The International Telecommunication Union

Chairs: Simrit Phartyal and Divij Shah

LETTER FROM THE EXECUTIVE BOARD

Dear Delegates,

It is our pleasure to be co-chairing the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) for BHISMUN-
2021. We welcome you to the committee! We hope we can encourage rich but civil discourse on the
agenda at-hand and provide all delegates of this committee with a wholesome experience. I will try my
best to keep this study-guide succinct and short. I will reduce all formalities of the guide to the bare
minimum to improve the utility of this document. If you have any queries, please feel free to reach out to
me at dshah@csrn.org.uk / 8369086193 (WhatsApp) or to Simrit at sphartyal99@yahoo.com.

HOW TO USE THIS STUDY GUIDE AND RESEARCH

As a chairperson and as a delegate, one of the most common missteps I have found in MUNs is
the misuse of Study Guides. Keeping this in mind, this brief section will try and explain to you
how to effectively utilize this study guide. The guide is not comprehensive, it is merely a tool to kick-
start your own research. Used effectively, it can be just the boost you need. Start your research by
thoroughly reading the study guide - if you are unable to understand the content, refer to the footnotes or
search for the keywords of the content till you have a grasp of the facts. Keep your research handy, and
do not progress further until you understand the background. Each topic of the study guide aims to form
a base for your own research, again, it is not comprehensive. I want delegates to research from the
perspective of facts and then from the perspective of the country they’re representing. Both do not
always coincide.

Once you have understood the study guide, refer to the further reading links provided.
These sources are not necessarily acceptable as evidence in formal proceedings, but they’re
valuable to provide context in research. A Reuters post stating basic facts is acceptable, a Reuters post
analyzing and opining on these facts is not. Remember to differentiate between news and opinion
Do not cite “the study guide” anywhere in your formal paperwork or as a source in formal
committee. The study guide is not a recognized document, it is like the introductory part of a textbook.

Accompanied by the research you’ve done while reading the study guide, and the further
reading list, you should have a basic grasp of the factual scenario. Now comes the independent research.
Ask yourself - What resolutions have already been passed on this agenda? What does my foreign policy
state? Who are my allies? Are there areas of the issue I haven’t researched on yet? Do I understand the
formal and bureaucratic facts of the agenda and the committee? What solutions can I propose?
These questions are essential, you will realize you’ve already come to the answer of a few of these
questions while trying to understand the agenda. Answering the other will require extensive research, but
it will equip you enough that the competition boils down to your skills. Asymmetry of information is how
competitions become unfair - don’t make the conference harder for yourself. Keep all your research
handy. MUN is not about who remembers the most facts but who can wield these facts to reach a
conclusion which is beneficial.

Keep all your sources with your research - you will go home (or rather log out) after the first day
reaching to do more research. Most important of all: have fun! You will come out of this more aware,
educated and hopefully finding yourself interested in the intricacies of policymaking.
Sincerely,
Adit Seth
Secretary General
INTRODUCTION TO THE INTERNATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATION
UNION
Originally founded in 1865 to promote cooperation among international telegraphy networks of
the day, ITU predates many other standardization bodies, and its long and distinguished history
contains several important 'firsts', such as the standardization of the use of the Morse code and
the world's first radiocommunication and fixed telecommunication networks 1. The ITU is one of
the oldest international organizations still in operation, second only to the Central Commission
for Navigation on the Rhine, which predates it by several decades. The ITU is a specialized
agency of the United Nations that deals with all international matters pertaining to Information
and Communication Technologies. The founding document of the ITU was the 1865
International Telegraph Convention.

MANDATE OF THE ITU

ITU is linked to the United Nations through a special agreement which recognizes ITU as
a UN specialized agency. It came into force on 1 January 1949. As an integral part of the
UN system, ITU contributes to governance processes and coordination mechanisms of
the United Nations. The cybersecurity department offers particularly developing countries – the
opportunity and tools to increase cybersecurity capabilities at the national level, to enhance
security, build confidence and trust in the use of ICTs – making the digital realm more safe and
secure for everyone. The work and mandate of the cybersecurity program builds on Objective 2
of the Buenos Aires Action Plan adopted at the 2017 World Telecommunication Development
Conference. Delegates may find the constitution of the ITU here.

