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Shanghai Model United Nations 2015 | Research Reports
Forum:
General Assembly
Issue:
Ensuring the suppression and eradication of international pandemics
Student Officer: Jackson Chen
Position:
Chair
Introduction
Diseases have been a major cause of concern since the dawn of human civilization. Improper knowledge
and prevention of epidemics and pandemics have cost millions of lives, and sometimes even the
downfall of entire civilizations. The Bubonic Plague, for instance, wiped out an estimated 30 percent of
medieval Europe’s population in just a few years.
In contemporary times, technology and medicine are more advanced than
ever, and various vaccines and cures have been developed to combat diseases that
at one point literally plagued the world. In fact, the internationally community’s united
efforts caused the deadly smallpox disease to be successfully eradicated altogether.
Organizations and laboratories have new strains of potentially dangerous viruses and
bacteria constantly under watch for mutations. In addition, research is continuing in
hopes of finding efficient answers to unresolved diseases, such as the AntiImmunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS).
A man suffering
from smallpox.
Despite the progress that scientific research has made recently, new outbreaks of epidemics are
constantly threatening the world, and whether the international community can efficiently respond is a
question that cannot and must not be left unanswered.
Definition of Key Terms
Infectious Disease
An infectious disease is an illness that can be spread from person to person. Infectious diseases
have many diverse ways of spreading, including by air, by water, by animals, and by people
themselves. The most common infectious diseases, such as the common cold and the flu, involve
the human respiratory system: diseases are spread by air and are inhaled by the lungs. This leads
to an infection of the nose, throat, and / or lungs. Also, the disease agent can sometimes stay
inactive within the host (the infected organism or human) for a period of time and then become
active, as in the case with HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus).
Epidemic
An epidemic is an infectious disease that has rapidly infected many people in a brief period of
time. Epidemics usually refer to outbreaks of a relatively “rare” disease, such as the H1N1
influenza virus in 2009, instead of more common diseases like the common cold. An epidemic is
generally localized, or limited to a single region. If many cases in other regions begin to arise, an
epidemic may be reclassified as a pandemic.
Pandemic
A pandemic is an epidemic that spreads to many other countries and regions and crosses
borders. Pandemics do not have to be global; epidemics within several countries can be
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classified as a pandemic. Like epidemics, pandemics are infectious. Some examples of
pandemics are the smallpox pandemic, the “Spanish Flu”, and the 2009 flu pandemic (or H1N1
influenza). Diseases and syndromes that are not infectious, such as cancer, are not pandemics
even if they affect many people over a widespread area.
Antibiotics and Antiviruses
Antibiotics and antiviruses are essentially cures for a disease. Antibiotics target bacteria-related
diseases, while antiviruses, or anti-viral drugs, target virus-related diseases. To be cured, each
disease requires its own antibiotic or antivirus to be developed from research, which often takes a
relatively long time.
Some strains of bacteria and viruses have developed resistance to their respective cures, making
some cases of traditionally curable diseases difficult to treat. For example, according to the World
Health Organization, 50 million people are currently infected with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis
(MDR-TB), with 79% of these cases resilient to three or more types of antibiotics. In the future,
antibiotic-resistant diseases could become major epidemics
Vaccine
A vaccine is a method of disease prevention usually administered in the form of syringe shots. A
vaccine is not a cure for a disease; they only help safeguard the human body against diseases
prior to being infected. People who have been vaccinated against a certain disease usually have
a much better chance at withstanding the disease than non-vaccinated people do; however, even
vaccinated people are not guaranteed to be safe from the disease.
Biologically speaking, a vaccine contains harmless viruses or bacteria that are similar to the
infectious and more dangerous counterpart. When white blood cells in the human body destroy
these harmless viruses or bacteria, the immune system “remembers” their DNA patterns so that
they can react more efficiently if a second infection of similar but more threatening viruses or
bacteria occurs.
Vaccines allow the human immune system a much better chance at defending against viruses or
bacteria. Like antibiotics and antiviruses, vaccines must be developed first before being
administered to the general population. Furthermore, vaccines cannot be made for non-existent
viruses or bacteria, which is why mutations and new strains of diseases can infect numerous
people before vaccines are issued.
Background Information
Diseases can be spread in many different ways. Many diseases have more than a single method
of spreading, and it is difficult to pinpoint the source and way of spreading. Epidemics and pandemics
spread very quickly, and limiting the spread is a crucial step in resolving them.
The spreading of diseases
Diseases can be spread in many ways, including but not limited to by air (airborne transmission),
by water (waterborne transmission), by direct contact (direct contact transmission), by blood (bloodborne
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transmission), and by people. Diseases that are spread by animals, such as birds (avian transmission) or
insects (arthropod transmission), are classified as spreading through vector transmission.
