Model United Nations in Japanese

On Tuesday 22 July, VCE Japanese students attended the annual Japanese Model UN hosted by the United Nations Association of Australia. 

23 Nossal students participated in the event, representing Samoa, China, Mexico, Romania, Botswana, and Japan. Each group researched their nations and all delegates worked together to vote on amendments for a Draft Resolution. 

As part of this program, students recited prepared position statements reflecting the stance of their country on the topic of the rights of Indigenous people. Then, delegates participated in an unscripted discussion of Indigenous rights and the draft resolution, before drafting amendments to the document, and voting on which amendments should be included. The discussions were very productive, with all countries finding allies to second their suggestions, and 7 of 8 shortlisted amendments being accepted and added to the final draft resolution.

On behalf of everyone who attended the Model UN, thank you to Ms Kamimura for the opportunity, as this event provided a valuable insight into undertaking formal proceedings in Japanese, and a chance to meet other VCE Japanese students from across Victoria. 

While many students were nervous about speaking in front of other people, and participating in an unscripted debate in Japanese, there was a lot of support from teachers, helpers, the Secretary General, and other students and everybody was able to feel comfortable contributing. 

In my opinion, this event was extremely beneficial, and I definitely recommend it for anyone going into VCE Japanese!

By Charlie Loi, Year 11