Historical Security Council, 1991

Committee Blogs
Topic 1

The Situation in Sri Lanka

Following Sri Lankan independence from Great Britain in 1948, the unity of the population fragmented along ethnic lines. Prior to independence, the British favored Tamils, providing them with greater access to government positions. Since the Tamils constituted a minority in comparison to the Sinhalese, the Tamils held a seemingly disproportionate amount of influence relative to their percentage of the population. This led to ethnic rivalry between the Tamils and Sinhalese and prompted the enactment of “Sinhala-only” legislation by the Sinhalese majority in control of the government. This legislation undermined the social and political influence of the Tamil minority by establishing Sinhala as the official language of the nation, thus authorizing the exclusion of Tamils from the civil service. Furthermore, the disproportionate power held by the Sinhalese led to government repression of Tamils in the form of death penalties and severe punishments for acts of disobedience.

In response, the Tamil Separatist Movement gained traction in the 1970s with the unification of twenty Tamil militant organizations. This movement called for the formation of Eelam, an independent Tamil state, and gave rise to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). As the LTTE gained influence and support amongst Sri Lankan Tamils, combat between Sinhalese government forces and the LTTE escalated to the start of a Civil War in July 1983. In 1985, concern regarding human rights abuses and unceasing violence prompted the involvement of India as a third-party mediator. The resultant Thimpu Talks failed to establish peace and were marred by an army massacre of 200 civilians in Vavuniya and Trincomalee. In July 1987, India sent 1,500 soldiers to Sri Lanka to quell violence; however, conflict soon resurfaced after the withdrawal of the Indian army in March 1990.

In 1991, two major crises unfolded. In May 1991, the former Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi, who presided over the Thimpu Talks was allegedly assassinated by the LTTE. Moreover, the continued violence and poor economic conditions led to an upheaval in Sri Lanka’s ruling United National Party (UNP) and sparked demands for impeachment of the President.

Thus, the Security Council, acting under Article 24 of the UN Charter, is responsible for addressing the conflict in Sri Lanka effectively in order to neutralize this threat to international peace and security. The Security Council has not passed a resolution regarding the situation in Sri Lanka prior to 1991.

Besides falling within the jurisdiction of the Security Council, this topic is interesting for delegates because it forces them to address security concerns that are intertwined with an array of political, cultural, and ethnic conflicts. Being able to understand how to apply conflict resolution to such a complicated topic is an important skill for delegates to develop. Moreover, the situation in Sri Lanka was relatively obscure until this past decade. In reality, the Security Council did not discuss Sri Lanka in 1991. This means that very few delegates, if any, will have been exposed to the intriguing and complicated history of Sri Lanka, giving them exposure to a new topic that will shape their academic development.

The scope of this topic is constrained to Sri Lanka because broadening the topic would inhibit resolutions from developing the specificity and comprehensiveness that the Security Council requires. Moreover, it allows delegates to thoroughly debate each aspect of this particular region rather than only touching the surface of a topic with broader scope.

Topic 2

The Situation in Croatia

After the demise of Nazi Germany, Croatia became one of the six republics of the Yugoslav Socialist Federation in 1945 under the leadership of Josip Broz Tito. Ethnically and religiously diverse, Croatia consisted primarily of Croats, Serbs, and Muslims. In 1989, the collapse of communism led to the first free elections in Croatia, giving control of the country to the conservative and nationalist Croatian Democratic Union Party. Nationalist fervor in Croatia escalated tensions between Croats and Serbs, resulting in a series of attacks on Croatian police units by Serbian separatists. Additionally, Serbia blocked the installation of Stipe Mesic, a Croat scheduled to be the chairman of the rotating presidency in Yugoslavia. Thus, Croatia declared independence from Yugoslavia in June 1991. Immediately afterward, full-scale violence between Croats and Serbs exploded. The Croatian government forces were pitted against the Serbian separatists, who were aided by the Yugoslavia’s mostly Serb military. In September 1991, this violence peaked, with bombings, military confrontations, and the death of civilians becoming daily occurrences. Also, the military advances of the Serb separatists enabled them to gain significant control of Croatian territory, amounting to almost a third of the country at the time of simulation.

For the Security Council, the violence between Serbs and Croats in what would be later known as the Croatian War for Independence is a threat to international peace and security. Also, the fall of communism in Eastern Europe and the subsequent dissolution of the Soviet Union led to a series of independence movements. The violence in Croatia threatens to spill over to neighboring regions, thereby posing a significant regional security threat that must be addressed by the Security Council.

Croatia was chosen for several reasons. First, this topics gives delegates exposure to an issue related to the fall of communism in the early 1990s. Second, this topic has a strong relationship to peacekeeping, an aspect of Security Council that delegates should be familiar with. Third, the situation in Croatia was overshadowed in early 1992 by the war in Bosnia, making it an issue that lacked media attention and should provide delegates with stronger knowledge of Eastern Europe. Lastly, many critics argue that the international community did a poor job handling the conflict in Croatia. In particular, the UN created four protected areas in Croatia in order to divide the Croats and Serbs and deployed a peacekeeping force known as the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) to monitor ceasefires in both Croatia and Bosnia. This division of ethnic groups contributed to a rise in nationalism and inhibited dialogue between the conflicting parties. It is also argued that UNPROFOR aggravated tensions between Croats and Serbs because it was viewed as unnecessary international intervention. Being able to reconstruct and propose a potentially better solution to this situation makes this a great topic for the HSC.
 

Resources
Downloads: 
application/pdf iconHSC.pdf
Email: 
hsc.nhsmun@imuna.org

 

Director, Sami Safiullah

Vanderbilt University

 

Assistant Director, Zeena Bhakta

Duke University

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