Maeve Hasselman for BBC

JHUMUNC Called to Order  

By Maeve Hasselman for BBC

On February 6, 2014 the largest number of student delegates ever recorded at a Johns Hopkins Model United Nations Conference (JHUMUNC) all assembled in the Holiday Ballroom for the opening ceremonies. Not only is this the largest number of students ever accommodated at JHUMUNC, it is also the largest number of staff members the conference has seen yet.

It was at the opening ceremonies that delegates were introduced to their Secretary-General, Kithmina Hewage, a senior from Johns Hopkins University (JHU) pursuing a double major in international studies and anthropology, along with a minor in economics for the first time. He lived in Colombo, Sri Lanka, where he started on his Model United Nations (MUN) path. When BBC asked Riverview student, Victoria Tibbens, what she remembered most from his speech she responded with “His call to action. He said student are the one who will fulfill the promise of the generation, activism. And that reminded me of why I participate in MUN.”     

The delegates also heard from Ian Hooley, a junior at JHU, originally from Milan, Italy, studying materials science and engineering with a focus in biological materials engineering. In High School he was also a MUN student, and informed the delegates that the reason he became interested in International Politics was because of the backwards actions of the Ex-Italian Prime Minister. 

The Keynote Speaker for JHUMUNC 2014 was Steven David, the vice dean for undergraduate education at Johns Hopkins University and a professor in the Department of Political Science. While it was a little hard to hear him due to the high level of noise from some of the delegates, the BBC was able to understand many of his main points. He has a strong feeling that there will be any more global wars due to nations valuing their people’s lives. Due to the high level of nuclear warfare capability of some nations, it is extremely intimidating to try to go against another global power, because the end result could be nuclear warfare, and almost no country would risk that. He also had a call to action for the delegates, emphasizing that the world can’t sit by anymore and watch government kill their people, there is a responsibility to step in. Then, with the delegate’s anticipation of a great conference ahead, the JHUMUNC was called to order.

Actual Word Count:  378

Assigned Word Count : 350 

Arundhati Paul for The Onion

BREAKING NEWS: NASA Reports A Groundbreaking Phenomenon – 

Five-Page Research Paper Stops Time

by Arundhati Paul for The Onion

Recently, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) released news of groundbreaking research, stating that time had been stopped. The scientists behind this, the delegates behind Working Paper 1.3 affectionately nicknamed the Drywall Team, showed that anyone can succeed in research, whether they are Stephen Hawking or Burkina Faso in the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).

While the newly discovered scientists monotonously read Working Paper 1.3, a five-page paper, the delegates groaned and moaned and slumped in their seats. Some even shook their heads in dismay. One delegate sitting down, quietly muttered under his breath while two other delegates giggled and high-fived each other enthusiastically in what later became known as the shot heard round the greenhouse gas emissions.

After an hour or so, the scientists discovered that time had stopped and everything they knew had ceased to exist. Realizing that the delegates in the room had become lifeless zombies, the delegate from Burkina Faso and his fellow sponsors continued to read the paper, slowing the pace. Several light-years later, the sponsors finished and time instantaneously resumed.

Afterwards, some delegates said their memory had been wiped out and that they thought they heard crickets chirping in committee because not a single question or comment had been asked or said.

NASA continues to investigate this time-stopping incident and hopes to work alongside Burkina Faso in hopes to discover the cause of this phenomenon. Some scientists suggest that the delegate from Burkina Faso and his fellow sponsors should create another working paper, preferably 100 pages long.

One delegate even asked, “Wait…what was the topic again?”

Assigned word count: 350.

Actual word count: 281

Anastasiya Stolyarova for The New York Times

Opinion paper

Drone Debate

by ANASTASIYA STOLYAROVA

The New York Times

Drones, or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), are the newest technology in military warfare. Drones are typically armed stealth aircrafts with no onboard human pilot. These aircrafts are able to carry out attacks on selected targets, and are seen as unique tools when it comes to combating terrorist activities. However, the use of drone technology is neither logical nor ethical.