Airborne transmission
Diseases spread by air are fairly common. Major epidemics, including influenza and smallpox, are spread
by air; so are other illnesses, such as the common cold. Sneezing and coughing are signs of infection by
airborne diseases. Facial masks can help slow down transmission. In addition, limiting contact with
crowded places and people who show symptoms of sickness can help reduce the chance of spreading.
Waterborne transmission
Waterborne diseases are diseases that are spread due to drinking or using contaminated water. They
are generally more common in lesser developed countries that have unclean water supplies and
inadequate sanitation systems. An example of a waterborne disease is cholera, which is spread by
contaminated drinking water.
Direct contact transmission
Any disease that can be contracted through contact with contaminated surfaces is able to spread by
direct contact transmission. Many airborne and waterborne diseases, for instance, can spread in this
manner.
Sanitizing commonly used surfaces, such as doorknobs and railings, can reduce the likelihood of disease
spreading. Encouraging people to actively wash their hands and avoid touching parts of the face, such as
the mouth and nose, can also help.
Bloodborne transmission
Any disease that circulates within the human circulatory system can be spread to other people if they
come into contact with contaminated fluids. Bloodborne diseases can be spread through contaminated
blood transfusions, which is why blood donations should be carefully checked and received from healthy
patients.
Additionally, sharing syringes is one of the ways that diseases like HIV are spread. To limit bloodborne
transmission is not a simple task, especially in lesser developed countries where medical supplies and
facilities are inadequate. Sharing syringes is commonplace in certain African and Asian countries where
even a needle is relatively expensive.
Vector transmission
Many diseases involve or infect other organisms instead of just humans. A
familiar example would be malaria, which is caused by Plasmodium protozoans.
When female mosquitoes that carry the disease-causing protozoans bite
humans, they cause an infection. Diseases like malaria are widespread in areas
like Africa, South America, and Asia, where treatment and prevention are less
widely available.
Another example of vector transmission would be influenza. Influenza, or the
flu, usually originates from an avian (or bird) virus or a pig virus, which are
sometimes called bird flu and swine flu, respectively. These strains of influenza
viruses spread among species of animals. Poultry workers, who work closely
with domestic animals, may contract the disease. New influenza strains that
can infect humans can have several different causes. Some involve original
strains mutating to be able to infect humans. Others involve original strains combining with a less severe
human influenza virus to form a new strain that is much more severe.
Globalization and disease
Globalization refers to the process of exchanging goods, people, technology, ideas, and
resources across national borders. Both globalization and trade in general have brought about
commercial prosperity in participating countries, but they have also helped the spread of infectious
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diseases. For instance, the Black Death or bubonic plague in Europe originated from Asia. The disease
was most likely first spread to Europe by Italian merchants. Europeans could not identify the source,
which was likely infected fleas that lived rats, making attempts to slow the spreading of the disease
ineffective, which thus allowed it to spread rapidly.
Diseases that are new to a region are called introduced diseases. Introduced diseases often wipe
out a significant portion of the native population. Generally, the introducers of a disease have been in
contact with it for many years and have developed some amount of immunity to it. The native peoples
who have had no contact with it, however, are quickly overwhelmed.
The Columbian Exchange
The Columbian Exchange is the mass trading of goods, people, ideas, and diseases between Afro-Eurasia
(Africa, Europe, and Asia) and the Americas in the 1400s and 1500s. The term is named after explorer
Christopher Columbus, who first discovered the North American continent in 1492. New agricultural
crops and domestic animals were introduced to both sides, which diversified food supplies and
increased the population. Slaves were also traded.
However, diseases were exchanged as well. The effect was particularly devastating for the Native
Americans living in the Americas, as diseases such as measles, smallpox, and influenza wiped out as
much as 90 percent of their population. In addition, Europeans carried syphilis from the Americas back
to Europe, and the disease caused widespread deaths during the Renaissance.
Globalization and the current situation
The world today is more interconnected than ever. Transportation is now extremely fast and efficient;
people can easily fly from one side of the Earth to the other in less than a day. Unfortunately, this also
means that infectious diseases can access more parts of the world simultaneously and spread rapidly,
making them harder to control.
However, stopping globalization altogether is both a ridiculous and an impossible notion. Trade and
commerce across borders is essential for countries to prosper and people to live healthier and longer
lives. The sharing of ideas and technologies is also needed to facilitate general development. Thus,
limiting the spread of diseases requires a different approach.
Conditions in different countries
Developed countries, such as the United States, Canada, and the
United Kingdom, have access to a wide variety of technologies to combat
diseases. These countries have advanced healthcare, vaccines, antibiotics
and antiviruses, and sometimes medical aid for the poor. They also have
research facilities, reachable media systems, sanitation and waste disposal
systems, and usually well-educated and hygienic citizens. Thus, relatively
speaking, developed countries have a good chance at withstanding
A typical modern clinic in a
developed country.
outbreaks of diseases.
