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A Bloc is a group of countries that form together to work toward a common goal, whether economic, political, or otherwise. Most countries are in more than one bloc. Depending on current politics, some countries may drop out or abstain from participating in some blocs, while other countries simply remain as observers.

Blocs are unstructured and are allowed to form and grow on their own. This may be a frustrating process. A country must always keep its political stands and goals in its negotiations with other countries as it participates in bloc decisions. The view of a particular nation must always take precedence over a bloc’s views, unless the country feels it will receive some benefit from its continued adherence to a bloc’s views.

BLOC’s develop resolutions based on their respective committees purpose and shall remain together for the duration of the conference. The resolutions developed in these committees may be specific or broad in nature. BLOC’s operate under the Parliamentary Procedure Guidelines provided in the manual.

The conference has the following BLOC’s:
European Union (EU)
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
Organization of American States (OAS)
African Union (AU)
Arab League (AL)

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Topic 1: Multidimensional Security

“Peace is a value and a principle in itself, based on democracy, justice, respect for human rights, solidarity, security, and respect for international law.” – From the Declaration on Security in the Americas, the Special Conference on Security, October 2003 (1).

The concept of security was once thought to be largely based on conventional military arms. In today’s world, the minds of the governments of OAS nations must be opened wider. New threats such as international terrorism, drug trafficking, money laundering, illegal arms dealing, trafficking in persons, institutional corruption, and organized crime have opened the eyes of many individual states, but OAS action must be taken as a whole. Issues to currently focus on in the sphere of multidimensional security include the following:

Arms trafficking – Further resolutions must be adopted regarding cooperation as well as sharing information on the problems, challenges, and experiences that arise from such an issue (2).

Human Trafficking – OAS initiatives must be taken to strengthen cooperation and develop regional policies and strategies to prevent such a crime.

Terrorism – Additional legislation must be adapted for the OAS involving the financing of terrorism, strengthening border controls, and increasing cooperation among law enforcement authorities in different OAS states (3,4).

Drug Trafficking – Newly created OAS laws need to reduce the supply and demand of illegal drugs in addition to addressing problems such as money laundering (5).

Territorial Disputes – While previous enactments have helped, further work must be done to relieve tensions and build confidence between volatile borders.

Landmines – Much work has been done to eliminate such a threat from the citizens of OAS nations, but some member states are not yet landmine-free. Resolutions must address such an issue (6).

Natural Disasters – There are many security concerns in reference to the devastating impacts of natural disasters. Legislation must be enacted to alleviate these issues when disaster strikes (7).

Questions:

• Which of these issues affects what regions and nations? Why?
• What general solutions can be found to diminish such problems?
• ALSO, what more specific solutions can be found to eliminate such problems?

Works Cited:
(1) = http://www.oas.org/documents/eng/DeclaracionSecurity_102803.asp
(2) = http://www.oas.org/juridico/English/treaties/a-63.html
(3) = http://www.cicte.oas.org/Rev/en/
(4) = http://www.cicte.oas.org/Database/AG-RES%201840%20English.doc
(5) = http://www.cicad.oas.org/
(6) = http://www.oas.org/csh/english/mine.asp
(7) = http://www.crid.or.cr/crid/CD_EIRD_Informa/ing/No1_2001/pagina27.htm

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Topic 2: Balance Between Child Labor and Education.

Child Labor has been an on going issue for many OAS member countries. The International Labor Organization (ILO) has cited child labor as, "work situations where children are compelled to work on a regular basis to earn a living for themselves and their families. (1)” In many OAS member countries with underdeveloped economies, the child labor force is viewed as necessary for the factories to function as well as providing essential family income (2). In some countries, such as Guatemala, children start working as young as five or six years old and have no opportunities for education as they grow up. Without the child earning a substantial portion of the income, the family would not be able to afford food or other commodities to survive in life.

