MUNA 2012

District 9670 MUNA delegates and Secretary-General  2012

Congratulations to all delegates. 

Special Award - Timor Leste ( Merewether High School) 

Commendation - Cyprus ( Newcastle High School) 

Peace Prize : Russia (Warner Bay High School) 

Coming soon : Secretary General's report. 

It's MUNA time again

Model United Nations Assembly in District 9670 is on again - April 27-28 in Muswellbrook, NSW.   I am honoured to be have been asked again to be the Secretary -General . Tonight, I have just completed writing the resolutions and I heard that there are already 20 teams registered. Well done District 9670 MUNA committee! 

Keep watching this space for MUNA 21012 updates! 

Congratulations 2011 MUNA

Congratulations to all participants of MUNA 2011 in  Rotary District 9670 - an excellent event - you positively changed the world !

Special congratulations to the Israeli delegation from Mudgee High School, who were commended for their overall excellent efforts during the assembly and were awarded the honour of representing the District in Canberra , and also to the Newcastle High School delegates representing the Russian Federation who were awarded the 2011 Peace Prize.
Many thanks to the organisers, especially Megan, Helen and Julie from the Rotary Club of Newcastle Sunrise and Phil and his team from the Rotary Club of Muswellbrook.
best wishes from Secretary General 2011,

Watch this space for photos from MUNA 2011.
Your feedback re: MUNA 2011 would be most appreciated via a comment on this blog, or by contacting one of the orgnaising committee.

RESOLUTIONS MUNA District 9670

All participating teams should now have copies of the resolutions for Model United Nations Assembly, District 9670, to be held in Muswellbrook on 13-14 May 2011 . Here they are if you have not seen the proposed resolutions.

Security


1. Appalled by the recent terrorist attacks on nuclear plants in Eurasia that were purportedly committed by Indonesian Al-Qaeda, this Assembly

a) demands the investigation of the recent nuclear terrorist attacks on Eurasia, and

b) authorizes a United Nations peacekeeping coalition to eliminate the source of the threat, comprising of forces from the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Russia, China, France and Israel.


2. This Assembly demands that Israel, as the occupying power, immediately and completely ceases all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem and that it fully respect its legal obligations in this regard.

3. This Assembly denounces all acts of piracy like the recent reported killing of four United States hostages hijacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia.

and

a) emphasizes the need for ongoing efforts of the international community to stamp it out;

b) endorses an action plan developed at the UN International Maritime Organization (IMO) to combat piracy;

c) calls for greater coordination with navies off Somalia, where the European Union, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and UN Member States are already patrolling the dangerous waters and

d) encourages support for alternative livelihoods and the rehabilitation of coastal fisheries” to give would-be pirates an alternative source of income.

Human Rights

4. This Assembly denounces the violence by government sanctioned security forces against protesters in Libya, Bahrain and other countries in the Middle East and North Africa as illegal and excessively heavy-handed. Therefore, those using excessive force against peaceful protestors should be held accountable for their crimes against humanity and that the right to peaceful protest must be guaranteed.

5. That this Assembly urges the Australian government to honour its treaty obligations and fully recognize the rights of refugees and asylum seekers by ending off shore mandatory detention and granting all dispossessed persons full legal rights and access to the legal system.


6. Noting that greater efforts are needed to end grave violations against children in Afghanistan, including their use as child soldiers, sexual violence, killing and maiming, this Assembly demands that the Afghan Government ensures that adequate resources are allocated for effective implementation of the Action Plan to protect children, including introducing legislation aimed at criminalizing the recruitment of children in armed conflict and ensuring that no impunity is granted for grave violations against children under international law


7. This Assembly reiterates its call for all steps to be taken to ensure the protection of civilians; and strongly condemns incidents of discrimination and violence against women and girls, in particular if directed against women activists and women prominent in public life, including killings, maimings and “honour killings”.


Economic Development

8. Noting 2010 had been a “record” year in terms of lives lost and infrastructure destroyed by natural disasters, this assembly recommends that all member nations ensure disaster risk reduction and prevention be integrated into long- and medium-term planning and that vulnerable developing island states in particular be financially supported to diversify their economies

9. Acknowledging that major failures of regulation and supervision in developed countries, plus irresponsible risk-taking by banks and other financial institutions had created dangerous financial fragilities which contributed significantly to the Global Financial Crisis, this Assembly

a) emphasizes the need for greater transparency and better regulation and supervision of the international financial system by, inter alia, strengthening prudential oversight, improving risk management and reinforcing international cooperation;

b) encourages global concerted efforts to restore global economic growth,

particularly in developing countries; and

c) reaffirms the commitment to broaden and strengthen the participation of developing countries and countries with economies in transition in international economic decision-making and norm-setting, specifically with regard to increasing the voting power of developing countries in the Bretton Woods institutions.

