TEIMUN DAILY

TEIMUN 12th July 2011

DAILY Since 1987

Jaap de Hoop Scheffer speaking at the TEIMUN Opening Ceremony Photo by Bernard Mulder, Assen

TEIMUN TAKES OFF THE HAGUE - Yesterday, The European International Model United Nations (TEIMUN) Conference was officially opened by Dilphreet K Dhanoa, Secretary-General of the event. Over 200 students from more than 50 countries listened to inspiring speeches by former NATO-chief Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands Uri Rosenthal and high-ranked UN-official Sigrid Kaag.

As TEIMUN’s theme this year is ‘Defining the future of global governance’, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer attempted to do just that. He marked that the power balance in the world is not in tune with the world in which he grew up in: Europe has lost the lion share of its influence, the U.S. is not the only global ‘superpower’ anymore and emerging economies - formerly known as developing countries - are now claiming their spot on the center stage of international politics.

According to De Hoop Scheffer, the time has come to change the composition of the security council to one that

reflects the current power balance in the world, rather than that of 1945. “Otherwise, the Security Council will loose credibility.” Whether the General Assembly agrees with the former NATO-chief remains unclear at this point.

Furthermore, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer stressed the importance of the rule-based organizations to maintain a stable world order. “Ad hoc diplomacy will not take us any further.” Sigrid Kaag agreed with him by saying that the UN is the “greatest social network.” She talked about the importance of effective multilateralism in the international system, focusing on the development debate. Another interesting aspect of the programme was an open application by Dr. Prof. Mark van Embden directed towards Uri Rosenthal. Unfortunately for Dr. Prof. Mark, the sentiment was not receipricated. Finally, the Opening Ceremony was rightfully opened by the Secretary-General emphasing that every challenge provides an opportunity.

TEIMUN Daily 12th July 2011 NEWS Sigrid Kaag on Development Aid: “Time will Tell” Sigrid Kaag (1961) is Assistant Secretary-General, Assistant Administrator and Director of the Partnerships Bureau of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). With a great record of experience in the development field, she argued that the upcoming decade will be an exciting period, where a bunch of things can go wrong.

The international community is facing a shifting power balance. Emerging market economies like China and India are becoming increasingly involved in development, but especially China has a rather different view than the UNDP is proclaiming. Whereas UNDP puts emphasis on good governance, human rights, and fighting corruption, China tends to see development aid as an investment which should lead to profit, not only for the receiving country, but for China too.

However, that does not mean that China and UNDP are competitors in the development industry. Kaag argues that they are just different players on the stage. The UNDP tries to provide a valuable addition to the development debate without picking a side. According to Kaag “we should stop thinking that we can and should attract emerging economies to ‘our’ team and adapt to the scale and scope of their development.”

Furthermore, in contemporary western politics, being critical towards development aid is no longer taboo. A more commercial and pragmatic view on development is gaining ground. Kaag: “Western countries do not just want to be donor countries as well. They want to see results, and that is why we have the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs), and distinguished output indicators in order to identify the concrete ef-

fect of our aid.” Nevertheless, there is still work to be done after 2015.

“Obviously, if we aim at cutting the amount of people living in extreme poverty in half, after 2015 we have to take care of the other half still living in the same situation as before”, Kaag says. The UNDP-chief claims that the MDGs should be seen as a baseline from which further development can take place, and definitely should not be seen as an ‘end station.’ What will happen after 2015 will be of great significance.

“Time will tell how the development paradigm will evolve.”

SIGRID’S TIPS TO BECOME A SUCCESSFUL DIPLOMATE 1. Don’t have a plan, just go with the flow 2. Act according to your believes 3. Have the courage to change 4. Find a good balance between carreer and private life

BACKGROUND

TEIMUN’s Year of Youth “Youth should be given a chance to take an active part in the decision-making of local, national and global levels.”

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

To raise awareness for issues confronting the international community, the United Nations and its institutions have since the late 1950s with increasing occurrence decreed international years of observance. With topics as diverse as the International Year of the Gorilla, the International Year of the Culture of Peace, the a year against desertification, commencing 12 August 2010, all of us have found ourselves living in the International Year of Youth. With the passing of resolution 64/134, the General Assembly called upon states, people and organisations alike, to organise events to raise awareness on the selected topic. It is therefore not without good reason that the theme of TEIMUN 2011 is ,,The Next Generation: Defining the Future of Global Governance. ‘’ It ought to be noted that the challenges facing this generation are by no means of a trivial kind in a world that is increasingly complex and unreliable. Old certainties have long since faded, creating a world in which facing challenges is increasingly important: facing them, and transforming them into what they ought be: opportunities. Opportunities that can be made to arise when living in such interesting times. It are precisely these kinds of ambitious transformations from challenges to opportunities that will be strived for during this conference.

