The Czech Reflection

TheCzechReflection

Areflectionpaperonmytimespentasamemberofthe2013MUNteam

BriannaIsabelle5/3/2013

TheCzechRepublic.ThiswasacountryIknewnothingaboutbeforebeingassignedtolearneverythingandanythinginamatterofweeks.Adauntingtaskforanystudent,butoneespeciallyhardformeconsideringmyregionofconcentrationisAsia.Tacklingsuchataskrequiredhoursofresearchandevenmorehourstryingtomemorizeandlearnthematerial.TheotherdelegatesandIsoondiscoveredthatlearningthebasicswasnotenough,asourHeadDelegatespushedustoknowtheCzechRepublicjustasmuchasweknewourownhomecountries.Duringclass,theywouldaskquestionsregardinghistoricaleventsIdidnotevenknowtookplace,promptingmetoreturnhomeanddigdeeperwhileresearching.Completelyscaredoutofmymind,IoftenwonderedwhatIhadgottenmyselfintoasthetimecommitmentcontinuedtoclimbweek-to-weekanddespiteallmyresearch,IneverfeltIknewenough.However,aschallengingandtiringasthiscoursewasandasmuchasIwouldhavejustlikedtogiveup,itturnedouttobeoneofthebestexperiencesIhavehadwhileatSyracuse.

LearningabouttheCzechRepublic’srichhistoryequalednoothertimeIhadlearnthistory.Consideringthatthecountrygainedindependencein1993followingaspiltwithSlovakia,thetimelineofeventswasnotasbroadandintegratedwiththeworldasImighthavehoped.TheVelvetRevolutionhappeningpriortotheVelvetDivorceprovidesabriefglimpseintothedefininghistoryofthecountry,yetI,forsomestrangereason,couldnevergetthemstraight.Maybethiswasaresultofneverfeelingsecureinmyresearch,butIthinkwithsuchanewcountry,doingresearchbecomesthatmuchharder.Youwouldthinkitwouldbeeasier,butpersonallyIthinkthatwhenyoucanlinehistoryupwiththerestoftheworldandwhattheyweregoingthrough,itisbotheasiertounderstandandtolearn.ThroughmystudyoftheCzechRepublicIlearnedthattheyvaluestatesovereigntyaboveallelseandtakehumanrightsviolationsseriously.Particularlyinterestingtomewasthediscoveryoftheirnuclearpower

programwhichwassurprisingconsideringtheirsize.BuiltduringtheSovietruleofCzechoslovakia,theCzechRepubliccontinuestorunthemasasourceofenergy.Transitioningthisknowledgeintousefulinformationformycommittee,theInternationalAtomicEnergyAgency,theCzechRepublic’sdomesticpoliciesregardingstatesovereigntyandprotectinghumanrightstransformedintohowforeignpolicywasconductedwithintheUnitedNations.

TheCzechRepublicpracticesforeignpolicyattheUNbyusingideasfromdomesticpolicyinordertostaytruetotheirnationalvalues.AdominantactionwhentheCzechRepublicparticipatesattheUNisthetendencytovoteinagreementwiththeUnitedStates,afactthattheCzechRepublicmissionadvocates.AccompanyingourstudyofhowtheCzechRepublicconductsitselfattheUNwasthelongandarduoustaskofattemptingtounderstandtheUNsystem.Borderingonimpossible,theridiculousnetworkofprincipalorgans,subsidiarybodies,relatedorganizations,specializedagencies,commissions,departmentandoffices,andprogramsandfundswasoneofthehardestthingsformetograsp.Iwasthoroughlyconfusedateveryattempttounderstandtheextensivechart,butafterhoursofpouringoveracolorcoordinatedprintout,IbegantounderstandhowtheUNwasrunandtheservicesitprovided.OncetheoutlineofhowtheUNworkswasmastered,IwasabletofocusonhowtheUNprovidesaidandassistancetothosewhoareinneed.NothavingeverstudiedtheUNsystemindepthbefore,thisalsoprovidedmewithadisadvantagesinceIwaslackingknowledgemyfellowdelegateshadalreadyacquired.LearningabouttheUNwasbeneficialtomystudyasaninternationalrelationsstudentandformyexpandingknowledgebecauseIhadyettostudyindepththisessentialinstitutionwhichshapesthewayrelationsareformedandissuesareapproached.

