By GREG NG

Hwa Chong Institution

The United Nations General Assembly is one of the five principal organs of the United Nations, overseeing the budget, appointing the non-permanent members to the Security Council, receiving reports from other parts of the United Nations and making recommendations in the form of General Assembly Resolutions.

     The General Assembly committees started off the conference with a short preparatory meeting in which the Chairs introduced themselves and went over the proper procedures with delegates, ensuring that the events for the rest of the day – and the rest of the conference – would go smoothly and without confusion. Timothy Yap, Deputy Head of Admin Staff, commented that the delegates were “dynamic and professional,” and stated his enthusiasm in overseeing the rest of the conference.

     Introductions were followed by lobbying, which requires the delegates to come together in order to merge, create or improve resolutions. Susmit Tripathi, the Chair of GA5, likens lobbying to the act of meditation. The delegates meditated on the issues at hand and tried to find a middle ground to work on. If you had entered any of the 5 sectors in this conference’s General Assembly, you would have immediately noticed a distinct air of focus and concentration. Sam Kee, the Chair of GA6, had only praise for the delegates, saying that the proceedings were “wonderful,” and that the delegates were “lively and proactive, cooperating and actively seeking ways and means to reconcile differences and achieve satisfying agreements.”

    However, the process of lobbying was not without disagreements. In GA5, the group of delegates discussing the review and implementation of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism had to split up into two opposing factions due to an inherent difference of opinion. Another group that experienced a small disagreement was the one discussing the question of equitable representation on and increase in the membership of the Security Council and related matters. Adam Irawan, delegate of China from GA5 agreed that the resolution proposed by the other nations was solid, but had no choice but to oppose it due to China’s intrinsic stand on the issue. To this development, Turkey stated its determination in continuing to push the resolution forward – says Akilan Shanmugaratnam, delegate of Turkey, GA5: “Turkey will not back down. We may be a bird, but we are not chicken.”

  All in all, this day was a promising start to the rest of the week’s proceedings, and participants are sure to see the same kind of high energy and enthusiasm as delegates continue to delve deeper into the issues at hand. Katrina Yap, the Deputy Chair of GA5, noted that the delegates cooperated well – almost harmoniously – and came well-prepared.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009