Tag

MUN

Browsing

The fourth edition of The Delhi Model United Nations Conference (TDMUNC) 2019 went on for two days, with great zeal and enthusiasm.

 

“A king is not known by his crown, he is known by his followers,’ with these words by Rajiv Chandran, the National Information Officer for India and Bhutan, UN Information Centre, Shivam Ahuja, the Secretary-General for TDMUN addressed a keen audience of young students eager to dive into debate and discourse.

 

Day 1

 

The first day of The Delhi Model United Nations conference on the 10th of August held at the Conference Centre, University of Delhi, North campus, witnessed enthusiastic young leaders discussing world politics and national issues. The conference welcomed more than seven hundred participants from across the nation and was a great learning experience for all.

 

The opening ceremony began with introductory speeches by Vinayak Pundir, Head Coordinator and Siddhant Magon, Under Secretary-General for the conference. The Secretary-General further went on to talk about the true essence of Model UN – addressal, involvement and discourse. He encouraged the participants to take part in the proceedings wholeheartedly, learn and make memories.

The occasion was graced by Chief Guest Mr Aditya Shankar Prasad, an advocate at the Supreme Court and National Co- in charge of the Law Committee of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha. Also present were Mr Gaurav Arora, Managing Director, RedKnot Marketing Solutions and Mr Shakti Singh, President, Delhi University Student Union (DUSU) as the Guests of Honour.

 

Mr Gaurav Arora, in his speech, mentioned about how education and crime are inversely proportional. The lack of education leads to an increase in crime rates. He further addressed the students by saying that they all are the fuel on which the nation works.

 

The Chief Guest spoke at length about the history of the University of Delhi and its dynamic culture that taught its students the importance of inclusivity, discussion, building a vision and participation in various fields and arenas. He highlighted the transitioning of our nation over two decades into being a global leader and how the youth holds the baton of the future in its hands.

 

The committees of the conference included the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the Open Forum on Environment (OFE), The All India Political Parties Meet (AIPPM) as well as the International Press.

 

The MUN was braced with enthusiasm and energy by the participants, organizers and visiting members. Vrinda, Social Sciences teacher at Bal Bhawan Public School said “I really like the opportunity they’ve given to the kids as they are representing various countries on world issues. The platform for them to learn politics and issues faced by the world is very appreciable.” Ruhin Agarwal a delegate of the OFE seconded by saying, “Even if you’re not a part of the debate, just being here (at the MUN)  is very informative. It also helps me get over my fear of public speaking. It’s a great platform for all.” In conclusion, Sabrina and Aakriti of the Hospitality Committee told DU Beat, “The day was quite tiring but everything was managed well. We’re looking for more enthusiasm and support from delegates tomorrow.”

 

Day 2

 

The second day of The Delhi Model United Nations (TDMUN) 2019 was held in the Delhi University Conference Hall and the Department of Botany with great fervour and commitment. Diligent and bright delegates engaged in discourses ranging from national to international agendas thereby, honing their skills in the process. The event saw many first-time MUNner’s as well; Bhavi Khanna, from DPS Dwarka, a first-time MUNner and a member of Office of Environment said, “I wanted to participate in MUN’s because I wanted to develop on public speaking and research skills. We have had various interactive sessions and the Executive Board is very nice and supportive”

 

Committees proceeded towards elaborate deliberations on their respective agendas. The All India Political Parties Meet undertook an extensive discussion on discrimination and corruption in the law enforcement system. Representing the portfolio of ‘Brinda Karat’, the need for making Lokpal and Lokayukta a constitutional body in order to make it incumbent was proposed. The United Nations Human Rights Council dealt with the issue of, problems and causes of human trafficking; raising pertinent pointers of cheap exploitable labour, poverty and lack of jobs. The United Nations General Assembly indulged in a substantial conference on ways to combat cybercrime, leading to a few basic conclusions of upgrading software, cyber literacy, and being aware of security breaches and identity thefts.

 

The United Nations Security Council was left in a dilemma and conflict between the Permanent and Non-Permanent Nations on the grounds of a draft resolution and a working paper.  In the later part of the day, a delegate from UNSC representing Uruguay tabled a resolution to introduce the United Nation Emergency Peace Council (UNEPC) in order to look after the affairs of UN Peacekeeping forces deployed in various parts of the world. He proposed that no country should have veto power or permanent membership in this organ.