In contrast, lesser developed countries, including many African and
Asian countries, sometimes do not even have access to basic necessities, such
as clean water supplies and sanitation systems, let alone to advanced medical
supplies and healthcare. These countries are particularly vulnerable to
disease outbreaks and thus require special international aid and attention.
A Malaria clinic in
Tanzania.
Major Epidemics and Pandemics throughout History
Date
Description of event
430 to 426 B.C.
The Plague of Athens wipes out 25 percent of the population
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in just four years.
165 to 180 A.D.
The Antonine Plague kills 30 percent of the population in
Europe and nearby regions.
The Plague of Justinian, or the first outbreak of the bubonic
571 to 750 A.D.
plague, wipes out half of Europe’s population and 25 to 50
percent of the world’s population.
The Black Death, or the second outbreak of the bubonic
plague, causes 75 million deaths worldwide. It wipes out a
1347 to 1453
third of Europe’s population in a period of six years. In the
one hundred years that follow, over a hundred outbreaks of
plague epidemics occur in Europe.
Typhus first strikes in Spain; in a conflict in Granada,
approximately 3,000 soldiers die of war and 20,000 die of
1489
typhus. In the 400 years that follow and right before the first
World War, more soldiers are killed from typhus than from
military action.
The recorded first influenza pandemic takes place, with
1580
outbreaks reoccurring every 10 to 30 years.
1629 to 1631
1816 to 1966
1889 to 1890
An Italian plague claims 280,000 lives.
A total of seven cholera pandemics kill tens of millions of
people throughout the world.
The 1889‒1890 Flu Pandemic wipes out a million people
worldwide.
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The “Spanish Flu”, or the 1918 flu
pandemic, infects a third of the
world’s population (around 500
million people at that time). An
estimated 50 to 100 million people
1918 to 1919
were killed, making this pandemic
the most serious in history.
The flu was likely caused by a strain of H1N1 virus, which
was the same virus responsible for
the 2009 flu pandemic.
1957 to 1958
1960 to present
1968 to 1969
1976
A microscopic view of
the H1N1 influenza virus.
The “Asian Flu”, caused by an H2N2 virus, kills 2 million
people in the world.
The HIV / AIDS pandemic starts in Africa. It currently affects
millions of people globally.
The “Hong Kong Flu”, caused by an H3N2 virus, kills 1 million
people worldwide.
First outbreak of the Ebola virus.
October 26, 1977 Last diagnosis of naturally-occurring smallpox is recorded.
December 9, 1979
The World Health Organization declares that smallpox has
been successfully eradicated.
The SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) epidemic
November 2002
begins in Guangdong, China. By 2004, over 8,000 cases and
774 deaths occurred.
The 2009 pandemic, commonly known as the H1N1
2009
influenza or swine flu, kills an estimated 284,500 people
worldwide.
August 10, 2010
December 2013 to
present
The Director-General of the World Health Organization
officially announces the end of the 2009 Flu Pandemic.
The Ebola virus epidemic, the 26th Ebola disease outbreak,
begins in Guinea. It later spreads to Liberia and Sierra Leone.
A total of 21,724 cases and 8,641 deaths have been
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reported; however, the World Health Organization believes
that these statistics are much less than the actual numbers.
Major Countries and Organizations Involved
World Health Organization (WHO)
The World Health Organization is an agency within the United Nations. As its name suggests, the
WHO focuses on public health. Some of the WHO’s main goals include fighting diseases, food nutrition,
and other aspects of health. In terms of diseases, the WHO focuses mainly on malaria, HIV / AIDS, and
tuberculosis, as well as Ebola during recent times. Policies and practices advocated by the WHO have
saved millions of lives and assisted even more.
In the past, the WHO has played a leading role in fighting disease outbreaks and has played key
roles during times of major epidemics and pandemics. During the smallpox pandemic, for instance, the
WHO closely collaborated with numerous nations to eradicate the disease altogether. In other epidemics
and pandemics, the WHO has helped developing nations by limiting the spreading process. In the
current Ebola crisis, the WHO is coordinating efforts to develop vaccines and therapies to combat Ebola
in Western African countries.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is one of the
largest health organizations in the United States. As a government
organization, CDC focuses on public health and the control and
prevention of diseases. The organization helps in the cause of
fighting diseases and conducts research on various strains of new
diseases. CDC also sponsors education and public awareness
campaigns. It focuses its efforts on major diseases such as influenza
and Ebola.
Relevant UN Treaties and Events
1.
Application of the International Health Regulations, 26 May
2006 (WHA59.2)
Made in 1989 by the CDC, this is a
poster that shows the threat of
AIDS related to drug use.
