Course details and general information

At the 2005 World Summit, UN Member States endorsed the concept of the Responsibility to Protect, affirming that each State has the "responsibility to protect its populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity". Where States are manifestly failing to assume this responsibility, it shifts to the international community to take collective actions through the UN Security Council to ensure the protection of the population. The responsibility to protect remains controversial among UN Member States, as debates surrounding the crisis in Libya and recent events in Syria and Myanmar show. For the Security Council many questions arise: In which cases does the responsibility to protect apply? Which are the appropriate measures to be taken? Under which circumstances is a military intervention authorized by the Security Council legitimate? Does the responsibility to protect encompass regime change?

We like to invite you to a simulated Special Session of the Security Council to discuss these and other issues involving the Responsibility to Protect and the main organ responsible for international peace and security according to the Charter of the United Nations: the Security Council. Class sessions (Wednesday, 16.00 – 18.00 h) prior will give you an ample overview of the topic. With this class we hope to deepen your knowledge about the functioning of an international body, various aspects of international diplomacy, negotiation techniques, and also hopefully the roots and causes of the diverging opinions on the subject among UN-Member States.

You will be asked to represent one of the members of the Security Council and take an active part in the class and negotiations. Participants are expected to research their respective countries position independently and take over the presentation of a topic listed below by preparing a 4-6 page summary on the subject and a handout for the presentation (up to 3 presenters per topic = team work). Delegations are also asked to prepare a one-page Position Paper. Each Delegation will consist of 1-2 persons.

Please note that the seminar/conference language will be English. It is possible to receive 5 ECTS-credits (Schlüsselqualifikationsschein oder Fremdsprachenfach-kompetenz, FB Rechtswissenschaft). All faculties are invited to apply.

Course registration

Applications are to be sent via email until 9 April 2020 to Peggy Wittke

Your application should include:

• Personal Details (Name, Address, Phone, Email, Student ID Number)
• Short CV, including field of studies and number of semesters
• Short letter of motivation
• 3 country preferences
• 2 topic choices

Members of the Security Council 2020: Belgium, China, Dominican Republic, Estonia, France, Germany, Indonesia, Niger, Russian Federation, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, South Africa, Tunisia, United Kingdom, United States, Viet Nam.

Topics

1. The Genocide in Rwanda (1994)
2. The Massacre of Srebrenica (1995)
3. The Deadlocked Security Council: The Case of Kosovo (1999)
4. High-Level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change, Report “A More Secure World: Our Shared Responsibility” (2004)
5. The World Summit Outcome Document (2005)
6. The Situation in Kenya (2007)
7. The Situation in Libya and Security Council Resolution 1973 (2011)
8. The Situation in Myanmar and the Rohingya Refugee Crisis

Preliminary Schedule

Class takes place in Room 4404, Boltzmannstr. 3, 16 - 18h (if not announced differently).

	Date	Session
1	15 April 2020	Introduction to the United Nations System Peggy Wittke
2	22 April 2020	Peace and Security I Peggy Wittke
3	29 April 2020	Peace and Security II Peggy Wittke
4	6 May 2020	The Genocide in Rwanda (1994)
5	13 May 2020	The Massacre of Srebrenica (1995) The Deadlocked Security Council: The Case of Kosovo (1999)
6	20 May 2020	High-Level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change, Report “A More Secure World: Our Shared Responsibility” (2004)
7	27 May 2020	The World Summit Outcome Document (2005) Critical Analysis
8	3 June 2020	R2P put into Practice: The Situation in Kenya (2007)
9	10 June 2020	The Situation in Libya and Security Council Resolution 1973 (2011)
10	17 June 2020	The Situation in Myanmar and the Rohingya Refugee Crisis Position Paper Writing
	21 June 2020	Deadline Position Papers – please send to peg@zedat.fu.berlin.de
11	24 June 2020	The Rules of Procedure of the United Nations Security Council
12	1 July 2020 Wednesday 10.00 – 17.00 h Senatssaal Henry-Ford-Bau Garystr. 35	Special Session of the United Nations Security Council: The Responsibility to Protect and the Situation in Myanmar
13	2 July 2020 Thursday 10.00 – 17.00 h Senatssaal Henry-Ford-Bau Garystr. 35	Special Session of the United Nations Security Council: The Responsibility to Protect and the Situation in Myanmar
14	8 July 2020	Feedback Session

Schließen

Suggested Reading:

UN Reports and Resolutions

• Rwanda: Report of the Independent Inquiry into the Actions of the United Nations During the 1994 Genocide in Rwanda, UN Doc. S/1999/1257, 16 December 1999
• Srebrenica: Report of the Secretary-General Pursuant to General Assembly Resolution 53/35 – The Fall of Srebrenica, UN Doc. A/54/549, 15 November 1999
• A More Secure World: Our Shared Responsibility: Report of the High Level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change, UN Doc. A759/565, 2 December 2004, http://www.un.org/en/events/pastevents/a_more_secure_world.shtml
• In Larger Freedom: Report of the Secretary-General Kofi Annan, UN Doc. A/59/2005, 21 March 2005, http://www.un.org/en/events/pastevents/in_larger_freedom.shtml
• General Assembly - World Summit Outcome (2005), UN Doc. A/RES/60/1, 24 October 2005: http://www.un.org/en/events/pastevents/worldsummit_2005.shtml

Further Internet Research

• International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty: The Responsibility to Protect, December 2001, http://responsibilitytoprotect.org/ICISS%20Report.pdf
• International Coalition for the Responsibility to Protect: http://www.responsibilitytoprotect.org/
• Global Center for the Responsibility to Protect: http://www.globalr2p.org/
• Security Council Report: http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/index.php

or contact the staff at the United Nations Depository Library, Universitätsbibliothek der Freien Universität Berlin, Garystr. 39, 14195 Berlin - http://www.ub.fu-berlin.de/bibliothek/uneu/ Schließen