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.

Catalina Chernavvsky Sequeira and Emma Leeds Armstrong for People's Daily

Do You Know Your Country 2.0?

By Catalina Chernavvsky Sequeira and Emma Leeds Armstrong in Baltimore (People’s Daily)

Name: Colombia

Capital: Caracas... I think (Correct answer: Bogota)

Location: South America

Type of Government: Yes, there is a government (Correct answer: Constitutional Republic)

Leader: None (Correct answer: Juan Manuel Santos)

Name: Bolivia

Capital: I have no idea (Correct answer: Sucre)

Location: South America somewhere

Type of Government: Republic

Leader: Mendez I want to say (Correct answer: Evo Morales)

Name: Finland

Capital: Helsinki

Location: Europe

Type of Government: Free Market Economy (Correct answer: Parliamentary Republic)

Leader: President? George? I can’t make the noise, so I can’t pronounce it. (Correct answer: Sauli Niinisto)

Name: Sweden

Capital: Silence (Stockholm)

Location: Europe?

Type of Government:  I’m done…. I do not want to do this (Correct answer: Hereditary Monarchy)

Leader: Yeah, I’m done (Correct answer: Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden)

Name: Venezuela

Capital: Caracas

Location: South America

Type of Government:  Hugo Chavez dictatorship (Correct answer: Constitutional Republic)

Leader: Maduro

Name: China

Capital: Beijing

Location: Asia

Type of Government: Single-party State

Leader:  Xi Jinping

(See, China knows everything!)

Mathavi Sankar for People's Daily

On the “Brink” – Advisory Panel Decides on Guidelines for Intervention

By Mathavi Sankar in Baltimore (People’s Daily)

The Advisory Panel is a special committee of experts that counsels the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on specific issues. Currently, these experts are discussing the timely issue of guidelines for UNSC intervention.

The United Nations enforces “laws of war” that stipulate when it is justifiable for nations to engage in war, and what acts are acceptable in wartime. “Intervention” is the term for the use of force by a nation in the internal or external affairs of another; in most cases, this is considered unlawful, but in certain cases intervention can be justified.

However, the international standard for acceptable intervention is uncertain. Under the provisions of the Security Council Charter, the UNSC is empowered to authorize the use of force to maintain ‘international peace and security’, but there is still controversy about the extent to which the Council can use force in humanitarian emergencies. International law has yet to fully reflect the emerging idea that intervention is a legitimate exception to the laws of sovereignty and that use of force might be necessary when human rights are at stake.

In addition to the ambiguity surrounding the intervention process (military, economic, or humanitarian), when intervention should occur is also unclear. Currently, the experts on the Advisory Panel are defining the “brink,” or the point at which the UNSC should intervene. Some experts believe that intervention before an atrocity occurs is the best way to prevent human rights violations. However, others raise the practical question of how the UNSC can decide that an act will lead to human rights violations. These delegates argue that humanitarian principles differ from country-to-country and that deciding based on an international standard is infringing upon national sovereignty. Expert Li Keqiang, Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, states “Every country has the right to govern its people in its own way. It is dangerous to define the “brink” based on imperialistic Western views.” Thus, experts must carefully identify and define the thin line between necessary intervention and infringement upon national sovereignty.

Assigned word count: 350

Actual word count: 355

Brenda Ruiz for People's Daily

All or Nothing

By Brenda Ruiz in Baltimore (People's Daily)

 The room housing the hundred or so delegates of the Food and Agricultural Organization reeked of stubbornness. The committee moved to an unmoderated caucus and suddenly the room was broken into three main groups. Bits and pieces of a working paper drifted between the delegates of  Venezuela, New Zealand, and Sudan. They spoke of the need to develop agricultural tools and to educate people on how to use them. Employees would be hired to educate people through the process of handing out/ reading books aloud, hosting workshops in towns, and playing radio podcasts. Their paper called for strict micro managing to generate the millions in funding, essential to the production of cost-efficient innovations.

            Delegates of Bolivia, Pakistan, and Indonesia chose to place most of their focus on deciding ways to implement incentives or subsidies for farmers. The Delegate of Pakistan spoke several times of the idea to use technology to make plants more resistant to pests and harsh weather conditions, as well as more fruitful and easier to plant. The delegate is in the process of asking the delegate of the United States about funding in skittles for their project, should it come to pass. If the delegate of the U.S. refuses such an outstanding proposal, the trio would try to get their funding from public-private partnerships.

