MUNITY East 2019 Issue 2: Two Sides of Tech Advancements

MUNITY EAST
THIMUN XV
Issue 02 Nov. 20th 2019
Two Sides
Of Tech
Advancements

The Beautiful Tapestry
that is THIMUN
Written by: Ella Hirmasto
Edited by: Aastha Gokani
Photographs by: Dorian Chen
Layout by: Ryan Hsiao
The auditorium buzzed with excitement and
anticipation as delegates from all over the
world took their seats. Despite the cultural
differences between and uniqueness of each
and every delegate, THIMUN Singapore has
always provided an atmosphere of unity and
acceptance. As said by Mr. Pang Choon How,
the principal of Hwa Chong Institution, we
need to “embrace that we are all intertwined
in a beautiful tapestry- past, present and
future.”
As Francis Laughlin (Co-Chair of the THIMUN
Foundation) walked up the stairs, the excited
chattering of the delegates ceased, and all
was silent. She began by recognising that
to mark the 75th anniversary of the United
Nations, they would be launching the biggestever
global conversation on the role of global
cooperation to “[build] the future we want” in
2020.
This is also the foundation of THIMUN
Singapore, with its honored tradition of
dialogue and communication to resolve
issues in a global context. In MUN, delegates
may not agree with the social, economic or
political views of their countries. However,
that is the beauty of the conference and thus
strengthens the thread of this international
tapestry- delegates have to “embrace walking
in another’s shoes”. Laughlin then explained
that delegates are also required to consider
opposing views and adjust accordingly. But
with the multitude of strong and varying
views of all MUN conferences, cooperation is
vital, as each delegate should strive to “find
common ground, not beat your opponent into
the ground.” The importance of cooperation
cannot be stressed enough as this generation
is the future and not just in a literal sense. It
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will be this generation who can create change
and it is this generation who will construct the
beautiful and intertwined United Nations of the
future.
Mr. Pang Choon How was next to speak,
commencing by applauding Singapore’s
achievements this year. The year 2019 marks
a key milestone in Singapore’s rich history- the
200th anniversary of the arrival of Sir Stamford
Raffles, the founder of modern Singapore. Over
these 200 years, Singapore has flourished
and is now a well-respected and welcoming
place for all, creating its own tapestry. Mr.
How perfectly encapsulated Singapore into
three words: openness, multiculturalism, and
self-determination; these words could not be
more suitable. The same qualities can be seen
woven into the THIMUN Singapore conference
this year, where schools from all over the world
come together to discuss, evaluate and resolve
world issues. Although MUN is only a ‘model’
of the United Nations and the resolutions are
simply imitations of those in the United Nations,
Mr. How stresses that by participating in the
THIMUN Singapore conference, delegates are
helping to pave their ways and foster enthusiasm
to become an “active global citizen”, who stands
up for what they believe in and strive for change.
Afterwards, Omar Kausar (Secretary-General,
International School of Manilla) gave an
inspirational speech about what MUN means to
him and his experiences. Like many delegates,
Kausar’s first MUN conference was daunting.
He recalled that he was “too scared to even
raise his placard.” But soon he grew to love
MUN, enthralled by its fast-paced nature and the
sense of achievement when you successfully
pass a resolution. He thinks of MUN as a “mini
United Nations” for the future of tomorrow and
emphasizes that MUN is “not about imitating
international relations but rather forging
international relations of the future”.
This all ties back to Mr. How’s point of
“embracing that everyone is intertwined in a
beautiful tapestry- past, present and future” and
we must always be aware of the importance of
past, present and future in both MUN and our
daily lives. Too often the past is disregarded,
and solely the mistakes that were made and on
what could have been done are focused on.
But in reality, the past allows us to reflect and
be proud of our progress. The present helps to
pave the future. Although our actions today may
not seem to have much of an effect, they forge
who we are in the future. And by participating in
MUN, one has an early exposure to what being
an “active global citizen” truly entails. That is why
this opening ceremony was mostly focused on
the future and to all the endless opportunities
for change. It was heavily stressed that in the
future, it will be this generation of young people
who will make an impact and opportunities
must be seized at all possible moments, just as
they are being seized at THIMUN Singapore.
2

