Getting a feel of the real UN

There were students from across the country and Pakistan, who participated in the events with great excitement and enthusiasm. 

This year’s MUN had, for the first time, a Joint Crisis Committee which focussed on international legal and political issues in a war-time situation. 

There was also the General Assembly, Human Rights Council and Security Council.

Among the various committees were the Joint Crisis Committee with two committees independently simulating the same historical event and interacting in an effort to resolve the conflict.

There was the War Crimes Tribunal for Sri Lanka which was a hypothetical special court set up to examine, among other things, allegations of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity under the Rome Statute regarding the recent ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka.

The students said that they got a hands on experience of the functioning of the United Nations. It was a serious business, they said.

Talking about the concept, Rishi Shroff, a third year student of NLS said that the General Assembly, the largest committee in terms of member strength “had interesting sessions peppered with moderated caucuses discussing a wide number of issues. Two of the most exciting committees were the UN Coalition Cabinet and the Iraqi War Cabinet whose interplay and exchange was amazing.”

Vineet, a student from Vellore said, “We had to deal with peaceful and war times. Conflict resolution and conflict management were an important part of the challenge.”

Navneet Nair, a fourth year student, NLS observes that this year’s competition was bigger and intense.

“The joint crisis committee has been one of the star attractions with excellent crisis response. The level of knowledge and debating skills among students are excellent,” he said.

The Lahore School of Economics emerged as the best delegation.