            The United States is completely against using GMO's unless there is a country where it's deemed absolutely necessary. The US wants to get the reconstruction process started as quickly as possible by using IMF loans and relying on how people feel through the process. But how realistic is this? Many delegates questioned how smoothly the idea would transition from paper.

            China, Canada, and Syria are more for implementing agriculture technology and education for those countries in need. Malaysia, Netherlands, North Korea support them fully and ask that more research be done as well.

            All of these countries have contributed stellar ideas in session today, the only problem is themselves. If no one of these groups of delegations mentioned before can bring their pride down from it's pedestal, and work together with others, no one needing food will get fed.

Word Count assigned: 300

Actual Count: 356

Jessica Li for The Onion

United Nations to Enter Illegal Drug and Arms Trade

by Jessica Li for The Onion

After the September 11 attacks on the United States World Trade Center last year, the Committee on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) has much to talk about. The topic of choice in the most recent session was the illegal trafficking of drugs and arms in connection with global terrorism. As the delegate from South Africa expressed, this illicit trade is a major source of funds for terrorist groups. Therefore, the United Nations should take advantage of this flourishing market and enter the international drug trade in order to obtain sufficient funding for its anti-terrorism initiatives. It is well-known that this black market creates hundreds of billions of dollars in profit each year, so if the UN can just get a foothold in the industry, it could become one of the world’s leading cartels within just a decade. The UN would never find itself lacking funds ever again. Unfortunately, the delegation from Vietnam opposes any drug trade at all, reminding the committee that the glorious leaders Marx and Lenin would have deeply frowned upon such activity. This only encouraged the delegates from dirty capitalist countries to support the idea. Meanwhile, the delegates from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait have found common ground and joined forces to write a draft resolution about combating religiously motivated terrorism. This is expected to be particularly amusing, given the history of religious terrorist groups in these countries. Sadly, the delegation from North Korea vigorously disagrees, expressing that “religion is irrelevant” and “there will always be terrorists,” so the only reasonable solution is to allow North Korea to constantly monitor everything in every country in order to foresee and prevent attacks. This, however, would be incredibly difficult to implement without at least the assistance and extensive experience of the United States’ NSA, which could not be reached for comment. In contrast, drugs and arms are widely produced and readily available all over the world, and the black market is, in theory, accessible to anyone. We can only hope that the CCPCJ makes the logical decision to increase global safety.

Assigned word count: 350. Actual word count: 343.

Arundhati Paul for The Onion

Apple Sees a surge in sales thanks to SOCHUM

by Arundhati Paul for The Onion

SOCHUM gathered today to find methods for global access to reproductive health services. The committee, hard at work to save the lives of countless women worldwide, spent the first fifteen minutes motioning for moderated caucuses. The delegates had so much to say that one delegate motioned for a moderated caucus for 12 minutes with 4 seconds of speaking time to discuss the availability of these services in rural areas. Their desire to speak became especially obvious when the list of motions became three times as long as the speaker’s list.

The primary goal was to unearth the cause of diseases such as HIV and AIDS in order to find an appropriate solution. A delegate of Libya, given a message from Allah to the rest of the community, vehemently exclaimed “People are having sex at younger and younger ages. IT’S ALWAYS THE REBELS HAVING SEX!” The obvious solution to this was to execute the rebels by stoning them.

One anonymous delegate showed her concern for the issue by playing Evil Apples on her iPhone. When asked how that would help with allowing global access to reproductive health services, she replied, “Well my last card was ‘pregnant strippers’ so yeah if we can’t come to a good conclusion today, then we’re gonna have a bunch of pregnant strippers…and no one wants that. I wouldn’t have had that revelation if it weren’t for my phone.” Other delegates nearby agreed that Evil Apples was the most important way to provide access to these health services globally. Immediately after, Apple proudly announced a surge in sales internationally.

A delegate of the Holy See, with her Roman Catholic Bible in hand, quoted Proverbs in an attempt to purify the committee and stated that “adoption was the best option and abortion is intrinsically evil.”