10. That this Assembly, being of the opinion that there is no credible evidence that the recreational use of cannabis is damaging to health, encourages the farming of hemp as a cash crop in developing nations

Environment

11. This Assembly endorses the agreements made at the Cancun Climate Change Conference , and insists that all member states implement the agreed measures and formalise mitigation pledges to build a low-carbon, climate-resilient future These measures include:

a) taking concrete action to protect the world's forests, which account for nearly one-fifth of global carbon emissions;

b) establishing a fund for long-term climate financing to support developing countries;

c) agreeing to ensure no gap between the first and second commitment periods of the Kyoto Protocol ;

d) bolstering technology cooperation and enhancing vulnerable populations'' ability to adapt to the changing climate


12 That this Assembly endorse the Protocol on Environmental Protection contained in the Antarctic Treaty in order to ensure that Antarctica continue to be used exclusively for peaceful purposes and that the ban on mining and mineral exploration be maintained.



13 Aware that despite recent improvements, poor air quality is still a major global concern affecting public health worldwide, this Assembly

a) calls upon developed nations to implement air quality control programs and to support the efforts being taken to reduce air pollution;

b) urges a move to more non-polluting renewable forms of energy production such as wind, solar, geothermal and tidal power; and

c) encourages the implementation of more strict air control laws in order to cut down on emissions and prevent air pollution especially in large urban environments.

United Nations

14. This Assembly recommends that the Security Council be restructured to admit additional permanent members with due consideration to the admission of India, Germany and Japan and the privilege of the veto of permanent members be reviewed.

If you have any quesitons about these resolutions and are a MUNA participant, please contact the Secretary General via email or via the comment section below.

MUNA District 9670

Model United Nations Assembly (MUNA) in Rotary District 9670 will be held in Muswellbrook on 8th and 9th May 2009.

What is MUNA?

MUNA stands for Model United Nations Assembly, which simulates the workings of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly by having teams of two or three senior students represent a particular U.N. country in debates on matters of world political and social concern. Rotary Model United Nations Assembly is all about building bridges of goodwill for world peace and understanding in the minds of our youth.. The main aims are

-to develop in students an awareness of the United Nations and the international situation of other countries in the world;
-to enable students to improve their public speaking and debating skills;
-to encourage them to make empathetic and informed comments on world problems;
-share their opinions and friendship with students from other schools and
-to lay the foundation for the free sharing of ideas across national boundaries which is the essence of a truly open society tolerant to differences of race, religion, and political opinion

What is MUNA's history?

MUNA as a concept arose in North America from the desire of young people to simulate the great debates of the United Nations Assembly. MUNA was first conducted as a Rotary activity by the Rotary Club of Winnipeg in Canada, and introduced to Australia by the Rotary Club of Lake Cargelligo in 1980. (Note: Chris Budden who was responsible for introducing MUNA in Lake Cargelligo was the Secretary-General of the first MUNA held in District 9670)

In 1988 Forbes Rotary Club realised the potential for Rotary to spread MUNA more widely and undertook MUNA 88 - a Rotary Bicentennial Project for Youth. The challenge issued by Forbes has been taken up by many Rotary districts so that now MUNA has spread throughout Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and world wide. The first National MUNA was held in the Australian Parliament House in August, 1997
The United Nations has given enthusiastic support for the ongoing growth of this very worthwhile project for youth.
In 1989 President Royce Abbey of Melbourne placed MUNA on the World Youth Activities Committee Agenda for Rotary International, and it was fitting that MUNA was included as part of the Rotary International Conference conducted in Melbourne in 1993.
In June, 1995 a MUNA delegation of five students representing Australia attended the Rotary/United Nations Presidential MUNA celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the signing of the U.N. Charter in San Francisco.

MUNA is now conducted in all five continents of the world and aims to operate in each of the existing 518 Rotary Districts world wide. Rotary International,with over 28,000 clubs in over 154 countries,has over 1.2 million membership committed to service and has the unique potential to bring the message of world peace and understanding to youth through MUNA. It encourages them to communicate their knowledge and idealism by the shared exhilaration of researching, understanding and debating significant social and political issues.