[ABANDONED] Acknowledging and Preventing Espionage

[The Aligned People]

Acknowledging and Preventing Espionage
Category: Global Disarmament
Strength: Significant

The General Assembly,

Recognizing that any nation, whether at peace or at war, may opt to engage in activities of espionage against other nations at any given point in time,

Believing the act of espionage challenges the sovereignty of nations as any confidential information a government may have in its possession is the property of said government, and forcibly obtaining that property may hinder that government from carrying out its duties if said information becomes known to the populous of any nation,

Asserting that all nations have the right to prosecute an agent they have captured within their borders in accordance with the laws of said nation,

Further believing that a found agent may not be treated in a cruel manner and cannot have any of their civil rights withheld from them by the victim nation,

Understanding that nations at war may be more inclined to engage in acts of espionage against their enemies,

Deducing that a public reprimand of a nation that has been caught committing the act of espionage will decrease the likelihood of further acts of espionage, not only by the nation being publicly reprimanded but also by other member nations,

Hereby:

1. Creates a committee that will review and assess all cases of espionage, between nations at peace, that have become known to a victim nation within the World Assembly that take place after the passing of this resolution. The committee shall be known as the “International Committee for Espionage Review,” or the “ICER” and may only act against member nations of the World Assembly;

a. The "ICER" shall make known, to the international community, the nation of which was committing the act of espionage;
b. The "ICER" may request any documents, paper or otherwise, necessary to ensure that a found agent was legitimately committing the act of espionage as defined in this resolution;
c. The "ICER," to ensure a found agent is properly prosecuted, will generate a report for the victim nation with any laws that the found agent violated of the victim nation during the course of the found agent committing the act of espionage;
d. The "ICER" may request a representative to appear before them from the government committing the act of espionage to provide reasoning for engaging in espionage;
e. The "ICER" may issue public statements of condemnation on behalf of the victim nation;

2. Requires member nations to comply with all requests from the “International Committee for Espionage Review” that are within its power to make as defined in this resolution;

3. Requires member nations, that continue to take part in espionage, to ensure that their agents in no way impact the lives of civilians;

4. Declares that nations may prosecute a found agent within their borders, with no influence outside of the victim nation’s government to hinder the process of the found agent's prosecution;

5. Declares that member nations may in no way infringe on the civil rights of any found agents that are within their custody;

6. Urges member nations to severely limit any and all operations of espionage during times of peace;

7. Releases nations at war from the authority of the "International Committee for Espionage Review" so long as a nation at war does not engage in acts of espionage with nations they are at peace with;

8. Defines:

a. “espionage,” for the purposes of this resolution, as one nation, or multiple allied nations, sending an agent of their government(s) to another nation, to enter their borders either legally or illegally, with the intent of obtaining, without consent of the victim nation, confidential information held by the victim nation's government and reporting back that information to the government(s) of the sending nation(s) of the agent;
b. “agent,” for the purposes of this resolution, as a person that works for the government(s) that assigned them the task of committing the act of espionage;
c. “found agent,” for the purposes of this proposal as an agent that has been taken into custody by the victim nation they are committing the act of espionage against;
d. “victim nation,” for the purposes of this resolution, as the nation that the act of espionage was committed against;
e. "civilian," for the purposes of this resolution, as any person not in a military, police force, or equivalent, and is not partaking in the act of espionage.

Acknowledging and Preventing Espionage
Category: International Security
Strength: Significant

Recognizing that any nation, whether at peace or at war, may opt to engage in activities of espionage against other nations at any given point in time,

Believing the act of espionage challenges the sovereignty of nations as any confidential information a government may have in its possession is the property of said government and forcibly obtaining that property may hinder that government from carrying out its duties if said information becomes known to the populous of any nation,

Asserting that all nations have the right to prosecute an agent they have captured within their borders in accordance with the laws of said nation,

Further believing that an agent caught by a victim nation may not be treated in a cruel manner and cannot have any of their civil rights withheld from them by the victim nation,