A delegate of Venezuela, proudly shared her best plan ever, the PENIS plan, standing for Prenatal care, Educational development, Natural birth control, Indigenous population focus, and Societal stigma mitigation. There was a murmur of excitement and nods of agreement although when asked about it later, the delegates could only recall the plan’s name.

Jamie Glueck for The New York Times

Malnutrition and Poverty:

UNICEF searches for a resolution

New York Times, Jamie Glueck

            The issue of malnutrition and poverty is a struggle shared between many countries in UNICEF. Some working resolutions tossed back and forth include creating hospitals, job databases, utilizing non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and more. Norway and Guyana agree that there should be stronger application of NGOs. Sweden on the other hand, said local organizations would not cut it. 

Whether it was affiliated with the government or not, the idea of communal centers was frequently talked about. These centers would provide clean water and food. Kenya added that  nutritional supplements could also be made available at the centers to aid malnutrition. Although, countries concurred that this would be a temporal solution. Thinking long-term, the consensus was that the only way to fix the struggle of malnutrition and poverty is by bettering the economy. Denmark raised the idea of working on creating jobs, so that people can feed themselves rather than relying on organizations. Other countries made resolutions to create job databases, and job centers to help people escape poverty.

The creation of local hospitals was emphasized by Haiti, Belgium, and India. These could provide relief as well as jobs. They agreed that the health of pregnant women and children should be paramount, and that their needs should be catered to first.

            Canada and Kenya had a mutual resolution. “The Kenyanada Compromise” wants to begin by spreading awareness of the vitality of NGOs to this process. They plan to get people from developed countries to donate to NGOs in hopes of motivating them to allocate more money to UNICEF. This would create a pool of money to draw from for grants to build hospitals and distribution centers in order to handout the provided food to those who need it. “The Kenyanada Compromise” focuses on the danger of fatal childbirths by ensuring sterility and comfort of women in labor. Canada personally wants to “pay special attention to providing clean drinking water and placing hospitals in strategic areas to maximize their availability to people in under developed countries.”

            The mutual agreement was that malnutrition and poverty is a problem in all countries, even the most developed. UNICEF vowed to work with federal organizations as wall as NGO’s to try to remedy this issue.

Anastasiya Stolyarova for The New York Times

Microfinancing to Improve Africa

By ANASTASIYA STOLYAROVA

The New York Times

Microfinancing has become a popular method of providing stable incomes for low-income individuals and improving the economic private sector in Africa. Microfinancing is similar to social welfare programs, such as unemployment, in the United States. African nations such as Nigeria, Ghana, and Kenya each possess over twenty microfinance institutions. In the African NGO Forum, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) agree that specific social areas need to be targeted in order to have successful microfinancing outcomes. Also, the education of citizens and annual collaboration between NGOs are ideas shared between African NGO Forum members.

Targeting specific social areas is seen as necessary in order for microfinancing to be successful. NGOs agree that creating general loans will not improve the economic situation. Standard education needs to be provided for the expansion of financial knowledge. In addition to vocational education, that will prepare struggling individuals with knowledge of crafts and careers, African Forum members concur that financial training will increase financial empowerment. Training would be provided through various courses or seminars, and through resources that will assist individuals with financial endeavors. With increased knowledge of finance, African people would be able to confidently participate in economic stimulation.

There are various religious sects and ethnic groups within Africa, which need personalized loans and microfinancing policies. As one non-governmental organization stated: “Microfinancing polices need to be as diverse as the places there are going into.” In addition to distinct religious and ethnic groups, the African NGO Forum wants to specifically target women and children in Africa. There is a major gender gap in the division of labor. NGOs agree that women and children need to be empowered so that they can be innovative and direct future business.

As a final point, African NGO Forum members gather that annual or biannual collaboration will ensure the success of microfinancing in Africa. Members would be able to discuss the successes and failures of policies during annual meetings. The delegate of Third World Network Africa expressed the importance of NGO collaboration: “Getting together in a forum will be able to develop a stronger Africa. Africa has so much potential it just has not reached yet.”

Maeve Hasselman for BBC

I Pledge Allegiance to the Flag, of the United States of …Europe?

By Maeve Hasselman for BBC

Conflicts are emerging within the Organization for security & Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) on whether or not a United States of Europe (USE) needs to be formed.

The European Union (EU) has been known to solve many differing problems within Europe, but some delegates are claiming that it is now not performing up to par.   

