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SAMPLE ONE
POLICY STATEMENT
COMMITTEE: SECURITY
DELEGATION: FRANCE
QUESTION: The Question of Western Sahara
Western Sahara is an area of desert on the western coast of Africa, south of Morocco, and west and north of Mauritania. It was claimed as a Spanish colony in the 1880s where it was known by the name of Spanish Sahara. Spain surrendered sovereignty over the territory in 1975 without naming a successor regime, handing it to another state, or explicitly recognizing its independence. While the governments of Mauritania and Morocco laid claim to the territory, the International Court of Justice ruled in 1975 that the people of the territory had the right to self-determination. Despite this ruling, Morocco and Mauritania moved in as the Spanish left and occupied the territory. However, a home grown independence movement called the Polisario Front, supported by Algeria, forced the Mauritanians to leave. Moroccan forces moved in. Now, while most of the territory is controlled by Morocco, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), which was proclaimed on February 27, 1976, controls areas of the eastern borderlands. The SADR is a member of the African Union, which does not recognize Morocco’s claim to the territory, prompting Morocco to leave the Organization of African Unity (OAU), the predecessor of the AU. The UN’s Baker Plan (named for American diplomat James Baker) would have provided a provisional authority under which the people of Western Sahara would have a referendum, but that plan is currently dead.
There has been little change in the overall situation in Western Sahara over the past few years. Morocco still controls most of the territory while the SADR is limited largely to the eastern borderlands (see attached map.) The United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) was established in 1991 for the purpose of organizing a referendum, but Morocco continues to prevent that from happening. Regardless, it has maintained a presence in the territory serving to monitor the ongoing cease fire, reduce the threat of landmines and to support confidence building measures in the region. 2007 and 2008 saw four rounds of United Nations-sponsored talked in New York between Morocco and POLISARIO. No significant progress resulted. Allegations of human rights abuses by the Moroccan government continue, one of the most recent being the alleged abduction of a nineteen-year-old girl by Moroccan security agents because she was preparing to attend a human rights conference in England. Morocco currently advocates the resettlement of Western Sahara refugees currently residing in refugee camps in Algeria to a third country if they so choose. Morocco also continues to state its intent to cooperate with the United Nations to arrive at a solution to the problem, but continues to oppose self-determination or independence for the region.
Security Council Resolution 690 of April 21, 1991 created MINURSO, charged with organizing a referendum for the people of Western Sahara. Several resolutions have since been passed to continue the mandate of MINURSO, the most recent being Security Council Resolution 1871 of April 30, 2009, which extended the mandate to April 30, 2010. The Organization of African Unity (the predecessor of the African Union) passed Resolution 103 (XVIII) at its meeting of Heads of State and Government in 1981 which calls for a peaceful resolution as well as self-determination for the territory of Western Sahara. The first government of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic was proclaimed on February 27, 1976 in the Proclamation of the First Government of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic.
France does not recognize Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara neither does it recognize the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic. It has a long history of not criticizing Moroccan human rights problems and enjoys solid trade relations with the country. It supports the autonomy plan that Morocco has proposed a plan that “will permit a resolution to this conflict that has gone on too long is a political solution, negotiated and agreed to by the two parties under UN auspices” according to President Sarkozy. Prime Minister Francois Fillon reiterated, "I wish to underscore just how much France supports Morocco's initiatives to resolve the painful issue of the Sahara, and just how much France does to explain Morocco's initiatives at the United Nations."
The French Republic calls for a peaceful and quick resolution to the problem. France supports Morocco’s proposal for autonomy for the people of Western Sahara within the framework of the Moroccan state. Furthermore, the French Republic calls for the resettlement of refugees from the region now residing in camps in Algeria and elsewhere. The French Republic calls for cooperation between the governments of the SADR, Morocco as well as the United Nations. France also hopes that the government of Morocco will abide by international human rights norms.
Part 1: The first sentence defines the key term (Western Sahara) in the topic for discussion, Western Sahara. The remainder of the paragraph gives background information including a brief discussion of its colonial history, the war between Morocco and Mauritania, the current relationship Morocco has with the territory as well as the local group fighting for its independence.
Part 2: Brings readers up to date with the current situation in the territory of Western Sahara, noting the current stalled progress of negotiations, the mandate of MINURSO, UN-sponsored talks and allegations of human rights violations.
Part 3: Outlines some of the important documents from the United Nations Security Council, the African Union in addition to the proclamation of the first government of the SADR.
Part 4: Clear statement and outline, with quotes from French leaders, of France’s view of the situation in the Western Sahara.
Part 5: Outlines solutions the French Republic would support.
SAMPLE TWO
POLICY STATEMENT
COMMITTEE: ENVIRONMENT
DELEGATION: MALDIVES
QUESTION: CLIMATE CHANGE
Climate change refers to the fact that the climate of the earth is changing. It is not the same that it used to be. It is also commonly known as global warming because the average overall climate of the earth is getting warmer; however this is not universal as some places are actually getting cooler due to changes in the climate. Climate change is causing ice caps in the arctic and antarctic as well as on mountains and plateaus to melt. This is causing the level of the world’s oceans to rise, resulting in island and coastal areas to be under threat. It is also believed to be causing droughts in some parts of the world, excessive rain and floods in others, in addition to a larger number of intense tropical storms such as hurricanes and typhoons.
China recently gained the dubious distinction of being the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gasses which are blamed for contributing to climate change. Like other developing countries, it is not held to any standards under the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, which is due to expire in 2012, and has been signed and ratified by every major economy except for the United States. This December, the nations of the world will convene a climate change meeting in Copenhagen, Denmark with the purpose of progressing to a post-Kyoto framework. New governments in Japan and the United States have declared their intent to improve their own records in the area, but major Asian economies, especially China and India continue to repeat the refrain that the developed countries with a longer history of emissions must do something first. Many in the West point out that even if they reduce emissions, rising emissions in Asia and other developing economies will more than offset cuts in their own countries. A climate change summit held in December 2007 in Bali, Indonesia did not result in any concrete agreements but resulted in the Bali Road Map which is a guide to follow in coming years. A similar conference held in Posnan, Poland in 2008 resulted in little progress.
Part 1: The first sentence defines the key term (Climate change) in the topic for discussion. It then proceeds to describe it and the apparent effects that results from it.
Part 2: Focus on the current situation. Notes China’s new status as the number one emitter of greenhouse gasses and summarizes the dispute between developing and developed countries on the issue. It also outlines the conferences that have occurred and the one that is upcoming in December of this (2009) year.
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