COMMITTEE: SECURITY COUNCIL ISSUE: THE ISSUE OF KURDISTAN KEY TERMS: Kurds: The Kurds are an ethnic group of indigenous people from the Mesopotamian plains-- they inhabit what is now south-eastern Turkey, northern Iraq, north-western Syria and south-western Armenia. While today they form a distinctive community, Kurdistan is not recognized as a nation state. Kurds adhere to a number of religions, cultures, and languages, although the majority of Kurds are Sunni Muslim. Islamic State: The Kurds are against the Islamic state and having been fighting against them in Northern Iraq. IS attacked three Kurdish enclaves in Iraq in 2013 till mid-2014. Also they fight as jihadists advance in Iraq. Peshmerga: military forces of Iraqi Kurdistan. Erbil (Irbil): capital of Iraqi Kurdistan PUK: Patriotic Union of Kurdistan KDP: Kurdistan Democratic Party KRG: Kurdistan Regional Government PKK: Kurdish Workers Party (They are considered a terrorist group by Turkey, The United States, and the EU)
MOST RELEVANT NATIONS TO THE ISSUE IRAQ: Kurds make up 15-20% of Northern Iraq s population.the Iraqi government attempted to allow Kurds their own autonomous region in 1970, but the deal collapsed in 1974, leading to conflict and fighting. Saddam Hussein treated the Kurds brutally in the late 1980 s. In 1991, Massoud Barzani (The current president of Iraqi Kurdistan) led a Kurdish revolt in Iraq which led to the US imposing a no-fly zone on Northern Iraq, allowing them self-rule. The KDP and PUK shared joint power in this area and still do now. TURKEY: There has been much hostility between Turkey and the country s Kurds. Kurds in Turkey amount to 15-20% of the population. Since the 1920 s, Kurds have dealt with harsh treatments from Turkish authorities. The Turkish Government consider PKK a terrorist organization. SYRIA: Syrian Kurds make up 7-9% of the population in Syria. Before 2011, they mainly lived in Aleppo and Damascus as well as non-contiguous areas. They have been suppressed and denied rights for years. Syria has tried to redistribute them to Arabs, and they have suppressed Kurdish political leaders and protests. In January 2014, the Democratic Unity Party (DYP) attempted to establish a democratic autonomous government in Syria. UNITED STATES: The US imposed the no-fly zone in Iraqi Kurdistan in 1991 after the first Gulf War which has since given them an autonomous region to live in. During the Iraqi invasion of 2003, Kurds aided the US in overthrowing Saddam Hussein. They also supported the US in airstrikes against IS in 2014. The US has pledged support for Kurds by means of arms and ammunition, as well as US aid to the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) IRAN: Kurds make up around 10% of Iran s population. They mainly inhabit the northwestern region of the country. The majority of these Kurds are Sunni Muslim. There has been Kurdish-Iranian separatism in Iran since 1918 HISTORY
In 1918, the Sykes-Picot agreement split up the Middle East into nation-states following World War I. The Treaty of Sevres would not allow for a referendum to propose a Kurdish homeland. This treaty was rejected, and instead the Treaty of Lausanne was passed in 1923 which allowed for a Kurdish homeland in Turkey, but gave no chance for Kurds to gain independence as an independent state. This treaty divided the Kurdish region among Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria. In 1923, Shaykh Mahmud went against British rule in Iraq to create a Kurdish kingdom in Iraq. In 1925, There was a Kurdish uprising against the new Turkish Republic, which was immediately suppressed. In 1943, Mullah Mustafa Barzani, an Iraqi Kurd, led an uprising winning control over Irbil and Badinan. This founded the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), dedicated to creating an independent Kurdistan. In 1945, Iranian Kurds set up a Mahabad Kurdish Republic backed by the Soviets, yet it only lasted a year as it was reoccupied by the Iranian army. In 1961, Mustafa Barzani again led a revolt against the Iraqi government of Abdul Karim Kassem. This fighting continued for decades. Iraq and Kurds in northern Iraq signed a peace agreement in 1970 which gave Kurds some self-rule. In 1974, the KDP attacked Iraqi army after the government did not allow them to control an oil rich province, Kirkuk, which traditionally belonged to Kurdistan. The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) was founded in 1975 and this began a decade of fighting between PUK and KDP In 1978, in Turkey, the Kurdish Worker s Party (PKK) formed to seek Kurdish independence in Turkey. In 1979, there was a Kurdish revolt in Iran sparked by the