By Shally Lin
On the day of my freshman orientation at Boston College, I told a parent that I was from Taiwan. He replied, “You can tell us if the Thai food here is authentic!” I was deeply offended by this parent’s remark, and he felt terribly embarrassed when I explained that I was from Taiwan, and not Thailand. Having had four years of experience in the MUN program and having studied at an American School, I’ve never realized the importance of being aware of the international community. Until that day, I had always assumed that everyone simply knew what was going in the rest of the globe – or, at least, had some sense of geography. It never occurred to me that people failed to pay attention to what was occurring outside of their own state, or even their own town. A couple days after this, a friend of mine informed me that her classmate had always thought typhoons came from Taiwan, due to the similarities in the Chinese character for the two words. It is through these two events that, suddenly, I realized the impact of Model United Nations on students around the world, and its importance in educating them about the greater community. Shocked, I was unaware that such a faux-pas would happen in the United States of America – a country known as a melting pot of cultures and ethnicities. I was surprised, too, to learn that many Americans did not own passports, as they do not feel the need to travel abroad. Though financial difficulties and other factors may come into play, most feel that, quite simply, America is big enough for them to explore. Still surprising, however, is the lack of awareness and that many do not attempt to educate themselves beyond their fishbowl environment. For example, few students feel the need to read or watch international or domestic news on a daily basis. Just last month, a “Cluster Bomb Survival Panel” was hosted by the Asian Caucus at Boston College. Survivors spoke of their tragic experience in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War. At the time, the U.S. conducted a covert attack, dropping cluster bombs on their adversaries. To this day, the unexploded bombs continue to take the lives of many and, despite such detrimental ramifications, the States continue to supply these cluster bombs to countries such as Israel, who have used this weapon in its dispute in Lebanon. The panel was a truly educational experience and an excellent opportunity to broaden one’s mindset. Despite its importance, however, only a small percentage of students attended this event. This caused me much disappointment as it confirmed my beliefs that students rarely attempt to go out of their way to reach the world beyond their doorstep. Though technology advances with each day, and information is more readily accessible, many are still oblivious to the world around them and they make no attempt to rectify this. The Model United Nations program seeks to remedy this lack of understanding and encourages students to overcome this knowledge gap. Each and every delegate extensively researches their topic of debate and hoards an arsenal of knowledge regarding countries around the world. At each of the eight MUN conferences that I have attended – both as an officer and a delegate – I collaborated with delegates and also observed them as they toiled to create the perfect resolution to solve their world issue. In Security Council, I watched as delegates delved deeply into the topic of nuclear weaponry, while in the General Assembly, delegates dealt with issues such as human rights and gender equality. The contrast between those who were internationally aware and those who were not was extreme. Imagine what a MUN conference would be like if the delegates or the officers thought Taiwan was Thailand, or that Canada was a part of the United States? Harking back to my somewhat enlightening experiences at Boston College, I am reminded of another such event – Student Activities Day. I was disappointed and appalled not to see a Taiwanese Students Association. Because of this, my friends Louisa Chao and Natalie Chin got together and spoke of starting such an association at BC to educate the students regarding the unique culture and other aspects of Taiwan. However, progress for this endeavor has been slow because of political issues and claims of the similarities of a Chinese Students Association and a Taiwanese Students Association. Consequently, we realized that our club’s success would be a slow process. When I told Louisa and Natalie about that Taiwan/Thailand confusion, they laughed and nodded in agreement, exclaiming that they too have encountered similar remarks. I never imagined that this was actually a common mix-up. In retrospect, I value my MUN experience as I come to realized that it has helped me to become more aware of the international community and global issues today, and it has taught me not to make such ignorant remarks.The world has experienced an explosion of knowledge, but not a corresponding growth in understanding. By the end of THIMUN-Singapore III, I anticipate that everyone will have learned something new about this world that we all call home. Each conference, we raise our awareness and we become better educated and more prepared for the future. Perhaps then, this is the most important aspect of the conference: the knowledge gained from your MUN experience. After participating in one conference you may realize that now, you know where Qatar is. After another, you may realize that your endless hours of research was not in vain, as you now truly sympathize and understand the issues which you have been debating for days on end. Or perhaps, after your experience, you simply find that you seem to sound much more intelligent in front of others and one day, when you attend your child’s freshman orientation at college, you will be comforted knowing that you will not humiliate yourself by confusing Thailand with Taiwan.
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