Dear Delegates,
Welcome to this year's BERMUN2 HSC!
In light of this year’s conference theme, “Decolonize.”, it is imperative to recognize that since the start of the modern colonial period in the 15th century, differences between colonized and colonizer states have remained evident till the present day. It has manifested itself through large wealth inequalities and the lesser economic development of exploited countries, which often have less stability in governance, contributing to problems in the educational sector and a growing digital divide. Yet the debate around decolonization is multifaceted and often subject to fundamental disagreements between post-colonial countries and their colonizers on topics such as reparations, the return of culturally significant artifacts to their owners, loans given out instead of reparations, and the fairness of trade and trade agreements.
This year's HSC will specifically focus on the Suez Canal Crisis in 1956. The Egyptian monarchy was abolished after a military coup in the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, with President Gamal Abdel Nasser emerging as the new leader. He supported strong Arab nationalism and anti-imperialism. At the time, the Suez Canal was controlled by French and British companies, which were nationalized by the Egyptian government on July 26, 1956. This led to an invasion by Israel, Britain, and France, which was criticised severely due to the violation of international law. The U.S. feared the invasion would push Arab states toward the Soviet Union and viewed it as a colonial action, given that it was an invasion of a sovereign nation to promote the geostrategic and economic interests of two Western countries.
On a personal note, I’m 16 years old and currently a junior at the John F. Kennedy School in Berlin. In my free time, I hang out with friends and go out, go to the gym, do horseback riding, and play the drums. This BERMUN will be my fifteenth conference and my ninth time as a student officer. I hope we can all learn from each other and positively influence each other, create a respectful environment, and have a productive debate.
Sincerely,
Ilian Bordet