Asset or
Chairs and delegates, regardless
of the amount of experience they
have at the conference, agreed
that the ban on technology prevents
delegates from accessing
their research online. When delegates
don’t have the knowledge on
certain topics, it can prevent them
from understanding the situation.
Markus Baumgartner (Ambassador
of the Central African Republic
of GA1, GEMS World Academy)
is wholeheartedly in agreement
with the no-tech policy: “I believe
it betters the whole debate structure
because everything that any
delegate is [says] is not immedi-
INCONVENIENCE
The use of technology during debates
has recently been a growing
concern for Model United Nations
conferences. In THIMUN Singapore
2019, the use of technology
during debates is not “in order”.
This policy evidently creates a
large difference between THI-
MUN and other conferences. But
is the “no-tech” policy an asset
or an inconvenience to delegates
and chairs?
ately scrutinized by immediate
fact-checking, statistic checking
[...] and it involves the delegates
much more into debate.” Similarly,
Romir Williams (President of
ECOSOC, Yew Chung Int. School
of Shanghai) explained that “delegates
seem to be more focused,
more engaged in the debate, [...]
[and] because they’re writing their
speeches [by hand] they tend
to put more thought into their
Written by: Aastha Gokani
Edited by: Hyoree Kim
Layout by: Jessica Hsu
Artwork by: Jessica Hsu
Photographs by: Zara Yap
speeches.”
However, Ella Lamdan (Delegate
of Chile of HRC, Lycée français
de Singapour) who has attended
THIMUN Singapore since 2017,
said that since the resolutions
are printed, they are a hassle. In
addition, Luke Heald (Delegate of
Côte d’Ivoire, Shanghai American
School) stated that “not being able
to do research on very specific
stances that your country might
have” can lead to confusion during
the debate. Speaking on that note,
Sophia Roehr (President of ICC,
Yew Chung Int. School of Shanghai)
affirmed that “laptops should
be allowed but admins need to be
alert and contact the chairs whenever
something is happening.”
She also mentioned that in the
ICC laptops are allowed because
of the enormous amount of documents
and that it has not caused
any issues, so technology could
be used in other committees.
Regardless of the differences
in opinion, there is one thing on
which all can agree. With the increasing
use of technology in
every other aspect of life, the
question of technology in MUN
conferences is not going away any
time soon.
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Extended Lobbying
What are the Opinions on the
Extra Day of Lobbying?
It is common knowledge that delegates
have been working relentlessly
over the course of the last
couple of months to sharpen their
skills for the THIMUN Singapore
conference. Their confidence
during debates attests to that. But
are they ready for lobbying— a
process that requires delegates to
step out of their comfort zones in
search of delegates with similar interests
to garner support for their
resolutions? Moreover, are delegates
of the General Assemblies
(GA) ready for the “extra day” of
lobbying, which was added to provide
time for them to perfect their
resolutions, fix any errors that may
have been overlooked, and give
them the opportunity to explore
more than one topic in-depth?
Most delegates were confident
about their performances during
lobbying, which they attributed
to the amount of training they received
prior to the conference. Safal
Aryal (Ambassador of France
of GA1, International School of
Beijing) has been a part of MUN
for the past two years and has
attended 14 conferences, which
taught him how to work with other
delegates with ease. He said
that “most of [his] lobbying skills
have come from past conferences
rather than the training [he] has
received at school.” On the other
hand, newer delegates such as
Hyejin Jegal (Delegate of Croatia
of GA4, North London Collegiate
School Dubai) and Maria Denisenko
(Delegate of Andorra of GA4,
North London Collegiate School
Dubai) have said that “[their]
school dedicates hours each
meeting to practice lobbying.”
They agree that the extra time
has been beneficial in helping
them be more confident in their
resolutions, especially considering
that it is their first conference.
Contrary to the overall confidence
delegates expressed, many delegates
have expressed mixed opinions
on the extra day of lobbying.
Delegates such as Aryal have said
that “lobbying sessions are way
too long, so instead of editing their
resolutions, they are procrastinating.”
This was reiterated by Allison
Chen, (Delegate of Greece of GA3,
Kaohsiung American School) who
believes that the lobbying time can
be shortened to one day as many
resolutions have been already
submitted on the first day. Conversely,
some delegates agreed
with Daniel Tse (Delegate of Libya
of GA3, Yew Chung International
School of Shanghai Pudong) who
said that the extra day of lobbying
provides “more time to go over
resolution and find flaws in them,
as well as more time to get to know
[the other co submitters] well.”
It is undeniable that the extra
lobbying time has strengthened
their resolutions by providing
the delegates with time to further
explore different angles
of topics. Whether or not delegates
agree, it should be used
effectively to maximize success.
Written By: Hyoree Kim
Editted By: Priyanka Krishna
Layout By: Ishwarya Krishna
Photographs By: Zara Yap
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Upsides of
Technology
&
Social Media
on Mental
Written by: Josh Tang
Edited by: Hyoree Kim
Layout by: Jessica Hsu
Artwork by: Jessica Hsu
Health
Over the years, society has begun
to regard technology and social
media as malicious and dangerous.
From a young age, we are
taught that technology is harmful
and damaging towards your mental
health. In some ways it is true,
but society should not condemn
the use of technology just because
of some of the negatives it
may have. The introduction could
be a little smoother. It’s a little
awkward.
For better or worse, technology
has become an integral part of
many people’s lives. For example,
Harry Strathfield (Delegate of Philippines
GA2, Harrow International
School Hong Kong), commented
on the matter, saying “it provided
a whole new world for people to
connect and talk about their problems”.
This not only benefits society
but also mental health, it allows
people to communicate and
share their feelings, helping them
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in the process of mending their
wellbeing. A similar point was
made by Callum Abraham (Delegate
of Venezuela GA2, Harrow
International School Hong Kong),
he said that “If you’re feeling down
you can talk to people who are all
the way across the world and…
contact them and have conversations
about what’s wrong”. Even if
there is no one physically with you,
the internet enables you to be able
to contact anyone you need, anywhere
you are. Social media is not
limited to direct help. It can also
have indirect advantages such as
promoting good mental health,
for example, Rohaan Bhojwani
(Delegate of Nepal GA2, American
School Of Bombay) said that
“there are many pages that help
spread awareness, there are many
different pages on Instagram for
each different topic, like if you
have an issue with something you
can follow it for help support and
guidance”. Although the different
pages on Instagram mentioned by
Bhojwani may not be very effective,
it could be a gateway to many
sites that offer proper counseling.
Not only does social media help
you maintain pre-existing relationships,
but it also helps you create
new ones, Min Chan Kim (Delegate
of South Korea GA2, British
School Manila), said that “Even
though there are negatives, I do
think that social media is good because
it can create friendships.”
Social media and technology has
gained a stigma of menace and
danger because the public has
been focusing on the negatives
and not the positives. Technology
is a double-edged sword, it could
harm you, but it could also benefit
you and your mental health in
ways never imaginable.