Understanding that nations at war may be more inclined to engage in acts of espionage against their enemies,

Deducing that a public reprimand of a nation that has been caught committing the act of espionage will decrease the likelihood of further acts of espionage, not only by the nation being publicly reprimanded but also by other member nations,

Hereby:

1. Creates a committee that will review and assess all cases of espionage, between nations at peace, that have become known to a victim nation within the World Assembly that take place after the passing of this resolution. The committee shall be known as the “International Committee for Espionage Review,” or the “ICER” and may only act against member nations of the World Assembly,

a. The ICER shall make known, to the international community, the nation of which was committing the act of espionage,
b. The ICER may request any documents, paper or otherwise, necessary to ensure that the caught agent was legitimately committing the act of espionage as defined for this resolution,
c. The ICER, to ensure the agent is properly prosecuted, will generate a report for the victim nation with any laws that the agent violated of the victim nation during the course of the agent committing the act of espionage,
d. The ICER may request a representative to appear before them from the government committing the act of espionage to provide reasoning for engaging in espionage,
e. The ICER may issue public statements of condemnation on behalf of the victim nation,

2. Requires member nations to comply with all requests from the “International Committee for Espionage Review” that are within its power to make as defined in this resolution,

3. Requires member nations, that continue to take part in espionage, to ensure that their agents in no way impact the lives of civilians,

4. Declares that all nations may prosecute an agent that has been found within their borders, with no outside influence,

5. Declares that member nations may in no way infringe on the civil rights of any caught agents that are in their custody,

6. Urges member nations to severely limit any and all operations of espionage during times of peace,

7. Releases nations at war from the authority of the "International Committee for Espionage Review" so long as a nation at war does not engage in acts of espionage with nations they are at peace with,

8. Defines:

a. “espionage,” for the purposes of this resolution, as one nation, or multiple allied nations, sending an agent of their government(s) to another nation, to enter their borders either legally or illegally, with the intent of obtaining, without consent of the victim nation, confidential information held by the victim nation's government and reporting back that information to the government(s) of the sending nation(s) of the agent,
b. “agent,” for the purposes of this resolution, as a person that works for the government(s) that assigned them the task of committing the act of espionage,
c. “victim nation,” for the purposes of this resolution, as the nation that the act of espionage was committed against,
d. "civilian," for the purposes of this resolution, as any person not in a military, police force, or equivalent, and is not partaking in the act of espionage.

Acknowledging and Preventing Espionage
Category: International Security
Strength: Significant

Defining:

a. “espionage,” for the purposes of this proposal, as one nation sending an agent of their government to another nation, to enter their borders either legally or illegally, with the intent of obtaining secrets held by the government and reporting back those secrets to the sending nation of the agent,
b. “agent,” for the purposes of this proposal, as a person that works solely for the government that assigned them the task of committing the act of espionage,
c. “victim nation,” for the purposes of this proposal, as the nation that the act of espionage was committed against,
d. "civilian," for the purposes of this proposal, as any person(s) not in a military, police force, or equivalent, and is not partaking in the act of espionage,

Recognizing that all nations have a right to anything and everything that is within its borders and jurisdiction,

Noting that any nation, whether at war or at peace, may opt to engage in activities of espionage against other nations at any given point in time,

Believing the act of espionage challenges the sovereignty of nations due to the fact that all nations have authority over all that is within its borders. This includes any information that is retained and held confidential by a nation’s government,

Asserting that all nations have the right to prosecute an agent, with no outside influence, that has been caught committing the act of espionage within its borders in accordance with the laws of that nation,

Further believing that caught agents may not be treated in a cruel manner and cannot have any of their natural rights withheld from them by the victim nation,

Understanding that nations at war may be more inclined to engage in acts of espionage against their enemies. This proposal shall not hinder nations at war or hinder the strategies that nations may use to their aid in war,

Deducing that a public reprimand of a nation that has been caught committing the act of espionage will decrease the likelihood of further acts of espionage, not only by the nation being publicly reprimanded but by multiple member nations,

Hereby:

1. Creates a committee that will review and assess all cases of espionage, between nations at peace, that have become known to a victim nation within the World Assembly that take place after the passing of this proposal. The committee shall be known as the “International Committee for Espionage Review,” or the “ICER” and may only act against member nations of the World Assembly,


a. The ICER shall make known, to the international community, the nation of which was committing the act of espionage,
b. The ICER shall request any documents necessary to ensure that the caught agent was legitimately committing the act of espionage,
c. The ICER, to ensure the agent is properly prosecuted, will generate a report for the victim nation with any laws that the agent violated of the victim nation during the course of the agent committing the act of espionage,
d. The ICER may call forth a representative from the government committing the act of espionage to provide reasoning for engaging in espionage,
e. The ICER may issue public statements of condemnation on behalf of the victim nation,

2. Urges member nations to severely limit any and all operations of espionage during times of peace,

3. Requires member nations, that continue to take part in espionage, to ensure that their agents in no way impact the lives of civilians.

[Ausinia]

Try putting the definitions first

[Faltasia]

OOC: The title comes across as a nat/social proposal. Perhaps amend to reflect the actual nature of the proposal, which is espionage.

Edit: I meant nat/sov

[Arasi Luvasa]

cannot have any of their human rights

In regard to this setting, just reffering to their rights might be better. No need to exclude bear, fairy, dragon, android and penguin rights.

[Kenmoria]

cannot have any of their human rights

In regard to this setting, just reffering to their rights might be better. No need to exclude bear, fairy, dragon, android and penguin rights.

(OOC: “Human Rights” and “Humane” are fine, as they have defined meanings outside of the species. It is only “human” and “humans” that cause problems for some nations.)

“It is a good idea to put a category and strength on the proposal somewhere, so other delagations can comment on them. Also, I agree that the title should be changed to reflect the nature of the proposal, simply because it looks as though it will break many rules from it, when that is not true to my knowledge. Also, you have ‘ICRE’ rather than ‘ICER’ in clause 1d.”

[The Aligned People]

cannot have any of their human rights

In regard to this setting, just reffering to their rights might be better. No need to exclude bear, fairy, dragon, android and penguin rights.

I do understand what your are saying, but from what I have been able to search and find in the General Assembly Forum, all proposals having to do with rights of beings that are not human, have not gone on to become a resolution. Meaning that there is no precedent my proposal is violating with regards of the rights of beings that are not human. Furthermore, the intention of my proposal is not to set a precedent for the rights of beings that are not human.
However, if I have missed a resolution or have not seen one that does have a precedent in my situation, I would be more than happy to review it and change the wording of my proposal.
-thanks for your feedback

[The Aligned People]

OOC: The title comes across as a nat/social proposal. Perhaps amend to reflect the actual nature of the proposal, which is espionage.

Edit: I meant nat/sov

I have changed the title and set a proposed category and strength. I would love further feedback on those changes.
-thank you

[The Aligned People]

Try putting the definitions first

I have created that change and hope that it does flow better.
-thanks for the feedback

[Liberimery]

So what if a Liberimery National is found in an act of espionage and my government denies sending them?

[Grays Harbor]

What is the issue with espionage? Sometimes, in fact most of the time, covert operations are the only way to find out what a foreign government is really doing, not just what they say they are doing.

[The Aligned People]

What is the issue with espionage? Sometimes, in fact most of the time, covert operations are the only way to find out what a foreign government is really doing, not just what they say they are doing.

Yes, there are times when the act of espionage may be applicable and that is understood in my proposal. The proposal does not require, or even suggest, doing away with espionage. It does however, call for member nations to refrain from engaging in espionage when there is no need to do so (ie. during times of peace).

You used "covert operations" in reference to espionage, and I believe that a "covert operation" of any kind should only be conducted against nations you are currently at war with. My intent for the proposal is only to limit espionage during times of peace, not war. And I understand, going back and reading it, how that may get misconstrued. In my next draft I will be sure to include some text along the lines that the proposed "ICER" shall only have authority to act against nations at peace.

