MUN Mannheim at SGMUN 2019

UNHRC

With Til, Florian, Felice and Antonia, MUN Mannheim was certainly not underrepresented in the conference's Human Rights Council. As the delegates of Brazil, Ukraine, Nepal and Eritrea we had a fun time diving into and stirring the blur between good and bad while dealing with the topics of human rights in protests and civic advocacy as well as LGBT rights. Thinking back, memories pop up: Saudi Arabia holding fiery speeches promoting sharia law, the committee's "good conscience" aka Australia trying to bring everyone on the same page, and unusual alliances being formed between the world's most progressive and most conservative countries. - MUN is a world in itself.

Since the conference's HRC was a beginners' committee, the chairs were quite forgiving when it came to MUN's paramount rule… There is no I in MUN! … However, some punishments were inevitable. Highlights included a deeply emotional Russian-Ukrainian performance of Titanic's My Heart Will Go On… Superb!

Antonia Brand

UNGA ECOFIN

In the Economic and Financial Council (ECOFIN) delegates from various international universities had to find solutions in a (more or less) diplomatic manner for economic issues within international trade relations, gender equality and sustainability. Being the “beginners” council, most delegates in ECOFIN had their first real MUN experience. Although confusion prevailed at the beginning among the beginners, the delegates quickly acquired the necessary skills for a fun and productive Model United Nations session with a little help by the chairs. Actions such as backstabbing former partners, merging position papers, aggressive accusations in debates and informal language might have affected diplomatic realism but made the sessions and debates certainly more spirited.

The special thing about ECOFIN and its delegates was its unique team spirit. Whilst a Japanese delegate might have denounced the Chinese government to be a vicious tyrant in international affairs, both of them would later be seen on the dancefloor during a social chanting “ECOFIN!” loudly, making SGMUN an unforgettable experience.

Jonathan Heiman

European Council

As an international exchange student at the University of Mannheim, I got the chance to meet with the MUN Mannheim team at their kickoff. Internationally minded and well-spoken, I realised I wanted to get involved with them and signed up for the St.Gallen Conference. Thinking back, this was definitely the best decision I made during my exchange. After attending some of their training sessions, we went to St. Gallen. There I represented Poland in the European Council. Where the simulation itself was, of course, a game, the topic of Strengthening the internal market of the EU was the real deal. Thanks to the incredibly well-researched preparation material and committed chairs, we managed to pass a resolution that was realistic and tackled controversial topics such as competition law, geoblocking and climate concerns.

Next to the intensive committee sessions, we were treated with a speech by a Swiss official, an all you can dip fondue and multiple parties at night. The MUN-world can be smaller than you'd think I found out, as I even got to reconnect with some old friends I met at a conference in my own country. Proof enough that this albeit small town hosts one of the most reputed conferences in Europe. If you don't believe my words, I guess you'll have to go and find out yourself!

Stéphane Mertens

ICSID

For the first time in the history of Model United Nations, SGMUN 2019 hosted a simulation of international investment arbitration. It was a small advanced committee, where we took the role of government representatives and their advocates, negotiating an environmental dispute within the World Bank Group’s International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) framework. The chairs had written an intriguing mock case involving an oil spill in deep rural Nigeria, which triggered imminent regulation by the local government. The Moroccan investor saw this as an infringement of its rights under the Moroccan-Nigerian Bilateral Investment Treaty. Countering, the Federal Republic of Nigeria claimed that the latter “innovative” treaty supported the social and environmental arguments for the harsh state intervention.

Starting off with an insightful workshop on the core principles of investment arbitration with a seasoned lawyer, both parties quickly moved into the debate, constructing claims and then collecting and presenting a few dozens of pieces of evidence. A particularly fun exercise appeared to be witness cross-examination, where the SGMUN Secretariat demonstrated that they are not only excellent conference organisers but also a bunch of talented actors. We heard a governments clerk, an environmental researcher, a company official and a Nigerian tribal chief. Each of the characters made a convincing impression, and some successfully managed to frustrate the advocates and representatives in charge of questioning. Finally, both parties left the room and eagerly awaited the Award that was negotiated between the arbitrators behind closed doors. In effect, the respondent (Nigeria) had to admit to slight concessions on the ground of Fair and Equitable Treatment (FET), whereas its claim on expropriation as well as Nigeria’s counterclaim failed.

After sunset, Mannheim was busy spreading festive feelings and giving away MUN Mannheim stickers, which became a conference-wide hit. Our 14-member delegation embraced teamwork and spirit far beyond the committee rooms, lifting the mood of a sleepy Swiss student town with all efforts. A weekend we won’t forget!

Kiril Lavrov