General Assembly I: DISEC
The first committee of the United Nations General Assembly, DISEC, has a mandate to discuss those issues pertaining to international peace and security which are not under deliberation by the Security Council. This committee is often called upon to make resolutions to secure peace into the future.
In addition to referring to the DISEC web page for information, be sure to consult the HSMUN blog regularly for news updates on the topics and conference (especially those items tagged "DISEC").
Topics
Topic 1: The question of dealing with the cross-border proliferation of small arms.
Issues to consider within this topic include indicating the most likely ways in which small arms proliferate (e.g. trafficking/ state breakdown/ terrorism), the countries most implicated in this (both the responsible ones and the ones suffering), and ways of dealing with trafficking (e.g. assigning control to an agency answerable to UN or getting states to cooperate, etc.). This topic should reflect on previous UN resolutions and how to overcome their inadequacies. Arab Spring events should also be considered in light of how they may cause an upsurge in arms proliferation.
Topic 2: The question of military tactics resulting in a high percentage of 'accidental' civilian deaths.
Certain military practices have been banned in various UN and non-UN conventions (land mines, napalm bombs, certain biological weapons, etc). However, certain tactics and weaponry continue to be used despite their destructiveness and lethal consequences for civilians. Issues to consider
include which tactics/ weapons which fall under this characterization (e.g. carpet bombing), which countries profit or are victimized by these practices, when they are legitimate, and how to deal with them. For an example, civilian death toll throughout the US involvement in Iraq may be considered.
Research Materials
Background Paper: The question of dealing with the cross-border proliferation of small arms.
Background Paper: The question of military tactics resulting in a high percentage of 'accidental' civilian deaths.
Background Papers are only available in .pdf format. If you do not have a pdf reader, you can download a free reader from Adobe.
NOTE: Background papers are written by members of the dais, intervention, and secretariat and are designed as an introduction to the topic, not as a replacement for more in-depth research related to national positions.
Please see the main HSMUN blog for ongoing topical news updates and research tips.
Dais Staff
Chair: Rebecca Thomas
Director: Muhammed Patel
Attaché: Catherine Fan