Dear Delegates,

 

Herbert Spencer, in his Theory of Organic Analogy, systematically explained how human society is nothing different from a living breathing organism. If you think about it, he’s not wrong. The world today is nothing less than that. It is constantly developing - growing & progressing - but unlike an organism, its progress and development is not physically bound. And neither is LMCMUN.

 

Thus, it is with great pleasure and privilege that I welcome each one of you to the 12th edition of the La Martiniere Calcutta Model United Nations Conference. Life is back to normal, and so is LMCMUN - to provide everyone with three days worth remembering. LMCMUN 2023’s Secretariat has been working hard to live up to the standards set by our predecessors and carry forward their legacy. La Martiniere Calcutta has always believed in educating and enabling the youth to become the torchbearers of tomorrow, and LMCMUN, since its first edition, has embodied this belief - becoming a means of spreading this thought outside the four walls of our campus. 

 

Picking up on my analogy from above, you may benefit by looking at the world from a socio-cultural perspective- Be the diplomat of the people; Be the voice of the people; Be the people; And at the same time, rise above the mob-mentality. Society began with a tribe and if it continues on the trajectory it is right now, it will make a full circle. In a nation, the people have the strongest voice: one which can bring down both, anarchy or democracy, if instigated enough.

 

Here comes the coupler: Although nations might have begun as socio-cultural divisions, today those lines mean nothing more than political and economic demarcations. The “uniqueness” or “individuality” is long gone. Invasion, colonization, looting and leeching have faded the identity right out of the nations over the years. It takes a lot to fill the shoes of a diplomat. In this rat race of political power and age of cultural gap between countries, it is not uncommon to see attempts to “dump” ideologies onto others. “Preserve what you have, and enhance your collective status in society” has been the motto of the diplomats. Generations of diplomats have been at it, and soon enough, the delegates of LMCMUN will be too.

 

So, delegates, the choice begins here. What will it be? Will you preserve what you have, or will you, in an attempt to enhance it, lead your nation to ruins? Will you be the one who condemns the wrong, or will you be the one condemned for the wrong? Lastly, will you be the one who emancipates the depressed or will you be the one who exploits them? It begins with these small choices and at the end of the day, comes down to them as well.

 

LMCMUN 2023 and its committees will stimulate your mind and ask you to answer these questions. Every situation has a solution - be it World War II or the possibility of World War III. You will have to entangle it all - from the intricate socio-cultural and political scenario of 19th Century China to the corruption associated with non-state actors. The human rights violations in Ethiopia, the large-scale weapon’s testing and the impending doom that comes closer each day with climate change - all need answers which you, as diplomats, will need to find. So, think firmly and choose wisely. 

 

Dear delegates, as the Secretary-General of such a prestigious conference, I assure you that no stone will be left unturned in the preparation of this conference. My Secretariat and I have an exciting and eventful three days planned for all of you and we hope that you have an educational experience with an element of fun. I would like to sign off by giving you some food for thought -

 

“Do great minds think alike? Or do they think uniquely?”

 

Until May,

Aarnav Agarwal,

Secretary-General,

La Martiniere Calcutta Model United Nations, 2023.