📍 Lisbon, Portugal
🕰 November 9th - 11th, 2023
🧁 = When I start talking about the picture exhibited above and my resolution
Background Information
On November 8th, 2023, my phone's alarm jolted me out of bed at 2:45 AM. The sky was pitch black, enhancing my sleepiness, and desire to hide under my warm and fuzzy blanket, and hibernate the rest of the morning away. 🥱 🧸
My school's flight to Frankfurt took off at 6 AM, followed by our flight to Lisbon from 9 AM, arriving at noon at our hotel.
Although I felt like a zombie 🧟♀️ during the first few hours of the trip, (because of the sleep deprivation) I was able to indulge in an authentic Romanian pretzel during the flights, which uplifted my mood to a significant extent, so thank you to "Covrigi to Fly" (not sponsored). 😆 🥨 I will admit that I was not expecting to be patriotic from the start of the trip, but hey, you know what they say; food is the key to a girl's heart, and I validate that statement. So if you are traveling any time soon, stop by the yellow cart at the Henri Coandă airport, they've got you covered. 😎
Taking into account the fact that we arrived at around noon at our accommodation, and because we were expected to fly home on Sunday night, November 12th, and arrive at school to get picked up by our parents at 1 AM on Monday, November 13th, we had a day and a half dedicated to exploring Cascais!!! 🥳
The following scenarios could have occurred to make this happen: either my prayers were heard, my MUN teachers found my IMUN article from last year, and read that I would have wanted to see more of Cascais or, I complained so much that my teachers were fed up with me and gave in... 🤔
Whether it was predominantly the last item enlisted or a combination of the aforementioned; all that matters is that I could unleash my inner tourist 📸 and get to savor the nearby sights this trip offered.
Keep reading till the end to see the photo essay I put together from my exploration of the vibrant, memorable, and serene landscape.
🧁 My Resolution
The picture inserted at the top of this article showcases an achievement that I am triumphant about.
I represented the delegation of France 🇫🇷 and I was the main submitter of a resolution that passed in the Human Rights Commission! To be more exact, it was the 1st resolution that passed in my committee, and on a very controversial issue that world leaders of today continue to disagree on.
My resolution pursued the question of "Same-Sex Couples' Rights to Marriage and Adoption", and I had the pleasure of having Amnesty International, Argentina, Australia, Denmark, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and many others co-submit.
We advocated for respecting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the United Nations Charter by combating discrimination and violence on the basis of one’s gender identity and sexual orientation as well as providing legal and administrative systems to same-sex couples’ families that will grant them access to healthcare, education, and social services.
The main focus of the resolution is to support same-sex couples in being treated humanely, and doing so in a manner that does not contradict or compromise religion. The scope of the resolution was to find a common ground where the rights and dignity of same-sex couples are respected without offending the religions and traditions of member states.
As expected, the debate got very intense and heated, bearing in mind that 5 countries impose the death penalty on homosexuality, and 77 countries continue to enforce discriminatory laws that criminalize private, consensual same-sex relationships, exposing individuals to the risk of arrest, prosecution, and imprisonment.
Fortunately, the resolution passed with 32 votes in favor, 31 votes in opposition, and 5 abstentions.
Same-Sex Couples' Rights to Marriage and Adoption - Why This Matters
This issue is directly in line with Article 16 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, advocating for "men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality, or religion, to have the right to marry and to found a family, entitled to equal rights as to marriage during marriage, and at its dissolution."
Resolution A/HRC/27/L.27/Rev.1 on human rights, sexual orientation, and gender identity, has passed with a vote of twenty-five in favor, fourteen against, and seven abstentions, hence this topic refers to a niche of a topic that has already been debated, and agreed upon by the majority, which is why not only representatives at the IMUN conference, but real diplomats should implement an open-minded mentality that is willing to make progress on this issue when debate ensues.
It is essential to emphasize the importance of respecting cultural and religious diversity among Member States, which is why the resolution my co-submitters and I crafted suggests to make a crompimise between member states of the United Nations on how same-sex couples' rights are granted whilst not offending the religions of other member nations.
The recent legalization of same-sex marriage in countries such as Estonia and Cuba, which implies that the negative stigma surrounding same-sex couples seems to be degrading steadily.
It is imperative to address the rights and welfare of all families, which is why denying the right of Same-Sex couples to adopt not only infringes upon their rights but also leaves countless children without the loving homes they deserve; considering that Same-sex couples are significantly more likely than heterosexual couples to raise adopted or foster children.
Psychological reports such as the American Psychological Association’s 2010 “Adopted Children Thrive in same-sex Households,” which suggests that children adopted by same-sex couples have similar outcomes in life to children adopted by opposite-sex couples.
There is a substantial number of countries enforce discriminatory laws that criminalize private, consensual same-sex relationships, exposing individuals to the risk of arrest, prosecution, and imprisonment.
There have been positive results that the UN Free and Equal (UNFE) media campaign brought about by spreading awareness about the rights and existence of same-sex couples.
Having An Article Written About Me By The Conference's Press Team
Link to the interview: https://www.iberianmun.org/2023-conference/2023blog/posts/~board/imun-blog-2023/post/interview-with-the-hrc-delegate-of-france
On the second and final day of the conference, I was interviewed by an IMUN press officer, who is a journalist for the IMUN conference's blog. She asked me about the discourse surrounding my resolution, to which I explained that there was confusion about separating religion from marriage, facilitating me to answer the points of information, seeing as that was the most frequent inquiry amongst the members of the house.
For more details on the resolution, check out the link above 👆
Thank you for interviewing me, Polina, and allowing me to shed light on this consequential issue! I had a great time. 🤗
Visiting Cascais
**Note: All of the photos are formatted as collages, however, if you press on any photo, it expands.
I really hope you enjoyed this article, which has become a tradition at this point on Wholesome, haha 😊 If you have any suggestions to improve, I would love to see what feedback you have for me! Please leave me a comment at the end of this article to let me know what you think, and thank you to those of you who have already shared your thoughts with me via the comment feature or privately.
Next up on my MUN journey: THIMUN 2024 - *Official update post-conference* - You can check out my interview here: https://munity.thimun-online.org/?p=17191
Sending virtual hugs and lots of happiness your way! 🧸 🌻 🤪
Love hearing about your trip 🫶