News

Students from our Model United Nations (MUN) class recently participated in an MUN conference at the International School of Phnom Penh, joining over 15 schools from across South-East Asia. The conference covered topics such as: cyber-warfare security, regulation of cryptocurrencies, digital privacy, and the preservation of indigenous culture and language.

Mr. McBride, MUN co-ordinator, said, “Highlights of the trip included the first JPA student to hold the position of Head Chair at a senior MUN conference and the fact that a number of our students were nominated to draft and submit resolutions. Whilst there is room for improvement, these are sure signs of the growing confidence of our students.”

Students shared their reflections below:

Vanny, Grade 11.
“As a delegate in General Assembly three, it was enjoyable to be part of some passionate debates. The discussions over the question of the preservation of language and culture and the rights of children were particularly engaging. Delegates all had a say when deciding how to ensure that children of imprisoned parents should be protected and raised properly.”

Sareth, Grade 11.
“I represented the country of Nepal in the Human Rights Council. I took on the challenge by drafting and submitting a resolution on the topic of preventing the exploitation of youth for military purposes. Being the delegate responsible for writing a resolution means having to make many speeches to convince other delegates to support your proposal. However, I and the other delegates managed to write what I thought was an exceptional resolution. Others agreed as many delegates voted for our resolution and it passed. During the debate, there were two delegates who were particularly skeptical about our resolution. As their countries permitted child soldiers, they repeatedly demanded that I make an amendment to allow for voluntary child soldiers. I didn’t attach the amendment, so those countries abstained from voting. It was such an enjoyable debate as I was able to connect with some of the topics I have learned in political science class such as human rights, social dilemmas, and citizenship for refugees. In the end, I was glad to write a resolution and proud that it passed.”

Ratana, Grade 12.
“We debated cryptocurrency regulation. We discussed the growth of electronic payments across the globe, leading towards a cashless society. However, we voiced concern at the lack of regulation that is in place to protect consumers and the danger that cryptocurrency can be used to trade in illegal goods.

“This was my first MUN conference, and it was unforgettable. It was great to see students of different nationalities come together to debate global issues.”

Chanmolis, Grade 12.
“This year I held the role of Head Chair of the Economic and Social Committee, and I enjoyed every single moment of it.

“On the first day, I had to manage the committee alone as my Deputy Chair was delayed at the airport. However, it was a positive day as we prepared many written resolutions. When I got back to the hotel, I shared the resolutions with my Deputy Chair, and we set about preparing feedback on each of them for our committee members.

“MUN protocol states that delegates are to refer to themselves in the third person. However, I was continually forced to remind delegates to refrain from using personal pronouns such as, “I think that,” and “I would have to respond,” rather than, “The delegate thinks...”. Thankfully, there were only a few instances where I had to call for a formal break in proceedings. On one occasion I had to bang the gavel to stop the delegate for Japan from speaking as she had gone over her time limit. She wasn’t going to stop until she had finished her speech.

“In the end, only two out of the five resolutions put forward were passed, one written by a JPA student, Srey On, Grade 10, who told me, ‘I was amazed that no one went against my resolution. Instead, they helped by adding multiple amendments to improve it. I was extremely proud when everyone in the house voted to pass it.’ ”

Congratulations to all the participants, particularly Chanmolis, the first JPA student to hold the position of Head Chair at a senior MUN conference. Thank you to Mr. McBride and Mr. Van Hilten for preparing students for this year’s MUN conference.