2.
Security Council resolution 2177, 18 September 2014
3.
Measures to contain and combat the recent Ebola outbreak in West Africa, 19 September 2014
(A/RES/69/1)
Previous Attempts to solve the Issue
Only in recent years have scientists gained a more comprehensive idea of how to solve the
problem posed by infectious diseases. Vaccines for deadly diseases, such as smallpox and several
strains of influenza, have been developed. Antibiotics and antiviruses for certain diseases are widely
available in developed countries, but the supply in lesser developed countries is often inadequate.
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After experiencing pandemics such as the smallpox pandemic and the 2009 influenza pandemic,
the world is more prepared for future outbreaks than ever. Research facilities around the world are
watching potentially dangerous viruses and bacteria in the event of a malicious mutation. Most countries
are now fully aware of the threats posed by disease outbreaks, and many have sponsored public
education programs to alert the public of safety measures.
Possible Solutions
The most dangerous aspect of epidemics and pandemics is that they spread extremely rapidly
and on a large scale, often to several countries at once. It is, then, essential that the international
community can react quickly, calmly, and efficiently to outbreaks when
they occur.
While finding the cure to an epidemic is arguably the “best” solution,
it is usually not the easiest and fastest solution as cure research is an
arduously long process. The process of preventing the disease from
further spreading should be one of the first priorities when combatting
epidemics. On a basic level, methods like face mask distribution can be
used for respiratory diseases. Vaccines, once developed, can be used to
US President Barack Obama
receiving a vaccination for
H1N1 influenza.
slow down the process of further infections in the population. Also, depending on the severity of the
epidemic, countries may choose to implement stricter border control, customs, and quarantine
inspections.
In addition, education and public awareness, while seemingly trite and inefficient solutions, can
help to decrease the infection rate by making the population aware of the threats posed by epidemics. In
Africa, for example, HIV infection rates have decreased in countries that have sponsored education
programs about safer sexual practices. Education can also encourage more hygienic practices, such as
frequent hand washing.
Furthermore, full government transparency is one of the most important aspects of a cooperative,
united international community. The collaboration of countries for case reporting and investigating is
essential for early detection of potential epidemics. To illustrate the risks of not using transparency policy,
during the SARS epidemic, the Chinese government delayed both reporting the outbreak to the
international community and allowing the assistance of foreign medical experts. This resulted in the
outbreak becoming out of control and turning into an epidemic.
The issue of lesser developed countries is yet another concern. When outbreaks occur in these
countries, they often rapidly spread with little resistance. Lesser developed countries generally lack the
technologies for early detection, disease spreading prevention, and vaccine and cure research.
Assistance from the international community has often proved to be ineffective, as in the case with the
recent Ebola virus epidemic (see section “Noteworthy Current Events”, subsection “The Ebola virus
epidemic”).
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Noteworthy Current Events
The AIDS pandemic
The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) originated in Africa in 1960 and
has since then spread throughout the world. As of 2013, there are around 35 million
people in the world living with HIV / AIDS. AIDS, or the conditions related to HIV,
has killed an estimated 36 million people in the world. Although there are antiviral
therapies and other management methods associated with HIV / AIDS, no
permanent and effective cure has been developed yet. This makes HIV / AIDS a
serious issue that is still unresolved.
HIV can be spread through ways such as blood transfusion, needle sharing,
and unprotected sexual contact. A person infected with HIV may show initial
The red ribbon, a
symbol for AIDS.
symptoms related to those of influenza. Later, these symptoms disappear for a long period of time. If the
disease goes untreated, however, the human body will experience serious immune system issues. The
HIV virus prevents white blood cells in the human body from properly functioning, causing reduced
immunity to other diseases. The infected person usually dies from a disease other than AIDS, such as
tuberculosis.
The Ebola virus epidemic
The Ebola Virus Epidemic in West Africa is an ongoing issue that has yet to be resolved. The
Ebola Virus Epidemic in West Africa is actually the 26th outbreak in a series of outbreaks in Africa, which
started in 1976. Ebola began in Guinea and is currently affecting the African countries of Guinea, Liberia,
and Sierra Leone. Despite the fact that Ebola is not affecting a large area, the main threat it poses is the
high fatality rate. So far, a total of 21,724 cases and 8,641 deaths have been reported; however, the
World Health Organization believes that these statistics are much less than the actual numbers.
This is actually the first Ebola outbreak to
be classified as an epidemic. A wide range of
factors caused the outbreak to become out of
control, including inadequate medical facilities,
unresponsive governments, and the crowded
situation in densely populated cities. Additionally,
the World Health Organization was criticized for
its slow response to the outbreak, and the Ebola
virus epidemic is still continuing.
The current situation of the Ebola virus epidemic.
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