TheconferencesimulationhelpedmetofurtherunderstandtheworkingsoftheUNandwhereboundariesareplaced.BeforetheconferenceIunderstoodwhateachcommitteedidbut

didnotrealizewhichoneshadsignificantimpact.BeingapartoftheIAEAallowedmetoexperiencefirsthandthefrustrationswiththeUNsystemaswehadlearnedaboutduringclass.ThroughoutmytimeontheIAEA,justasinreallife,theP5werethebiggestegosintheroom.Theywereoftenapproachedwithworkingpapersthatgroupswantedthemtosponsorsothatwhilecirculatingdraftresolutionsyouattemptedtogainsupportbasedoffofthosefivenamesattachedtothesponsorline.GeneralconsensusthroughouttheroomwasthatiftheP5weresupporters,otherdelegationswouldbetoo.AproblembegantopresentitselfwhennationsthatwouldnotnecessarilysidewithcertainclausesinthedraftresolutionswereofferingtheirsupportforthesolereasonthattheP5hadtheirnamesacrossthetop.WorkingwithdelegationsintheIAEAthroughouttheconferencewasfrustratingbecausealotofdelegateswerenotincharacteranddidnotunderstandhowpowerwasactuallydivided.MostoftheEUdidnotworkwithus,yetEritreasoughtusout.InthespiritoftheUNanditsgoalofworkingtogether,havingthatrandomAfricannationencouragedtogethernessandcooperationbutitwasatotalunorthodoxcollaboration.

Usingtheconferencetoevaluatemyself,theconfidenceIgainedduringthatfirstcaucuswascrucialtomyattitudefortherestoftheconference.WhenadelegatetoldmethatIwassoconvincingwithmyargumentthatIhadhimquestioninghisownpreferencefortopicorder,myconfidencesoared.ThatwasabouttenminutesintowalkingintotheIAEAconferenceroom.Fromthenon,IvanandIpracticedthedivideandconquerstrategybutworkedtogetherontheresolutionuntilwegottoapointwhereIrealizedweneededtogetmoreinvolvedwithwhatwasgoingonaroundtheroom.IknewIwasatype-Apersonality,butbeingthereinthatsettingIrealizedthatmypartnerwasamoreintenseversion,soIlefthimtotheworkingpaperandplayeddelegate.Idiscoveredthatbeingadelegateisalotlikespeakingtoanupsetcustomerata

grocerystore.HavingextensivecustomerserviceknowledgeofhowtoactandspeakallowedmetoengageinconversationswhereIcouldjudgehowfarIcouldpushapersonbeforetheycompletelydecidedtohatetheCzechRepublic.Ilearnedthatconversationbetweendelegationswasalotofpushandpull,andthatIwasgoodatit.Also,eventhoughIhadalittleincidentwithmyspeech,IlearnedthatIworkwellunderpressure.ThemomentIfoundmyspeech,Ididnothavetimetothinkandinstinctkickedin,allowingmetodeliveraspeechforwhichIreceivedaccolades.

AlthoughIamsurethatmycollectivecalmregardingmytroublesomeentrancewasaresultofthecountlesshourswepracticedpublicspeakingduringclass,IalsobelieveitwastheblatantfearofhavingmyincidentbecomeastorytoldtofutureMUN-ersifImesseditup.Thepreparationthroughoutthesemesterwhichledmetobuildthatcollectivecalmincludedlongnightsbunkeredinthelibraryworkingonpositionpapersandevenlongernightspreparingresearchandstudyingforquizzes.Theapplicationprocessdidnotincludeadisclaimerregardinghowmuchtimethiscourseactuallytakesup,yetnowthatIhavesurvived,ofcourseIwanttodoitagain.GiftyandCarla,thetwoformerdelegateswhotalkedmeintoapplying,mighthavementionedthattheydidnotlikecertainthingsaboutthecoursebutIbelievetheywereunabletoputintowordstherelativetimecommitmenttheclasstook.Also,tobefair,eveniftheyhadbeenabletoputintowordstheintensityofpreparationrequiredforthecourseIprobablywouldnothavebelievedthem.Asoneisabletoinfer,IwasshockedbyhowmuchtimeIwasspendingaweekattemptingtolearneverythinginordertoimpresstheHeadDelegatesandtheMadameDirectorsothatIwouldbeabletoearnaspotontheteamheadingtoNewYork.