The use of drones is not improving national security but is instead causing competition and fear between nations.  The United States first started implementing drone surveillance since the terrorist attacks of 9/11 and has now become the global leader in drone attacks. Other countries, such as China and North Korea, have followed in America’s track in order to maintain competition in military warfare. These nations are simply following a precedent set up by the United States. China and North Korea believe they are entitled to similar military technology since they are also prominent countries with security interests. In addition, drones are causing fear and tension within Arab countries. Israel has developed UAVs and surrounding Arab countries sense a threat to their national security.

When drones carry out targeted killings, they also kill innocent civilians. Out of the 3000 casualties caused by drone warfare, about 300 were innocent civilians. Is it really worth using the newest technology if 10% of victims have no terrorist affiliations? The terrorist behind the Times Square bomb plot, Faisal Shahzad, gave justification to his plan: “Well the drone hits in Afghanistan & Iraq, they don’t see children, they don’t see anybody. They kill women, children, they kill everybody…” If the United States is so worried about terrorist attacks killing citizens, why do they implement drone attacks that kill the innocent of other nations?

Not only do drones kill innocent individuals, they also violate international law. In 2011, the U.S. targeted and killed a U.S. citizen who was affiliated in terrorist activity. This individual was not given a formal trial or any sort of legal procedure. The U.S. also implemented drone bombings in Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Algeria, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, and Yemen, without any formal declaration of war nor were accountability steps taken. If these thoughtless attacks continue, it can possibly influence other nations to ignore UN International laws which will cause global chaos.  

References

United Nations Legal Background Guide

Caroline Orth for The New York Times

Holy See and Afghanistan’s myopic views of women’s rights

by Caroline Orth for The New York Times

By the midway point of Friday evening’s session, the delegate representing the Holy See stood to debate against Working Paper 1.1 in the Social, Humanitarian, and Cultural Committee. “Abortion is a moral sin, and the Holy See cannot support this resolution on the basis that allowing access to contraceptives for women is contrary to Catholic belief.”

This is the funny thing about the Holy See’s statement: if the Vatican City so firmly believes that an abortion procedure is the murder of an individual, you would think that they and their conservative counterparts— much of Latin America, Middle Eastern states governed by Islamic law, and at times even the United Sates – would want to do anything to reduce the number of abortion procedures performed every year. However, the Holy See refuses the distribution of birth control, citing their Catholic belief.

It’s not complicated to understand that contraceptives are the most efficient way to reduce abortions. A variety of options exist, including but not limited to pills, vaginal rings, diaphragms, and both male and female condoms. The most imperative clauses of Working Paper 1.1 were written to ensure that more women receive these contraceptives, resulting in a reduced number of abortion procedures, and yet the Holy See refuses to allow it.

They, unfortunately, are not alone in their nonsensical viewpoints. Panama also raised concerns about providing women the access to contraceptives, and Afghanistan expressed worry that a resolution allowing women the right to reproductive health services “might infuse in them the idea that they have equality with men.” Apparently, the Afghan government would rather see 300,000 women die every year due to reproductive health complications than empower and protect them from diseases contracted from unprotected sex.

Working Paper 1.2, introduced later in the session, was even more outspoken in the empowerment of women, with their first operative clause stating that “there can be no development within a nation without a focus on women,” and that “women cannot help with their nation’s development unless their rights and needs are respected.”

Though SOCHUM’s agenda does not specifically list the empowerment of women as a topic, participating nations would be wise to understand that a woman’s right to protect herself and her child from reproductive diseases is intimately related to their rights as equal members of not just their own community, but the international community as well.

Assigned word count: 350

Actual word count: 392

Nadav Neuman for Aljazeera

SOCHUM making the world safer

by Nadav Neuman for Al Jazeera

One major issue around the world is the contraction of reproductive diseases such as HIV/AIDS and STD’s. This worldwide issue is what the Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Affairs Committee (SOCHUM) are trying to solve.

SOCHUM is attempting to protect people all over the world from obtaining these extremely dangerous diseases through the promotion of use of contraceptives. Currently, the committee is ready to fund sexual education in order to raise awareness of sexual diseases and methods to prevent their dissemination, such as the distribution of condoms and birth control pills and promotion of their usage. They will look to fund the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), Doctor’s Without Borders –doctors who travel all over the world helping people in need –the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Red Cross Organization. Funding these different organizations will allow for people to become educated about protected and safe sexual intercourse –safe intercourse, meaning not partaking in sexual activities during harmful situations.

