Art of diplomacy: BAYMUN’15 brings future diplomats under one roof

The theme for this year's conference was 'Revolutions Through Resolutions'

KARACHI: Bay View College Model United Nations (BAYMUN) 2015 provided an opportunity to students from across the city to engage in lively debates on hypothetical situations such as colonising new planets, growing international problems such as terrorism in the Middle East and the legality of military bases in the world.

The three-day conference proved to be a platform for students to learn and benefit from the art of diplomacy. The theme for this year's BAYMUN was 'Revolutions Through Resolutions'.

"We saw tremendous passion, enthusiasm, motivation and courage among the young Pakistani students," said Dr Tim Spracklen, Habib University researcher and continuing education dean, while addressing the closing ceremony of the conference on Monday.



Speaking about change and hope, Spracklen said, "May be in your life time you can see Pakistan become the third biggest economy of the world". Motivating the young audience, he cited the example of China. "It is not impossible to get to the top, as I have seen in my lifetime how China has become the world's largest economy in a span of 30 years".

The biggest problem is that Pakistani citizens are oblivious to the contributions the country is making to the world, he claimed. To emphasise his point, he cited the example of a woman from Karachi who is heading one of the space projects in National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). "We should be proud of that woman, but people barely know about her," he lamented.

He said that the young students should own their country. They should respect and feel proud of their country and its citizens who are making a difference worldwide, he added.

The conference's programme director, Rashida Naeem, said that students should be encouraged to participate in such debates. "You feel proud when you see students debating on different topics and coming up with solutions," she added.

Karachi Grammar School (KGS) delegation was the winner as it secured the most number of best delegates' awards. This year, more than 260 students belonging to 20 different schools participated in the conference.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 11^th, 2015.