General Assembly in Accra, 2018

Resolutions adopted at the 43rd General Assembly

1st – 4th March 2018, Accra, Ghana

Resolution 1: Persons displaced in the context of climate change need international protection!

Signatories: Svensk Ungdom – Swedish Youth of Finland, JD – Jonge Democraten, JRG – Jeunes Radicaux de Gauche, Liberalernas Ungdomsförbund, LUF

Spokesperson: Laura Fagerlund, laura.fagerlund.gy@gmail.com

Considering that:

An annual average of more than 21 million people have been forcibly displaced by floods, storms, wildfires, extreme temperature, droughts or coastal erosion linked to sea level rise every year since 2008.
Persons forced to flee their country of origin as a consequence of their native soil becoming uninhabitable as a result of climate change aren’t recognized as refugees with a right for asylum.
Because of not being recognized as refugees, people are sent back to their country of origin instead of getting the asylum status they need.

Believing that:

Climate change is causing more and more people to flee.
Persons who are forced to flee need international protection.
We need to act now in order to prevent a global catastrophe in the future.

Calls for:

Countries to explore systematic approaches for the protection of persons displaced in the context of climate change globally.
Member organizations to urge their governments to grant permission of temporary stay and protection for persons displaced in the context of climate change, when being outside the country of origin.
Member organizations to urge their governments to implement a comprehensive national plan to support persons displaced in the context of climate change, urge member states to provide more un-earmarked and multi-year funding to UNHCR, as well as the adaptation fund and recognition to loss and damage under the UNFCCC framework.

Resolution 2: Time’s Up! Women Rights Are Human Rights

Signatories: Joventut Nacionalista de Catalunya (JNC), Jonge Democraten (JD), African Liberal Network (ALN), Young Democrats for America (YDA), Young Movement for Rights and Freedom (YMRF), Junge Liberale (JuLis), Vente Joven (VJ), Future Youth (FY), Radikal Ungdom (RU)

Spokesperson: Victor Sole (JNC), Gyulfie Arnaudova (YMRF), May El Masri (FY)

Considering that:

The struggle for women rights as well as the legislation that sustains them comes from afar, even if there is still much work to do. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the International Covenant on Social, Cultural and Economic Rights of the UN establish, both in their respective article 3, that the pursue of happiness is fulfilled also through gender equality. Moreover, the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW, 1981), considered as the international charter for the rights of women, establishes the concept of “discrimination against women” and the possible solutions to be taken in the national and international levels.
Recently, feminist vindications have taken special relevance globally. In early 2017, Washington DC (USA) was the stage for the Women’s March, the next day Donald Trump was sworn in as president, and it added similar demonstrations all over the world. #MeToo is the name of a movement started virtually as a mere hashtag in social media in October 2017 in order to report sexual assault and harassment after the Harvey Weinstein controversy and how Hollywood has dealt with it through the decades. Recently, the Time’s Up Legal Defence Fund movement has also taken momentum, being an initiative propelled by Hollywood actresses aiming to put an end to sexual harassment and to labour inequalities, aiming also to offer legal support to women who cannot afford to pay for the expenses of reporting sexual aggression, harassment or abuse.
The latest Eurobarometer (December 2017), 44% of Europeans believe the main role for women is to look after the family, whereas 43% states that the man’s role is to bring a decent salary home. Furthermore, on the International Day for Salary Equality, the European Commission published data about salary inequality between women and men. The average gross income per hour taken by women is 16.3% smaller than men’s. In January 2017, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy dismissed to regulate the salary inequality, a statement that he has quickly amended due to its controversy, whereas Iceland has become in 2018 the first country to ban salary inequality based on gender.
Catalonia has an ambitious and pioneer law on this matter. Law 17/2015 on effective equality between women and men was approved unanimously in the Catalan Parliament. Currently, some relevant dispositions are suspended by the Spanish Constitutional Court;
Women are big contributors in political parties and in politics in Lebanon and the whole Arab world, yet there are almost no women in the Lebanese Parliament nor in the Cabinet (currently in 2018, 3 Members of Parliament out of 128, and only one minister in the Cabinet). Also, there have been several attempts of murder against women by their husbands, and these women end up humiliated and disgraced by their families.

