Little diplomats

At the Harvard Model United Nations at the HICC, the young delegates, dressed in smart suits and dresses, looked the part. In the two days that follow they will have a taste of what real diplomats do at real UN summits.

Photo credit: Srinivas Setty

Hyderabad: Thirty minutes before the opening ceremony of the opening ceremony of the Harvard Model United Nations at the HICC, it looked like a school at recess time. Hundreds of teens who had come as delegates (boys dressed in suits, girls in dresses and heels) seemed enthusiastic about the whole idea. Some walked about making arrangements and seeing to it everything was in order, others huddled up in several groups speaking animatedly about the programme and resolutions that they will pass in the proceedings in the next two days.

It’s a grand occasion to make friends and take pictures. And the delegates were doing that before the opening ceremony. There was a Harley Davidson on display, called the Ahimsa Harley Davidson, that was earlier in the day escorted to the venue to by 20 other roaring Harleys and there could be seen several of the “delegates” getting their pictures clicked posing by the bike that had on its black body signatures in, mayhap, white ink.

The ceremony started late. It was said it would at 4 pm. Well, this is India, and there’s no room for surprise if things start a little late. A little earlier than 4pm one of the speakers at the event, Binalakshmi Nepram, founder of the Control Arms foundation of India, arrived and was escorted to one of the rooms for guests. While chatting up with the two girls who had received her, she said she was happy to come here and deliver her message for the need of disarmament in this country where everyday more than 10 deaths occur due to gun violence. Ms Nepram who is known for bringing focus on the issues of Manipur and the north eastern states at several world and national forums promised she would share with them some anecdotes about her experiences that she had when she went to attend the “real thing”.

Finally, the ceremony started. Divya Seth, Secretary General, spoke about the importance of the HMUN and the role those assembled there had to play. A little later, Dr Rajendra Pachauri, started his address, apologising for his coming late because his flight was delayed. He spoke about the grave future that awaited the world if greenhouse gas levels are not checked by 2015: “Heat waves that happened once in 20 years would occur once in two years,” he warned.

The biggest cheers were reserved for Nepram. She talked about the purpose of her forum and told the delegates how they can make a huge change. Speaking about her work and visits to UN summits, she recalled the response of a Chinese delegate when she confronted him about the spread of cheap Chinese weapons in the North Eastern states in India: “I don’t know what you are talking about.” “So diplomats can lie,” she pointed out. Boisterous cheers and claps followed. Another instance was when an Indian diplomat at the UN said that the illegal arms seized in the North Eastern region came to a figure under 10 when the data with Nepram showed it to be over 200. “And diplomats may not have the right information.”

There were delegates who had attended the session last year, too. Jenish, 16, was one of them.

“It’s great to know about the issues of the world. Last year I was with the Unicef and we had passed a resolution about helping the tremendous number of people suffering from Aids. This year I am with SPECPOL (Special Political and Decolonization),” he said.

I asked another delegate why he was here. “It’s interesting. And it looks good on your resume, too.”