For example, the General Assembly will strive to define the role of the

A Word About the Weather Every Dutchman’s favourite topic of conversation, tomorrow’s weather is unsure enough to give you something to talk about. Wednesday morning will be characterised by dense clouds, potentially with some light rain or drizzle. Minimal temperature will be around 11 °C (52 °F), the maximum will be around 20 to 26 °C (68 to 79 °F). Thursday’s weather will be similar to tomorrows. The rest of the week will see an increase in temperature, unfortunately accompanied by an increase in the chance of rain falling.

UN in the aftermath of conflicts and disasters, and defining such innovative concepts as the Responsibility to Protect. It will also be taking up the daunting task to reform the Security Council into an organ befitting of the increasingly globalised world the current youth is growing up in, that is substantially different from the world in which it was founded, when the dust of the second World War was just starting to settle down. A world that had its own challenges, which will be dealt with in the radically restructured Historical Council.

The Security Council is faced by yet other challenges, namely problems arising in Arab spring struck instable Yemen and a conflict on the Korean Peninsula. NATO’s own North Atlantic Council will also make an effort to secure a better world for future generations and the future in general by discussing the topic of Energy Security and the troublesome situation in the nation of Afghanistan. The Human Rights Council will discuss one of the prime tasks ahead for the youth of this entire planet: tackling the issue of climate change, indiscriminately facing the entire planet. They will also discuss the problems of racism and the issue of defining the right to information on a global scale. ECOSOC will be dealing with role of women in post-conflict situations and the role of education and the position of refugees. Last but not least, the International Court of Justice is set to dive into an issue between the nations of Ethiopia and Eritrea.

All-in-all, this year’s TEIMUN will prove to be a challenging occasion for all its delegates. May its outcome be fruitful. May the youthful delegations of this year’s conference provide us with new insights and opportunities in this year of youth.

A Message From The Newsroom As you might already be aware, this year TEIMUN is hosting a special newsroom for you to use for disseminating what is happening in your different councils.

You are invited to contact Justin Oliver Zinda if you have something you would like to share with all the delegates of TEIMUN 2011 and, of course, with the entire world! Broadcasts from the Newsroom will be posted onto the YouTube channel for TEIMUN (TEIMUN OFFICIAL CHANNEL). They can also be viewed from TEIMUN Facebook pages and later on www.teimun.org. The newsroom is located near the staffroom on the first floor.

Justin Zinda can be contacted at journalists@teimun.org and justinZ8@aol.com. Alternatively, you can send Justin a message on Facebook at ‘Justin Oliver Zinda’. You can also directly approach Justin Zinda or any

SEND US YOUR PICS: journalists@teimun. org

DUTCH NEWS

TEIMUN Daily

12th July 2011

Gun licence for Alphen shooter was serious

Agreement

mistake, say police

Meanwhile, immigration minister Gerd Leers told the paper Kroes does have a point. ‘We are working on our tone. We have discussed this in the cabinet,’ Leers said.

Nevertheless, Brussels should also understand the Dutch position, he said. ‘Other European countries should understand that we are asking a lot of our citizens, in terms of working longer and spending cuts,’ he said.

The Netherlands has also come under fire from Poland, current holder of the EU

Monday 11 July 2011

The police made a serious mistake in granting a gun licence to Tristan van der Vlis, who shot dead six people in a shopping centre in Alphen aan den Rijn earlier this year, according to the official report into the incident.

The local Hollands Midden force knew Van der Vlis had spent time in a psychiatric institution but did not use the information when deciding whether or not to grant the permit in 2008.

The force is now to look again at all the gun permits which it has granted to make sure others have not slipped through the net. ‘This was a serious error and should never happen again,’ local police chief Jan Stikvoort told the news conference.

Arsenal Van der Vlis went on his three-minute rampage in April this year, shooting dead six people and injuring 16 before turning a gun on himself. He also made four bomb warnings at different shopping centres in the commuter town, police chief Jaco van Hoorn told Monday’s news conference.

The investigation into the shooting spree has revealed that Van der Vlis was probably a paranoid schizophrenic who suffered repeated periods of depression. He also made at least two suicide attempts in 2008.