Believing that:

Feminism defends women must have the same rights as men, and since its origins it has advocated for women’s liberation, the right of women to vote, and equality before the law.
IFLRY has advocated several times its commitment to the struggle for gender equality, yet in the current context and approaching the International Women Day, we want to reiterate this commitment for the defence on women rights and our support to the demonstrations to be taken on 8 March 2018.
Women are more than 50% of world population and their / our contribution to the planet is repeatedly ignored and blinded. Vital concerns, ambitions and projects of women, especially of young women, cannot be hampered by discrimination, inequality and violence. The education system has to promote gender equality, tolerance and respect. The public administrations and society need to work together in order to eradicate gender inequalities and gender violence. For women rights are human rights.
Violence against women is a violation of basic human rights.

Calls for:

IFLRY to raise the issue on women rights as human rights to the world’s highest organisational institutions;
IFLRY to keep, renew and strengthen its commitment for women rights as gender rights and human rights;
IFLRY member organisations to actively support women who want to become politically active.

Resolution 3: A Balanced And More Effective United Nations Security Council

Submitted by IFLRY UN Security Council Working Group (Spokesperson: Olle Johnsson, LUF, and Nickolas Pagonakis, IFLRY)

Noting that:

The current structure of the United Nations Security Council consists of five permanent members and ten rotating temporary members.
The structure is based on the interest of the winning side of World War II with a permanent seat.
The world order today consists of several powerful actors, where most of these are national states, but there is also an emergence of regional organizations who are representing a large proportion of their respective regions.
That there has been a lack of extending the number of permanent seats due to the permanent members’ national interests.
Rationale for expansion nowadays is the same as in 1965 when number of members rose more than twice.
Veto right is used in sphere of business and national interest.
Statistics showing that countries like Japan, Brazil as the most often elected non-permanent members (22 and 20 times responsively) during the existence of the Security Council.

Believing that:

As the world changes drastically, so should the structure of the vital organs in the United Nations.
The Security Council must be able to deal effectively with urgent issues, while at the same time become more broadly representative of the international community as a whole.
Representativeness must be reflected in both categories of the Council’s membership; meaning the permanent members and non-permanent members.
The Security Council must also include the voices of especially those whose resolutions are mainly addressed, being the African and Middle Eastern region.
Any increase in permanent membership should accompanied with an increase in non-permanent.
Having had an UN Open-ended Working Group that has been operating for more than twenty-five years without any reform as an output of that process is not acceptable and that reform is needed now.

Calls for:

The UN to improve the representatives of the Security Council through enlargement of the number of non-permanent members and include something about broader representation.

The permanent members should reflect the new power balance of the 21st century and include more regional diversity from regions not present within the permanent members now, meaning Africa, Latin America and the Middle East.

To increase number of vetoes needed to block any resolutions on substantive matters from one to two

The European Union should be the voice of the whole European region within the permanent members.
That the UN Open-ended Working Group release a an annual review of the UNSC.

Empowering regions with the right to determine themselves how many of the non-permanent seats in the Security Council will be available to the countries of a given region would be subject to the rule of more frequent rotation.

Resolution 4: COP-conferences on Migration and Refugees

Signatories: Radikal Ungdom, Joventut Nacionalista de Catalunya

Spokesperson: Sofie Johanna Kuhn, sofie@radikalungdom.dk

Considering that:

The world is facing the most severe refugee crisis since World War Two
According to UNHCR, more than 65.5 million people around the world have been forced to flee from their homes due to conflict and persecution in their homelands and areas (february 2018). More than half of these people are under the age of 18.
In december 2016 more than 40.3 million people were living in internal displacement because of conflict and violence. The needs and protection risks that arise in internal displacement e.g. includes family separation, loss of documentation, freedom of movement in and out of camps, loss of property, and further exposure to the risk of secondary or onward displacement.
Approximately 10 million people in the world are estimated to be stateless (UNHCR). This can among other consequences imply that they have been denied a nationality and the insurance of basic human rights, such as access to education, health care and the freedom of movement.
The distribution of refugees among the countries in the world is very unequal. Low- and Middle-income Countries in The Middle East, Africa and Asia host more than 86 percent of the refugees in the world.

Believing that:

all people should be free and equal in dignity and rights regardless of ethnic, national, religious, political or territorial affiliations
all people should be ensured their basic human rights as these appear in the UN 1948 Universal Declaration on Human Rights
The UN member organizations should work for a more fair and sustainable solution to current and future refugee crises.

Calls for:

The United Nations to establish an annual conference regarding the topic of immigration and refugees. The goal of this annually held conference should be to find common solutions which can help diminish the necessity for the millions of people who flee their country or illegally immigrate in search of a more livable life.

Its member organisations to work together in order to raise awareness of this relevant issue within their membership and among other young political organisations of their countries. To reach this goal, the UN shall develop a strategy together with the G8, G10 and G20 countries.

