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October 8th, 2016

To Delegates of Cerritos Novice 2016 Conference

Dear Delegates, Welcome to Cerritos Novice 2016!

It is my highest honor and pleasure to welcome you to our annual novice conference here at Cerritos High School. On behalf of the Cerritos High School Model United Nations program, I am proud to host another year of this long-standing conference. Here at CHS, we take absolute pride in this extensive program and its ability to create new and lasting friendships while also encouraging stimulating and intellectual discussion for high school students all across the globe. The CHSMUN program continues to strive for excellence as a nationally ranked MUN program. Our delegates have the opportunity to compete at conferences all around the nation and gain valuable knowledge. Our head chairs are selected from only the best seniors our program has to offer and they undergo a rigorous training process to ensure they are qualified to moderate and grade the quality of debate in each of our committees. Our chairs are the same delegates that represent our delegation at universities and conferences to the best of their ability. Our topic synopses have been reviewed and revised countless times to ensure that as a delegate you have the tools and understanding to be successful in committee. Our advisors and staff have put in countless hours to ensure you have an amazing experience at our conference and that you are encouraged to continue on in Model United Nations at your prospective schools. With 25 high school committees and 3 middle school committees, CHSMUN 2016 will provide a quality experience for beginners to learn and develop your skills as delegates.

If you have any comments, concerns, or questions, please contact me. I look forward to seeing you at CHSMUN Novice 2016! Sincerely, Angel Nwosu Secretary General 2016-2017

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TABLE OF CONTENTS Welcome Statement ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2 Committee Introduction ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4 TOPIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5 Syrian Refugees Crisis Background ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5 UN Involvement ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6 Bloc Positions -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7 Basic Solutions ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7 Questions to Consider ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8 Sources ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9

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UNHCR A Note from Your Director

Delegates,

My name is Shivam Brahmbhatt and I will be your director for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) at the 2016 Cerritos Novice Conference. First off, I would like to say that I am excited to have the opportunity of being your director and to witness the wonderful ideas for solutions that you have for the topic of Syrian refugees. I am currently a senior and this will be my fourth year of MUN. The Model United Nations Program at Cerritos has helped me create memorable friendships, become a better speaker, and learn about world topics. Regarding myself, I'm involved in clubs, such as JSA, FBLA, NHS, CSF, and Octagon. I have been playing competitive tennis since the 11th grade and will be your team captain for the 2017-2018 school years. I have also created my own organization that teaches students business and leadership skills while they benefit the community. Random: I spend way too much time perfecting my tennis skills, chilling on Netflix, working on my perfect attendance at school, shooting guns, and shopping for suits. With that being said, I hope you guys come with the intent of gaining experience rather than being paranoid for an award. If you guys have any questions at all, do not feel hesitant to shoot me an email. Good luck to you guys! See you guys in October! Sincerely, Shivam Brahmbhatt Director, UNHCR

Committee Introduction:

Since being created at the closing of WWII, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has been devoted to the aid of refugees worldwide. According to the UNHCR the agency is mandated “protect and support refugees at the request of a government or the UN itself and assists in their voluntary repatriation, local integration or resettlement to a third country." The UNHCR has made great strides in providing safety for refugees which has led the agency to receive two Nobel Peace Prizes for their efforts.

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TOPIC: Syrian Refugees Crisis Background

The Syrian Conflict started as a peaceful protest by the Syrian people in Damascus in March of 2011. Anti-government demonstrations began in March of 2011, part of the Arab Spring. But 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. Since then, attacks between the Free Syrian Army and Bashar-al-Assad’s regime has displaced over 6.5 million Syrians. In addition, more than five years after it began, the full-blown civil war has killed over 250,000 people, half of whom are believed to be civilians. Bombings are destroying crowded cities and horrific human rights violations are widespread. Basic necessities like food and medical care are sparse. The U.N. estimates that 6.6 million people are internally displaced. When you also consider refugees, well over half of the country’s pre-war population of 23 million is in need of urgent humanitarian assistance, whether they still remain in the country or have escaped across the borders. 13.5 million Syrians need humanitarian aid and 2.37 million are currently living in UNHCR refugee camps of bordering nations. From the 2.37 million, 569,003 refugees live in Jordan, 554,858 refugees live in Turkey, and 851,915 refugees live in Lebanon. (3) The total number of refugees is 6.6 million of which many reside in Canada, the U.S. and European nations such as Germany and France. According to UNICEF, these refugee camps are quickly overcrowding are almost double the capacity. For example, in Lebanon there is approximately one refugee for every four citizens because of overcrowding refugee camps. The use of chemical weapons and conventional weapons on the Syrian people has killed over 120,000 citizens causing turmoil not just in Syria and in nearby nations. One side effect of the Syrian refugee crisis is that millions of children affected by the Syrian conflict are becoming ill, malnourished, exploited, and uneducated due to the inaccessibility of schools. In December 2014, the U.N. issued its largest ever appeal for a single crisis — according to their estimates, $8.4 billion was necessary in 2015 to meet the needs of all those affected by the crisis, both inside and outside Syria, an increase from the previous year's $6.5 billion. Both appeals were only around 50 percent funded.

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. This has severely limited access, and Mercy Corps' operations in northern Syria have been effectively sliced in half due to the fighting. Almost 5

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million Syrians have registered or are awaiting registration with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, which is leading the regional emergency response.