To solve this, the committee decided to discuss the possibility of forming a USE. When in committee, the BBC reached out to the Delegation of Hungary in the room for her opinions  When asked why the USE would be beneficial, she told us that “The economic, political and social benefits would be great for not only Europe but for the surrounding countries as well as those countries in trade with Europe. It’s necessary to support these kind of unions, and in a USE, the resources to enable that support would be available”. However, many countries in the room did not agree with her sentiments, she told us, “Some people in the room do not support the formation of a USE due to political and social feelings that originated over 40 years ago. However Europe has progressed as a continent, as a unity, and as a body. We need to progress to create a body that allows us to grow”. Another major concern in the room seemed to be the possibility of the lack of representation smaller countries could experience. 

In order to accomplish the formation of the United States of Europe, new systems needed to be put in place.  Many differing working papers are floating around the room, but our interviewee told us “We are currently working on a merger with several other papers that basically say the same thing in a unique way. These merges are showing how important unity is.  A huge diversity of countries are coming together to support this resolution because they know how prosperous Europe could be if we all came together.”

If there ends up being a formations of the USE, it could be the end of the European Union as we know it. The outcome of this committee has an enormous impact, certainly one to keep track of. 

Assigned Word Count:  350

Actual Word Count:  384

Jongwoo Lee for BBC

BBC-Jongwoo Lee

First session of the second day at CSD

On the second day, 2/7/2014, delegates at the Commission on Sustainable Development at JHUMUNC presented different ideas on how to improve their food system based on the countries they represented.

Throughout the first session of the second day, there were three basic questions that delegates asked at Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD). First, “Can we rely on GMO?” second, “What are other ways that everybody has sufficient amount of food?” Third, “What are other innovative technologies to provide more food for everyone?”

With respect to the question “Can we rely on GMO?” there were two viewpoints arguing for the safety and effectiveness of using GMO to solve the food support problem.

Countries such as the Dominican Republic, Afghanistan, and Ghana were anti-GMO, believing that GMO is safe to be used and effective to solve the food support problem. To support their ideas of anti-GMO, they each said, “Modified growth is not necessarily good for the population,” and “The study shows that using GMO is bad for the health,” and even that “GMO healthy might be true, but it is not affective in solving the problem.”

On the other hand, countries such as New Zealand and Haiti strongly showed that they are pro-GMO that it is not only affective but also might have a malicious to the health. They each supported by saying, “GMO work for some countries. It will not create a problem. What works in urban areas might not in rural areas,” “The government should lead citizens to understand what GMO is and use it.”

In addition on “What are other ways that everybody has sufficient amount of food?” There were many ideas conveyed by many delegates.

The ideas were “The world should increase agriculture, plant species for maximize the outcome, without disease and improvement in growth. . . Promote food wasting systems. . . Educate every country first to make it decide what is the best for them.” They addressed that this issue “Needs to have the international community’s attention.” One stated, “Let the United Nations regulate instead of the government so that each country has a sustainable food supply. . . The food in the world should be distributed equally.”

Lastly, with respect to “What are other innovative technology to provide more food supply.” Delegates suggested many different innovative ideas.

Ideas included water treatment, drilling water for a solution to water irrigation, water with fertilizer directly—which has shown useful for solving the problem, water basin project-Detoxifying water and providing new clean water.

During the first session of the second day at Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) there were three five minute immoderate caucus that delegates wanted to have more unofficial talk with other delegates to create resolution papers and merge them, if necessary.

Madelyn Gee for BBC

World Trade Organization: Determining the Means of Classifying Developing Nations

By Madelyn Gee

The World Trade organization is a global  international body that deals with the rules of trade between nations. It's tasked with creating agreements, which are to be negotiated and signed by the bulk of the world's trading nations and ratified within their parliaments. The principal goal of the organization is to help producers of goods and services, exporters and importers to conduct their businesses on a global scale. During today's primary committee session, delegates discussed a proper means of classification of developed and developing countries in regards to trade, in addition to debating the potential of introducing a rubric designed to evaluate countries based upon their level of need for assistance provided by the WTO. Delegations proposed two central rationales to assess a country's request for help: the case by case basis versus a tier system. The former was explained to be a process of classification of countries designed to evaluate the needs of developing countries, and was promoted to be specifically created to appraise a nation's needs and to give the chance for the WTO to respond accordingly. On the other hand, the latter was judged to be a far more generalized strategy. It would allow for the organization to provide help at a considerably faster rate, taking into account the act of avoiding the assessment of countries individually. Also,it would allow grouping nations together to receive whatever preexisting aid was created in accordance with how the country was placed within the tier system.