When Do You Go to Sleep?
Written By: Ping Tsai and Joey Lin
Editted By: Aastha Gokani
Layout and Artwork By: Ishwarya Krishna
When asked about when
they usually go to sleep, delegates
had varying answers.
However, most responded
with a time that fell within
the interval from 11:00 P.M.
to 2:00 A.M. — a trend that
suggests sleep deprivation.
Ming Li Tan (delegate of Thailand
of GA6, Anderson Serangoon
Junior College) confessed
that she usually sleeps
late because she spends a lot
of time on her phone. Jonathan
Lim (delegate of Libya of
GA4, Yew Chung International
School of Shanghai-Pudong)
believes that he devotes a big
portion of his night time to video-gaming,
which resulted in
a significant reduction in his
sleeping time. As hardcore
manga fans, Vrinda Das and
Arzoo Usgaonkar (delegates
of Japan of HRC, Dhirubhai
Ambani International School,
India) think that by the end of
every night, they still “have too
many mangas still left to read.”
Whatever the cause may be,
most delegates expressed that
they understand the health
risks of sleeplessness. Still,
delegates such as William Li
and Seojin Park (delegates of
the Dominican Republic of SC,
Shekou International School)
believe that it’s “pretty normal”
to sleep around 12 A.M.
Even though Tan, Lim, Das,
and Usgaonkar may not have
been best at managing their
time, this is a serious concern
for many around the world. The
issue of sleep deprivation and
long working hours have taken
a toll on students and adults
alike. In the increasingly competitive
job market, workers are
sacrificing their sleep to complete
what their demanding
employers tasked them to do.
Although staying up late surely
allows employees to get more of
their work done, reduced sleep
time impairs employees’ ability
to concentrate during work and
causes their health to deteriorate.
Shreya Margale (Deputy
President of HRC, Shekou International
School) and Young
Soo Kim (Deputy President of
HRC, International School Beijing)
suggested that the effects
of excessively long working
hours could include numerous
mental and physical complications.
In fact, some delegates
even admitted that they have
felt ill due to sleep deprivation.
This year, delegates of HRC will
be debating on the question of
excessively long working hours.
Acknowledging the adverse effects
of sleep deprivation, delegates
should eagerly collaborate
with other delegates to
compose resolutions pertinent
to tackling the issue at hand.
6