Islamic revolution in Iran. Consequently they were suppressed by Iranian government. In 1984, PKK in Turkey became an armed struggle as many Kurds in southeast Turkey joined in dissatisfaction with their living conditions. In 1988, Iraq counterattacked against Kurds for supporting Iran during Iran-Iraq War, thousands of civilians were killed while thousands fled to Turkey. In 1991, Iraqi Kurds rose against Saddam Hussein. Many were killed and the UN establishes no-fly zone in Northern Iraq to protect Kurds. At this point, the Iraqi Kurds controlled a 15,000 square mile autonomous region in Northern Iraq populated by 3 million Kurds. The UN passed Security Council Resolution 688 on the 5th of April, 1991 condemning the existing repression in Iraq and urging respect of human rights of its population, specifically of Kurds. In 1992, A Turkish military operation attacked PKK bases in Iraq. In 1993, The Turkish government granted some autonomy to the Kurds living there. Although, Kurdish political
parties were still banned. During uprisings, martial law was imposed as struggles intensified. In 1994, the two main Kurdish political groups, the PUK and KDP began fighting over the autonomous region in Iraq controlled by Kurds. In 1995, around 35,000 Turkish troops invaded PKK bases similarly to that of 1993. In 1998, the PUK and KDP signed a peace agreement over the four year war in which they fought over Iraqi-Kurd factions. Abdullah Ocalan, a Kurdish nationalist leader and one of the founders of the PKK, was captured in 1999 and sentenced to death. This sparked bombings and terror attacks in Turkey, though Ocalan urged Kurdish rebels not to use violence as a means of resolving the issue. In 2003, Iraqi Kurds aligned with the US and the UK to defeat Saddam Hussein s regime. Jalal Talabani (PUK) and Massoud Barzani (KDP) were appointed to the Iraqi Governing Council by the US. In March 2004, Syrian Kurds rioted with police over a soccer game leaving unrest in Syria. There was also a double suicide bombing in 2004 in Erbil (Iraq) that left 56 people dead and over 200 injured. In 2006, Barzani fought for greater Kurdish representation wishing for the Kurdish flag to be hung over government buildings, but this was shut down by the Iraqi Prime Minister, Nuri al-maliki. In 2007, Iran and Turkey led offensives against Iraqi-Kurdistan. Iran shelled Kurdish rebel bases while Turkey launched airstrikes against the PKK. Massoud Barzani was re elected president in the Kurdish autonomous region in Iraq in 2009, while a two-party coalition was formed. In 2011, Turkey again launched airstrikes against the PKK in Iraqi-Kurdistan. The Turkish attacks continued into 2012, while an influx of Syrian refugees came into Iraqi Kurdistan. Syrians seeking refuge and explosions throughout Iraqi Kurdistan continued in 2013. A growing political party called Change Movement in Kurdistan became the second most powerful Kurdish political party in Iraq (under KDP), winning many seats in parliament. In March of 2013 the PKK released eight Turkish soldiers who they had held captive since 2011. Abdullah Ocalan (his death sentence had been put off) declared a ceasefire ordering Kurdish soldiers to leave Turkey and retreat to their autonomous region in Iraq. The ceasefire fell through in September and the PKK claimed that the Turkish government did not follow through with their promises to negotiate. In 2015, Ocalan called on Kurdish party members to end conflicts with Turkey.
CURRENT SITUATION On March 10th 2017, The UN reported that Turkey s military and police have killed hundreds of Kurds in an operation against rebels. The UN also stated that this consisted of killings, torture, rape and destruction of property. The president of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, supposedly called off a truce with Kurds in 2015 to push nationalist sentiments. After the failed coup in the summer of 2016, Erdogan used emergency powers to crackdown on Kurdish political leaders and the PKK. In the southeast of Turkey, Kurds have been suppressed as the government closed down all Kurdish-language media. In Iraqi Kurdistan, the Peshmerga endure regular IS attacks, though the Kurds are comfortable in their positions with American fire and Special Operations Forces support. The Kurds have complained that Baghdad blocks weapons from reaching them but the US states that Kurds are getting everything promised. Concerning the current problem in Syria over the battle for Raqqa, the US is favoring their Kurdish allies, while Turkey would prefer seeing their militia take the lead. President Erdogan is opposed to any strengthening of Kurdish positions in Syria.