            There was much division within the committee regarding these two systems. The delegation of Jordan was in favor of implementing a tier system, citing that it provided the extra benefit of flexibility and understanding for developing nations. On the other hand, proponents of the case-by-case system argued that the said methodology would allow the World Trade Organization to evaluate the specifics of a country in need; enabling the institution to have more time to focus on certain countries and to provide perhaps more specific forms of aid in terms of the nation's necessities. Other delegations, such as that of Japan, were in favor of creating an alliance between the developed and developing nations, creating a sort of 'buddy system' among countries that would allow developing nations to create thriving economies and would provide more trading options for already developed countries. All delegations, however, agreed that it was a primary concern of the World Trade Organization to create a sustainable system for allocating assistance among countries that may require the help of the organization. 

Madelyn Gee for Aljazaeera

World Trade Organization: Determining the Means of Classifying Developing Nations

By Madelyn Gee

 The World Trade organization is a global  international body that deals with the rules of trade between nations. It's tasked with creating agreements, which are to be negotiated and signed by the bulk of the world's trading nations and ratified within their parliaments. The principal goal of the organization is to help producers of goods and services, exporters and importers to conduct their businesses on a global scale. During today's primary committee session, delegates discussed a proper means of classification of developed and developing countries in regards to trade, in addition to debating the potential of introducing a rubric designed to evaluate countries based upon their level of need for assistance provided by the WTO. Delegations proposed two central rationales to assess a country's request for help: the case by case basis versus a tier system. The former was explained to be a process of classification of countries designed to evaluate the needs of developing countries, and was promoted to be specifically created to appraise a nation's needs and to give the chance for the WTO to respond accordingly. On the other hand, the latter was judged to be a far more generalized strategy. It would allow for the organization to provide help at a considerably faster rate, taking into account the act of avoiding the assessment of countries individually. Also,it would allow grouping nations together to receive whatever preexisting aid was created in accordance with how the country was placed within the tier system.

            There was much division within the committee regarding these two systems. The delegation of Jordan was in favor of implementing a tier system, citing that it provided the extra benefit of flexibility and understanding for developing nations. On the other hand, proponents of the case-by-case system argued that the said methodology would allow the World Trade Organization to evaluate the specifics of a country in need; enabling the institution to have more time to focus on certain countries and to provide perhaps more specific forms of aid in terms of the nation's necessities. Other delegations, such as that of Japan, were in favor of creating an alliance between the developed and developing nations, creating a sort of 'buddy system' among countries that would allow developing nations to create thriving economies and would provide more trading options for already developed countries. All delegations, however, agreed that it was a primary concern of the World Trade Organization to create a sustainable system for allocating assistance among countries that may require the help of the organization. 

Lisa Dammeyer for Aljazeera

Iranian Hostage Crisis: What Shah We Do?

By Lisa Dammeyer

In the midst of the Iranian Hostage Crisis, delegates have varied opinions on what action should be taken to retrieve the hostages. In the second committee session, the delegates focused on two main topics: the use of military action and what to do with the Shah. Currently, about 40 hostages have been executed and 14 more have died from the torture that they had endured. The committee quickly ruled out a diplomatic approach to solving the issue due to the fact that Iran has not been overly responsive to that approach. In fact, during the committee session President Carter received word that Iran has cut off all remaining communication with the committee.

The debate started out with the topic of military intervention in Iran. The committee seems to have split themselves into two main groups. One group, led by Deputy Secretary of Defense William Graham Claytor and President Carter, is in search of the quickest and most efficient way to get the hostages out of Iran. They wish to move American troops into Turkey in order to show Iran that they are taking this matter extremely seriously. President Carter insists that the troops will be there in case it is necessary to strike against Iran; no immediate military action would occur. The other side, led by General James Vaught, wishes to establish a specialized task force to be sent in to retrieve the hostages so as to not stir up any more animosity or hostility from the Iranians.