United Nations Involvement

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is one of the leading UN organs assisting the current influx of Syrian refugees and has dedicated. In 1951, the UNHCR held a convention regarding the rights and conditions for a refugee. 10 years later, they enforced the 1961 protocol that removed the refugee-location restrictions. Much later when reinforcement was needed, Resolution 48/116 was passed in December 1993, promising protection of refugees in countries worldwide. This resolution also encouraged countries to implement the 1951 Convention and 1961 Protocol. Furthermore, a year later UNHCR passed another resolution to emphasize that many more people are dying due to the unacceptable conditions, as well as declaring that all people committing a crime in refugee camps must be held responsible and the individuals should be punished according to the state’s policies.

With the rise of Syrian refugees in Syria and neighboring nations who aren't properly equipped to assist the refugees due to the sudden population growth, The UNHCR has worked to coordinate adequate “protection, camp coordination and camp management, nonfood items, and shelter” for these refugees.

On December 7, 2015, this UN organ in collaboration with United Nations Development Programme recently drafted the Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan (3RP) in an effort to effectively respond to the Syrian refugee crisis and is expected to be fully implemented next year. The UNSC also passed a six-point plan in the efforts to resolve the conflict in Syria and with the collaborate efforts with the League of Arab States, the UN established the UN Supervision Mission in Syria to aid the Syrian refugees. Furthermore, the UN Human Rights Council passed resolution A/HRC/RES/29/16 in July, calling neighboring countries to action in order to help host these refugees. It also calls for financial aid from other UN member states and address the blatant human rights violation in Syria. In addition, the UNGA condemns the increasing use by Syrian authorities of heavy weapons in A/RES/66/253 and also demands that they immediately put an end to all human rights abuses and attacks against civilians and protect the population, demands the authorities allow access for the Commission of Inquiry and that they work with the UN-Arab League envoy to implement a transition plan.

With the large influx of Syrians flowing into Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Turkey, and Egypt, UNICEF has been responding to the refugee crisis and hoped to raise of 600 million dollars in support of the refugees. UNICEF’s primary goal is to provide “humanitarian and resilience interventions to meet the needs of Syrian refugee children and their families, as well as those of host communities and other vulnerable groups impacted by the crisis.” The UN hopes to continue resolving this crisis by addressing and aiding the plight of the Syrian refugees.

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Bloc Positions Western Bloc: The Western bloc for the most part is allowing Syrian refugees into their nations. Canada recently allowed for 154 refugees into their nation. However, with recent attacks such as in San Bernardino, CA and the devastating Paris Attacks, some western nations are planning on halting Syrian refugees into their nations to prevent any ISIS affiliated terrorists from coming in. However, this idea has been criticized and for the time being larger Western nations will be allowing Syrian refugees into their nation and donating money for better refugee camps in the Middle East. Latin Bloc: The Latin bloc is mainly involved in the crisis only on a humanitarian aid basis. Their social, political, and geographical, separation from the Middle East makes it hard for them to take physical action to help the refugees that is not related to aid. Nations have helped in setting up UNHCR refugee camps in the region. African and Middle East: Middle Eastern nations are the ones that take in about 90% of the refugees and allow the UNHCR to set up refugee camps. They still continue their efforts to support the refugees and provide them with a safe haven in the case of the crisis occurring in Syria. This has also weakened the economy of many nations because they are now supporting more people than just the country itself. In Africa the major country that helps for the refugee crisis is Egypt since it is easily accessible and it has a similar social and political background as Syria. Asian Bloc: Asian nations such as China and India have given humanitarian aid to the refugee crisis in abundance, however they are not taking in any refugees. Instead these nations are more interested in the Syrian conflict and combating terrorists such as ISIS since they affect the nations more than the refugee crisis overall.

Basic Solutions With the thousands of Syrians displaced and currently seeking asylum in other countries

such as the United States, Greece, as well as neighboring nations, it is important to focus on solutions that address migration. Due to the rising number of Syrians seeking refuge and asylum in the US, the US government has become extremely selective of the refugees they are allowing into the country and currently are only hosting less than 3,000 refugees from Syria. From rigorous background check to partnering with various federal agencies, the US has made a clear statement to the international community that they are not willing to let in a “possible threat” in the country. In order to spur and improve the efficiency of such a complex process, countries

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willing to take in Syrian refugees, they can utilize the International Organization for Migration seeing that is the leading inter-governmental organization on the process of migration. Since conflict emerged in Syria, the IOM has safely brought aid to over 1.5 million Syrians. The International Organization for Migration has also most recently aided 163 Syrians from Lebanon to acquire permanent residence in Canada and also ensure their safe relocation.

Questions to Consider 1. With the current rise in Syrian refugees, how can the UN prioritize the civilian in dire

need of humanitarian assistance?

2. With the drastic increase of asylum seekers, how does this crisis impact neighboring countries and what actions have they taken to resolve the issue?

3. Has your nation or regional block accepted Syrian refugees and have they done anything to resolve the increase in Syrian refugees?

4. What is the most important aspect to consider when supplying humanitarian aid to these refugees and internally displaced person and how can the international community meet these needs?

5. What action has your country taken to resolve refugee and humanitarian crises in the past?

6. What impact has the international community have on the crisis and how can your nation effectively contribute to resolving the Syrian Refugees Crisis?

7. How does current conflict in Syria impact the increase need for humanitarian assistance, and is there anything the UN can do to relieve these issue?

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