 

“If the diplomat of a country is representing a country at a conference it doesn’t inculcate the diversified views of the people residing in that country, so for inculcating that, the idea of keeping a council which was actually proposed by the Netherlands in 2006 is a very good idea.” Laiba, a member of the Executive Board of UNSC commented.

 

A press conference was in session in the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime in relation to tackling various forms of organised crimes and related terrorism; with statements given by Delegate of China on the lines of “Which country doesn’t have corruption?”.

In the UN Organisation for Drugs and Crimes, the committee unanimously voted in favour of the Resolution proposed by Kuwait, Bosnia and Republic of Korea, that sought to put international drug trade under government controls. Arihant, from DPS RK Puram, who represented the portfolio of Kuwait found the Executive Board to be extremely cooperative and well versed with the agenda. Devanshi, a student of St Marks’ School, Meera Bagh, who held the portfolio of Palestine, found the debating level okay, and was disappointed to see more newcomers in a specialised committee. She found the Background Guide extremely helpful and the EB very well-groomed for the committee.

 

Other than the International Press working effectively in the production of the newsletter, the Office of Environment gave a platform to budding first-time MUNners under the agenda of the water crisis in India. In the Organisation for Environment, where the agenda of “Water Crises in India” was being discussed, the Chairperson, Adarsh Pratap, felt that the level of participation was not up to the mark of the gravity of the agenda. “Unexpectedly, the agenda attracted more of first-time MUNners who didn’t think too deep and kept repeating basic points. This, I feel, hindered the analytical progress of the committee.

 

So, to make the sessions productive, I allowed the usage of Hindi and divided the committee into groups pitched against each other to home the skills of diplomatic lobbying and adjusting to a flexible framework committee,” he said.

 

The moderator of AIPPM Aniket Basu shared his experience regarding the committee and said that topics in their committee had a lot of prevalent issues like the backlog of cases, judicial killings, accountability of police and lack of infrastructure for technology incorporation in the judicial system. He found the discussion fruitful, “It was a very engaging conversation with all political parties and stakeholders. The conversation culminated with everyone knowing more than what they came here with.”

 

The event culminated with a closing ceremony speech and light-hearted games which was followed by final results of various committees. The best delegate for UNSC and UNHRC went to the People’s Republic of China. Palestine grabbed the position for Organization on Drugs and Crimes. The high commendation for International Press went to Stuti while Arushi Mehra and Shantanu grabbed the Best Photographer and Best Videographer award respectively. The General Assembly committee which saw huge participation had to pick 14 verbal mentions and 7 special mentions. Russian Federation won the best delegate for UNGA.

Feature Image Credits: Gauri Ramachandran for DU Beat

Bhavya Pandey

[email protected]

 

Priyanshi Banerjee

[email protected]

 

Priya Chauhan

[email protected]

 

Abhinandan Kaul

[email protected]

 

Satviki Sanjay

[email protected]

 

Chhavi Bahmba

[email protected]

 

Anandi Sen

[email protected]

 

Priyanshu

[email protected]

 

Yaksh Handa

[email protected] 

 

There was a time when MUNs used to happen once a month, but now we have MUNs popping around almost every weekend. The MUN culture has seen an obvious shift from being debate-centered to a 100 other things.

MUNs (Model United Nations) were from the start a fun place to be, and being a simulation of the United Nations, they centred around tackling the big issues of the world,  teaching young changemakers the importance of research, and transforming them into better leaders of tomorrow. But somehow, all of this drifted to being dressed incredibly well, finding yourself a date, or enjoying the really expensive food.

There is, fortunately, more to it than meets the eye.

From finding yourself a good agenda and dates that suit your schedules on the many Facebook groups to getting yourself ready for the same, you learn a lot. Going for an MUN  builds you up as a person; it helps you shape your personality and helps you gain clarity on various issues. It boosts your confidence to an extent where you can make your stand clear and make your presence felt in any sphere of life.

On top of that, if debating isn’t right up your alley, you have plenty of other areas to explore, say you can go as a photographer, a cartoonist, or even a reporter.

From doodling on papers to capturing a delegate’s raw emotion, and eventually reaching a conclusion to the various crisis situations that are presented before you, an MUN offers you a plethora of opportunities. On top of that, MUNs teach you how to deal with people, which is what you’ll require to do a lot for the rest of your lives. An as an icing on the cake, it even helps you build a lot of contacts, and you may never know that you’d just find lifelong friends along the way.