Resolution 5: Youth, Peace And Security

Signatories: Svensk Ungdom

Spokesperson: Laura Fagerlund

Considering that:

Young people often are seen as either actors of violence or its victims.
There is a need for a new narrative as the one presented in the resolution thus it is an important step towards eradicating the negative perceptions and prejudices towards youth.
Strengthening youth participation is a way to prevent young people from becoming marginalized and preventing violence in armed conflicts.
the special needs of protection of young people must be recognized in conflicts and post-conflict situations.
Lasting peace cannot be built without young people.
Young people often are seen as either actors of violence or its victims.
There is a need for a new narrative as the one presented in the resolution thus it is an important step towards eradicating the negative perceptions and prejudices towards youth.
Strengthening youth participation is a way to prevent young people from becoming marginalized and preventing violence in armed conflicts.
the special needs of protection of young people must be recognized in conflicts and post-conflict situations.
Lasting peace cannot be built without young people.

Believing that:

Instead of judging young people, it is crucial to identify the root causes of extremism.
National governments should increase youth participation on all levels of decision making in order to prevent and solve conflicts.
Young people in conflict areas are exposed to numerous risks such as losing years of education, being recruited for armies, being exposed to radicalisation and being politically marginalised and not included in decision making processes, and hence young people should be seen as a vulnerable group that is in need of special protection in all stages of conflicts and post-conflict situations.
Young people must be given enough support to engage in social coherence and conflict preventive activities. Preventive activities advance the culture of peace, empathy and youth dialogue between cultures and religions and prevents young people from becoming victims of violence.
States, the UN and the civil society politicians, programs and voluntary organizations should support quality peace education.
Governments should form and strengthen partnerships. This can be done for instance through involving local actors and civil society in questions connecting to youth, peace and security and by increasing support for young people’s own activities on peace and security.
Emphasis must be put on the education opportunities, employment of youth and preventing marginalization to reach lasting peace and prevent radicalization among youth.

Calls for:

to support its member organizations in active implementation of the resolution, for example by taking active part in starting networks for implementation in countries of its member organizations and supporting the creation of national 2250 action plans.
to promote peace culture by further emphasizing the importance of education and exchange of information and knowledge, and also support its member organizations in their political efforts for quality education and peer review research.
to take 2030 Sustainable Development Goals into account, in all national, regional and international policymaking. Especially the goal number sixteen “Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels”.
to actively lobby within Liberal International and other umbrella organizations, the United Nations (UN), UN Economic and Social Council, the UN Women Council and the UN Youth Envoy to do even more for a full extent inclusion of youth in all areas and all levels of decision making.

Resolution 6: The Requirement For Democratic And Competitive Presidential Elections In Russia

Signatories: Vesna — Youth democratic movement

Spokesperson: Timofey Gorodilov (timotheos94@protonmail.com)

Considering that:

By decision of Central Election committee of Russian Federation oppositional politic Alexey Navalny was not allowed to participate in the 2018 presidential election.
Formal reason for such denial in access became adjudgement of an illegal sentence to Navalny and actual ignoration of European Court of Human Rights position by Russian Federation, which admitted that Alexey Navalny didn’t have any opportunity to use his right on fair trial.
Alexey Navalny himself and his supporters faced unlawful political persecution, including arrests and fines.
Also, their right to gather freely (e.g. while Navalny traveled around Russia) was violated.
Allowed candidates for election publicly stated that they don’t have ambitions to win on these elections.

Suggesting that:

The principle of electoral competitiveness was violated, due to artificial and non-legal restrictions on the composition of participants.
Decisions on admission or non-admission of candidates for elections were dictated by political considerations.

Calls for:

Do not consider these elections democratic and competitive and do not recognize their results.
The Russian Federation should respect the right of the people of Russia to choose their authorities and conduct re-elections, respecting the rights of all potential candidates and voters in general.

