Fiery exchanges marked the Model United Nations (MUN) 2024 at the Institute of Engineering and Management in Salt Lake. This was the 11th edition of IEM MUN, which aims to make participants aware of social policies, global issues and develop inter-personal skills.
The councils involved were Lok Sabha, United Nations Economic and Social Council Committee, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and United Nations General Assembly Disarmament & International Security Committee. Each committee held discussions on a range of global issues.
Digital literacy & disaster drill
The Lok Sabha council witnessed debates on two points. The first point on the agenda was ‘a comprehensive framework for improving the digital literacy rate of the country’. The members tried to build consensus in the committee on the issue.
While NDA members pointed out the success of the digital literacy schemes of the government, the opposition, the INDIA alliance, pointed out their loopholes. But both sides proposed viable solutions that could increase the country’s digital literacy rate.
The second point was the Disaster Management (Amendment) Bill, 2024. The members proposed suggestions that can improve the efficacy of the Bill, keeping in mind the parent Act of 2005.
Focus on photos
The International Press discussed photographic coverage and journalistic representation of the conference. They were responsible for highlighting issues that the students spoke about at length.
Energy worries
The member-nations of the Economic and Social Council deliberated on the current state of clean energy access across key sectors with an emphasis on enhancing the climate resilience of developing countries and their infrastructure.
The members proposed that nations integrate socially inclusive resilient policies, local employment prospects, skill development and community-driven investment programmes within renewable energy projects designed as per Recommendation 7 of the International Energy Agency (IEA). This, they pointed out, must be done to ensure the inclusion of indigenous and marginalised communities.
The refugee question
Early warning systems, it was noted, failed to address the link between conflict and climate, and that climate disasters exacerbate the effects of conflict. It was proposed that the UNHCR issue country-specific directives for conflicts, which are legal interpretations of the refugee criteria in respect of specific profiles based on humanitarian conditions in the country or territory concerned.
A situation cited was of Somalia, where eligibility guidelines for assessing the international protection needs of asylum-seekers from Somalia were issued, which acknowledged that the Somali displacement happened due to natural disasters as well as other reasons, and thus offered protection to climate refugees without violating the 1951 Refugee Conventions.
Give peace a chance
The agenda of the United Nations General Assembly Disarmament and International Security was deliberation on the proliferation of conventional and unconventional weapons in Central Asia with focus on the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict.
While the committee worked on the spectrum of armament regulations and international security, the delegates deliberated on the multiple paradigms of the Israel-Palestine question. The committee eventually discussed newer forms of technology that might emerge as a threat to international peace, while addressing existing loopholes in arms control in Central Asia.
The participants went back enriched. Rajshekhar Hajrah, a veteran of many a MUN, was the secretary-general. “I have been associated with MUN right from the early days of college. I met a lot of talented speakers who may well become capable policymakers in future. These competitions have taught me to question what I see around me. I don’t accept things as they come,” he said.
Sayantani Neogi, the deputy secretary general, said: “I have come a long way when it comes to organising MUN. I have been participating since I was in school. Now I am part of the organising committee. MUN is a microcosm of the world we live in, with all its complexities and contradictions. Yet, it is a beacon of hope, showing us that even in disagreement, we can find a way forward together.”
Vishal Roy, the director-general, credited policy-makers “for all the growth and development we see around the world today”. “Diplomacy is at the heart of policy-making across the world. MUNs are the best platforms to foster skills in policy-making among students,” he said.