OnceIreceivedthatemailinformingmethatIwouldberepresentingtheCzechRepublicontheIAEAwithmypartnerIvanZhivkov,Iwaselatedandalsorelived.Ihadwaitedaroundall

weekendforsaidemailsoreceivingitwasonebatchofemotions,whileopeningwasanotherandreadingwasjustacompletesighofreliefcombinedwithanoverabundanceofjoy.ItwasapparentthatsomehowtheworkthatwasonrecordwasenoughtogetmeontotheIAEAwhereIthenhadavisibleacademicgrowthspurt.EverystandanddeliverregardingtheCzechRepublic’spositionwithintheIAEAwasbetterthanthelast,butifitwasn’tfortheencouragingcommentsfrommyteammatesIdon’tthinkIwouldhaveimprovedasmuchasIdid.NeverreallyhavingtakenacoursewhereIwasrequiredtopracticemypublicspeaking,IwasdefinitelyoutsideofmycomfortzonebutIamgratefulfortheacademicchallengeinthisclassthathelpedmeimproveinmorethanonearea.NotonlywasIabletodeliveraperfectspeechwithourHeadDelegateIvanBakin,whohappenedtobetheChairfortheIAEA,burningholesthroughmeduetoalmostmissingmyspeechtimebutalsomywritingskillstookaturnforthebetter.Positionpaperstaughtmehowtowriteconciselyandinanacademicstylethatmadeoneextremelyawareofeveryverbtense.Throughoutthesemester,wheneverIfoundtheword“is”inoneofmypapers,Icringed.I’msittingherenowcringingeverytimeIuseit,asitsinstinctatthispoint,butthisishowmuchtheclassaffectsyouracademiccareerandlifestyle.

TheconferenceitselfwasalsoanexperiencewhichhasshapedhowIgoaboutconfrontingpeopleandpresentedmewithanotherinterestofwhatIcouldpotentiallywanttogetinvolvedwithupongraduation.Theopeningceremonyoftheconferencewasprobablyreallygoodbutduetothehorrificmannersofthosebehinduswhofiguredthatiftheycannothearthespeaker,nooneshould,Iwasunabletoevenslightlyunderstandwhatwashappening.Thosetypesofmannerscontinuedthroughouttheconference,especiallyintheIAEA,wheredelegationswouldsittherewhisperingever-so-loudly,devaluingtheexperienceandmakingmewanttopassaverystronglywordednoteaccompaniedbyanevilglare.Theoverallnumberof

peopleintheIAEAwhowerenotdoinganythingormakinganefforttogetinvolvedinanywaywasoverwhelming,butalsodisappointing.Otherthantheconstantdisappointmentstemmingfromthosewhojustrefusedtoparticipatetheotherswereengaging,knowledgeableandfun.CollaborationsbetweenanumberofEuropeannationsallowedustoproduceaworkingpaperthatwasencouragedtomergewithanotherworkingpaperfromSouthAmerica,whichwasrelativelypainlessbutstillveryinvolved.Itwasn’tuntilChinacamealong,seekingtomerge,thatthingsgotdicey.