Furthermore, child labor involves children working in “conditions that are exploitative and damaging to their health and to their physical and mental development.” (1) Some countries in the OAS have children working in sweatshops from dusk until dawn for very little pay in working conditions that are physically harmful. For example, children cutting sugar cane in El Salvador use machetes to cut down the cane and often injure their hands and legs (3). Some children working on rug looms develop eye damage and lung disease. Not only is it unfortunate that these children get injured, but in many of these cases, medical assistance is not available. Regulations must be created and strongly enforced to improve these conditions.

Finally, child labor often involves children being “separated from their families, and deprived of educational and training opportunities resulting in children being forced to lead premature adult lives.(1)" As these children work full days, they are denied educational opportunities and family life. The OAS needs to develop a balance between child education and labor needs.

Questions:

• What is your country’s position on child labor?
• How can a balance be created between child labor and child education?
• What legislation (checks) should the OAS enact to protect children’s rights and safety?
• What penalties should be enforced for those countries not protecting children’s rights?
• What other methods of production could replace child labor to ensure success of the factories?
  

Works Cited:
“Child Labor and Trafficking”
http://www.worlded.org/WEIInternet/projects/ListProjects.cfm?
Select=Topic&ID=14&ShowProjects= No&gclid=CMPa7PTQtosCFRc-EAod7habvg.

Hindman, Hugh D. Child Labor An American History. New York: M.E. Sharpe.

Lacey, Marc. “Bush Press Free Trade in a place Where Young Children Still Cut the Cane.” New York Times 12 March 2007: A10.

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Topic 3: Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA)

During the fourth Summit of the Americas (Nov 2005), it was declared, “Our (The OAS’s) objective is to expand our trade, as a means of boosting growth and our capacity to generate more, higher quality, and better-paying jobs.” (1) With intentions of fulfilling these objectives, the OAS created the Free Trade Area of Americas (FTAA) that provides trade agreements for sub-regional and bilateral trade amongst the countries of the OAS with an exception of Cuba. Theoretically, a country must export more than they import in order to economically excel. (2) With free trade agreements, countries such as Guatemala could export sugar cane to America, therefore boosting the economy and employment opportunities in Guatemala while letting the U.S.A. receive resources that are needed. Benefits cited by FTAA supporters include countries would have the ability to trade for material that they are unable to grow or produce in their native country. Additional benefits include the opening of new markets, improving investment opportunities, creating and providing new jobs. To date, many of these agreements have already been signed between OAS countries.

However, some nations in the OAS oppose Free Trade of the Americas and support a self-sufficient approach to their economy. One reason why the FTAA hasn’t been fully enacted is because some leaders, including Hugo Chaves of Venezuela and the political leaders of Argentina, oppose the FTAA because they believe that it would result in the more developed nations having the ability to control and exploit prices to their benefit. Opponents of FTAA hold such views because many of the economically stronger nation’s industries receive subsidies, or payments, from the government thus allowing the subsidized industries to have an ability to sell their products for a lower price. (3) The local non-subsidized producers have great difficulty competing with subsidized producers. Furthermore, these leaders believe that current FTAA agreements do not have sufficient regulations to ensure equal trade opportunities.

The OAS must support the economic development of all nations within its Bloc, including both developed and underdeveloped nations. With a strong collaborative effort, the FTAA can be adjusted to appeal and benefit all countries of the OAS.

Questions:

• How does the FTAA affect your county’s economy and involvement in trade?
• How can the OAS build strong partnerships between countries that prove beneficial to all involved?
• What restrictions or regulations (if any) should be placed on the FTAA to prevent trade abuses amongst countries?
• How will trades be judged for fairness? What penalties should be enforced for unfair trade?
  

Works Cited:
“The OAS and Free Trade” 2007. http://www.oas.org.

McGaughey, William. Free Trade Agreement. Minneapolis, Thistlerose Publications. 1992.

Altschiller, Donald. Free Trade vs. Protectionism. New York:The H.W. Wilson Company. 1988.

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