An argument which I have heard a lot against the emergence of unconventional committees is that they don’t belong here or that they are just a marketing strategy to attract people. This may be true up to some extent, but these unconventional committees can be interpreted in a way that they give the fanboys, of the various movies and books, a pedestal to come together and have a healthy debate. From arguing on topics like “What Jon should do to protect everyone from the White Walkers” to “How can Thanos be stopped before everyone bites the dust” (literally), you’d be lying if you said you didn’t want to rant about why your favourite character is better than the others.

The argument about cash prizes – how delegates enquire about how much money they’d be getting instead of talking about the agenda – can be substantiated using the phrase “Time is money”. The world today is as fast-paced as ever and if students are taking out time to research, I think they deserve to be awarded for their dedication and commitment to the topic.

All said and done, I think MUNs are a great place to socialise and help you build your personality.. On the plus side, it might just make your day when you get the “you are too cute” anonymous chit.

 

Feature Image Credits: Consillium Education

Dev Chopra
[email protected]

With “Where I is the change” as its motto, Jesus and Mary College hosted its very first MUN on the 24th and 25th. The maiden edition of the event turned out to be very well received, with over 300 participants from a number of colleges.

The conference, which was spearheaded by a team of seasoned MUNers, displayed an impeccable level of debate and decorum and encompassed five committees. The United Nations General Assembly Plenary discussed ballistic missile proliferation with a special emphasis on the Hague code of Conduct, the United Nations Human Rights Council, and the United Nations Security Council had their agendas as ‘Capital Punishments and the Implementation of Safeguards Guaranteeing Protection of the Rights of those Facing Death Penalty’ and ‘Militarization of the Arctic’ as their agendas respectively. But the inclusion of World Trade Organization and Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs set JMCMUN’14 apart. The WTO focused on International Product Dumping Practices and the latter reviewed the legal provisions pertaining to sexual assault in the aftermath of the Delhi rape case.

jmcmun1

The executive board saw reputed MUN personalities Arindam Som, G.S. Chaitanya, Hisham A. Rizvi, Abhinav Verma and Akriti Bhatia leading their committees with Manisha Massey presiding as the Secretary General and Geetika Nagpal as the Deputy Secretary General. The International Press did exceptional work under the guidance of Pallav Kumar Singh and Tejinder Pal Singh as the head of Photography.

The delegates were seen enjoying the food and an option of dressing in Indian formals was also given in the spirit of Republic Day. The event ended on a high with Sankalp Sharma, Sasha, Part Gauri, Animesh Mohan and Rohan Joshi winning the top accolades in their respective councils and the team from Lady Shri Ram College receiving the trophy for the best delegation. Brij Pahwa, who was part of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs said, “JMC gave what was expected from it. The conference was of an optimum level and everything was pretty well organized. A good level of orators and an experienced executive board was the cherry on the cake.”

Image credit: Vanshaj Mehta

DDUCMUN is usually the first MUN held in the academic session in DU. It is known for its high level of debate and this year was no different. After the success of DDUCMUN 2011 and 2012, the MUN Club of Deen Dayal Upadhyaya College worked day and night to organise the 3rd edition of the same.

This time around the conference was held on August 2, 3 and 4 inside the college premises. There were three UN committees i.e. the Eco Soc, Human Rights Council and General Assembly with the agenda of formulating optimal combinations of short term and long term fiscal measures in order to ensure socio-economic growth, the right to humanitarian assistance and self determination in conflict zones and the tension in the Strait of Hormuz respectively. Apart from that an Ad Hoc Committee had been set up and the highlight of the conference was the War Cabinet of Olympus which was based on Greek mythology.

DSC_0164

The event kicked off on the morning of 2nd August with an Opening Ceremony that included lighting of the ceremonial lamp and speeches by Dr SK Garg, the college’s principal, Mrs Nisha Rana the Convener and the Secretary General, Mehr Arneja, who said, ‘Here at DDUC, our endeavour is not only to provide you with a platform to come and showcase your debating skills but also to provide you with an environment for a 360 degree development.’

After that, the delegates made their way to their respective committees to start discussing and debating on the given agendas. Over the three days, the delegates, under the guidance of the Executive Board, put forward their views on the topics at hand, through a structure that mirrored the rules followed at actual UN meets. The participants made their points backed up by thorough research and debated with the other representatives by raising points of inquiry and information. The committee sessions and moderated caucuses continued on all three days with lunch breaks in between.

