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The Venezuela Crisis JCC: USA Hawaiʻi Pacific Model United Nations 2019

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The Venezuela Crisis JCC: USA Hawaiʻi Pacific Model United Nations 2019 The Venezuela Crisis JCC: USA Hawaiʻi Pacific Model United Nations 2019 Aloha and welcome to PacMUN 2019! Our names are Jackie Osaki and Matt Linker and we are excited to return as Secretary General for PacMUN 2019. Throughout our involvement with PacMUN over the past three years, we have seen this conference grow and flourish. We are happy to say that trend continues this year as we host the largest and most dynamic PacMUN so far, with a variety of General Assembly, Specialized, Crisis, and Joint Crisis committees that tackle some of the most complex and urgent issues that have faced our world. My name is Jackie and I’m a recent graduate of Stanford University with a BS with Honors in Biology and a BA in Comparative Literature. I currently work for a management and technology consulting firm that specializes in media and entertainment. Throughout my Stanford career, I participated in Model UN as a delegate, vice-captain, and eventually team captain in my last two years. I love being able to bring realism and current issues to Model UN for students to begin thinking about how we can solve the most pressing issues facing society today. My name is Matt and I’m a 2019 Stanford graduate in Computer Science, and now work in equity derivatives trading and structuring at a major financial services firm. I first participated in MUN early in my own high school career, before rediscovering it my sophomore year at Stanford, eventually serving as vice-captain, captain, and on the board of our MUN team’s parent organization, the Society for International Affairs at Stanford. To me, MUN represents a window into the true complexity of world affairs, and an excellent learning opportunity to understand why some challenges are more difficult to resolve than others. While we are excited to bring what we believe to be the best PacMUN yet into fruition, we are most excited to see relationships continue to build this year. We strive to embody all of our core values, but it is truly special to see laulima, or collaboration, in action. We urge all delegates to keep laulima in mind to work together to innovate solutions and make new friends in the process. We hope this guide helps you jump start your research for this year’s PacMUN and we look forward to seeing you in November! Sincerely, Jackie Osaki and Matt Linker 2 Table of Contents I. Letter From the Chair 2 II. Letter From the Crisis Director 3 III. Introduction to Committee 4 IV. History & Background Information 5-13 V. US Involvement & Key Issues 14-22 VI. Other Involved Nations 23-26 VII. Questions to Consider 27 VIII. Helpful Resources 28 IX. Character List 29 X. Technology & Award Policy 30 XI. Bibliography 31-36 3 Dear Delegates, As the chair of the JCC: US committee, I would like to welcome you all to PacMUN 2019! My name is Yoo Ra Sung, and I am a freshman at Brandeis University, studying International & Global Studies, Politics, and Legal Studies. For the past 5 years, I have been heavily involved in Model UN in Hawaiʻi, participating in PacMUN as a delegate from 2015, helping to staff PacMUN since 2017, and most recently, serving as the Secretary General of the Hawai‘i Model UN League from 2018-2019. Because of my roots in Hawai‘i as well as PacMUN, I am excited to be returning home as a chair this year! Between the complexities of Venezuela’s current political atmosphere and the tense international relationships it has with countries such as the US, this committee will face the challenging task of not only negotiating terms internally, but also representing the United States’ beliefs on the global stage. As advanced delegates, you will be required to think cooperatively and act diplomatically to address the ongoing Venezuelan crisis. In this process, I encourage all of you to remember that despite individual differences, you must work together, as the United States of America. In debate, I hope that all delegates will conduct themselves in an honest, open-minded, and productive manner, with the goal of furthering not just a personal agenda, but the entire committee’s progress as well. I believe that Model UN is a unique activity which offers countless opportunities for both intellectual learning and personal growth. So, I hope that this conference will be a meaningful experience through which you can gain deeper insight into one of the world’s most pressing current issues as well as understand the difficulties of debating and discussing a controversial topic within an environment filled with varying perspectives. Please feel free to reach out to me at any time via email [email protected] if you need help preparing for PacMUN, or if you have any questions at all. I look forward to meeting you all in November! Regards, Yoo Ra 4 Dear Delegates, My name is Isha Gonugunta and I am thrilled to be the JCC: USA crisis director for PacMUN 2019. I grew up in San Jose, California and I am currently a freshman at UCLA studying computer engineering. This will be my 5th year doing MUN and my 1st year directing. Through MUN, I was able to serve as a USG and later Secretary-General of SCVMUN, attend conferences in California, Hawai‘i, New York, and Rome, speak in the UN GA Hall, and meet people from all over the world. This will be my 4th PacMUN, as I have participated in the Senate, SC of Russia JCC, and Saudi Arabia JCC as a delegate in the past. Model UN has provided me with the opportunity to approach international issues from various angles. While I have not always agreed with the policies of the countries and characters that I have represented, these experiences pushed me to broaden my outlook and develop a deeper understanding of conflicting viewpoints. Developing solutions in MUN is no simple task, as conflicting interests must often be appeased in order for a plan to be enacted successfully. This is one of the greatest challenges that you will all face as delegates, especially with this year’s topic. The Venezuelan crisis is one that has vested interest from many countries, especially the United States. Thus, I urge delegates to collaborate within this committee to represent these interests and carefully consider the global impact when taking action on behalf of the US. The ability to interact with the delegates of the other JCC countries introduces another dimension to crisis, so delegates should keep in mind that every action they take will also impact the committees around them. I hope delegates will take advantage of these JCC features to create a global crisis experience. Overall, I encourage you all to come into committee with an open mind and willingness to learn. Even the most experienced delegate has room to grow, so I hope you will take this conference as an opportunity to challenge yourselves to truly go beyond the surface of the issues at hand. I hope that you enjoy PacMUN 2019 and I look forward to working with all of you. Sincerely, Isha 5 Introduction to Committee At PacMUN 2019, the Joint Crisis Committees (JCC’s) will be focusing on the topic of “The Venezuela Crisis,” arguably the most severe economic crisis of the modern age, with far- reaching political and humanitarian impacts. The JCC universe this year is comprised of 4 committees representing the various governments of the United States, the Russian Federation, Colombia, and Cuba. Similar to a normal crisis committee, delegates in JCC’s will have the power to utilize crisis notes which can potentially impact the JCC: US committee, as well as any of the other adjoined committees. Delegates will also be challenged to deal with crises prepared by the Crisis Director and her staff, as well as any crises involving the US that arise from other JCC’s. This committee will simulate the discussion and negotiation which occurs in the National Security Council of the United States of America. All delegates will be representing high-ranking government officials who have the power and influence to direct the US government in its endeavors to address the ongoing crisis in Venezuela. As your chair, I will take on the role of the current US President, Donald J. Trump, and it is the committee's job to advise me, as best as possible, on how to proceed. However, I, as Donald Trump, stress that I have reserved the right to exercise my executive power. Although I value all perspectives and opinions, in the case that I sense any disloyalty to the nation, I may retract your privilege of partaking in the discussion. Because the crisis in Venezuela is an ongoing, present-day issue, I encourage all delegates to take advantage of news articles for the most current, up-to-date information on the situation in Venezuela and the US’s position. Besides thoroughly reading this background guide, delegates should conduct their own research on their roles and specific policies and goals they plan to pursue. To aid you in this process, I have created a “Helpful Resources” section with articles and videos I suggest you utilize. Although PacMUN is held in Hawaiʻi, I understand that all of you come from varying academic and cultural backgrounds, and that Model UN can be different in every school, state, and country. If any part of the aforementioned introduction is confusing, or the way this committee is run is unfamiliar to you, please reach out to me before or during the conference, and I will do whatever I can to help you.
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