UNHRC

Hello UNHCR delegates!

My name is Tiffany Lee and I am very excited to be your Head Chair for the Council of Human Rights. I, along with Irene, Nashia and David are all eager to get to know you all and be impressed with your findings about Darfur, poverty and their relation to Human Rights.

Here is an interesting excerpt of an article from former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright in this week’s PARADE magazine relating to genocide and the international community’s response (or lack thereof, as the case may be):

How Can We Stop Genocide?

Ex-Secretary of State Madeleine Albright is co-chair of the new Genocide Prevention Task Force and author of the new book Memo to the President Elect: How We Can Restore America’s Reputation and Leadership (to be published later this month). She spoke with us about today’s toughest diplomatic problem.

Why does the world seem too paralyzed to act when atrocities begin?
Organizing an outside military intervention is challenging. Nations are reluctant to risk troops’ lives in a struggle remote from their own territory or direct interests.

Are the countries where genocides occur receptive to action from the outside?
Governments typically invoke the principle of sovereignty to block external interference. Other countries allow this to stand because they don’t want their own human rights records scrutinized. We’ve seen this in Darfur.

But there has been a huge global outcry about Darfur. Why hasn’t this pressure forced an end to the killings?
There are ongoing international efforts, but these continue to be obstructed by the Sudanese government and its allies. The latest example is the deployment of a U.N. peacekeeping force, which is faced with Sudanese interference as well as logistical and operational challenges.

I think this provides some context about why countries do not respond more effectively to humanitarian crisis even when we have seen the tragedies of past mass killings such as in Rwanda. While we may be all agree that it must be stopped, there are physical, ideological and political obstacles that prevents action. In thinking of solutions it is important to keep with your country’s policy, as many countries would rather turn the other way and even using the word “genocide” becomes highly contentious. While I encourage you to think outside the box in ways to respond to the situation in Darfur, please be aware of your country’s respective policies as well.

I will be updating regularly on this blog and I would love to hear any comments or interesting research that you would like to share from newspapers, articles, websites. Please feel free to comment and contribute! I look forward to the debates and if you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact either me at tiffanytlee @ berkeley.edu.

Tiffany Lee

Head Chair UNHCR