And as reflected in my proposal, all governments have the right to do as they wish with the confidential information they may hold. That information should not be taken forcefully as it is the sovereign property of said government.
-thanks for your feedback

[The Aligned People]

So what if a Liberimery National is found in an act of espionage and my government denies sending them?

I can see how that would create some issues between nations, and challenge the legitimacy of the proposed "ICER." This is an issue I will evaluate and try to incorporate a working solution in my next draft!
-thanks for the feedback

[Grays Harbor]

nations to refrain from engaging in espionage when there is no need to do so (ie. during times of peace).

That is naive. When do you think Wars are planned? When do you think terror attacks are planned and carried out? When do you think attacks on a nations economy, something which requires no shooting, are planned and implemented.

[The Unfounded]

“What espionage?” Alexis says as a donut courier leaves a box on her desk, gently pats it and places another letter on top of it before vanishing from existence like a ninja. She opens the box, ignoring the strange glow as she pulls out a pumpkin frosted donut and bites down. It’s unclear how she manages to eat so many pastries yet retain such a muscular and fit figure.

“Seems rather silly to acknowledge and defend against espionage when it’s something that everybody acknowledges exists already, but no individual nation will readily admit to themselves.”

[The Aligned People]

“Seems rather silly to acknowledge and defend against espionage when it’s something that everybody acknowledges exists already, but no individual nation will readily admit to themselves.”

Yes, and this is why it would be beneficial to have the proposed "International Committee for Espionage Review." You're very right about the fact that no nation would readily admit to committing espionage. That would be the job of "ICER": to admit what a nation did when the nation itself is not willing to do that. It would keep nations accountable.

[The Aligned People]

That is naive. When do you think Wars are planned? When do you think terror attacks are planned and carried out? When do you think attacks on a nations economy, something which requires no shooting, are planned and implemented.

I'm going to assume the answer you're looking for is "during times of peace." And those people planning the wars, those people planning terror attacks, those people planning attacks on economies and so on, all use espionage to gather the information they need to successfully carry out all of those attacks. And if those people are thrust into the spotlight and it is known that they have indeed been spying so that they carry out those kind of attacks, the ones that are planned to be attacked could plan themselves so that their nation may stay safe.

My proposal would affirm a nations right to prosecute agents knowing that no shady deal will be coming their way to release the agent they have in custody. And if that agent is put in prison, unable to report back to their sending country, think about how many lives would be protected because the planners of attacks would not have any of the information they need to successfully carry out the attack.

[Thils]

The term espionage is too vague. Private and public cooperations can also hire agents for literally anything. And if a really good agent does their job right, there would be no way to enforce because there is no evidence. In and out ASAP, no trail baby.

[Grays Harbor]

I'm going to assume the answer you're looking for is "during times of peace." And those people planning the wars, those people planning terror attacks, those people planning attacks on economies and so on, all use espionage to gather the information they need to successfully carry out all of those attacks. And if those people are thrust into the spotlight and it is known that they have indeed been spying so that they carry out those kind of attacks, the ones that are planned to be attacked could plan themselves so that their nation may stay safe.

My proposal would affirm a nations right to prosecute agents knowing that no shady deal will be coming their way to release the agent they have in custody. And if that agent is put in prison, unable to report back to their sending country, think about how many lives would be protected because the planners of attacks would not have any of the information they need to successfully carry out the attack.

Wrong answer. “Espionage” is intelligence gathering and counter-intelligence. It is proactive. It is not just the bad guys using it to plot and plan and scheme, which appears to be your myopic focus, it is also the good guys use which uncovers such. Following your plan of sitting back and hoping the WA catches them is, as previously stated, naive at best. At worst, it is irresponsible and negligent.

