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Students' UN conference concludes
ISLAMABAD, Aug 20: Before a hall packed with students, the Saint Mary's
Academy Model United Nations (Smamun) 2007 conference concluded with the same
energy and passion with which it had started four days ago.
Despite the
exhausting and long heated debates among students who acted like real diplomats,
the drive and flare was still very much there even on the last day of Smamun
2007 which ended on Sunday with a cheerful award ceremony.
Awards were
distributed among schools and individuals with the best diplomatic efforts. The
best delegation award went to students of Head Start who represented the
US.
Boys and girls from the Head Start School seemed to dominate the
crowd as they cheered and shouted when their friends walked to the front to
collect their awards.
Earlier, after debating and quarrelling like big
powers did in the United Nations, students on the last day of their Model UN
managed to find a common ground to bring peace to the world without
war.
Putting aside all differences, various committees on Disarmament and
Security, Counter Terrorism and HISTOMUN etc, presented resolutions that focused
on safeguarding human lives without waging war to establish peace. Probably
their major accomplishments were to convince super powers like the US and Israel
to solve problems by entering into dialogue rather than invading other
nations.
With new and profound challenges facing the world, the principal
of Saint Mary's Academy, Eileen Ann Datty, hoped that students had been able to
gain an increased sense of responsibility at the Model UN for the future of
Pakistan and the world.
With these thoughts from a proud principal a
brief documentary was also played giving glimpses of the challenges that lay
ahead for the future generations with poverty alleviation being the top most
priority.
This year students from as many as 29 schools from Islamabad,
Rawalpindi and Lahore participated in Smamun 2007 which provided youth with
better understanding of how the world worked.
Smamun 2007 boasted
strengths of 250 students from Head Start, City School, Roots Islamabad, Beacon
House, Khuldunia High School, Grammar School, University Law College Lahore, LGS
Lahore and students from Saint Mary's Academy.
Wishing their counterparts
the best, secretary-general and president, Smamun society, Mustafa Mumtaz Sheikh
and V.P. Usman Khalid, respectively, as well as directors, Shehzad Shahid and
Arsalan Ali Shafqat, hoped to see the students next year for Smamun
2008.
"Smamun 2007 has been a great success. It will be an event to look
forward to and be remembered fondly for all times to come," Arsalan Ali Shafqat
said. Dawn
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