Van der Vlis had been a member of a gun club since 2007. The report shows the young man had built up his arsenal over several months, buying a gun and a revolver at the end of last year, a semi-automatic weapon and red dot sights in January and a bullet proof vest in March.

A check on his internet habits revealed a strong interest in other spree shootings, in particular the Columbine school killings. He was also interested in paranormal issues and had bought a special machine to help him hear ghosts.

Prior knowledge Meanwhile, the public prosecution department is pressing ahead with a case against an acquaintance of the killer, whom it claims knew Van der Vlis was planning to go on the rampage.

Van der Vlis told him several times he was planning to shoot people, chief prosecutor Kitty Nooy told a news conference on Monday.

Nooy said the department had reached the decision to prosecute after very careful consideration. The man, who is not being held, faces a year in jail for failing to pass on the information to the relevant authorities.

EU Commissioner Kroes criticises cabinet’s antiEurope attitude Sunday 10 July 2011

The Dutch government should stop criticising the European Union and instead highlight all the positive things it has done, EU Commissioner Neelie Kroes said in an interview with the Telegraaf at the weekend.

Kroes, who is in charge of the EU’s digital agenda, said that the Dutch criticism, particularly since the start of the Greek financial crisis, had not gone unnoticed in Brussels.

The Netherlands has profited enormously from the open EU market and should not ignore that fact, the former businesswoman said.

Financial tone ‘The tone adopted by finance minister Jan Kees de Jager, for example, is different to that of his predecessors,’ Kroes said.De Jager is opposed to any more loans for Greece unless very strict conditions are met. He also backs forcing banks and insurers to join the bail-out.

De Jager told news agency ANP on Sunday he is prepared to be ‘very unpopular’ because of his position on Greece.

‘It is all about financial guarantees and loans from the Netherlands and that is a sensitive issue here,’ he said.

presidency, for saying it wants to deport jobless eastern Europeans back home.

Two insects per number plate every 10 km Monday 11 July 2011

A website to help count how many insects get squashed on car number plates in the Netherlands has revealed there are an average two deaths for every 10 km driven, the researchers from Wageningen University say.

The statistics follow an analysis of information from 250 drivers on Splashteller. nl. In total, the drivers counted 17,000 dead insects killed during 385 journeys.

That means 133 billion insects are killed in the Netherlands after being hit by cars every year.

Opposition parties call for unified euro crisis solution Tuesday 12 July 2011

Dutch MPs are increasingly worried about the financial situation in Italy, following the dumping of Italian banking shares on Friday, the Financieele Dagblad reports on Tuesday.

Opposition party financial spokesmen are calling for a concerted effort to solve the crisis quickly, the paper says. There are growing fears the debt crisis may now spread to Italy and Spain – which are major EU economies.

Labour’s finance spokesman Ronald Plasterk told the paper the inclusion of Italy in the euro crisis ‘crossed a new line’.

Major solution ‘Until now, I thought it would be possible for the rest of the EU to keep the three small EU countries [Greece, Ireland and Portugal] which account for just 6% of European GDP out of trouble,’ Plasterk said. ‘I am starting to believe we need a major solution for the debt crisis, rather than a step by step approach.’

Wouter Koolmees of the Liberal democrats D66 agrees with Plasterk that a speedy solution is needed. ‘The uncertainty surrounding tackling the Greek crisis is dragging on for too long,’ he said. ‘It sometimes seems as if everyone is performing for their home audience rather than coming up with a solution which is in everyone’s interests.’

Eurozone ministers discussed their continuing efforts to solve the Greek crisis in Brussels on Monday. According to Trouw, the atmosphere at the meeting was ‘not good’.

Private sector The Netherlands is continuing to press for major private investment in the bail-out – forced if necessary – the paper says. But France and the European central bank are opposed to any element of compulsion.

‘The debt crisis is very serious and we need to work together to find a solution,’ the paper quoted finance minister Jan Kees de Jager as saying after the meeting. ‘We are not only concerned about Italy, but about the entire eurozone.’

According to the Wall Street Journal, De Jager again reiterated that private sector involvement is a prerequisite for Dutch support for a second bail-out for Greece.

Ministers will meet again later this month in an effort to find a solution.