[The Aligned People]

The term espionage is too vague. Private and public cooperations can also hire agents for literally anything. And if a really good agent does their job right, there would be no way to enforce because there is no evidence. In and out ASAP, no trail baby.

a. I define espionage in the very first paragraph. I'm not setting a blanket statement for what espionage is in general, and my proposal has no intent to do that at all. When writing a proposal, you state the definition of a word as you mean it for your proposal, not the general meaning (my proposal is not the dictionary).
b. I define agent in the second paragraph. And as it states in my definition, I am referring to government agents for the proposal, not employees of a corporation.
c. Nowhere in my proposal do I talk about corporations. I am seeking to get involved with espionage on the governmental level, not the business level. "Corporate espionage" and "espionage" mean two different things. At no point did I mention "corporate espionage." Furthermore, I believe that it would be a great overreach of power for the World Assembly to directly regulate employees of private corporations.
d. Again, nowhere in my proposal do I seek to regulate agents that have not been caught as they have, you guessed it, not been caught. But if you have an idea on how to charge someone who hasn't been caught with a crime, I'd love to know because honestly I have no idea how to do that, and neither does my proposal.

(OOC: Sorry for the sass - but come on. Really?)

[The Aligned People]

Following your plan of sitting back and hoping the WA catches them is, as previously stated, naive at best. At worst, it is irresponsible and negligent.

The proposed "ICER" would not be a "police force." They would still need to rely on the authorities of the victim nations to report the espionage. It's not just sitting back and hopping to catch someone, because that is left up to the victim nations. It's publicly reprimanding nations that committed espionage. Yes, the victim nation can come out and say to another nation "HEY, YOU SPIED ON US." However, that carries little to no weight in the eyes of other nations. But if you have an organization like the General Assembly behind you, like the "ICER" would, then you are going to reach many more.

The "ICER" has never been intended or foreseen to be the one that does the catching because that would require a General Assembly police force in every single nation that's looking for agents. I highly doubt that a world assembly police force would be welcomed by every member nation's government.

[Kowani]

Following your plan of sitting back and hoping the WA catches them is, as previously stated, naive at best. At worst, it is irresponsible and negligent.

The proposed "ICER" would not be a "police force." They would still need to rely on the authorities of the victim nations to report the espionage. It's not just sitting back and hopping to catch someone, because that is left up to the victim nations. It's publicly reprimanding nations that committed espionage. Yes, the victim nation can come out and say to another nation "HEY, YOU SPIED ON US." However, that carries little to no weight in the eyes of other nations. But if you have an organization like the General Assembly behind you, like the "ICER" would, then you are going to reach many more.

The "ICER" has never been intended or foreseen to be the one that does the catching because that would require a General Assembly police force in every single nation that's looking for agents. I highly doubt that a world assembly police force would be welcomed by every member nation's government.

I mean, there's absolutely no chance that nations would abuse this to falsely accuse political rivals, but hey.

[The Unfounded]

“Seems rather silly to acknowledge and defend against espionage when it’s something that everybody acknowledges exists already, but no individual nation will readily admit to themselves.”

Yes, and this is why it would be beneficial to have the proposed "International Committee for Espionage Review." You're very right about the fact that no nation would readily admit to committing espionage. That would be the job of "ICER": to admit what a nation did when the nation itself is not willing to do that. It would keep nations accountable.

“By the Teachers, your response made it WORSE! Where once support might have existed it just leaped to categorical non-support.”

“Intelligence gathering is not all icky bad! You’d have us call nations out for protecting their own interests AS ALL NATIONS ARE SUPPOSED TO DO? Pot, meet the frakkin kettle. Call it black, see how it replies!”

[Bears Armed]

OOC
Is this proposal supposed to apply when WA members want to spy on non-member nations, or catch non-members spying on them, as well as to espionage between members?

'1.d.', under current wording, would seem to try having a direct effect non-WA nations as well as WA members which is not allowed.

[The Aligned People]

Well a whopping 35 hours in...and it doesn't stand a chance... or does it?
We'll just have to see...

[Kenmoria]

Well a whopping 35 hours in...and it doesn't stand a chance.

(OOC: This proposal isn’t necessarily doomed, some passed resolutions have gotten a much worse initial response. Espionage, as a concept, is a good idea for a proposal as it hasn’t really been addressed by much.)