COMMITTEE: General Assembly

QUESTION OF: Criminal Liability in the Area of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

MAIN SUBMITTER: Mexico

CO-SUBMITTERS: United States of America, The Republic of China, Russia Federation, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Guatemala, Senegal, Bahrain, Argentina

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,

Guided by the United Nation’s mission “to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace” stated in the UN Charter,

Taking into consideration Article 1(2) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states “All human beings (…) should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood” and Article 3, which states, “Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person,”

Fully aware of the dimension the UAV market has reached and that in the next 8 years, this market is expected to grow by 1918%,

Noting with deep concern that unmanned aerial vehicles don’t possess the ability to distinguish terrorists from innocent civilians, resulting in innocent deaths,

Affirming that the increase of use of UAVs is a response to terrorism, but the casualties resulting from these drone strikes, especially that of terrorist BaitullahMehsud whose capture led to another 163 innocent civilians’ death, tend to cost too many lives,

Alarmedby the lack of legislations addressing the punishments given to owners of unmanned aerial vehicles who are involved in terrorist attacks and/or illegal missions,

Having adopted the Geneva Convention of 1949, under which civilians have the right to protection and safety in times of war, especially article 36, which asks sovereign nations to only participate in the trade of legal warfare,

Bearing in mindthe United Nations Register of Conventional Arms, which encourages nations to report on transfers, background information regarding countries’ histories with weapons and disarmament, military holdings, national legislations, and national production regarding combat aircraft/vehicles,

Viewing with appreciationthe Arms Trade Treaty, giving especial highlight to articles 13(3) and 11(1), which respectively request a national report of UAV usage and discourage their dispersion,

Welcoming innovating companies who incorporate UAVs into our everyday life, without posing a threat to civilians and whose goal is to increase transparency in the acquiring and using of UAVs, such as the Mexican-American company 3Drobotics.com’s mission to increase transparency,

RecognizingSouth American countries for using UAVs to boost their national economy, including Peru’s monitoring and inspection of archeological areas, Chile’s university piloting courses incentivizing the non-violent use of UAVs, and Brazil’s use of drones to protect the Amazon rainforest,

  1. Calls upon all Member States to comply with the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms;
  1. Trusts all Member States to impose economic sanctions on Member States who refuse to comply to the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms, including:

a)all 23 Members States that have not submitted their national weapon possession reports yearly,

b)all Member States who submit their reports after the deadline set,

c)all Member States who submit reports with inaccurate data to prevent international sanctions;

  1. Urges Member States to amend the Geneva Constitution of 1949, so that it includes the use of UAVs, in accordance to the clauses provided;
  1. Recommends the implementation of national institutions only dedicated to monitoring the dispersion of these weapons, facilitating spotting an illegal UAV and these institutions:

a)should all report to the government, who is obliged to send those reports to the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms,

b)do not have the power to incriminate anyone possessing an illegal UAV, but they can bring that person forward to a judicial court,

c)have the obligation to assist foreign institutions with the same goal;

  1. Further reminds Member States to pass definite legislations condemning the illegal use of UAVs for terrorist purposes, which include:

a)acting against article 1(2) and 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, stated in the preamble,

b)acting against the United Nations stated in the United Nations Charter: “To maintain international peace and security;”

  1. Expresses its hope for national health insurances for civilians who are victims of UAV attacks, through means such as, but not limited to:

a)accessible medical aid through the use of non-governmental organizations,

b)use of sustainable support systems, in order to prevent further civilian injuries;

  1. Encourages More Economically Developed Countries (MEDC´s) to:

a)aid in the implementation of conventional uses of UAVs in Less Economically Developed Countries (LEDC´s), as means of:

  1. decreasing the unmonitored criminal activity that LEDC´s cannot control due to their economic status,
  2. promoting the use of UAVs as a sustainable way of protection for the civilians;
  1. Emphasizes the infancy of UAVs and stresses for the protection of civilians and prevention of an occurrence of catastrophes by providing, but not limited to:

a)functional, mandatory procedures that the UAV must undergo, in addition to strict protocol and inspection in order to lessen the chance of failure,

b)strict surveillance ensuring that should the UAV unit malfunction, civilians and monitoring stations be warned or be put out of harm's way,

c)highly encrypted and efficient code in the UAVs system and for manual override to be present,

d)a sequence to flee to a suitable height where a self-destruction can be initiated as a last line of prevention;

  1. Further requests Member States to oblige owners of UAVs to obtain a valid license from each respective countries’ aviation authorities, where they are expected to complete specific tests that check:

a)whether an individual has the ability to maneuver these vehicles under all circumstances such as but not limited to:

i.bad weather,

ii.mechanical error or malfunction,

b) use of the vehicles is safe and doesn’t deprive others of their privacy that they are entitled to by Article 12 of the UNDHR (United Nations Declaration of Human Rights), which states “No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy,”

c) UN regards to the first operative clause, these licenses should be recorded under the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms;

  1. Emphasizesthe importance of safely incorporating UAVs to further ensure national safety by:

a)patrolling terrestrial emigration and immigration,

b)monitoring national parks to prevent wildfires and protect biodiversity,

c)monitoring the illegal practices of:

i. human trafficking,

ii. drug trades,

iii. arm trade,

d)investigate crime areas,

e)conduct campaigns for public awareness regarding current issues;

  1. Remindsmember states of the possible advantages of complying to this resolution may be:

a)stronger national economy,

b)less casualties of innocent civilians,

c)diminishment of terrorism,

d)more tourism,

e)a step closer to global peace;

  1. Recognizing the existence of weaponized UAV and requests for contingency plans that:

a)include safety back-up systems that do not cause collateral or physical harm should a malfunction occur,

b)include override systems should interferences by illegal hacking or coding occur in order to protect confidential information;

  1. Acknowledging the existence of weaponized UAVs and requests for contingency plans that:

a)include safety back-up systems that do not cause collateral or physical harm should a malfunction occur;

b)include override systems should interferences by illegal hacking or coding occur in order to protect confidential information;

  1. Strongly encourages the conventional uses of UAVs in areas such as but not limited to research, rescue and creativity, keeping in mind that such methods of uses of UAVs have already been supported through UAV making companies;
  1. Requests that all nations to remain actively seized in the matter.