Aspreviouslymentioned,theP5managedtocontrolthatroom.Eventhoughtheyhadnoauthorityinsuchacommittee,theytreatedtheIAEAastheSecurityCouncil,speakingtofellowdelegateswithsuchdistaste,especiallyChina.Accordingtohisattitude,ifyouweren’tpartoftheP5,youweren’timportantenough.Inaway,thismighthaverepresentedacertainperspectiveinChinatodaybutwiththeirrecentelectionsofthenewPresidentandtheofferingofmoreaidthanbeforetodevelopingcountrieslookingforanalternativetotheWashingtonConsensus,especiallyinAfrica,theyaretryingtocleanuptheirimageacrosstheworld.Thisdelegatewasanuisancetoworkwithandconsistentlyavoidedbyme.Itwasinterestingtoseehowdelegatesmorphedintotheircharactersandiftheywereabletorepresenttheircountryaccuratelyornot.SomewouldarguethatChinawasportrayingitselfperfectly,Iwouldnot.Whenitcametoourowncharacters,IvanandItookintoaccountwhatweweretoldatthemissionbriefingearlierintheweek,thattheCzechRepublicmainlyalignswithwhatevertheUnitedStatesisvoting.Thisknowledgebecameusefulwhenwewerenotentirelysureonwhatdraftresolutionsweshouldvoteon,aproductofthecombinationofnothavingenoughtimetoreadthemandtheprintcenterworkinginoverdriveunabletofillalltheorders.

Votingonthedraftresolutionsduringthatlastdayatcommitteewasindeedinteresting.Asmentionedbefore,therewasnotmuchtimetoreadtheoneswedidhaveandtheoneswedidnothavewereprojectedontothescreenduringvoting.Thisobviouslymadetheresolutionimpossibletoreadandthereforeeveryonewhowasnotapartofwritingitwasblindlyvoting.Thiswasunfortunatebecausetheycouldhavebeenvotingondraftresolutionsthatactuallydidnotalignwiththeirnation’sviewpoint,yetmostlikelyfeltpressuredtovoteinfavorduetothelargeamountsofsupportvisiblythroughplacardvoting.Throughouttheentirevotingprocess,whichactuallydidnotlastthatlong,therewasonlyonedelegatewhocalledforarollcallvoteanditwasinterestingtofindoutwhichdelegationsdidnotunderstandthedifferencebetween“present”and“presentandvoting.”Whenthefirstdelegationtonotunderstandthedistinction,whohadstatedtheywere“presentandvoting”duringrollcall,expressedtheirwishestoabstaintherewasanimmediateflurryofplacardscallingforapointoforder.IrememberturningtoIvanandgivinghiman“OMGpeoplearecrazy,howdidtheyremembertheirrollcallpreference?”lookbutthenrealizedthatmanydelegationswereequippedwithrosterstowhichtheywouldmarkdownwhichstatusyoustatedduringrollcall.Also,afewpeopleattemptedtodividethequestionbutitnevermadeitpastthefirstroundofvoting,makingitseemasthougheveryonewasrelativelyonthesamepage.

IvanandImanagedtosponsortwoworkingpapersbutunfortunatelyaclauseinoneofthemwasconcerningtoalotofpeopleandthereforewasnotturnedintoaresolution.Thereasonthisclausewasnottakenoutafterexpressingconcerntotheotherwriterswasthatoursponsorshipwasaresultofanothermergerfromadifferentworkingpaper.Thesponsorsthatwrotethewholedraftresolutionwereexplicitonthefactthatiftheyweretoaddusassponsors,wewerenottochangeordisputeanythingintheiroriginaldraft.Theonethatdidpasswasthe

onethatwehadmergedwiththeSouthAmericangroupandlatertheChinagroupon.ThisresolutionwascomprehensivebutdidnotincludetheCzechpositionofestablishingemergencyprotocolsincaseofanucleardisaster,whichwasaclauseremovedaftertheChinagroupmerger.IvanworkedparticularlyhardtoimplementanunfriendlyamendmentinordertogetimportantCzechviewsplacedbackinthepaper,butduetotimeconstraintsandnecessarysignatures,hewasunabletosucceed.

