Hello All!
I hope that everyone had a great weekend! We are now just a mere 24 days out from the first day of conference, so I hope that everyone is having fun with their research. Today's blog post is going to be in relation to the religious freedom topic, pertaining especially to the Burqa (covering that hides a Muslim woman's face) and the news surrounding it.
This article was taken from The Economist and talks about how many nations around the world have taken up the responsibility of banning women from wearing clothing that covers up their faces. Reading such articles, one may find that the only reason such actions are promoted is due to the culture of terrorism that is promoted - criminals like those from Boko Haram use such clothing to hide strap on bombs which make it hard for security teams all around the world to stop such attacks. Attacks like those in N’Djamena, Chad’s capital, and Cameroon do not help restore faith. However, such attacks should not justify banning a certain type of clothing that promotes ones religion and has gained ones faith. There have been several situations in Chad when women wearing Burka's were throw in jail with the threat of being "charged with complicity in terrorism".
When thinking about this topic, be wary to not inflict your personal opinions, but think from the perspective of your assigned nation. Is it right to target the whole Muslim population for activities that are performed by a terrorist organization? Do you think that your country can perform a better role in helping member nations reach a level where Muslims, especially women, are treated?
Try and answer these questions when you read this article and see how your country can tackle this problem. You should think about possible solutions to this problem that are not only plausible, but also implementable in the near future. As usual, please feel free to state any thoughts, questions or concerns that you may have in the comments down below, or contact us directly on our emails!
Have a great rest of the week!
~Ruchir :D
Article : Banning the Burqa
The delegation of the United States sees the freedom of any individual to wear religious clothing as an essential part of civil liberty and a just society for all citizens. In the U.S, all forms of religious garb are allowed for this very reason, with exceptions such as identification pictures. The United States feels that the banning of religious clothing does not help with the integration of religious communities into societies and would like to urge nations with these policies to reform them to be more inclusive. This delegation proposes a solution that will address the issue of the burqa ban and the ban of other religious clothing, as we do see this as a form of religious intolerance that must be combated. Within the UNHCR, a specialized body can be created that will analyze the status of religious tolerance in all participating nations and provide recommendations based on their findings. For example, in certain nations where religious clothing is banned, the body can suggest the removal of these laws and other security measures that can be put in place to prevent terrorist activity instead of the banning of religious clothing. This solution recognizes the sovereignty of each nation in that no nation will be forced to act on these recommendations; however, if a nation is continuously incited for severe religious abuses, it is subject to sanctions under the International Religious Freedom Act established by the United States. Which actions may require penalizing through sanctions can be decided on a case-by-case nation by the body itself. The delegation of the United States is open to suggestions on how to further develop this solution and hopes that this pressing issue can be addressed through cooperative action.
ReplyDeleteHello fellow delegates and Honorable Chairs,
ReplyDeleteAs a nation that has personally taken action upon this issue of banning religious articles of clothing, the delegation of China would like to put emphasis on the notion of national security and stability. This is not to say, however, that the People’s Republic of China is in support of the oppression of a group’s beliefs; in fact, within our own country these articles of clothing are only banned in areas deemed as dangerous, or in public areas such as transport. So long as domestic activities of religious groups do not interfere or pose a threat to the public as a whole, religious practices can be carried out without fear of punishment. China does not encourage the generalizing of a religious community to be responsible for terrorist activities, but urges the international community to recognize and acknowledge that these are not acts of discrimination, but of precaution.
In order to ensure the safety of the general public, compromises must be made. The banning of such articles are not only directed at an individual community, it is enforced across the board. China’s focus is targeting whatever issues are most prevalent and looming, and as such, Xinjiang is the current point of attention within our own nation. More specifically, due to acts of violence in relation to the Uyghur group of the province, China has established stricter measures to increase security and harmony within our country. In no way should China’s actions be deemed as grouping a particular religious faith with terrorism, as they are merely choices made for the best of the country as a whole. When analyzing issues like that of religious practices, the delegation of China believes it is essential to recognize the underlying factors of the problem, and that the actions of each individual nation must be rationalized and not imposed upon.
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ReplyDeleteThe country of Germany is well aware of the controversial issue of banning the burqa and is currently facing different views of the issue within its own country. Recently in 2017, the German parliament drafted a law banning women from wearing burqas in selected professions, such as in judiciary or military work with the proposed law yet to be implemented. Currently, Germany is aiming to partially ban the burqa. Germany believes that by wearing burqas it does not meet Germany’s “communication culture”. The culture of communication consists of not just language, but consists of facial expressions and looks. Germany does not aim to target a specific religion or race, but is considering the proposed law because of the importance of facial identification in situations such as elections. Additionally, Germany finds it necessary for teachers to be able to look at their students in the eye in order to ensure cooperation. This relates to the ruling of the Constitutional Court in 2015 when headscards were ban if they found to threaten the peace at schools.
ReplyDeleteHowever, the country of Germany has been taking specific actions in order to prevent the targeting of a whole Muslim population due to past actions from terrorist groups. For example, Germany has been focusing on removing all extremism and violence in the name of Islam online through laws such as NetzDG. However, Germany would like to point on the necessity of taking precautions of past activities performed by terrorist groups in order to prevent future harms.