Resolution 7: Break the Turkish Olive Branch in Afrin

Submitted by: Liberala Ungdomsförbundet (LUF), Jonge Demokraaten (JD)

Noting that:

Turkey launched a new air and ground operation, called ‘Operation Olive Branch’, in Afrin in Syria on 19 January to oust the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) from the border regions;
there has been a worrying pattern of imprisonment of a large number of members of the democratic opposition, journalists, human rights defenders, lawyers, civil society representatives and academics in Turkey speaking out against the ongoing Olive Branch Operation in North West Syria;
that a quarter of judges and prosecutors, a tenth of the police force, 110 000 officials and nearly 5 000 academics have been dismissed since July 2016, which is impeding the running of the administration, daily civil services and universities;

Believing that:

that freedom of expression and freedom of assembly and association are fundamental pillars of a democratic society, and that fundamental freedoms must be fully respected;
that the failed military takeover 2016 cannot be used as an excuse for the Turkish Government to stifle legitimate and peaceful opposition and to prevent journalists and the media in their peaceful exercise of freedom of expression through disproportionate and illegal actions and measures;
Turkey while conducting the Olive Branch Operation violates international law;
Ensuring the security of Turkey’s borders does not mean killing civilians in the border regions;

Calls for:

The condemnation by the international community, of the Olive Branch Operation conducted by Turkey in Afrin;
The international community to establish peace talks including the fighting sides in the North Western parts of Syria;
Turkish Government to lift the state of emergency immediately;
Turkish authorities to immediately release and stop the prosecution of human rights defenders and journalists and the media speaking out against the Olive Branch Operation.

Resolution 8: We hear you Iran!

Signatories: JD, LUF and JNC

Spokesperson: Carlijn Olde Reuver of Briel

Considering that:

Ongoing Inflation is causing poverty and unemployment throughout the country;
Tensions between rival countries in the Middle East have worsened. For example, in February 2018 Iran shot down an Israeli fighter plane in Syrian territory;
Hundreds of journalists, bloggers and activists have been imprisoned over the years for expressing their opinions about the political or human rights situation in the country;
In 2009, millions of Iranian citizens hit the street, also called the ‘green movement’, to peacefully protest for the lack of democracy and violations of human rights in the country
In December 2017 and January 2018 anti-government protests erupted in 80 Iranian cities causing the death of 25 people;
Recently, 29 people have been arrested in connection with protests against the mandatory veil for woman in Tehran.

Believing that:

As liberals we need to stand by the Iranian people who are fighting for civil rights and freedom of expression;
The economic and political situation in Iran is currently very unstable and fragile;
The Iranian government needs to take responsibility for the worsening economic situation in the country to prevent further inflation, unemployment and poverty;
Iranian authorities need to immediately stop the violation of human rights;
The Nuclear Deal that was established between the P5+1 and Iran has been put under pressure since the American presidential elections of 2016;
The European Union has kept a low profile about the protests in Iran. Experts suggest that this is caused by the tension between the EU and the Trump Administration regarding the Nuclear Deal. Europe wants the deal to remain intact, whereas Trump has been expressing the desire to end the agreement signed by his predecessor Obama;
This situation regarding the Nuclear Deal should not be used as an excuse for countries to not speak out against Iran’s government and its fragile economy and human rights situation that is harming Iranian citizens;
Iran is known for its nuclear program and possesses enough uranium in the ground to develop nuclear weapons;
The international community immediately needs to take action to prevent further escalation in Iran and the Middle East as a whole.

Calls for:

Increase its lobby and advocacy with regards to the human rights situation in Iran;
Ask the mother parties to speak out against the deprived economic situation and human rights violations in Iran and call on the international community to keep a close eye on the conflicts and tensions in the Middle East and take proper measures to prevent further escalation.

Resolution 9: The Future Is Nuclear

Signatory: Venstres Ungdom

Considering that:

According to the United Nations climate panel, the worlds medium temperature has increased by 2-4 degrees (Celsius) in the last 100 years.
The world’s population has grown by 2 billion people the last 20 years, and the UN expect the population to have expanded to 10,9 billion in 2100.
Almost every scientific result on nuclear energy has proven it to be the most effective, clean and safe way to produce big amounts of energy.
Other energy sources, like wind energy, can be more harmful for people’s’ lives than nuclear energy.
Newer reactors all over Europe are running on other reactors nuclear waste instead of new raw materials, and we are able to storage the rest of the waste in depots.

Believing that:

A bigger population will lead to a bigger energy production, which will affect the global warming.
Wind and solar power is too expensive and unreliable.
European countries, in the coming 17 years, will be able to produce nuclear energy using thorium.
Thorium is more effective than Uranium, can’t be used to explosives, and leaves the half of the radioactive waste as Uranium does.
European companies, specializing in fusion energy, has turned on the first test reactors, and is predicting the nuclear energy type will be ready in 40 years.
The risk of earthquake and other natural disaster is low in Europe.
We, as liberals, have to be frontrunners on openness to facts and science.

