Party at the Northwest Model UN

Posted by admin on Nov 18, 2008 in Issues & Ideas | 0 comments

On Friday, Nov. 7, nine students, including myself, from Trinity Western University’s Foreign Affairs Society embarked on a trip to Seattle to participate in the Northwest Model United Nations. It was the first time the club joined in the three-day simulation south of the border. However, with everyone having done their research for their countries, such as the United States, the Czech Republic and Zambia, the stuffiness of international politics could be felt even in the vehicles on the drive down. A stop at Edaleen Dairy for ice cream cones helped calm our nerves and provide us an excuse to get rid of the Spartans’ ticket coupons that were starting to look as crinkly as old wallet-sized family photos.

Arriving at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in downtown Seattle, we settled into our rooms. We had spectacular views of the little people walking the streets below, the busy office workers directly across from us and the iconic Space Needle in the distance. The opening ceremonies featured a fascinating keynote speech by former US ambassador Carey Cavanaugh on the history of international relations and his opinion on current Security Council reform efforts.

Shortly after our first evening session of debate, which was filled with pompous attitudes and highflying diplomacy, the wild nightlife of the UN began to take shape as the reception offered a complimentary open bar, which did not seem to be carding for potential minors. Afterwards, Bulgaria decided he wanted to stumble around the lobby at 1 a.m. trying to pass off secret information on foreign policy. Needless to say, there were more than a few delegates who were no-shows for Saturday’s sessions, which spanned from 9 a.m. (after a complimentary breakfast) until 10:30 p.m., with lunch and dinner breaks in between.

“My arms hurt from the amount of liquor I was carrying last night. I have a bottle of Burnett’s vanilla-flavoured vodka in my suitcase right now, I stole a cup from the committee, and I ate more mints than I ever cared to,” said one Willamette University student, after which he went on to describe the Model UN flirting game as “always fun,” and their run in with security the night prior due to the rowdy room parties.

Sameer Kanal, the Secretary-General, stated that one of the goals for the eighth year of the conference was to provide more realism for students. “We gave crisis and news updates that were based on reality, much of which was 100 per cent real, as well as rotating the Security Council chairs and picking topics off of real agendas,” he said. Pressing issues such as Security Council Reform, the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict and Strengthening the Coordination of Humanitarian and Disaster Relief Assistance were discussed.

“I was quite impressed with the seriousness that everyone at the conference held with regards to their work – it is quite encouraging for the future that people can grasp the issues with such understanding,” said Adrian Reimer, TWU’s Head Delegate and the organizer of the trip. Natalie Hilder, who represented Zambia on the Human Rights Council, recounted the topics of discussion: “We dealt with reinvigorating the HRC, as well as how to deal with conflict and post-conflict situations involving refugees.”

Overall, the experience was well received by all who participated, with TWU student Amanda Franks receiving a “Distinguished Delegate Award” at the closing ceremonies for her representation of the United States. The skills of diplomacy and debate that were exercised for the duration of the weekend were done so in an environment of professionalism and realism, even though Russia seemed to lose her train of speech enough times for me to want to question what was really in her Starbucks coffee.