Upcoming Local Events: United Nations Association Sacramento

The United Nations Association of Sacramento is one of the best resources around if you're looking for ways to get involved in the United Nations in our local area. Checking out their website is a must-do, and below is information about a couple of the events that will be happening this month!

International Film Series in Davis

Donate at the door to support the event, and additional proceeds will go to UNA's Adopt-a-Future campaign to build classrooms in refugee camps in Kenya.

Upcoming film: Timbuktu

When: Friday, January 20, 7:30pm

Where: International House, 10 College Park, Davis

"A Little Known History of UNA-USA Advocacy and Action"

Special guest James Wurst, an international security expert based at the UN since 1987, will give a presentation about his recent book.

When:  Tuesday, January 31, 7:30-9:00pm

Where: International House, 10 College Park, Davis

By Hope Coulter

Upcoming International & World Days

As we kick off the new year, you may want to mark these dates on your calendar!

• Friday, January 27: International Holocaust Remembrance Day
• Established by the UN General Assembly in 2005, 60 years after the end of the Holocaust
• Here's a link to a video by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum about why it matters.
• Saturday, February 11: International Day of Women and Girls in Science
• Established by the UN General Assembly in 2015
• http://www.un.org/en/events/women-and-girls-in-science-day/background.shtml
• Monday, February 20: World Day of Social Justice
• Established by the UN General Assembly in 2007
• http://www.un.org/en/events/socialjusticeday/background.shtml

By Hope Coulter

Latvian Current Events: A Dynamic Perspective by Hope Coulter

(Source: Getty Images)
Prime Minister Maris Kucinskis

Latvian Current Events

This past month, Prime Minister Maris Kucinskis (Greens and Farmers party) expressed his continued support for the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between the European Union and Canada. Although opposition to the deal is concerned that it will allow multinational companies an unhealthy amount of power and put the EU’s environmental and consumer protection standards at risk, Kucinskis emphasized ways in which the agreement will benefit Latvian business, by providing a new foreign market for Latvian agricultural industries and entrepreneurs. CETA talks scheduled for Thursday may be blocked by a socialist region of Belgium, the only EU country that has not been able to officially support the talks. (The Baltic Times, Reuters, BBC News) 

The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso (born Lhamo Thondup) has just returned home from his tour of five European states, during which he spent two days speaking in Riga to a crowd of supporters from a number of Baltic States and Russia. The Dalai Lama encouraged Buddhists in the region to unite across political and cultural differences to focus on their shared beliefs. Meeting with Tibet supporters from the Baltic States, he drew parallels between the oppressive experiences of Tibet and the Baltic States. During his visit the Dalai Lama also met with 15 parliamentarians from the Baltic states, including 10 from Latvia. (Tibet Post International, Phayul, EIN News) 

(Source: Dinamo Rīga)
Former Latvian Prime Minister Aigars Kalvitis

Latvian Person of Interest

Former Latvian Prime Minister Aigars Kalvitis was elected as President of the Latvian Hockey Federation (LHF) in early October. Kalvitis is also the chairman of natural gas company Latvijas Gaze, Chairman of the Board of alcoholic beverage company Latvijas Balzams, and co-owner of Latvian KHL team Dinamo Riga. After serving as minister of agriculture (1999-2000) and minister of economics (2000-2002) Kalvitis became the Prime Minister of Latvia from December 2004 to December 5 2007.

As Prime Minister, Kalvitis led a coalition government made up of the People’s Party, New Era Party (now a defunct party), Union of Greens and Farmers, and Latvia’s First Party. Kalvitis stepped down from his position in response to popular disapproval of his dismissal of the head of the anti-corruption bureau. 

(Source: Baltic)
The results of the latest Latvian election

Political Parties in Latvia

Latvia has a multi-party system, in which no individual party is powerful enough to gain power on its own. Each party must cooperate with other parties and form a coalition government, in which parties are forced to build consensus across party lines in order to achieve a majority vote on issues in the Saeima (Latvia’s parliament).