Calls for:

Removing of legislation that restricts the scientific investigations in nuclear energy beyond reasonable. Every issue regarding this should be solved before 2030. Simultaneously, we want to introduce security laws which ensure that the science about nuclear energy does not produce knowledge for nuclear weapons.
More international collaboration in nuclear science, so we together, in the most effective, clean and safe way, can produce energy enough to the growing population.
The need to build a platform for liberal organizations, big enough to compare with the alternative facts on energy solutions.

Resolution 10: The Need to Support the Jangmadang Generation as the Driving Force behind the Capitalism and Liberal Democracy Development in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea

Signatories: Liberal Democratic League of Ukraine

Spokesperson: Olha Tsurkan and Arthur Kharytonov

Considering that:

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (hereinafter – DPRK or North Korea) is among the most isolated and closed countries in the world with the cruellest totalitarian regime, more commonly known as Juche.
Notwithstanding the quasi-liberal character of the DPRK’s Constitution, rights and freedoms of man and citizen are completely neglected in North Korea.
Legislative, executive and judicial powers, as well as local authorities are under the total control of the Workers’ Party of Korea headed by Kim Jong-un and de facto owned by the Kim dynasty since 1949.
The main allies of the DPRK in the international political arena are the Russian Federation, as a legal successor to the Soviet Union, and the People’s Republic of China (hereinafter – PRC or China).
Despite the pro-democracy negotiations pursued by the Chinese government with the North Korean authorities on issues relating to nuclear security and combating human rights violations, the PRC de facto strongly supports the communist regime in the DPRK.
The North Korean defectors who have escaped to China frequently face inhuman treatment and are subjected to human trafficking, illegal organ trafficking, and sexual enslavement due to the fault of the Chinese citizens.
Nevertheless, it is the PRC itself that becomes the main platform for the procurement of goods banned and restricted in the DPRK, which are massively transported to North Korea by young smugglers.
The smuggled goods constitute the major source of the capitalism development in the DPRK, as well as of the socio-political awareness of the North Korean citizens.
Hundreds of the black markets, known as Jangmadangs, operate in the territory of the DPRK. They are the main distribution point of the smuggled goods, including household belongings, clothing, food, along with foreign media materials and information about the outside world.
The foreign media play the key role in changing consciousness of the North Korean citizens and facilitate the rebuttal to Juche propaganda on the “destroyed capitalist world”.
A high percentage of the North Korean citizens is embroiled in the clandestine capitalism by trading goods obtained through the Jangmadangs or smuggled across the border by themselves.
Owing to the lack of essential goods in the DPRK, the local government overlooks the blatant smuggling in order to ensure the livelihood of their own society.
The smugglers avoid inhuman punishment on the part of the Government through the arrangements with the internal affairs agencies and border guards, and through bribing.
The majority of the North Korean youth is engaged in smuggling operations since their adolescence and is interested in the relations with the outside world.
Through the income received from the Jangmadangs trade, young citizens of the DPRK earn the amount necessary for the dangerous trip to the People’s Republic of Korea (hereinafter – PRK or South Korea), where they are granted refugee status and are protected in accordance with the South Korean law.
In the case the young North Korean people involved in prohibited activities are not able to agree with the local authorities or if their actions are considered to threaten the Juche regime, they are subjected to inhuman treatment, torture, death penalty or life imprisonment in the dissident concentration camps.

Believing that:

The new generation of the North Korean citizens engaged in the functioning of Jangmadangs creates the real prerequisites for the shadow capitalism functioning, which is one of the most fundamental conditions for the liberal ideas development.
Provided the continued development of the youth work tendencies within the Jangmadangs, the actual conditions for the emergence of the liberal democratic movement rising against the DPRK’s totalitarian government will develop.
The capitalist tendencies in the DPRK have the potential to become the key factor for the democratic regime establishment on the northern part of the Korean Peninsula and lead to the subsequent reconciliation and reunification of North Korea and South Korea.

Calls for:

Conducting a large-scale awareness-raising campaign on the North Korean youth, struggling for capitalism and liberal democracy, by the Member Organisations of the International Federation of Liberal Youth.
Counteracting the DPRK’s official propaganda about the total support of government policies among the local population.
Highlighting the illegal activity of the PRC citizens engaging refugees from the DPRK in human trafficking, illegal organ trafficking, and sexual enslavement.
Establishing contacts with liberal organisations from the People’s Republic of Korea that support democratic movements in the DPRK and help North Korean refugees, including North Korean youth.
Assisting liberal organisations from the People’s Republic of Korea, in case of possessing the real possibility, in providing informational support to the North Korean refugees and in promoting awareness about the outside world, prohibited in the DPRK.