UK's position on humanitarian topics in Model United Nations?

Question

There are big MUN conferences coming up and I'm representing the United Kingdom in GA3 (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Comission). I've done some research but am not really the kind of person to be well-informed about politics and so forth, so I was wondering if someone could offer me some help! The topics to be debated are as follows:

- Setting international labour standards

- Capital punishment

- Protecting the freedom of opinion and expression

if anyone has any information as to UK's view on any of these topics, PLEASE PLEASE let me know! (this is fairly urgent, the conferences start SOON..)

thanks!

Answer 1

UK policy is to tolerate humanitarian protection laws. What was the anglo-saxon culture of 1960 is today the Asain-African version of a pot-pourri culture.

Answer 2

Death Penalty: The UK has abolished it.

http://www.stephen-stratford.co.uk/capit...

http://www.richard.clark32.btinternet.co...

Answer 3

In setting international labour standards, you may want to focus on developing stronger goals for occupational safety of certain industries that are important to the UK.  If you can increase safety in other states (which I am assuming that the UK's is high in most areas) it typically increases their cost of production, hence making your countries production having a comparative increase (although that does seem kinda evil).

As for capital punishment, we Western democracies (U.S.) still adhere to the policy.  You will want to focus on establishing some type of committee to realize the viability of abolishing cap. punishment.  The trick for you here is that you want your policy of abolishing capital punishment to spread internationally, but at the same time you dont want to irritate the United States as they support it and are your biggest ally.  You will want to look like you are accomplishing something, but dont give it enough teeth so that you are hurting your friends.

Protecting freedom of expression, you will have the most production in focusing on non-democratic states.  You may want to even go for Pakistan (which is, sort of) due to their recent call for marshall law in the state and the wonderful Pervez Musharraf's almost dictatorial control of Pakistan.  Branch out, call for states to adopt policies protecting freedoms.  Establish a sub-committee or a fact-finding study that will begin in a few years to observe the behavior of states to see if they have adopted such behavior.  And make consequences for not doing so.  Say, if they have not abided by the committees recommendations, that they be called to the Security Council, or ICJ, for violations.  You dont want to make the wording too strong, as most non-democratic states are going to oppose this idea.  Good luck.

Answer 4

First, I have no idea what is meant by "Setting international Labour standards."  This may be a reference to the minimum wage http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7021... or the working time directive http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/... though it may be a reference to laws to protect workers rights and safety.

Regarding captial punishment, the UK is against this, and will not extradite anyone to a country where they will face the death penalty (though they will extradite so long as the person will not face it).

Regarding protecting the freedom of opinion and expression, the UK is in favour of this, but with certain caveats.  You are not allowed to disclose information on trials the way you can in the USA unless reporting restrictions are lifted.  More importantly, you are not allowed to incite racial hatred http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4... and less importantly, we also have a law against blasphemy.

Hope you find this useful and hope all goes well!