Miodel students return from Cairo

This spring, four
Douglas College
students achieved
success on the
international scene —
at the model United
Nations conference in

Egypt.

The conference,
held March 4-9 at the
American University
in Cairo, hosted 400
student delegates
representing various
countries. Political
Science students
Alison Hartley,
Mandeep Bhuller, Kathryn Witwickie and
Brenda Musclow, accompanied by
instructor Marlene Hancock, were the
only college delegates from Western
Canada.

After all-day — and often intense —
mock UN sessions on various themes, the
group was almost too tired to sight-see,

but they managed to sneak in a pyramid or

two during the trip. Last month, they
treated the New Westminster Campus to a
recap of their conference activities and
achievements.

“This experience introduced our
students to a true mix of international
actors, outside of the Canadian context,”
says Hancock. “Through their
participation, they were exposed to
different ideologies and political
platforms — an invaluable perspective as
we head for a global economy.”

Mandeep Bhuller, who represented
Nigeria in debates on international peace-
keeping reforms, agrees. “It’s easy to say
that efforts within the UN have failed, but
when you try to seek solutions with
representatives of 186 countries, you
realize how complex it really is.”

Alison Hartley, who paired up with
Bhuller as a lobbyist, gained a similar
impression. “I’ve never played chess, but
I think I could now,” she laughs.

 

  

Brenda Musclow and Kathryn Witwickie

 

Mandeep Bhuller and Alison Hartley

 

“One has to learn diplomacy. I found
that once people explained their ideas we
could often reach agreement, but things
often hinged on one word.”

Efforts paid off for Bhuller and
Hartley, who saw the UN Reform
Committee resolutions and declarations
they supported sent to the real UN
General Assembly in New York. For
Witwickie and Musclow, the conference
yielded less concrete — but no less
dramatic — results.

These two students, again
representing Nigeria, attended the
conference stream dealing with Islam.
“Because we were acting as heads of
state, we were referred as ‘Your
Excellency,’ Witwickie notes. “Tt
was a wonderful experience to learn
how other countries view diplomacy,
and how the personal often becomes
the political.”

Debating expatriate worker issues
within the context of Islam also gave
her insight into how difficult it is —
even theoretically — to regulate
people’s lives through diplomacy.

Musclow, who participated in
sessions on the
global image of
Islam reports: “As
a Canadian, it was
difficult to discuss
such things as
Western media
takeovers, but
trying out ideas
from another
perspective was
really educational.
I learned a lot
about Islamic law.”

For Witwickie,
the lasting value of
the conference
breaks down into
three main areas:
“Learning beyond
stereotypes about life in Islamic
countries, learning that the most
important part of diplomacy is listening,
and seeing how an ancient civilization
develops into a modern society.”

For Hancock, the experience also
helps to confirm Douglas College’s
commitment to internationalization.

“We received a lot of help, through
scholarships and a huge amount of
support on campus, to get to Cairo this
year. Thanks to everyone who
encouraged this initiative.” fj