HavingourHeadDelegateastheChairtoourcommitteewasahelpfulconnectionthroughouttheprocessofmakingtheCzechRepublicaknowndelegation.Ivankeptitcasualthefirstday,astonotraisesuspicionofplayingfavoritesbutbytheseconddaywehadbeenpagesandcalledonmultipletimes.DuringcaucusinghewouldwalkarounddoinghisChairdutiesbutwouldalsotakethetimetocheckinonusandseewherewewereintermsofproducingdraftresolutions.Hedroppedhints,liketellingmetoworktheroommore,andinformedusthatweweretakingtoolongtowriteourworkingpapers.Alsohelpfulwasthefeedbackfromspeechessinceourfirstspeechfollowedwhateveryoneelsewastalkingabout,yetthecompleteoppositeofwhatshouldbeaddressedduringaspeech.Thesecondspeechwasbetterintermsofcontentbuthorribleintermsoftimeleadinguptodelivery.HavingIvantherewatchingoveruswasgreatbecausehewasabletoprovidefeedbackbutawfulwhenhewastheretowitnessourmistakes.

TheModelUNcourseasawholeissomethingIrecommendtoanyonelookingtofurtherenhancetheirInternationalRelationslearning.Itsabilitytocompletelychangethewayyoupreformasastudentishugeandeverythingdonewithinthosefourwallsoftheclassroomisusefulandapplicabletotheoutsideworld.Recommendationsforimprovingthepreparationprocesswouldfirstincludeincorporatingassignmentsthroughblackboardthatshouldbeturned

inbeforethespringsemesterbegins.Thatwayyouknowpeoplearedoingresearchanditisguided.OneofmybiggestproblemswastryingtofigureoutwhattheDaisexpectedmetoknow.Withblackboardassignmentsleadinguptothecoursestartdate,youcouldaskquestionsrelatingtoaglobalissueandwheretheythinkthecountryshouldgofromthere,takingintoaccounttheforeignpolicymethodsofthecountrywearerepresentingnextyear.Thesubmissionsdonothavetocountforaquizgradebutratheraparticipationgradethatiseithermandatoryorstronglyencouraged.

Second,isthatthedevelopmentofthecaucusingstrategiesearlierinthesemesterwouldbemoreusefulbecausethentheycanbecreatedwhileresearchforthepositionpaperisconducted.Third,anexplanationofwhenweshouldsendnotestootherdelegationswouldbehelpful.Ifoundthatsomeofussentnotesandothersdidnot.Personally,IdidnotunderstandthepurposeofanotebecauseIfiguredIcouldjustfindthedelegationIwasseekingonceabreakforcaucuswascalled.Fourth,asmuchasIlovedhavingapartnertheentiretime,itwouldhavebeenbeneficialiftherewasanexplanationregardingthemosteffectivewaytobeapartnershipattheconference.Itreallywasn’tuntilourHeadDelegatetoldusthatwehadtostartgettinginvolvedwithotherworkingpapersthatIstartedwalkingaroundgettingtheCzechnameoutthere.Finally,writingspeechesattheconferenceisnothinglikewritingspeechesforclass.IfounditextremelydifficulttopenaspeechthatwasnotgoingtojuststatewhattheCzechRepublicwasdoingandthedelegationsthatwithwewereworking.Iftherewasaspontaneousspeechwritingexerciseinclassorevenaspontaneouscallingsomeoneoutrandomlytomakeaspeechaboutanythingonthespotthatwouldbehelpfultoourspeechwritinginabilityattheconference.

Overall,thereisnothingdesperatelyinneedofarestructuringbuttweaksinthewayweutilizethetimeduringtheclassperiodwouldultimatelybethemostvaluable.Also,thewayinwhichteambuildingwasannouncedcanalwaysbeimproveduponasitwasscarcethisyearanddifficulttoplan.TheconferenceitselfofferedthebesttypeofteambuildingandIcanhonestlysaythatbecauseofmyexperienceattheconferenceIamtakingasummercoursejustsoIhavetimetoparticipatewiththeModelUNteamonceagain.MyinterestintheUNhasgrownexponentiallyandIfindthesystemfascinating.Asmuchasnationscomplainaboutitsinefficiency,theUNandhopefullyModelUNwillbearoundforaverylongtime.I’mjusthappyIwasabletoparticipatethisyearasanIAEAmemberwithIvanandhaveanexperiencethathasleftmewithenoughgoodmemoriestotellotherIRmajorstoapplynextyear.