Sources http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-29702440 http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-15467672 http://thekurdishproject.org/history-and-culture/kurdish-history/ http://www.infoplease.com/spot/kurds3.html https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/10/world/europe/un-turkey-kurds-human-rights-abuses.html? rref=collection%2ftimestopic%2fkurds&action=click&contentcollection=timestopics®ion= stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentplacement=1&pgtype=collection https://www.brookings.edu/blog/markaz/2016/03/30/iraq-situation-report-part-iii-kurdistan/ http://thekurdishproject.org/kurdistan-news/us-kurdish-relations/
COMMITTEE: SECURITY COUNCIL ISSUE: The Question of Taiwan KEY TERMS: Sovereign state : A sovereign state is, in international law, a nonphysical juridical entity that is represented by one centralized government that has sovereignty over a geographic area. According to international law, sovereign states have a permanent population, defined territory, one government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other sovereign states. All in one, it is generally understood that a sovereign states is neither dependent on nor subjected to any other power of state. Sovereignty : The concept of sovereignty is one of the most controversial ideas in political science and international law. It is closely related to the difficult concepts of state and government and of independence and democracy. MOST RELEVANT NATIONS TO THE ISSUE: The People's Republic of China Republic of China United States of America
Taiwan is an island off the southern coast of China that has been governed independently from mainland China since 1949. The People s Republic of China (PRC ) views the island as a province, while in Taiwan a territory with its own democratically elected government supported by the United States leading political voices have differing views on the island s status and relations with the mainland. Some observe the principle that there is one China comprising the island and the mainland, but in their eyes this is the Republic of China (ROC ) based in Taipei; others advocate for a de jure independent Taiwan. China and Taiwan maintain a fragile relationship, which has improved during the past seven years but is periodically tested. HISTORY: In 1895, following Japan s victory in the First Sino-Japanese War, the Qing government had no choice but to cede Taiwan to Japan. But after World War Two, the Republic of China - one of the victors - began ruling Taiwan with the consent of its allies the US and UK, after Japan surrendered and relinquished control of territory it had taken from China. In 1949, the Republic of China (ROC), led by the Kuomintang, lost control of mainland China in the Chinese Civil War, the ROC government under the Kuomintang (KMT) withdrew to Taiwan. Chiang Kai-shek, the leader of KMT declared martial law. Meanwhile, the KMT government defined itself as the alternative to Communist rule and hoped one day to return to power in Beijing. The KMT government ruled Taiwan from 1949 to 2000; its often harsh rule included discriminatory laws against ethnic Taiwanese and nearly forty years of martial law, which was finally lifted in 1987. The KMT has historically seen Taiwan as a part of "one China" that would eventually be reunited under Nationalist rule. However after decades of hostile intentions, relations between China and Taiwan started improving in the 1980s. The paramount leader, Deng Xiaoping put forward a formula, known as one country, two systems. He suggested that there would be only one China, but distinct Chinese regions such as Hong Kong and Macau could retain their own capitalist economic and political systems, while the rest of China uses the socialist system. Under the principle, each of the two regions could continue to have its own political system, legal, economic and financial affairs, including external relations with foreign countries.