1
https://www.itu.int/en/about/Pages/default.aspx
INTRODUCTION TO THE CONCEPT OF “THE RIGHT TO PRIVACY”
Internet privacy refers to the right to ‘personal privacy’ when it comes to the saving, reusing,
sharing, and displaying of personal information on the internet. Privacy can refer to a person's
online activities as well as any information that can be used to identify them. For example,
without expressly giving a person's name, age and physical address alone could indicate who
they are, as these two criteria are often distinctive enough to identify a specific person. The
Internet provides an excellent platform for people to share and receive a wide range of
information. This digital sharing and learning are resulting in rapid advancement and knowledge
expansion. These advantages, however, come at a price, one of which is the loss of privacy.
Furthermore, we are more vulnerable to identity theft and data breaches. The threat posed by
cyber criminals and hackers has grown, and as dependence grows, so are opportunities for them.
Online data breaches have happened for as long as the internet has existed, but there is a danger
that they may become widespread; cyber fraud is one of the world's fastest rising crime
parameter. The protection of sensitive and private information, sometimes referred to as
Personally Identifiable Information (PII), from inappropriate or illegal exposure ought to be the
focus of Internet privacy.

The legal right to privacy is a fundamental human right that consists of a collection of first-
generation rights. It is enshrined in the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and many other international and regional
accords. Privacy is the bedrock of human dignity and other fundamental values such as
association and expression. It has risen to prominence as one of the most critical human
rights' concerns of the modern era. The advancement of technology has altered our perception of
privacy and blurred the line between private and public, causing confusion over the basic
definition of privacy and prompting us to consider to what degree we should preserve it in the
first place. Security concerns continue to erode privacy protections by necessitating increased
surveillance and control. Rather than being seen as a fundamental right, the right to privacy is
constantly being contested.

In several nations, like the United States, Ireland, and India, although privacy is not specifically
recognized in the Constitution, courts have established that right in other sections. Numerous
nations have enacted international treaties recognizing privacy rights, such as the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights or the European Convention on Human Rights. In
December 2013, the United Nations General Assembly approved resolution 68/167 on "the right
to privacy in the digital age," confirming the existence of this right and urging all governments to
respect it and take actions to prevent abuses.

BACKGROUND
Technological advancements have been accelerating and resulting in fundamental shifts in the
way we think, communicate, and learn. Although the phrase "technological innovations" is quite
wide, our committee will be concentrating its efforts this year on issues related to individual
privacy in the digital age.

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE ISSUE

Since 1957, when Russia launched Sputnik 1 into space, significant advancements in the realm
of information technology have transpired. The Cold War's technology race compelled the US to
begin constructing the most resistant communications infrastructure possible. A program that
would eventually offer public access to the World Wide Web, profoundly altering the landscape
of technology. Intelligence and surveillance have a long history dating all the way back to the
early phases of state building. Countries and governments have long sought access to and
collection of secret information through covert means, using sophisticated types of intelligence.
Surveillance and espionage have been credited with winning wars, averting revolutions, inciting
them in some instances, defending the globe from terrorist attacks, and generally exerting a
profound impact on historical development.
However, the greatest rise in controversy occurred between 2010 and 2013, because of
Wikileaks and Edward Snowden's revelations. These documents exposed the existence of major
monitoring operations conducted by the US in conjunction with the United Kingdom, Canada,
Australia, and New Zealand as part of the so-called "Five Eyes" project. The National Security
Agency was devoting personnel and technological resources to collecting huge volumes of data
not just from American individuals, but also from world leaders (such as Dilma Rousseff and
Angela Merkel) and UN officials, as well as from foreign intelligence services.

Privacy has become a central problem globally with the rise of the internet as a medium to
multiple activities from watching cat videos to multi-million-dollar bank transactions. The rise of
a virtual medium subsequently has raised issues of data snooping and concerns of private data
being sold to companies and even governments. Data breaches have become increasingly
common, with personal information of millions of people available for a price on the dark web.
There is an increasing need to come up with a centralized definition of privacy, and to suggest
measures to battle breaches of privacy by corporations, and by governments alike.

POLICIES AND TREATIES

As of June 2014, the Third Committee had endorsed five resolutions on human rights in the
digital realm. Brazil and Germany introduced GA resolution 68/167 (2014) on "The right to
privacy in the digital age" in 2013 and it was accepted by the Third Committee later that year.
The resolution focuses on data gathering and mass surveillance. This landmark project
established that unauthorized monitoring and data gathering violated individuals' rights to
privacy and speech. As a human rights body, the Third Committee frequently discusses the issue
of privacy. Apart from the Third Committee, two other GA committees have addressed the issue
of privacy, such as the First Committee's adoption of resolution 68/243 (2014) on
"Developments in the field of information telecommunications in the context of international
security," which included language advocating for the respect of human rights in the field of
information telecommunications for the first time. Similarly, the Second Committee approved
resolution 68/198 (2014) on "Information and communications technology for development,"
which used the phrase "online rights" and referred to the Third Committee's resolution "The right
to privacy in the digital age."

