International Treaties 2019‐2020 Topic Proposal Proposed to The National Federation Debate Topic Selection Committee July 2018 1 Proposed by: Dustin L. Rimmey Topeka High School Topeka, KS 2 Table of Contents Table of Contents Table of Contents ........................................................................................................................................................................... 3 Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................................................................................... 4 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................................................... 5 Section 1: Potential Mechanisms ............................................................................................................................................. 6 A. “Ratify or Accede to” .................................................................................................................................................................................................... 7 B. “Implement” ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 8 C. “Modify its commitment to” ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 9 D. “Consent to be Bound By” ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 10 Section 2: Potential Treaties ................................................................................................................................................... 14 A. United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea ............................................................................................................................................ 15 B. Convention on Biological Diversity .......................................................................................................................................................................... 18 C. International Criminal Court ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 20 D. Arms Trade Treaty .......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 23 E. Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty .............................................................................................................................................................. 25 F. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women ................................................................................. 28 G. Outer Space Treaty .......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 31 H. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities ................................................................................................................................... 34 I. Trans‐Pacific Partnership .............................................................................................................................................................................................. 41 J. The Paris Climate Agreement ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 52 K. International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance .......................................................... 57 L. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples .............................................................................................................................................. 60 Section 3: Potential Resolutions ............................................................................................................................................ 63 Section 4: The Argument for the Topic ................................................................................................................................ 64 Resources Available ............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 65 Topic Balance .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 66 Timeliness ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 67 Interest....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 68 Section 5: Works Cited ............................................................................................................................................................... 69 3 Acknowledgements This paper was heavily influenced by several previous authors who also advocated for debating a treaties topic. First, thank you to the 2018 Collegiate authors: I. Brown (GMU), M. Thomas (Binghamton), R. Wimberly (GMU), J. Booth (NYU), A. Sherman (NYU), F. Hussain (NYU), and J. Johnwell (NYU). Their summaries of the mechanism debate and the (insert treaties) were useful tools for organizing this paper and framing the topic. Second, I have used L. Garrett’s 2013 collegiate proposal for their amazing summary of UNCLOS, Convention on Biological Diversity, International Criminal Court, Arms Trade Treaty, CTBT, and CEDAW. 4 Introduction In June 2018 the United States withdrew from the United Nations Human Rights Council, joining Eritrea, Iran, and North Korea as the only nations who no longer participate in any of its meetings. This action jeopardized the perception of the United States as a leader in the everchanging world order. Additionally, the United States has ratified only ten treaties since 1995. In order to regain its standing as a defender of international law the United States should ratify one of the widely adopted treaties discussed in this paper. Affirmatives on the topic could advocate unconditional ratification of any of the listed treaties or could alternatively advocate ratification with reservations excepting individual provisions. Cases could leverage not only the advantages specific to each treaty, but also critical and policy‐based objections to American exceptionalism and unilateral action. A list of treaties allows negatives to develop a variety of strategies against each treaty. Counterplan options could include alternate actors and solvency mechanisms as well as reservations against particular provisions of the treaty. There is rich disadvantage ground in the areas of international relations, economic and political leadership, environmental impacts, and human rights. Critical positions arise from issues of American exceptionalism, exporting capitalist values, and the implications of gender and child issues. 5 Section 1: Potential Mechanisms This Entire Section is from the Booth et al. 2018 collegiate paper with minimal updating Below are potential wordings for the resolution ranked in terms of how much it limits the topic. This section is heavily influenced by work done by Nick Brown and Cameron Norris in the 2010 treaties topic paper. Furthermore, we propose that the resolution is best done in list form. It is our belief that this provides the best check on the topic for one reason, there is no way to reasonability write the topic otherwise (absent a list the resolution would have to be open ended which is unfeasible). This is a necessary constraint that we believe ensures fair and balanced ground for both the potential affirmative and the negative who would debate on this topic. 6 A. “Ratify or Accede to” The United States Federal Government should ratify or accede to and implement one or more of the following treaties…. Ratify: A resolution that focuses on the phrase “Ratify or Accede to” carries with it a well‐defined process that should guide teams during the argument construction process. The process that affirmative teams must defend under this resolution comes in three tiers that are as follows; first, because treaty power co‐coordinated between the executive and the Senate the President, after either forming or negotiating “X treaty’ that President must submit the treaty to the Senate for its advice and consent, second the Senate must convene and the treaty must be voted on, third after being voted on the treaty will be ratified only