DSC_0079

In the EcoSoc, the main areas of focus were promoting micro, small and medium sized enterprises, enhancing infrastructure, bringing about tax reforms and short term fiscal policies to ensure economic growth. The Human Rights Council saw delegates discussing hindrances while delivering humanitarian aid, the legal regulation of humanitarian intervention and the role of NGOs in humanitarian assistance. The War Cabinet of Olympus was a particularly active committee with delegates representing Gods and Demi-Gods from the Percy Jackson series like Zeus, Hades, Athena, Annabeth, Percy and Hazel. The discussion was largely based on the growing distrust in the Demi-Gods by the Gods and the looming threat posed by Gaea, Goddess of the Earth. Another interesting point about this committee was that the Chairperson was hidden among the delegates, and his or her identity was to be revealed later.

On the last day, the focus was on brainstorming solutions and resolutions to the issues discussed on the previous days. The event came to a close with the announcing of the results and distribution of prizes like Best Delegate, Honourable Mention and so on. In all, more than 250 delegates participated, a group that comprised both first timers and experienced MUNers. Sahil Grover, Head of Delegate Affairs in the Organising Committee said, ‘DDUCMUN’13 has been an amazing experience. Having participated in and organised several MUNs in the past, this conference, being that of my own college, holds a special place in my heart. Seeing the success of the event has been a source of great happiness for me!’

Day Two of NSIT Debating Festival, Colloquium 2013, was a silent affair if one goes by the façade of the building, yet the appearance was clearly deceptive because behind those walls lay the ground reality. The day witnessed the simultaneous conduction of NSIT MUN’13 and for the first time at the collegiate level, Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC). Before the start of the sessions, students, attired in formals, were engaged in animated political conversations and last minute doubt clarifications in a smart move to get to know one another. JPC session commenced with a formal welcome to Smt. Sharada Subramaniam, Join Secretary, Rajya Sabha, who presided over the session, following which Ms. Subramaniam introduced JPC to the apprentice leaders. The first agenda on the floor was “Direct Cash Transfer Scheme.” On the agenda, the Executives gave their opening statements that triggered a streak of questions by the members of the legislatures. The deliberations went ceremonially, though now and then, impeded by the temporary break of decorum that could be safely blamed on the intensity of right and not-so-right arguments pouring in from all directions. NSIT MUN Conference comprised of four committees and the agendas ranged from the outstanding dispute between Israel and Palestine to rebuttal of facebook’s niceties. The participants, new to Model United Nations forum, were well guided under the aegis of the executive board. Numerous constructive measures to the problems were proposed, many arguments were refuted, and many statements were followed by banging of hands on tables as appreciation for points well made. By and large, the Secretariat was not wrong when he said that The MUN is going to be “Something they’ll surely remember…” Picture Credits: www.facebook.com Shreya Bhardwaj [email protected]]]>

A group of students were coming back from a debate, which they thought had given an unfair decision. Disappointed, they decided to open their own debating society that would organize fair debates and conduct workshops across educational institutions to disseminate the art of public speaking , debating and MUNing.

And this is how Wordz was formed.

Today, Wordz, that originated in Chandigarh, has expanded its base to Delhi and now it has grown to become one of the most popular student organizations in the Delhi and Chandigarh circuit with a reach out scale of about 2000 students. The founder members of Wordz are- Aruj Garg, Ashmita Gupta, Manonit Kaur and Akshay Vashishtha. The Delhi chapter of Wordz began in 2010, the foundations of which were laid by Sargam Sardana, Diya and Akshay Sharma.

Wordz Delhi , a registered trust, actively organizes debating and MUNing workshops across schools and colleges of Delhi like IIT Delhi, Modern School Barakhamba Road, DPS Noida to name a few. With the reputation that Wordz Delhi garnered over time, they also have started serving as knowledge partners to institutions like IIT Delhi, SRCC and Pathways School for their debates and MUNs. Wordz Delhi also organized n MUN workshop in India Habitat Centre in 2010.

Wordz Delhi organized two major events last year. First being, an online photography competition ‘La Fotographia’, that was judged by Mr.Dinesh Khanna, a renowned photographer, who’s also worked with ‘Incredible India’. Since communication forms the bedrock of all Wordz activities, this event too highlighted the fact that “a picture speaks a thousand words”.

