Tashkent International MUN: Youth from around the World Come Together to Promote Education for Justice

29 March 2019, Tashkent, Uzbekistan - The Opening Ceremony of the biggest International Model United Nations (MUN) conference in Uzbekistan with special focus on crime prevention and criminal justice issues - the Tashkent International MUN (TIMUN), took place at the Youth Palace of Tashkent. The conference brought together around 500 young enthusiasts from different countries. The conference was organized by the Westminster International University in Tashkent and the United Nations on Drugs and Crime Regional Office for Central Asia (UNODС) and supported by the Youth Union of Uzbekistan and the State Tourism Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The conference was initiated by the WIUT's International Model United Nations Society 2018-2019 and Students' Union activists. MUN conferences have been held at WIUT starting from 2012. Since then, the number of participants has grown from 35 to 500 delegates.  Furthermore, the TIMUN was recognized as the best youth project on promoting the culture of lawfulness among youth in Uzbekistan.

TIMUN is expected to serve not only as a popular way of learning about the United Nations and empowering youth in the field of international diplomacy, global politics, public speaking, leadership and effective negotiations, but also as a platform to promote crime prevention and criminal justice issues into their simulations.

"MUN conferences are held annually at our university. It is a bridge between United Nations and students, which allows youth to have an open dialogue on the range of complex issues and propose their own solutions for tackling global problems. This year TIMUN sis a new format of MUN at WIUT which is held in honor Global Programme for the Implementation of Doha Declaration to promote the "Education for Justice" Initiative. " - said Mr. Komiljon Karimov, the Rector of the Westminster International University in Tashkent, welcoming the delegates and international community at the opening ceremony.

"UNODC is a global leader in the fight against illicit drugs, international crime and terrorism. In this regard, UNODC Regional Office for Central Asia is committed to promote rule of law and criminal justice, especially among youth. In this regard, current conference will equip the participants with knowledge and skills that would enable them to contribute in building peace, justice and strong institutions in their respective communities" - highlighted Ms. Ashita Mittal, UNODC Regional Representative for Central Asia.

From 30-31 the conference involved simulations of General Assembly, Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, Crisis Committee, Security Council, UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), UNESCO, Commission on the Status of Women, and the Third Committee of the General Assembly on Social, Humanitarian & Cultural Issues. 

Guidelines developed for the conference address crime prevention, criminal justice and other aspects of the rule of law were based on the Education for Justice initiative (E4J) Resource Guide. The E4J Initiative is a component of the Global Programme for the Implementation of the Doha Declaration. The E4J Initiative seeks to prevent crime and corruption and promote a culture of lawfulness through education activities designed for primary, secondary and tertiary levels. These activities aim to help educators teach the youth to better understand and address the problems that can undermine the rule of law and encourage students to actively engage in their communities and future professions in this regard.

150 international students from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, India, Russian Federation, South Africa, Turkey, the UK, Ukraine, USA, and Central Asian countries are attending the conference, along with 250 Uzbek students from over 15 universities and colleges of Uzbekistan. The Conference is also being attended by the representatives of well-known universities, such as the University of Cambridge and the University of Westminster (London).

Preparation and implementation of the TIMUN 2019 established the strong basis for the mutual relations between UNODC and WIUT in a sphere of improving the culture of lawfulness and crime prevention in tertiary educational level.

For more information:

UNODC ROCA on Twitter

UNODC in Central Asia on Facebook

***

For more information, please, contact

Ms. Dariya Kudabaeva, Communication and External Relations Officer,

UNODC ROCA

E-mail: dariya.kudabaeva[at]un.org