UN Youth National Conference

During the recent school holidays Ashwin, year 11 IGNITE student, attended a four-day UN Youth National Conference. Ashwin was one of a small group of South Australian students invited to attend due to his exemplary manner and conduct at the SA State Conference in term 1. Unfortunately, COVID-19 restrictions prevented travel to Canberra. However, delegates from all states and territories were able to engage online. Throughout the conference there was the opportunity to participate in a range of activities on the theme of international justice. Congratulations Ashwin and thank you for writing the account of your experiences at this event which is below.

Ashwin Murugappa (Year 11 IGNITE Student)

In these times of geo-political calamity, bitter political discourse and endemic prejudice, it is essential to recall the principles enshrined in the United Nations (UN) charter that have preserved their enduring relevance to providing a framework/forum for universal human rights, peaceful inter-governmental cooperation and humanitarian relief. The UN Youth organisation works with the Australian Government and UNICEF to educate and empower young Australians on global issues and the legal structures underpinning the international order, particularly the function of the UN in resolving supranational crises through the constituent bodies of the UN and the aforementioned charter principles. UN Youth hosts many peer-education programs throughout the year, including their premier National Conference that convenes “over 100 exceptional young people from across Australia and the Asia-Pacific to discuss a diverse range of international and local issues”. Students from each state conference held in the country are selected to represent their state delegation in the national conference, and I was fortunate enough to be selected in the South Australian delegation.

Unfortunately, COVID precluded a physical conference which would have been held at ACT, so a virtual format was set up. The conference totalled four consecutive days and thematically sought to address the criminal justice system and its re-interpretation in the context of the UN Covenant on the Civil and Political Rights of Prisoners. This was discussed in stimulating workshop sessions that posed intriguing questions in law and political philosophy, ranging from ‘what is justice?’ to ‘what model of justice should be adopted by courts to prescribe judicial remedies?’ In addition, an Interactive Problem-Solving (IPS) session was conducted; IPS provides delegates with a simulated scenario, who are expected to ideate solutions in their respective cabinets, representing certain interests whilst working collaboratively with other cabinets. This blast of Machiavellian diplomacy and political chess allowed free play to corruption, political scandal and espionage in a simulated environment.

We also embarked on a tour of the state Parliament House and were privy to the Parliament Library’s numerous artefacts curated by the charismatic state Librarian Dr John West, who related numerous comical anecdotes of the history of the august institution. However, the highlights of this event were undoubtedly the Model UN debate (MUN) and laureated speaker panel. Former Justice of the High Court of Australia, Michael Kirby, gave a regaling talk on his career as a jurist and academic, and spoke of the experiences that influenced his judicial principles and conceptions of law. A three-way panel interview was also conducted, featuring the Justice of the

Children’s Court, Backtrack founder Bernie Shakeshaft and the UN Youth representative for Australia. It was truly inspiring to hear the personal anecdotes of these individuals and their extraordinary impact on the reduction of recidivism rates in youth offences.

A common thread I identified in these dialogues was the isolation and addressment of the causative factors that result in a youth offence, as opposed to punitive legal remedies in accordance with a rehabilitative model of justice. Moreover, the MUN was a riveting demonstration of diplomatic proceedings and general assembly protocol, requiring a breadth of capabilities to successfully fulfil your country’s geo-political objectives. In essence, a delegate (student) is designated a country to represent in the general assembly and must endeavour to implement/affirm clauses in a debated resolution (contested issue) favourable to the respective country’s foreign policy objectives. I was designated Venezuela, and the resolution pertained to ‘the question of prisoner political participation’ and ‘the question of prison abolition.’ For prospective students, I would emphatically recommend participating in the SACON next year, the annual state conference to develop manifold capabilities, build civic engagement and cultivate an understanding of political/judicial systems to affect change on important social issues.