There are eight major parties and nine minor parties. Major parties in Latvia, in order of most MPs in the Saeima to the least MPs, are as follows: Harmony, Unity, Unity of Greens and Farmers, National Alliance, Latvian Association of Regions, For Latvia From the Heart, Who Owns the State?, and the Latvian Russian Union.

Minor parties in Latvia are Christian Democratic Union, the Fatherland Union, For Native Language!, Latvian Development, Latvian Social Democratic Labour Party, Our Land (Party), People of Latgale , Reform Party, and the Socialist Party of Latvia

Food for thought: Given Latvia’s geographic location (neighboring Russia, between Lithuania and Estonia, bordering the Baltic Sea), which issues would you expect to be most difficult for the parties of Latvia’s coalition government to achieve consensus on?

Are the Tensions in the South China Sea Decreasing the Chance for International Nuclear Disarmament? By Hope Coulter

(Source: MindaNation)
Rodrigo Duterte speaking with Shinzō Abe

Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte spent three days in late October visiting Japan, where he held two rounds of talks with Japan’s Prime minister Shinzō Abe. During talks which focused on military and economic policy, Duterte expressed support for Japan’s continued naval presence in the South China Sea. Abe commended Duterte’s efforts to improve the Philippine-Chinese relationship, easing the tension that Duterte’s pursuit of an economic relationship with China had put on Philippine-Japan relations. The two heads of state signed a number of agreements which included Japan’s provision of coast guard boats and military trainer aircraft to strengthen Philippine maritime security, and commitment to support economic development in the Philippines through agricultural promotion projects. (Japan Today)

(Source: UN)
Prime minister speaking on the possibility of abstaining from the outlawing of nuclear weapons

Japanese political sources have stated that Japan will not be supporting a United Nations resolution urging negotiations in 2017 to outlaw nuclear weapons. It is not yet known whether Japan will abstain from voting or will vote against the draft. The United States, with whom Japan shares close diplomatic and economic ties, has urged Japan to vote against the draft. The Japanese Foreign Ministry opposes the resolution, stating that it does not account for the importance of nuclear deterrence. (Japan Today, Kyodo News)

US Flexes in South China Sea by Thomas Brown

(Source: Reuters)
US Navy image shows China circling the heavily disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea

On Friday October 21^st, 2016 a US destroyer sailed through the South China Sea to exemplify the abilities of the US under International Laws of the Sea from the UN, according to the White House spokesman Josh Earnest. This action was also meant to show a signal to China that the international sea is not open for their claims. 

Over the past few years, China has been actively forming man made landmasses for military use in the South China Sea. These new formed islands are for naval supply ports and air force landing bases, felicitating China’s interests of asserting dominance in this region. The US has responded to these movements by supporting territorial allies, and exercising our rights to sail in the South China Sea. The Chinese Defense Ministry responded to these events by calling them a serious breach of law, however did not use physical means to express a threat. 

As tensions rise between the US and China grow increasingly tenser, movements in this sea will determine how future actions will be responded to. Will China continue to build artificial islands and military strongholds that threaten other countries and their rights in the South China Sea? Only time will tell. 

(Source: US-China Institute)
The many facets of the disputes in the South China Sea

Getting to Know Nobel Peace Prize Winner Dr. Ira Helfand's Views of Nuclear Disarmament by Mariana Topich and Makena Hulme

Some of our lucky delegates meeting Dr. Ira Helfand after his keynote speech at the 2016 Sacramento UNA Dinner

On Sunday, October 23, 2016, The United Nations Association of Sacramento and the Sacramento Physicians for Social Responsibility chapter hosted a dinner in honor of United Nations Day. The theme of this event was a celebration of the successes of the Sustainable Development Goals and how we can prevent nuclear warfare.

There were numerous prominent speakers present, including the United Nations Youth Observer, Nicol Perez. Nicol discussed her role in the UN and how important youth voices are in the international policy. Not only do they have unique perspectives on how to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals targets, they have innovative thought processes for preventing warfare and increasing empathy in the global sphere. She also spoke on how exhilarating her life has become and what an honor it is to represent the global youth when speaking to leading members of nation-states.

