmed)~motiveUnconfirmed~(~Unconfirmed)~type~(~Journalist~Media*20Worker)~cc_fips~(~)~end_year~2017~group_by~location).
12. “Explore CPJs database of attacks on the press.” Press Freedom Online - Committee to Protect Journalists, Committee to Protect Journalists, 2018, cpj.org/data/killed/#~(status~Killed~motiveConfirmed~(~Confirmed)~motiveUnconfirmed~(~Unconfirmed)~type~Media*20Worker~cc_fips~(~)~start_year~1992~end_year~2018~group_by~year).