It also should be take into consideration that the UN switched diplomatic recognition to Beijing and the ROC government was forced out in 1971. Since then the number of country that recognize the ROC government diplomatically has fallen to about 20. CURRENT SITUATION: The status of Taiwan has been one of the most intricate issues in both international law and international relations arenas for the past decades. The Taiwan question is essentially an extension of the two China problem, which involves the two powerful countries - China and the U.S. In order to have have a comprehensive understanding on the conflict, the priory task is to understand each side s position. People s Republic of China view on the issue: According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People s Republic of China, Taiwan question is a question left over by the civil war in China, and it is purely China's internal affair. It is first of all the question of the relationships between the Government of the People's Republic of China -- the sole legal government representing the entire Chinese people with the capital in Beijing - and the Taiwan authorities, and it should be resolved by the Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Straits. PRC considers Taiwan question as a question of safeguarding safeguarding state sovereignty and territorial integrity, defending national honour and opposing external interference by the Chinese Government and people. PRC urges the U.S. government strictly observe the principles enshrined in the three Sino-U.S. joint communiqués and thoroughly correct and stop various erroneous practices of making use the Taiwan question to interfere in China's internal affairs and obstruct the reunification of China. In conclusion, PRC strongly opposes Taiwan independence or any attempts of splitting the country. US s View on this Issue:
The United States One China policy is radically different. In the 1950s, the United States recognized the defeated Nationalist government in Taiwan as the legitimate government of all of China and encouraged other states to do the same. As time went on, proposals that the United States recognize two Chinas were vehemently rejected by the PRC. When the U.S. normalized relations with China in 1979, it cut diplomatic and official ties with the Republic of China (ROC) in Taiwan, recognized the mainland as the sole legal government of China, withdrew U.S. forces from Taiwan and allowed a mutual defense treaty with Taiwan to expire. The American position on the status of Taiwan island was left undefined. The United States defines the content of its One China policy as consisting of the three Sino-American communiqués issued at the time of the Nixon visit (1972), mutual establishment of diplomatic relations (1978) and the attempted resolution of the question of American arms sales in 1982, as well as the Taiwan Relations Act passed by Congress in April 1979 to establish a legal foundation for unofficial relations with Taiwan after recognition of the PRC and de-recognition of the ROC. The United States has made it clear that it does not consider the political entity on Taiwan (whether it is called Taiwan or the ROC ) to be a state within the international community. Here it agrees with the PRC. However, it does not accept Beijing s contention that the island of Taiwan, or its government and people, are parts of China. The formal U.S. legal position is that the island s status is undetermined. This means, remarkably, that since 1979, the United States has conducted a relationship with a government it does not officially recognize, that rules a state it does not acknowledge exists, on an island the status of which is undetermined. Such are the subtleties of international diplomacy. However, the new President Trump has made his phone call with Xi Jinping and made a clear statement that the United States would honor the One China policy, reversing his earlier expressions of doubt about the longtime diplomatic understanding as well as removing a major source of tension between the United States and China since shortly after he was elected.
COMMITTEE: Security Council ISSUE: Western Sahara KEY TERMS: Referendum: The principle or practice of submitting to popular vote a measure passed on or proposed by a legislative body or by popular initiative Occupied Territory: Territory under the authority and effective control of a belligerent armed force. The term is not applicable to territory being administered pursuant to peace terms, treaty, or other agreement, express or implied, with the civil authority of the territory. Polisario Front: A rebel movement with the aim to end the presence of Morocco in the Western Sahara and obtain recognition for an independent Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic under the Polisario Front government. Territorial Integrity: The international law that states are not allowed to cross another state's border with force. MINURSO (United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara) : It was setup in September 1991, to ensure that a referendum was set up so that the population in the Western Sahara could decide their own future. MOST RELEVANT NATIONS TO THE ISSUE: Spain: It is relevant because they were the colonizers of the territory and the ones who gave Morocco and Mauritania the control over the Western Sahara territory in 1975. Morocco: As the most important country with Western Sahara in this topic they believe that Western Sahara should be part of Morocco, they have promised a referendum on independence which has yet to take place. Western Sahara: Though not internationally recognized many countries have expressed their support of the future independence of Western Sahara. At the moment a small part of the country