The keynote speaker was Dr. Ira Helfand, the esteemed co-president of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War. Dr Ira Helfand won the 1985 Nobel Peace Prize for his work within the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, particularly for encouraging multilateral communication about the prevention of future nuclear wars. By having Soviet and American physicians and experts work in the international sphere to prevent further nuclear warfare, Helfand demonstrated excellence in his capacity to give international relationships a quality of unity rather than conflict. His contribution can therefore be seen as a step on the way to a bilateral and controlled disarmament.

In Helfand’s keynote speech he talked of the dangers of limited nuclear war as well as large-scale nuclear war. In the event that a large-scale nuclear conflict arises due to increased hostilities between the U.S. and Russia and the proxy war in Syria, it is possible for the largest nuclear war that the world has ever seen will ensue. In this case, the climate will be disrupted and the land from up to 62 miles from the bomb will be entirely sterilized of all life. In the case of a limited nuclear war between India and Pakistan, the damage to the climate could cause mass casualties and a food storage so severe that our world would quickly use up the 90 day food storage and people would starve to death on an unprecedented scale. Ultimately, Dr. Helfand adopts a constructivist viewpoint in regards to nuclear weapons when he states, “Nuclear weapons are not a force of nature, or an act of God. It’s something we as humans have created.” Meaning, nuclear weapons are something we created with great minds, and with those same great minds, we can disarm the world of nuclear weapons. He also highlighted the danger of vulnerabilities in cyber security and underscored the fact that the US Pentagon is hacked around six times a day. If our cybersecurity continues to be vulnerable, then the world is vulnerable to the devastating possibility that outside nonstate actors or other states could potentially hack into the safeguards protecting nuclear weapons in any nation and create global chaos and mass death.

At the end of his speech there was a Q&A segment where guests could submit questions pertaining to this issue. The question that was received most often was, “How can we as normal citizens, and not policy makers, take a stand and become involved nuclear disarmament?” Dr. Helfand urged the audience to call and write letters to the White House’s toll free number and urge them to spend less money updating nuclear weapons and warfare and instead prioritize the health of the world and our nation. In the 1980s a large civil movement renouncing nuclear war was successful in reducing the nuclear capacities of every nation in the world. We as a nation and as global citizens can make a difference if we unite against the perils of nuclear war. The public comment line for the White House is 202-456-1414.

Quick and Easy Policy Statement Outline by Hope Coulter

What is a policy statement?

1.      A place for delegates to synthesize their research

2.      A tool to use during conference

3.      A measure of a delegate’s knowledge

What is a policy statement composed of?

·         A policy statement consists of a header and 3 paragraphs

·         Concise, factual language mixed with the names of resolution, conventions, and treaties

How does one format a policy statement?

·         The total length should be close to, but not exceed one page single-spaced

·         The header consists of the country’s official name, committee, and topic; each on a separate line

o   EX:      Kingdom of Denmark

            General Assembly

            Restructuring the Security Council

·         An additional space between the header and first paragraph and then each subsequent paragraph

·         Use a formal tone throughout your writing. Imagine as if you are presenting this as an official, circulated document to the United Nations.

What should the three paragraphs include?

1.      Present and define the problem as your country views it

a.       International history from your country’s perspective

b.      Historical action (and inaction) by the UN and International Community

c.       Summary of the issue book

2.      Illustrate how your country handled/remedied the problem in the past

a.       Current status and aspects of the issue

b.      Mention and explain 4-5 ways in which your country interacted with the issue

                                                              i.      How has your country dealt with the issue internally?

                                                            ii.      How has your country dealt with the issue globally?

c.       Longest paragraph

3.      Present the official policy of your country

a.       Proposed solution directed towards the international community (think resolution)

b.      Reasons your country supports this position

c.       Oftentimes, you will use your country’s internal policies and previous actions to generalize about its foreign policy

Where should my research come from?

·         UN Mission websites, government websites, bilateral agreements, internal policies, speeches, etc.

·         Actions taken by your government in regards to the issue

·         Conventions, Resolutions, and Treaties that your country is party to

·         UN Action that your country has supported (or opposed)