Youth in Action

Model Youth Parliament 2011:
The Parliament Redefined

If we just picture a typical session of Bangladeshi Parliament, what do we witness? Impasse, pointless dispute between the Government and Opposition, self-serving mind-sets of the Members of Parliament etc. So, the inefficiency of the Parliament of Bangladesh is very evident to the people of the country.

With the apparition to amend the current futile state of the Parliament, UNYSAB in collaboration with ActionAid, arranged a unique programme on March 5-8 the Model Youth Parliament 2011 - where young people from all over the country came under one roof to share their thoughts and suggestions on the theme - 'Women's Participation in Education, Technology and Farming: Precondition for Empowerment.' The venue partners for this significant event were East West University and University of Liberal Arts, Bangladesh.

United Nations Youth and Students Association of Bangladesh (UNYSAB) offers the Bangladeshi youth with the platform where their voices are heard and their visions can be shared. The event was, perhaps, the most thriving and productive programme of UNYSAB. Students from different universities gathered to discuss the burning issues of women empowerment. Bangladeshi women still lag behind in almost every sector. Although their involvement in society has increased considerably, the lack of recognition is still prevalent. Students exchanged ideas and opinions on empowering women in education, technology and farming through the practice of a mock Parliament.

Students from different universities gathered to discuss the burning issues of women empowerment.

The inaugural ceremony was held at the auditorium of East West University. Guests included Farah Kabir - Country Director, ActionAid Bangladesh; Nigar Sultana- Sector In-Charge, ActionAid Bangladesh; Dr. Toufique Joarder- Trustee Member, UNYSAB and a faculty member of BRAC University and Eng. Kamrul Hasan, Faculty member and Moderator, East West University Debate Society. The respective guests talked about the importance of women in a flourishing society, and the role and strength of the young generation in eradicating the wrongs of a society.

Around 100 participants from different universities of Bangladesh participated in the programme. It started with an ice-breaking session. Nafiz Imtiaz, President UNYSAB, conducted a workshop on the rules, regulations and procedures of the programme.

A general assembly was held on the following day. Participants represented the local government of a district. They were divided into three committees and topics were assigned to each committee. In the committee sessions, all the district delegates were given the floor to make a statement about their position in the form of a formal speech in the first round. Then, the delegates went through a round of discussions and debates about the positions of different districts. Consequently, the district delegates formed alliances and came up with one or more draft working papers. The committee went through the submitted draft working papers, making amendments and finally coming up with a final working paper. In this way, each committee came out with a final working paper on their topic which were then combined together as the draft resolution and presented in the general assembly. The general assembly then went through a final discussion, amendment session and passed on a final resolution through the medium of a vote. This final resolution was sent to ActionAid and to the policy makers of Bangladesh so that they can consider the views of the youth while implementing different policies regarding women.

The closing ceremony was arranged in IDB Bhaban Auditorium. The honourable guests of the closing ceremony were - Farah Kabir-country director ActionAid Bangladesh; Kazi Ali Reza- Officer In-Charge, United Nations Information Center and Professor Dr. Md. Moniruzzaman, Pro-VC, Jahangirnagar University. In the closing ceremony, Dhaka Declaration 2011 was declared. The guests were extremely pleased with the performance of the participants. Finally, the guests awarded the participants with accolades. In committee 1: Md. Mamunor Rashid Tonmoy (IBA-JU), in committee 2: Rebeka Badiozzaman (ULAB) and in committee 3: Najm Us Shadat (LCLS) were awarded as the Best Delegates. The Best Delegation was awarded to the team of 'Secretary For'.

The Model Youth Parliament 2011 was a perfect parliament that we ought to dream and aim for. Through splendid and constructive debate, discussion and exchange of views, the self-sacrificing way of thinking of the young generation for the greater good and their intensity of thoughts were proved once again.