Additionally, the Third Committee engages with other UN organizations and individuals devoted
to human rights protection. 249 For example, the OHCHR publishes publications on a regular
basis, including one from June 2014 titled "The right to privacy in the digital era." This paper
emphasizes that violations of the right to privacy imply limitations on the freedoms of expression
and opinion, which are increasingly expressed online. Additionally, the study cited evidence
about the use of data and drone strikes that indicated possible humanitarian violations because of
digital surveillance and privacy breaches, concluding that these findings merited additional
investigation. To that purpose, the OHCHR must submit another report to the GA in its sixty-
ninth session, as required by this resolution. Other UN bodies have begun to address the growing
issue of telecommunications privacy. For instance, the Human Rights Council (HRC) drafted a
resolution on the promotion, protection, and enjoyment of human rights on the Internet that was
approved by agreement in July 2012 and “affirms that the same rights that individuals have
offline must also be safeguarded online.”

Till date, no UN body has been able to agree on a standardized international definition of
privacy.

PAST UN ACTIONS: TREATIES, RESOLUTIONS AND EVENTS

1. UN resolution 68/167 was passed soon after the Edward Snowden controversy and was
adopted by the General Assembly in 2013 on "the right to privacy in the digital age,"
confirming the right's existence and urging all states to uphold the right and take appropriate
steps to prevent infringement. The (A/HRC/31/64) submitted reports to the Human Rights
Council's 31st session. It was noted in these studies that one of the obstacles to developing an
international official definition of privacy was the secrecy and confidentiality of state
monitoring programs and backdoors.

2. UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS / ARTICLE 12: “No one shall be

subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to
attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law
against such interference or attacks.”

3. INTERNATIONAL COVENANT ON CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS / ARTICLE 17:

“1. No one shall be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his privacy, family,
home or correspondence, nor to unlawful attacks on his honor and reputation.” “2. Everyone
has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.”
4. The implications of States’ surveillance of communications on the exercise of the human
rights to privacy and to freedom of opinion and expression2

5. Impact of new technologies on the promotion and protection of human rights in the context
of assemblies, including peaceful protests3

6. The right to privacy in the digital age4

There are also a few articles that you might find helpful to acquaint yourself with the concept of
privacy:

1. https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/MassSurveillance.aspx

2. https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DigitalPrivacy.aspx

3. https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/HumanRightsDefenders.aspx

QUESTIONS THE COMMITTEE SHOULD DISCUSS

Potential moderated caucus topics:

1. Balancing the right to privacy with state surveillance mechanisms5,6

2. Mechanism and methodology to grant extra provisions for journalists/whistleblowers
against state-surveillance
3. The definition of privacy

Problems a resolution must address and attempt to solve:

1. A standard definition of privacy

2. Mechanisms to deal with countries that do not have legislation in place regarding privacy
violations by non-state actors
3. Helping member states to come up with domestic oversight mechanisms for privacy
breaches
4. Deliberating The role of the ITU along with the UNHRC to tackle the issue of violations
of the right to privacy by member states and a mechanism to address and penalize said
violations.

https://ap.ohchr.org/documents/dpage_e.aspx?si=A/HRC/23/40
2

3
https://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/DigitalAge/Pages/ReportDigitalAgeAssembliesandProtests.aspx
4
https://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/DigitalAge/Pages/ReportDigitalAge.aspx
5
https://www.economist.com/open-future/2019/12/13/surveillance-is-a-fact-of-life-so-make-privacy-a-human-
right
6
https://techcrunch.com/2018/05/06/personal-privacy-vs-public-security-fight/
Study guide
FURTHER RESEARCH:

Delegates should begin research by considering the larger issues of the international community
wherein the need for security and even the right to security conflicts with the right to privacy.
Delegates should then become knowledgeable not only about what the right to privacy means on
the international and national levels, but also how their Member States’ citizens have
individually been affected thus far by the breaching of these rights. What, if any, actions have
already been taken by Member States to combat these infringements of the right to privacy?
Analysis of current government activity will help determine whether it can somehow be
managed in a way that does not sacrifice or hinder national security efforts. When there are clear
violations of rights, delegates should consider the ways in which civil society members and
groups are pushing for increased transparency on surveillance and even the ability to address
privacy violations online such as through the “right to be forgotten”, which refers to nascent
policies that call for data to be removed from online searches. Moreover, considering the role of
civil society, delegates should consider the ways in which the Third Committee engages with
civil society and how both can work together to support strengthening international frameworks
and policy changes by individual Member States that favor greater protection of the right to
privacy in the digital age. Finally, looking towards this issue internationally, delegates should be
aware of third-party doctrine and Justice K.S. Puttaswamy vs. Union of India, along with the
rationale behind laws that have allowed their participation in data sharing affairs. Research into
these areas will prove the most beneficial in conference preparation.

