UNITED NATIONS CHILDREN'S FUND (UNICEF)
Venue: Annex Building 03-02
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(a) Blood Diamonds
Blood diamonds, better known as conflict diamonds, are those sold in order to fund armed conflicts and civil wars. Profits from the trade in blood diamonds, worth billions of dollars, were used by warlords and rebels to buy arms during the devastating wars in Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Sierra Leone. While the wars in these countries have ended (~2003), the issue of blood diamonds still remain in countries such Côte d'Ivoire and neighboring Liberia which are in the midst of a volatile conflict whereby diamonds mined in rebel-controlled areas continue to make its way into the international diamond trade.
The mining of such diamonds also relies on the use child laborers who instead of going to school for education, they provide physical labor 11 hours a day with no pay. These hard physical labors often cause Hernia and exhaustion in the miners and can lead to death as well.
What are some measures that can be taken to eliminate the existence of blood diamonds? How can large scale manufacturers and sellers of blood diamonds be found and dealt with?
How should countries cope with the sudden influx of refugees?
What can be done to better accommodate the refugees?
(b) Handling The Refugee Crisis
Syria’s civil war is the worst humanitarian crisis of our time. Half the country’s pre-war population — more than 11 million people — have been killed or forced to flee their homes.
The European refugee crisis began in 2015 when increasing numbers of refugees travelled to the EU via land routes through South Eastern Europe or the Mediterranean Sea to seek asylum or better living standards. There are about 1.2 million refugees who have tried to apply to seek refuge within the EU however only 1/6 has been approved. Majority of these refugees are Syrian or Afghan, it is known that within their homelands there is civil unrest, which forced many of them to be displaced; about a quarter of all these refugees are children. But with the sudden influx of refugees, a country might not be able to handle them either it be economically or socially. Furthermore, with such refugees having a different belief system that has caused dilemmas amongst the government and the refugees.
Anti-government demonstrations began in March of 2011, part of the Arab Spring. However, the peaceful protests quickly escalated after the government's violent crackdown, and rebels began fighting back against the regime. By July, army defectors had loosely organized the Free Syrian Army and many civilian Syrians took up arms to join the opposition. Divisions between secular and Islamist fighters and between ethnic groups continue to complicate the politics of the conflict. The U.N. estimates that 6.6 million people are internally displaced and well over half of the country’s pre-war population of 23 million is in need of urgent humanitarian assistance.
In October 2015, Russia began launching airstrikes at ISIS targets in Syria. The bombings have continued, so far killing at least 2,000 civilians and forcing even more Syrians to flee for safety. In early February 2016, fighting around Aleppo city intensified and the main route for humanitarian aid was cut off. The situation is severe right now as more Syrians flee for their lives, but many die in the process of doing so due to the dangers of the path. Moreover, those who survived are treated not as human beings in places they are given asylum, such as Germany. It is thus essential for countries to come to an agreement on how to protect these refugees’ rights and those civilians who are suffering from the consequences of the war.
Should the refugees be refused from entering countries, including children?