By Felipo Campanelli, Year 11
On Monday 11th of December 2017, students from all three Ecolint campuses and several other schools gathered for the annual General Assembly of the Student League of Nations (SLN). During the two-day assembly the students debated and voted on four resolutions submitted by four different countries. On the afternoon of the first day, it was the turn of the German delegation, who put forward a resolution regarding non-proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD). The issue addressed by the resolution was the enforced non-proliferation (not spreading or producing) of WMD within a year of the resolution being passed, with sanctions imposed in the case of non-compliance.
As an Ecolint student, I will analyze what our school’s position on the resolution would be by looking at its guiding principles.
Our school’s mission statement states that it is dedicated to encouraging international values and recognising the importance of global issues. Ecolint was founded after World War I with the aim of bringing children from different countries together and educating them for peace and as global citizens. Its ties to the UN remain strong and the two institutions share common values. The UN’s first ever resolution, passed on 24 January 1946, was the creation of a council to deal with nuclear disarmament, which is an important part of its SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals).
W.M.D. go against our school’s most cherished value of promoting global peace and understanding through education. Our school actively seeks to raise awareness among its students of issues related to global peace and conflict, as can be seen in our annual Peace Day assemblies. These themes are reinforced in the classroom and regular school assemblies, so that Ecolint’s students understand their importance and can envisage their own role in promoting world peace.
For this reason, we support the progress towards disarmament that has been made by countries possessing nuclear arsenals, such as the U.S. and Russia. But growing tensions around the world involving nuclear threats means that more important steps must be taken to stop the spread or distribution of WMD. The proliferation of WMD is a threat to all. In the hands of terrorist groups and governments these WMD could cause devastation to entire countries and continents.
The debate over the resolution presented strong arguments against the proposed resolution. For example, the U.S. delegation argued that disarmament is already happening and that imposing new rules and time frames could interfere with that progress. The counter-arguments by the majority of countries were in favor of the resolution because of the need for short-term assurances regarding the situation with North Korea and the U.S. The resolution was passed with an overwhelming majority.
In the words of the Michael Møller, the Director General of the United Nations office in Geneva in his opening speech for the SLN general assembly: “The WMD have NO place in the 21st century.” In a world searching for lasting peace, weapons of terror have no place. For this reason Ecolint gives its wholehearted support for global efforts toward disarmament such as those embodied in Germany’s resolution.