POSITION PAPERS

Position papers are an exercise for delegates in MUNs which aim to acquaint them with their
country’s policy vis-à-vis the agenda being discussed during the conference. It is mandatory for
all delegates to submit position papers.
The EB of the UNSC summed up position papers perfectly, which is why I will be pasting their
part verbatim:
How to Write a Position Paper
Writing a position paper might appear to be a daunting task, especially for new delegates. But
with enough research, you will find that writing a position paper will be easy and useful.
Position papers are usually one to one-and-a-half pages in length. Your position paper should
include a brief introduction followed by a comprehensive breakdown of your country's position
on the topics that are being discussed by the committee. A good position paper will not only
provide facts but also make proposals for resolutions.
Many conferences will ask for specific details in a position paper, so be sure to include all the
required information. Most conferences will provide delegates a background guide to the issue.
Usually, the background guide will contain questions to consider. Make sure that your position
paper answers these questions.
A good position paper will be written after researching on the following topics:
● A brief introduction to your country and its history concerning the topic and committee.
● How the issue affects your country.7
7
● Your country's policies with respect to the issue and your
country's justification for these policies.
● Quotes from your country's leaders about the issue.
● Statistics to back up your country's position on the issue.
● Actions taken by your government about the issue.
● Conventions and resolutions that your country has signed or ratified.
● UN actions that your country supported or opposed.
● What your country believes should be done to address the issue.
● What your country would like to accomplish in the committee's resolution.

Keep in mind these are common bullet points on what you must know before writing a position
paper. My expectations for the position papers are given below:

Stylesheet: Position Papers must be English (US); single-spaced; justified; twelve-point Times
New Roman font, and approximately 400-800 words. Your name, country name, school and
topic area should be in the upper right-hand corner. Submissions should be made in a .docx MS
Word file.

Position Papers must be roughly divided into 4 sections:

1. Your country’s connection and involvement in the topic – What is your country’s stance
where technology and surveillance is concerned?
2. Your country’s policies in relation to the issue, and current diplomatic arrangements.
3. What your country thinks is the best way to solve the problem (these should not be solutions
from past conferences, agreements, or resolutions but innovative and original solutions in
accordance with your foreign policy and capabilities)
4. Your country’s foreign policy w.r.t this situation.
Points one and two should make up half (or slightly less) of your country’s position.
Point three and four will make up the other half of the paper. Although the paper is divided
into four different sections, the paper must follow a logical and coherent progression with
links between sections with citations or footnotes.

It is important to note that I want your position papers to be written in your own words. I
expect delegates to read up on the issue at-hand, study what their assigned country says about the
issue, and then try to emulate their country’s foreign policy to the best of their abilities.

CRITERIA FOR ASSESSMENT:

1. Points will be awarded based on how well a delegate represents their country’s foreign
policy. As a delegate, it is important to remember that you are not representing your own
opinions in an MUN; rather, you are supposed to convey your country’s opinions on the
matter whether you agree with them or not. This is an essential part of judging a delegate.
2. Points will be awarded based on how well a delegate is able to orate, and how well the
contents of said oration are. A delegate may be good in public oration but if their speech
contains jargon and fails to make a point, it is of little use to the discourse promoted by the
ITU at BHISMUN.

MISCELLANOUS

Please take note of the following points regarding the type of documents you might
want to produce in the committee to substantiate your stand. The chairs or a
delegate form another country might ask you to provide evidence for the claims
you make during the functioning of the committee. When this happens, you should
be ready with evidence to substantiate your claim. The following sources are
mentioned in their order of preference and credibility.

• Valid and Binding:

1. All reports published by the United Nations and its agencies.

2. Reports by Governments and their agencies. (With respect to their country only)

• Valid but not binding, in the order of preference:

1. Reuters

2. Al Jazeera

3. Amnesty International

4. Human Rights Watch

5. Reporters without borders

• Not Valid but can be used for reference purposes: Any report published by a UN
recognized news agency or NGO.

• Not accepted under any condition:

1. directly quoting from Wikipedia

2. WikiLeaks
3. Blog articles

4. The Study Guide itself

Please feel free to contact us, in case of any queries. We would love to help you in
any way possible.