The second event was truly unique in nature, as Wordz organized a Parliamentary Debating Championship at the school level for the first time in India. 26 schools participated and DPS Noida emerged as winner. The event spanned across 3 days, where the 2 days were at Mayoor School, and the final event at IHC.

Wordz Delhi would be recruiting soon, to carry forward the legacy that began in Chandigarh.

Visit their official Facebook for further details, http://www.facebook.com/wordzdelhi

They came. They saw. They conquered. And they’re at it again.

Netaji Subhash Institute of Technology or NSIT, one of India’s finest technical institutions and the only engineering college under the DU purview is once again sending a group of proud, talented and thrilled young debaters to the prestigious Harvard National Model United Nations this year. This is the third year in a row that NSIT is sending an entire delegation of budding diplomats to this esteemed platform of world debating.

Model United Nations or MUNs are a simulation of the actual working of the United Nations Organization- students get together in the form of various committees such as the General Assembly or the Economic and Social Council, represent a particular member nation of the UN, and work towards finding diplomatic solutions to some of the critical issues that the world faces today.

After solidifying their place in the MUNing sphere, whether it be by hosting the widely acclaimed and hugely successful first edition of their very own MUN last year or by taking Indian MUNing to new heights by performing spectacularly at a platform as prestigious as Harvard- the ‘techies’ from NSIT have truly done it all. The previous two delegations impressed immeasurably: NSIT was accorded the status of being among the top 20 teams visiting Harvard for the 2011 version of their mammoth event. Stellar performances in the past with students getting recognized for clarity of thought, knowledge of the diplomatic craft and solid preparation have laid the foundation for this team turning from then being India’s only representatives at that platform to now being underdogs no more- they don’t just want to go- they want to win.

“HNMUN is the zenith of competition in this particular form of debating. The opportunity is priceless. The fact that we have a group of people who have been active debaters throughout school as well as college, and having the invaluable guidance from seniors who’ve already been there gives us great confidence for the event”, says Daksh Sharma, a first- year B.E. student who has been chosen to be part of the delegation.

The experience that the previous delegation amassed is being put to definitive, ambitious use: preparations are on at a feverish pace, may it be intensive training sessions, team simulations of how the actual conference will be or the collective hours upon hours of research being carried out, the NSITians are leaving no stones unturned.

The students will be representing Afghanistan at the forum, something that they believe will be of great advantage. ”It’s a nation that has great relevance with respect to a vast range of social issues, whether economic or even military, implying that the delegation will be under great scrutiny throughout the event. This gives us an added advantage as far as the competitive aspect of things is concerned”, says Shifali Gupta, a fourth-year B.E. student also, head delegate for this year.

With an already established MUNing culture in DU which is clearly growing by leaps and bounds, great things are expected from this group of young enthusiasts from NSIT. The experience of two years, the effort of countless hours, the pride of competing at the highest platform- one can almost hear the resounding clarion call-Harvard Ho!

The perplexing chaos of an unmoderated caucus or the passionate arguments put forward by a charismatic speaker?

With the debating season just around the corner, speakers and adjudicators gear up for another session of heated discussions and controversial questions. Now, this age-old tradition is being challenged by the more dynamic portrayal of the United Nations, with students posing as representatives of various countries who put forward ideas on a much larger platform.

This week, Juxtapose would like you to raise a motion on this topic.

Scroll down and leave your arguments.  

Hindu College’s annual MUN conference took place from September 13 to September 15 at the Conference Centre, North Campus. This MUN conference is one of the most coveted in the DU circuit. The Secretary General of the conference was Bharat Seth. In the opening ceremony, he welcomed all the delegates, executive board members and international press members to the conference and promised a fruitful debate. The chief guest was veteran politician Mr. Somnath Chatterjee. The conference was a culmination of 5 committees namely- General Assembly (third committee), United Nations Global Compact, Futuristic Security Council, War Cabinet of India (1962) and United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference(1994). [caption id="attachment_8305" align="alignright" width="266" caption="Somnath Chatterjee, Speaker of the Lok Sabha from 2004 to 2009, was the Chief Guest at the event."][/caption] “The executive board members were really good and highly experienced , which took the level of debate to a new high. Everyone in the committee was very well researched and this was a fact well acknowledged by the executive board too.” said Tanya Kak, a participating delegate. The MUN was organized by Caucus, the Group Discussion and Model United Nations society of Hindu College, that aims to promote formal panel discussions in order to increase awareness amongst the youth on important socio-political issues.]]>