My First MUN and Why I Don’t See Myself Going Back
MUN or IMUN is the International Model United Nations. It’s an educational simulation of international diplomacy that was first conducted at St. Lawrence University in 1949, involving participant delegates from multiple regional conferences and universities. Actually, the very first “Model League of Nations” preceded the United Nations itself, stated to have begun in the 1920s.
Didn’t know all this? I don’t blame you; I myself had never heard of MUN until approximately 4 days before the event.
Thanks to a mutual friend who had been interning with IMUN (and the pandemic which had forced hitherto exclusive events to pursue online avenues) I both registered for the program and received a seat. Google taskbar and half-a-notebook in hand, I set out to research what IMUN actually was the first day. The next day, I learnt that I would be expected to represent the country of Liberia at UN Women. I was to prepare a position paper as delegate of my assigned nation-state and submit it the day before the event… which meant within 2 days. Nevermind that I had limited understanding of Liberian geopolitics and history to begin with, I also need to gain an understanding of feminist movements within Liberia, the immense role women played post-civil wars and the ongoing battles against bureaucracy and long-standing patriarchal traditions.
It was at this point that I came across my biggest fundamental question. What do you do if you are opposed to the nation’s policies? Or even, forget personal qualms about debating for a position you don’t side with; what if your nation’s people are at odds with their government? What should be done if your country has not passed certain human rights laws despite the vigorous efforts of its people to change this? As a delegate, was I allowed to have my country sign resolutions, which though universally applauded, the ruling government had avoided at all costs?
From what I could understand, my most important role as a delegate was to respect and uphold the sovereignty of the nation I represented. So I scrambled to cobble together a position paper and geared myself to enter the trenches the next day — an arena of explicit identity politics.
It didn’t go as I expected. Perhaps my very own preparations — balancing my laptop on a piece of luggage and wearing ‘business attire’ with sleep-sweatpants — should have clued me in to the program feeling less like Battle Royale and more like a corporate event.
The event began with a lecture delivered by the chief guest. Our guest speaker, an accomplished Harvard graduate, spoke about leadership values.
Now, I’ve always hated self-help books. I’ve been averse to self-help books since Who Stole My Cheese stopped being a fascinating little tale about mouse-sized people the first time I picked it up at age 11. As a man much smarter than I once said, it was “prosperity gospel for atheists”. However, I didn’t want to be that obnoxious STEM snob that looked down on humanities and the “soft” sciences. So I skipped my thanatology lecture to listen to a rich guy tell all of us to start businesses in our twenties. Admittedly, I couldn’t help but think of the many I know in STEM fields who could greatly benefit from this type of exposure. All young people need to be exposed to humanities, arts, society, and most importantly, to viewpoints and mindsets different from one’s own. So ultimately, I found the whole thing valuable.
Now, the main course. We were all dispersed to separate Zoom meeting rooms. UN Women had two lovely chairs facilitating the game that was to follow. Because that is what it felt like — a game. This is what I imagine it feels like to play the game of Risk. Fancy and elaborate rules gave way to nervous delegates’ speeches. We covertly private messaged those delegates whose views seemed to align with those of our countries the most. Within hours, the game unfolded and revealed itself; targets were acquired as the ones who were either least intimidating or alternatively the ones who seemed the most assertive and driven.
Waking up early the next morning to participate in an ‘unofficial’ Google Meet caucus with a bevy of potential allies, I tried to explain what I came to understand to my mom. Ultimately, coming up with the most proactive or forward-thinking draft resolution didn’t matter as much as getting a resolution out and being on the ‘winning’ side. It was imperative that a draft resolution be passed before today’s session concluded. Hence the delegates that had formed loose alliances were scrambling in “out-of-office” hours to have ‘secret’ discussions. As a game, it was delightful in its own way.
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As a simulation, MUN taught me matters of which I hadn’t even known I was ignorant. Suddenly, critical moments of the limited politics to which I was exposed gained clarity, fell into place. I was blown away by the realization: I could have gone several years, even decades, unaware of some fundamental ways in which our leadership, rule-of-law and international diplomacy works.
During the US General elections, watching addictive soundbites of ancient Bernie Sanders clips gained additional meaning. In the past, I may have appreciated Bernie for his charisma and consistency as a Senator. Now, I keyed into Representative Pat Schroeder’s “parliamentary inquiry, Mr. Chairman — do I have to call the gentleman and gentleman if he isn’t one?” It was as though someone broke down a complex, awful dance routine into simple rhythmical counts. Even if I may not be able to perform the dance myself, now I recognized the key movements and techniques.
