General Assembly Proposals

Aware that clothing - as well as occasionally serving to express one's beliefs - can also sometimes function simply as items of personal convenience, and

Condemning the various archaic policies on clothing (such as companies forbidding their female employees from wearing flat shoes or trousers) that continue to run rampant today in some member states...

The General Assembly hereby:

1. reserves to the individual member states the matter of whether to permit the wearing of clothes, and

2. requires those member states choosing to allow clothing to also forbid the imposition of any restriction on what clothing any of their inhabitants may wear, unless doing so is:

   1. a requirement of prior and standing international law, or of future international law regarding hate speech,

   2. to provide for the covering of any part of a sapient's body that a reasonable member of that sapient being's species would expect a great level of privacy in relation to, or anything naturally released by those body parts, in any area that can be accessed by the public,

   3. necessary to preserve the health of its wearer or of the general public,

   4. necessary to ensure that members of the general public do not wilfully impersonate on-duty members of militaries or national emergency services, or

   5. a result of an employer prescribing a uniform for their employees or a school prescribing a uniform for their pupils; so as long as such restrictions do not forbid individuals from wearing, nor require individuals to wear, any item of clothing solely as a consequence of their possessing or not possessing an arbitrary and reductive characteristic.

General Assembly Resolution #527 “Protected Working Leave” (Category: Regulation; Area of Effect: Labour Rights) shall be struck out and rendered null and void.

The General Assembly,

Applauding the intent of GAR #527 "Protected Working Leave" to provide economic and social security to the working classes of member nations; yet

Convinced that the current implementation of these social securities and economic protections in GAR #527 thwarts the resolution's intent;

Hereby finds the following:

1. GAR #527 speaks of "a reasonable duration of paid leave" in Clause 2, and creates the possibility for workers to remain on paid leave for disproportionately extended periods of time, because of the imprecise and vague terminology in the list of conditions that it provides. For instance, care for "a seriously ill or physically or mentally disabled spouse, child below the age of majority, parent, grandparent, or dependent" as per Clause 2b, who due to the nature of their illness would be incapable of fulfilling their basic needs independently, will necessarily, and thus reasonably, envelop that patient's entire lifespan, especially when the nature of their illness continues to decrease that patient's ability to survive on their own.

2. The vague and imprecise terminology, as noted under Clause 1 of this resolution, is present throughout the entirety of GAR #527, with examples being: "reasonably be able to provide such" in Article 1.b.iii, "serious illness" in Article 2c, "reasonable notice" in Article 4a, "serious health conditions" in Article 4b, "unnecessarily onerous conditions" in Article 5a, and "without significant financial strain" in Article 5c. This imprecise and vague terminology creates large vacuums wherein subjective interpretations can thrive, and undermines the security and protection the target resolution seeks to establish. As such, GAR #527 is too unwieldy a tool because of its imprecision and ambiguity to appropriately cover the technical details of 'paid leave' as an aspect of employment law.

3. The definition of 'worker' in the target resolution includes employees on time-limited contracts, as it merely speaks of "bound by a contract" without differentiating between the perpetuity or non-perpetuity of such a contract. Workers on time-limited contracts are employed for a brief, limited duration to either fill-in for a worker who is on leave, or for specific employment contracts regarding one-time events such as a census count. This lack of differentiation in GAR #527 regarding the timely nature of contracts would allow an employee on a time-limited contract to file for paid leave on the first day of their employment, and remain on paid leave for the entire duration of their employment, which would create a significant hardship for employers in turn.

4. Under GAR #527's Clause 5c, member states can pass the costs of paid leave onto employers "capable of providing such without significant financial strain". However, the imprecise and vague nature of the phrasing of that condition creates too much room for subjective interpretation, and could force smaller businesses to shoulder the same burdens as large corporations, if an analysis would deem the former to be able to do so on paper, while in reality circumstances would be different. This would lead to a greater risk of bankruptcy of smaller businesses, which in turn creates social and economic instability for both the business owners in question, as well as the other workers in their employ.

And therefore, the General Assembly repeals GAR #527 "Protected Working Leave".

The General Assembly,

i. Recognising the importance of aviation in travel, industry and trade,
ii. Observing the inherent danger of aerial transport due to weather and many other uncontrollable factors,
iii. Acknowledging the sovereignty of member nations over their airspace,

1. Hereby defines an "aircraft" as an object that fulfils these two criteria:
I. a manmade object
II. an aeroplane, helicopter, or other machine capable of flight

2. Hereby defines a "distress signal" as:
I. an internationally recognized means for obtaining help
II. Performed by a non-military aircraft
III. something that indicates that an aircraft is threatened by serious or imminent danger and requires immediate assistance

3. Hereby mandates:
I. Aid to a non-military aircraft by a member nation's air force
II. Report to the General Assembly of the incident
III. Aid given to any aircraft in need, regardless of nationality, ideology, race or gender

The General Assembly,

Observing that, in times of unrest, a scrutinising media provides a safety net for civilians in conflict's path, not only by keeping them apprised of dangers, but by holding leaders accountable for what atrocities might otherwise be concealed,

Recognising that, while operating in close proximity to a conflict zone is perilous, a journalist's actions may be the only mechanism by which news of happenings may be returned to international authorities,

Aware that conflict journalists face dangers beyond battlefield hazards, including being specifically targeted for arrest, kidnapping, and murder by belligerent factions or even their own government,

Resolved that it falls to the World Assembly to establish specific provisions which protect these journalists, safeguard their vital function, and assist in providing reports of non-compliance with international law,

May it be enacted that this chamber:

1. Defines within this resolution:

   1. a "conflict zone" as a battlefield, combat area, or zone where military-grade equipment is deployed to defeat, rout, or suppress opposing forces.

   2. a "conflict journalist" as a reporter or a reporter's technical assistant, operating independent of any belligerent faction, and employed in providing journalism from an ongoing conflict zone or its immediate surrounding area.

   3. an "act of espionage" as the clandestine gathering, reporting, or delivery of information for the purposes of benefiting one or more belligerent factions, except to uphold international law.

   4. an "act of warfare" to be any of the following:

      1. The capturing or killing of combatants.

      2. The intentional damage or destruction of equipment or vehicles deployed to the conflict.

      3. The transportation of personnel or supplies for a party of the conflict.

2. Declares that conflict journalists:

   1. are classified as civilian non-combatants of a protected status.

   2. are permitted to carry out any journalism that is not an act of espionage from or near a conflict zone.

   3. are prohibited from carrying, operating, or transporting weaponry in a conflict zone.

   4. are prohibited from hiring or otherwise soliciting the services of armed escorts and mercenaries.

   5. are prohibited from accessing military facilities, except when invited by the owner or controller of the facility.

3. Prohibits member nations from:

   1. disallowing conflict journalists access to a conflict zone and freedom of movement within it.

   2. undertaking retaliatory action towards conflict journalists in response to unfavourable press coverage, or fear thereof.

   3. detaining conflict journalists solely to limit their access to the conflict zone, or to delay their reporting.

4. Establishes that the kidnapping, murder, or deliberate use of a conflict journalist as a military target shall be illegal and considered a war crime.

5. Clarifies that a conflict journalist who commits an act of espionage or proactively engages in an act of warfare will be considered a hostile combatant, exempt from the protections of this resolution, and unable to be considered a civilian in the conflict.