The other aspect of the debate was what should be done in regards to the Shah. While President Carter and his allies wish to respect him as an ally, other delegates wish to use him as a means of bargaining. There was a brief suggestion of handing the Shah over to Iran, where he would most certainly be found guilty of committing crimes against the Iranian people, but the suggestion was quickly shot down by the other delegates. As debate continues, the situation only grows tenser. Hopefully, the committee will be able to agree and come to a quick decision on how to get the hostages out of Iran.

Nadav Neuman for Aljazeera

Interesting solutions for refugee settlement in Middle East

by Nadav Neuman for Al Jazeera

The civil war in Syria between the Syrian rebels and Syrian president Bashar al-Assad has created a large problem in terms of refugees for surrounding nations. Nations such as Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq and Turkey have had floods of refugees enter their respective countries. According to the United Nations, there are over 2 million Syrian refugees and there are about 4 million Syrians who are internally displaced and even more who need help.

This is where the Office of the High Commissioner of Refugees (UNHCR) comes in. The main issue they have been discussing is the Syrian Refugee Crisis. Nations such as the United States, United Kingdom, France and Canada have come together to form a resolution to provide a short and long term solution to the crisis by providing shelter for refugees in need. In addition, they will reeducate the refugees so that they can learn how to self-sustain themselves. The United States was the leading power in this resolution. Israel was another leading power in a different attempt to resolve the issue, along with Liberia. Israel said: “we need to establish more camps to sufficiently enable the refugees to have places to go when in need. After that, we need to establish better education systems in the camps for the refugees and also better sanitation so that the refugees can improve their lives in the camps.” Israel and Liberia also wanted to begin talks between the Syrian rebels and al-Assad to resolve the issue. Denmark was also part of a different resolution that was on the basis of a “safe initiative” in order to resolve the issue.

One interesting thing to note is that the Syrian rebels were present in this committee representing themselves as a group. They were actively involved in the talks and were extremely interested in what was going to occur regarding the Syrian Refugee Crisis, which directly influences them.

The short and long term goals of how to get refugees to camps safely and efficiently, and then educate them on how to continue to survive is what the UNHCR is trying to accomplish. There are many plausible resolutions that can be passed and they will definitely look to benefit both the refugees and the countries providing the refugees with the settlements.

Esha Bhandari and Yasmeen H.A. for BBC

The Republic of Italy on the Paris Peace Conference (1946)

by Esha Bhandari and Yasmeen H.A.—BBC World News

BBC recently sat in on the Paris Peace conference immediate following World War II. After listening in on heated debates, particular interest and controversy was sparked with the working paper signatory, the Republic of Italy. Jonah, the representative, had a few words to say of the issue. When asked about what events lead up to this specific conference, Jonah explained that the goal of the committee was to establish democratic freedom in states that were originally Axis powers during World War II. He went on to say that these countries were formerly belligerent states and needed help to gain international recognition and sovereignty.  The main issue stood as what precisely is the definition of democratic freedoms?  How can we ensure that they are sustained?

Jonah went on to clarify that the Republic of Italy is not one of these malevolent states as of 1945, when a treaty was signed that resigned the nation from the Axis powers and instead to fight against the Nazis.

Unfortunately, he says that there are several countries who refuse to see the Republic of Italy as a positive world power but he is firm in saying that a hands-off governmental approach that allows the individual country to decide its democratic republic and how it should be run is key.  “If you choose to have a democratic republic, here’s what Italy can do for you,” he began.  “We can provide you with economic aid.  We can help restructure your government.  We can provide you with national sovereignty.  And, we can provide you with international recognition in the UN. 

 However, if you don’t do this, we can’t help you, and you will not be sovereign,” Jonah concluded.

There was some concern with the lack of troops maintaining peace in various countries, however Jonah continues to affirm that rather than force a nation to be a democratic republic by keeping troops, they should create a peaceful situation where they themselves can decide on how to restructure their governments and how they wish to enforce democratic freedoms based on what each country believes it to be.  Jonah also recognizes the risk of Civil War that it can lead to, but states it is well worth the risk and is more troublesome to have foreign troops patrolling countries in which they do not belong.  His working paper suggests a 10 year maximum in establishing a fair government and sound economy—a time frame he regards as more than enough. 