You may argue that I didn’t need IMUN to learn the ‘points of parliamentary procedure’ . Had I watched the right movies or the right TV shows, or had I even put in the most perfunctory effort into learning, this wouldn’t have come as such a culture shock. I agree with this assessment, but nevertheless find it astonishing that we are not exposed to this through school. Yet even more than just the lingo, I was given a foundation to build interest, judgement and understanding.
Emphasis on the judgement. I came to read about the Copenhagen Climate Summit COP-15 in 2009. The so-called “Danish text” had just been leaked. This secret draft agreement was a working framework developed by rich nations — notably the US, UK, Denmark, etc — to allow 2°C global warming in exchange for $10 billion dollars. Nevermind that 2°C globally meant at least 3.5°C for Africa, or that the IPCC and all prevailing science had made clear the exigent nature of the 1/1.5°C target that these wealthy nations were beautifully ignoring, or that poor countries would not be allowed to emit more than 1.44 tonnes of carbon per person by 2050 while rich countries were allowed 2.67 tonnes. Developing nations were to ‘celebrate’ this deal. “10 billion dollars is not enough to buy us coffins,” Sudanese Ambassador Lumumba Di-Aping had said.
I can see the ad-hoc meeting of the G77 bloc (largely representative of African nations) in my mind’s eye. Tears streaming down his face, Lumumba went on to explain that the deal was nothing less than a colonization of the sky. How “we have been asked to sign a suicide pact” and the “climate fascism” that would suppress development in developing countries in their favor. Lumumba had energized the room.
Be that as it may, the 2009 climate summit would ultimately be a failure recognized even by Obama. The final moments fell down to the Chinese premier and contemporary US president brokering a deal for 2°C that “recognizes” the scientific case but made no commitments towards that goal. Rich countries had bullied and bribed their way through. The Ethiopian PM was summoned and offered a bribe to break African unity. Negotiators of the global South had been recalled to their capitals. South Africa and Brazil both took part in brokering this deal. It was a deal that removed important clauses last minute and came about though spying on developing country delegations.
Through IMUN, I learnt about blocs, working papers, sponsors and agenda-driven procedure. I was also given context for the power dynamics that underlined governmental functions.
This game of the global South being up against strongman international politics did not and does not end with 2009. Today, we watch predominantly wealthy countries, including Canada, the US, EU member nations and the UK come up against a proposal led by India and South Africa that would determine global access to Covid-19 vaccination. India and South Africa have approached the World Trade Organization requesting that certain legal provisions regarding patents be waived temporarily — for the purpose of prevention, containment and cure of SARS-CoV-2. They are meeting strong opposition that claims ‘innovation would be stifled’ and ‘patents are required for safety’, all while the rich countries are pre-buying the bulk of Covid vaccines. Vaccine nationalism, of course, is merely history repeating itself; we saw much of the same logic at the height of HIV and even during the recent swine flu epidemic. The message is clear — ‘developing’ nations are not as ‘capable’ as developed nations and this is the fatal flaw by which the poor must die.
Over the course of 2 days, our conference of UN Women passed a draft resolution that recognized the critical role and unstable position women held in the post-conflict recovery process and called upon the member states to enact policy that would protect and support the women during and after these times. It was satisfying, seeing the number of signatories and finally witnessing the fruit of two days’ labor.
I asked one of our kind chairs for feedback and I was told that each time I spoke, it was very substantiative, however she couldn’t tell why I seemed to ‘hold back’. If I had tried harder, put in a bit more effort, I would have easily bagged the highest award. Even if, for whatever reason, I did not wish to take the leadership in addressing our agenda, I could have just as well become the honorable delegation’s “right-hand”, so to speak. Nonetheless, I was awarded High Commendation.
I understood once again why I eschewed my liberal arts side to try my best making a career in STEM. Regardless of skill, I would not have the patience fighting long term for my values and principles. IMUN, and by extension the UN, came across as an institution bent on protecting the status quo. Only the most grandiose moments of tenacity and spirit could break against that nature.
So no, with all due respect, I don’t believe I’ll ‘be more of a leader’ my next IMUN. I’m not sure I ever want to come back again. Perhaps this article has prevented me from ever securing an internship of my own with the Model United Nations, but I was happy to write of my experience. New friends, I cherish your presence on my instagram feed dearly. Our chairs, you impressed and inspired me with your demeanor and deportment. Thank you for this most-arresting experience.
