Preservation of Cultural Heritage
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“ Preservation of Cultural “ Heritage 1. Letter from the Secretary General 2. Letters from the directors 3. Introduction of the committee 4. Current situation 5. Introduction of the topic 6. Past International Actions 7. Bloc positions 8. Possible Solutions 9. QARMAS 10. Position papers 11. References Letter From the Secretary General Dear Delegates and Faculty Advisors, Last year the Casuarinas Debate Team organized our first Model United Nations conference called CASMUN, and once again it is an honor to have you back with us. It has not been too long since the Casuarinas Debate Team started, and since then having our own Model UN competition was a goal: a difficult one, but not impossible to achieve. In 2020, we were planning to organize the conference at our school, following the measures for what appeared to be only a 3 month quarantine. However, because of the Covid-19 pandemic we were forced to organize a virtual conference, which we were able to accomplish through the hard work of our Faculty Advisors and the Casuarinas Debate Team. This year is no different, and with much more experience in hand, we are organizing another virtual conference full of dedication, enthusiasm and transparency in order to offer all delegates a suitable space for self expression and formal discussions. Casuarinas Model UN is the result of the effort of many people, including our Faculty Advisors, your committee chairs, and all the members of our Secretariat who volunteered to participate. Personally, I would like to thank them all in advance for their commitment. Finally, I would like to point out that Model United Nations is about having fun and learning not only about global issues, but also acquiring and improving soft skills that will benefit delegates in the long term. This is why we encourage all of you to actively participate in your committee sessions and make an effort to take advantage of the experience CASMUN has to offer. We will look forward to having you at our Conference! Letters From the Directors Dear delegates, Welcome to this edition of Casuarinas Model United Nations Conference! My name is Camila and alongside Claudia, I will be directing the UNESCO committee. I first joined my school's MUN team in 2017 and stayed until I graduated. Since then, I have participated in many national and international conferences where I learned a lot of useful skills and had amazing experiences. Currently, I'm in my second year of law at Universidad de Lima. Claudia and I highly value fair game. The objective of MUN should not be winning at any cost, but learning, being respectful to one and another, and have fun. We will not tolerate plagiarism and lack of respect. Please abstain from committing any action that could be considered in any of those categories. We expect you to arrive to the committee with innovative ideas and the will to cooperate with other delegates and negotiate ideas to achieve the best solution. Do not hesitate to contact me if you have any doubts at my email [email protected] regarding how the committee will work or any questions about the study guide. We are more than willing to answer any of your questions. Do not be discouraged because this year is going to be online, take advantage of this opportunity and learn even more from it. I’m looking forward to hearing your ideas and discussions during the committee. I’m so excited to meet you (virtually) in April. Best of luck! Best regards, Camila Arbe Email: [email protected] Letters From the Directors Hello, delegates! Before I start, I want to welcome you to Casuarinas Model United Nations and the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. Camila and I will be your director this weekend. We cannot wait to meet you, even on a virtual platform! A little about myself. I started debating on MUN conferences in 2017 as a high school student. I have loved how much I have learned about the world in these conferences. My philosophy in life is to always let my curiosity guide my decisions and approach to problems. I am a strong believer in MUN’s power to teach students about how our world works while helping them develop soft skills. I graduated high school in 2019 but after that, I took a gap year (2020). Currently, I am in the extended version of that gap as I will begin college in September in the United States. I will be double majoring in International Relations and Sociology. I have not yet decided which university I will be attending but I am excited to figure it out. Going back to MUN, I would like to be very clear about what I value in delegates. As I mentioned, I love curious people, so if at any point you have any questions about the topic or procedures, please reach out to Camila or me (my email is [email protected]) We both truly value learning over competitiveness. Consequently, I want to ask you to abstain yourselves from any type of dictatorial or negative actions. We value cooperation above all. With that being said, I want to thank you for attending our committee and I look forward to hearing your innovative solutions on this topic. Greetings, Claudia Carr Email: [email protected] Introduction of the Committee The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization was established in 1946 to promote collaboration among nations through education, science, and culture. UNESCO is currently constituted of 193 Members and 11 Associate Members, all Members States have established a National Commission for UNESCO, which are national cooperating bodies that focus on the association of their governmental and non-governmental bodies with the work of the Organization. The Constitution of UNESCO came into force on 4 November 1946 setting the main functions and establishing the core organs of the Organization: the General Conference, the Executive Board, and the Secretariat. According to the document 37 C/4, adopted by the General Conference at its 37th session (37 C/Res.1), UNESCO’s five functions for the Medium-Term Strategy 2014-2021 will be the following: Serving as a laboratory of ideas and generating innovative proposals and policy advice; developing and reinforcing the global agenda through policy analysis, monitoring and benchmarking; setting standards and monitoring their implementation; strengthening international and regional cooperation and fostering alliances, intellectual cooperation, knowledge sharing, and operational partnerships; and providing advice for policy development and implementation while developing institutional and human capacities. The Programme and Budget for 2018-2021 (39 C/5 Approved) cover the UNESCO budget that for the first time is based on an integrated budget framework, which allows not only transparency but a holistic budget distribution between resources and priorities previously identified by the General Conference. Furthermore, it is crucial to highlight the Major Programme IV “Culture” as approved in resolution 39/C Res.33 that aims to tackle the strategic objectives 7 “Protecting, promoting and transmitting heritage” and 8 “fostering creativity and the diversity of cultural expressions” of the Organization’s Medium-Term Strategy. As indicated in the expenditure plan of resolution 39 C/5, Major Programme IV has a budget of 117$ million divided into two main lines of action. Throughout the years UNESCO has been strongly involved in the identification, protection, and preservation of cultural and natural heritage around the world. The Organization mission regarding this worldwide issue is defined by the following: encouraging countries to sign the World Heritage Convention and establish management plans on the state of conservation of their World Heritage sites; providing technical assistance and professional training; and encouraging international cooperation and the participation of the local population in the preservation of their cultural and natural heritage. The World Heritage Committee was adopted by the General Conference at its 17th session on 16 November 1972 as part of the UNESCO efforts on monitoring the implementation of the World Heritage Convention, managing the World Heritage Fund, and being responsible for the inscription or deletion of properties on the World Heritage List. Introduction to the Topic UNESCO has developed documents to protect cultural heritage. The Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property (1970) and the World Heritage Convention (1972) provide a base for the protection of cultural heritage. The Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Properties in the Event of Armed Conflict (1954) and its Protocols set international standards to deal with the specific risks faced by heritage during conflict. Additionally, the Statutes of the International Criminal Court have defined the intentional destruction of historical buildings as a war crime. This provides firm ground to address impunity related to such attacks. Even the UN Security Council recognizes the powerful role of culture in building social cohesion and contributing to reconciliation and peace. In Resolution 2100 on Mali and Resolution 2139 on Syria, the UNSC called for the protection of cultural heritage and diversity. The integration of culture in humanitarian, recovery, and reconstruction operations provides the challenging opportunity of defining how cultural heritage protection can effectively contribute to the broader UN crisis response. What is Cultural Heritage? There is not a common and unique