THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, February 11, 1995 TAG: 9502110101
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BILL SIZEMORE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 98 lines
The delegate from Iran was emphatic.
``Don't give the Security Council more power,'' she urged her fellow delegates. ``This will be nothing short of a dictatorship of five big countries.''
The subject of the debate was a proposal to put United Nations peacekeeping forces under a centralized chain of command with close ties to the Security Council, the elite U.N. body dominated by the world's great powers.
Iran's message to the assembled diplomats was no surprise. Its rogue government has long been at odds with the powerful nations of the West, which accuse it of fostering terrorism.
What was different here was the messenger. Iran's impassioned plea came from Candace Jackson, a junior at Maury High School in Norfolk.
She and fellow Maury student Catherine Schweitzer were gamely carrying the banner of the radical Islamic regime Friday in a special committee of Old Dominion University's 18th annual Model United Nations, which wraps up a three-day session today at the Omni International Hotel.
They are among 1,200 high school students who've had a grueling schedule of caucuses, debates and votes designed to simulate as closely as possible the workings of the real U.N. in New York.
This isn't make-believe stuff. The students came to Norfolk after doing exhaustive research on the 185 member U.N. countries they represent and on the urgent issues of today's tumultuous post-Cold War world - issues like arms proliferation, radiation and disposal of toxic materials, the plight of street children, and genocide.
The Maury students representing Iran were in the thick of the prickly debate over the U.N.'s peacekeeping role in the dozens of hot spots where ethnic, religious and class conflict have shattered the dream of world peace after the collapse of communism.
As the student delegates harangued each other in conference rooms at the Omni, across the world, rival Bosnian and Serb forces fought heavy infantry battles, frustrating U.N. efforts to foster peace talks and supply food to hungry civilians in the former Yugoslavia.
So what's it like representing an outcast country like Iran in this simulated world forum?
``It adds flavor,'' said Candace. ``I like to think we're the most extremist country here.''
She wants to be a lawyer; her colleague Catherine is hoping for a career in international relations or politics. Both say their Model United Nations experience has been valuable preparation for the future.
Their research has even made them feel some sympathy for the pariah nation they represent. Despite its reputation as an international bogeyman, they found that in reality, Iran is a desperately poor, backward nation. ``They've got no money, no nuclear arms - nothing,'' Candace said.
And despite the long, tiring committee sessions where bleary-eyed delegates slog through hours of often tedious debate, the Maury students are convinced that the U.N. has a crucial role in today's tempestuous world.
``I believe the U.N. will always be relevant,'' Candace said, ``because we'll always need something that brings us all together.''
Apparently, many of her contemporaries agree. Participation in Model U.N. has grown significantly in recent years. The number of chapters at U.S. colleges and universities has nearly doubled since 1985, from 500 to almost 1,000.
Why? Maria Fornella, director of ODU's program, has a theory. ``After the Cold War, the U.N. came to the forefront of shaping a new world,'' she said. ``It's not just a debating society anymore.''
The program attracts students from a broad range of disciplines, she said. ``We get biology majors, music students. It captures their imagination - the cooperative spirit of this global village.''
ODU students lead the sessions and make sure the delegates toe the parliamentary line. The delegates come from 75 high schools, most in the Mid-Atlantic region, a few in the Midwest and one in Bermuda.
They have made a lasting impression on Jean Gazarian, coordinator of training for permanent missions at the U.N. Institute for Training and Research. Gazarian is a regular guest at the ODU sessions.
``The students I've heard are, I think, better educated - and by better educated, I mean internationally educated - than ever before,'' he said.
And therein, he said, lies hope for the future.
``I've been at the U.N. since 1946, and we need new blood to replace the enthusiastic people of the past. I think we have that here, and that's encouraging.'' MEMO: Local high schools participating in ODU's 18th annual Model U.N.:
Bayside, Cape Henry Collegiate, Churchland, Deep Creek, First
Colonial, Great Bridge, Indian River, Floyd E. Kellam, Lake Taylor,
Maury, Norfolk Academy, Norfolk Collegiate, Northeastern (Elizabeth
City), Norview, Salem, Oscar F. Smith, Booker T. Washington, Southampton
Academy, Western Branch, Woodrow Wilson. Also: Lafayette-Winona Middle
School.
ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by MARTIN SMITH-RODDEN, Staff
Tomorrow's leaders, today's problems
During the model U.N. day at the Norfolk Omni Friday, student Andrea
Koch presides over a Security Council meeting.
KEYWORDS: MODEL UNITED NATIONS HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS by CNB