Today’s top stories on www.dutchnews.nl

SOCIETY DID YOU KNOW THAT... ... Ece (USG) is scarred for life after she was introduced to some terms from the urban dictionary? ... that after seeing PJ putting shaving cream on his face, Ece (USG) said “wow you’re using a lot of moisterizer!” ... Emir (Italy, NAC) doesn’t remember going to bed yesterday evening? ... Cees Heere, chair of the HC, is disappointed by the absence of Russian delegates and then went on to talk about their gaping holes? We will gladly leave it to the readers to fill in the gaps of this train of thought. ... Under Secretary General Ece Aygün would like it to be known to the world, that despite her hair cut she is not in fact a lesbian? ... Frank Huising, chair of the GA was suspiciously keen on remarking to us that he thinks that both Wesley and Cees of the HC look sizzling hot? ... The Daily would like to warn the delegates of ECOSOC for the appetite for human flesh of their chair Christiana Carson. Delegates are advised to always keep a dose of chocolate ready in order to escape being eaten. Pointing out the one of the journalists would make much better bait may also help but is advised against? ... Rumour has it that Wesley Stuurman of the HC is particularly close to someone known to us as ,,The Girl?” Who is apparently, blondish, tall, outgoing and particularly gifted in a certain field. Any additional information on the topic is appreciated.

Cees (Chair HRC) and Ece (USG) spoiling their feet with air

Want to make your nations stance clear to the world and your fellow delegates? TEIMUN Daily encourages you to issue a press release for us to publish! If you want to send us a release or would like to have some extra information on publishing press releases you can send us an e-mail at journalists@teimun.org

... the Journalists have received an overkill of ‘did-you-know-thats?’ concerning the staff ? And that they invite all delegates to share their funny stories with us?

VERBATIM “I’m gonna be Stalin, I hope that I don’t come across as a dictator” - Laure (Chair HC) “I should be more serious, I’m too giggly to be SecretaryGeneral” - Dilpreet (SG)

Historical Council on excursion to the Peace Palace

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“You should bribe Mark, he is the real man behind PJ” Dilpreet (SG) “Ece puts you down, and you’re still her b*tch” - Frans (BoD) directed towards Cees “Guys are much luckier than girls. They have to wear heels, and the next day, they will die.” - Jasper (Germany, SC) “I’m Pablo Esteban’s illegitimate son” - PJ (Chair NAC) “We are the next chickflicks” - Alex (Crisis) about himself and Jeen (Crisis)

Archive picture: Bos with his famous earring >

CHEAP, EASYAND TEARED OUT! It appears to be that board member Frans Bos (participant coordinator for non-westerners) has no principles at all. Last year Frans shined at the parties and sessions accompanied by a shiny, glittering earring in his left ear.

This year, however, Frans has two clean ears, as it should be.

Immediately after their constitutional ceremony, his fellow board members clearly expressed their discontent with his unfashionable jewelry. For quite a long period of time, Frans neglected his colleagues’ complaints and ignored disgusted faces on the streets of his hometown Groningen like he was gliding to the Matrix. But at the TEIMUN board’s inaugural party, about eleven guests, representing the University Council of Groningen, offered to participate in Europe’s oldest MUN, when Frans would loose his precious stone. Frans - spineless and unworldly as always - immediately responded by removing his earring. Did it pay off ? Not at all! Only Sanne Schipper (France in the ICJ) and Wouter van de Staaij (Spain in the NAC) showed up at TEIMUN, leaving nine people behind in Groningen. It leaves us questioning: what else would Bos do, to please his delegates? When TEIMUN Daily knows it, you’ll know it.

In a response Frans Bos lets us know that “the University Council is very unreliable, but I do not lie awake at night because of this.”

but there is more...

Frans not only doesn’t own a backbone, he is also short of pants. Yesterday, Bos apparantly ate to many donuts in the boardroom, leading to him tearing out his pants. A fellow boardmember, who wants to remain anonymous, provided us with the pants to take pictures of it.

Frans’ teared out Pants

DO YOU HAVE A SPARE PANTS LEFT?! LET US KNOW AT @teimundaily. TOGETHER WE CAN HELP THOSE IN NEED.

What SHOE Waiting For? Praise the Lord for pulpits! Otherwise, all TEIMUN participants would have seen the enormous shoes Secretary General Dilpreet K Dhanoa was wearing, during the Opening Ceremony.

Apparently, the Queen of TEIMUN, turned into Cinderella after forgetting to pack a pair of shoes, and just grabbed two random pumps that happened to lay around her place.

Luckily for her, a Good Samaritan was kind enough to lend her some shoes. However, although these shoes fitted her outfit, they did not fit the size of her feet. It must be said that it is impressive to be able to deliver an inspiring speech, while standing in two vessels disguised as shoes!