One resolution was sponsored by the United States, Singapore and Slovenia. They proposed a plan called the “Lead the Way Plan” which essentially was the backbone of the entire resolution. The plan called for temporary hospitals to be built in order for citizens to receive proper care. The plan stated that Doctor’s Without Borders could be present to give mothers and their newborns the proper prenatal and postnatal care. The “Lead the Way Plan” also called for education. However, the education was specifically geared towards women and the empowerment of women, sexually across the globe. This can be difficult in countries where women do not have equal rights, since the education and empowerment of women can be seen as morally and culturally incorrect. In nations such as the United States, where women are generally treated equal to men, this goal will be a much easier one to succeed with.

Another very interesting topic that was brought up in the resolutions was abortion. Many nations that are richly populated by Christians were against abortion, stating that it is a “mortal sin.” Other nations were opposing this notion, saying that people will not be pressured to get abortion, but will only resort to it if necessary or if they, themselves want to have the abortion.

SOCHUM is making major movements in terms of the distribution of safe sex methods. These improvements have the ability to change the world in the long run, making it safer for sexually active individuals to practice safe intercourse.

Madelyn Gee for Aljazeera

World Health Organization: Raising Awareness for Mental Health

By Madelyn Gee of the Delegation of Al Jazeera

   The World Health Organization is a subdivision of the United Nations whose principal function includes directing and coordinating authority for health within the UN system itself. The roles of the organization are comprised of providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends. The WHO insists that in the modern era, health is a shared responsibility, involving equitable access to essential care and collective defense against transnational threats. The delegation in the WHO committee opened up the discussion for the evening by sharing their respective thoughts regarding the working paper that had been finalized during the earlier committee session. Shared points that held particular emphasis in these two particular papers included the necessity of raising awareness and circulating education regarding the key issues surrounding mental health.     The delegation for the Netherlands highlighted the absolute requirement for public education concerning mental health, in addition to the furtherance of research with respect to the topic, as well as continual funding to provide the adequate facilities and resources to conduct said research. An additional look at the working paper introduced by the committee yielded startling statistics such as the frightening ratio of 4 psychiatrists to 100,000 mental health patients. Other obstacles that those who study the mind face include push back from several religious groups, that feel that it is an infringement upon their rights as practitioners of faith. Though there are several differences regarding how to proceed in raising public awareness and the education of the general public regarding the issue of mental health, all delegations can agree that action must be take in order to alleviate this pressing affair. 

Lisa Dammeyer for Aljazeera

The Messengers of JHUMUNC

By Lisa Dammeyer

Among all the jobs and positions at JHUMUNC, perhaps one of the most overlooked is the page. A page in any given committee is assigned the task of passing notes from one delegate to another throughout committee sessions. While some smaller committees prefer to pass notes themselves, the page is extremely helpful in the groups that have fifty to a hundred delegates participating.

Why is the page so important? Pages are the messengers of JHUMUNC. They can help foster good relationships and alliances between delegates. For example, when the delegate of Spain agrees with the delegate of Italy on a certain issue, Spain can express his/her agreement via a personal note. In addition, pages can be useful when delegates are trying to compose a working paper or resolution during a moderated caucus. These important documents may be passed back and forth between delegates working toward the same goal or to gain the support of other delegates within the committee. Many of JHUMUNC’s strongest alliances are built over note passing.

Another important function of the page is to filter through the notes being passed and take out any that are not purely intellectual. Some pages take this aspect more seriously than others, but there always seems to be some less than academic notes that slip through the cracks. Some are technically MUN related, with Model UN pick-up lines sprinkled throughout. Some of the classic lines include “I Ecuador you”, “Belize be mine”, “You’re my point of personal inquiry”, and “UN I belong together”. Other less creative notes simply consist of phone numbers or more traditional compliments. Either way, it is the page who ultimately delivers these love notes and could be responsible for a new friendship or romance.

Without pages, many alliances built in committee would not be able to grow nor would new friendships. It is clear that whether delivering intelligent notes to help create a more interesting dynamic within a committee, or passing a humorous note to spark a new romance, pages are a crucial part of all committee sessions here at JHUMUNC.