Although it appears a resolution is well on its way, Jonah stresses the fact that a good and compromised solution can only come about when all countries, even fascist dictatorships, can agree on the definition of democratic freedoms.

Jongwoo Lee for BBC

Voting prosedure at Historical Security Council at the third session

BBC-Jongwoo Lee

On the third session of the second day, delegates at Historical Security Council were voting for their resolution papers.

After failing several times of passing resolution papers, the delegates went in five minute unmoderated caucus and seven minute moderated caucus before the voting procedure. "Send peacekeeping troops to Nepal to watch over the conflict and tension in China" was one of the ideas that delegates passionately discussed on, and Brazil, Nepal, and Canada were sponsors that supported this idea. U.S, on the other hand, mentioned that it does not support China, but to maintain peace, the U.S should not intervene in China’s reform. And Columbia mentioned that embargoes are justified, so it will continue working with China for peace.

About the government killing many of protesters during the reform, delegates had different opinions. While USSR said that China being condemned is excessive, Brazil showed that China being condemned is indeed not excessive. China has not recognized its people who showed their opinions; rather they massacred them. China said that the intervention of U.K couldn't be accepted that China did not attack in order to massacre people; it had to do that in order to proceed in its social reform. Therefore, international organizations should not intervene in China’s regulation.

After the moderated caucus was over, there were updates from BBC those on protests of Chinese citizens on May 25^th Tiananmen Square.

On the picture shown in the article provided by BBC, delegates debated whether it is necessary to have embargo and world intervention in China’s reform. Yugoslavia mentioned that BBC is a British government broadcasting, it is not reliable to get information about China, while the British embargoed China. China reputed by saying that people in the Tiananmen Square does not necessarily represent the rest of people in China.

After Columbia mentioned that students are the leaders of the future. Their views become the majority of people’s views in the future. U.S supported Columbia that it said students are the future, however, China stated that protesters do not represent China and those people are very valuable in representing. China, however, disagreed with Columbia and the U.S that China’s government is going to do what seems right. They tried to reach out. Also, the Chinese government holds a referendum on whether or not the current regime is legitimate--whether or not the protesters are justified.

Delegates did not come to a consensus during the third session at Historical Security Council, but they supported their ideas based on the situations each country was.

Esha Bhandari and Yasmeen H.A. for BBC

The first day of UNIDO—Clean Energy vs. Continued Usage of Fossil Fuels

Esha Bhandari and Yasmeen H.A.

During the numerous moderated caucuses in the UN Industrial Development Organization, delegates from various countries engaged in heated debate regarding the issue of utilizing cleaner energy worldwide. Some countries like Finland and Guatemala strongly approve of the promotion of green energy, while others such as Venezuela stand on the complete opposite side of the issue. The compelling caucuses revealed each and every country’s unique ideas about a resolution to the issue, but despite the early stages of the conference, some are skeptical if a solution will ever be reached, considering the varying opinions of each nation.

Finland stands out as a generous nation in the sense that, as a developed country, it is willing to aid developing countries in jumpstarting their usage of clean energy. They have suggested a “big brother” or free market approach, consisting of a laissez-faire system that keeps the government as uninvolved as possible. Finland defends its ideas by claiming that this specific approach has significantly helped Greece, although went on to clarify that there would be restrictions put in place in this free market to avoid corruption and avert disaster. Several countries seemed interested in Finland’s claims, including developing countries such as aforementioned Guatemala. Naturally, there were also several other countries, developed and developing alike, that strongly disagreed with almost all of Finland’s suggestions. Venezuela, for example, was among the loudest dissenters.

While most countries believe that developing and developed countries must cooperatively come up with a plan to implement clean energy, Venezuela is one of the few countries that feels that this is unnecessary. This developing country is utterly opposed to monetary support from developed countries and feels that they can “survive on [their] own.” Venezuela has stated that the need for a switch to clean energy is due to climate change, and has blamed developed countries for being the source of a majority of the global pollution today. To Venezuela, most developing countries can survive by their own means through relying on their abundance of natural resources. Nations in agreement with Venezuela include Germany and Indonesia, who both recognize the need for clean energy, yet feel that developed countries should extricate themselves from the issues of developing countries. Despite its outspoken views, Venezuela has yet to propose a solution to the matter.