close to Mauritania, is under the control of the Polisario Front the government elected by the Saharawis. Mauritania: Is important because they are bordering and a large population of Western Sahara are refugees they are also one of the UN members states that recognize the independence of the Western Sahara. Algeria: Algeria has a very large population of Saharawis in the border area with Western Sahara and Mauritania especially in the city of Tindouf and the surroundings. It is also one of the UN members states that recognize the independence of the Western Sahara. HISTORY: In the last days of General Franco's rule, the Spanish government signed a tripartite agreement with Morocco and Mauritania as it moved to transfer the territory on 14 November 1975. The accords were based on a bipartite administration, and Morocco and Mauritania each moved to annex the territories, with Morocco taking control of the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara as its Southern Provinces, and Mauritania taking control of the southern third. The Moroccan and Mauritanian annexations were resisted by the Polisario Front, which had gained backing from Algeria. It initiated guerrilla warfare and, in 1979, Mauritania withdrew due to pressure from Polisario, including a bombardment of its capital and other economic targets. Morocco extended its control to the rest of the territory. It gradually contained the guerrillas by setting up the extensive sand-berm in the desert ( Border Wall or Moroccan Wall) to exclude guerrilla fighters. Hostilities ended in a 1991 cease-fire, overseen by the peacekeeping mission MINURSO (United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara), under the terms of a UN Settlement Plan. The referendum, originally scheduled for 1992, would be giving the local population the option between independence or affirming integration with Morocco, but it quickly stalled. In 1997, the Houston Agreement attempted to revive the proposal for a referendum but likewise it had no success. As of 2010, negotiations over terms have not resulted in any substantive action. At the heart of the dispute lies the question of who qualifies to be registered to participate in the referendum, and, since about the year 2000, Morocco considers that since there is no agreement on persons entitled to vote, a referendum is not possible. Meanwhile, Polisario still insisted on a referendum with independence as a clear option, without offering a solution to the problem of who is qualified to be registered to participate in it. Both sides blame each other for the stalling of the referendum. The Polisario has insisted on only allowing those found on the 1974 Spanish Census lists to vote, while Morocco has insisted that
the census was flawed by evasion and sought the inclusion of members of Sahrawi tribes which escaped from Spanish invasion to the north of Morocco by the 19th century. Efforts by the UN special envoys to find a common ground for both parties did not succeed. By 1999 the UN had identified about 85,000 voters, with nearly half of them in the Moroccan-controlled parts of Western Sahara or Southern Morocco, and the others scattered between the Tindouf refugee camps, Mauritania and other places of exile. Polisario accepted this voter list, as it had done with the previous list presented by the UN (both of them originally based on the Spanish census of 1974), but Morocco refused and, as rejected voter candidates began a mass-appeals procedure, insisted that each application be scrutinized individually. This again brought the process to a halt. According to a NATO delegation, MINURSO election observers stated in 1999, as the deadlock continued, that "if the number of voters does not rise significantly the odds were slightly on the SADR side". By 2001, the process had effectively stalemated and the UN Secretary-General asked the parties for the first time to explore other, third-way solutions. Indeed, shortly after the Houston Agreement (1997), Morocco officially declared that it was "no longer necessary" to include an option of independence on the ballot, offering instead autonomy. Erik Jensen, who played an administrative role in MINURSO, wrote that neither side would agree to a voter registration in which they were destined to lose CURRENT SITUATION: Sovereignty over Western Sahara is contested between Morocco and the Polisario Front and its legal status remains unresolved. The United Nations considers it to be a "Non-Self-Governing Territory". Formally, Morocco is administered by a bicameral parliament under a constitutional monarchy. The last elections to the parliament's lower house were deemed reasonably free and fair by international observers. Certain powers, such as the capacity to appoint the government and to dissolve parliament, remain in the hands of the monarch. The Morocco-controlled parts of Western Sahara are divided into several provinces that are treated as integral parts of the kingdom. The Moroccan government heavily subsidizes the Saharan provinces under its control with cut-rate fuel and related subsidies, to
appease nationalist dissent and attract immigrants from Sahrawis and other communities in Morocco proper. The exiled government of the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) is a form of single-party parliamentary and presidential system, but according to its constitution, this will be changed into a multi-party system at the achievement of independence. It is presently based at the Tindouf refugee camps in Algeria, which it controls. It also controls the part of Western Sahara to the east of the Moroccan Wall, known as the liberated territories. This area has a very small population, estimated to be approximately 30,000 nomads. The Moroccan government views it as a no-man's land patrolled by UN troops. The SADR government whose troops also patrol the area have proclaimed a village in the area, Bir Lehlou and Tifariti, as SADR's former and actual temporary factual capitals.