The
Unknown
Variable:
Artificial
Intelligence
Written by: Ping Tsai
Edited by: Priyanka Krishna
Layout by: Angel Yang
Artwork by: Jessica Hsu
A new wave of technological revolution—
the AI revolution— has
accelerated data-analyzing processes
and enabled better decision-making
among professionals,
including those that work in
the military. However, the use of
AI in this military context is met
with both support and opposition.
On one side of the debate, supporters
of AI contend that its advantages
outweigh the drawbacks
as it is able to quickly detect and
analyze information at a speed
unattainable by humans. On the
other side, opposers of AI believe
that AI increases the risks of deliberate
attacks, imposes existential
threats to humans, and raises
the possibility of ethical and legal
exploitation. Furthermore, it is
argued that, with AI being a relatively
new technological development,
countries are not fully aware
of the range of consequences that
may result from its use, and the
lack of regulations permits countries
to manipulate supercomputers
in various settings. In facing
the ethical and legal dilemmas
concerning this novel technology,
delegates in General Assembly 1
(GA1) are seeking to increase regulations
on the use of AI for military
purposes, for civilians have to
be safeguarded against the dan-
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gers such technologies may pose.
From medical diagnoses to driverless
cars, AI plays an increasingly
important role in society and
boasts a myriad of benefits, which
delegates wanted to strengthen.
For instance, delegates such as
Shreya Tandon (Delegate of Senegal
of GA1, American School of
Bombay) proposed clauses that
advocate for increased application
of AI in healthcare with the
aim of ensuring that AI is improving
society. Supercomputers like
Watson can compile and evaluate
large sets of patient data. This feature
of AI allows doctors to design
medical treatments catered to
the needs of specific patients. As
a result, doctors are less likely to
allocate funds on treatments that
are not clinically valuable. There
can be similar life-saving benefits
from military applications. AI’s
enhanced detection ability has
been utilized by the US Department
of Defense in an autonomous
underwater vehicle, which
allows the discernment of underwater
mines with a low deployment
cost. However, not everyone
focuses on these positives.
Contrary to the optimistic delegates,
others in GA1 are focusing
on who will be responsible for monitoring
states’ military usage of AI,
as well as how would the international
community punish states
who have failed to uphold relevant
international laws. Tandon, with
strong beliefs that AI has frequently
been exploited by countries,
maintained that “it is very important
to have laws, where countries
and companies take the blame
if AI goes rogue” because there
have been several countries who
simply rejected the responsibility
to ensure the technology’s proper
usage. To discourage the exploitation
of AI, Tandon endorsed
the imposition of sanctions on
countries that fail to abide by the
international guidelines for lethal
autonomous weapons (LAWs) and
unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
Furthermore, AI itself is a recent
technological innovation that necessitates
more research to avoid
malfunctions. Indeed, to be employed
in military uses, AI must
be programmed without errors
that would place civilians in danger.
Finnigan French (Delegate
of Poland of GA1, Lycée Français
de Singapour), expressing his
concerns over the safety issues,
strongly believed that the use of
AI would be morally wrong if insufficient
research is conducted
prior to its adoption into the military.
He suggested that countries
should keep themselves updated
on research about “what AI would
become in the future” and the regulations
necessary to assure civilians
of the technology’s safety.
As suggested by Albert Chou
(Delegate of China of GA1, Pacific
American School), AI is still an
“unknown variable.” Therefore, to
make sure that AI actually does
its job to protect the civilians,
delegates in GA1 agree that further
discussions must be held to
prevent the possibility of AI being
exploited and explore its full range
of abilities. Surely, the inclusion of
such a newfangled technology demands
countries and international
actors to evaluate the positive
and negative impacts AI creates,
and from there take necessary
actions to ensure its proper use.
It is only with the collaborative
effort of UN member states and
other international actors that
the consequences of AI would
be reduced to the very least.
8

Safeguarding
Personal Info
Against Data Mining
Written by: Isabella Wood
Edited by: Hyoree Kim
Layout by: Jessie Liao
Photographs by: Jerry Lin
As a new era of human civilization begins,
anything and everything can be found on
the Internet. As a result, the availability of
personal information is now at an all-time
high and can be accessed by anybody.
Many corporate websites across the Internet
take users’ personal data without
consent and keep the specifics hidden in
the terms and conditions. Hence, a multitude
of users are now paranoid about
their personal data being stolen as the
issue becomes more prevalent. By taking
personal data, corporations exploit their
users’ trust for their advantage.
Through data mining, corporations collect
large sets of personal information.
9

Data mining involves the
collection and analysis of
large groups of data by a
machine learning model
that powers artificial intelligence.
These analyses are
used to personalize an individual’s
experience online
such as the recommendation
system on YouTube
and suggested search results
on Google. Users and
delegates alike are aware of
some forms of data mining,
particularly cookies. Unfortunately,
cookies are used
by almost every website
such as Twitter, Google and
Amazon, making it virtually
impossible to escape data
mining. Data mining may
be good for corporations,
but what does it mean for
the users?
It puts the users at risk.
Users are well aware that
their personal data is being
collected, but many
are not bothered to protect
their data. Serious problems
arise due to users’
lack of precaution of protecting
data that can put
themselves at a greater risk
of their information being
stolen, including sensitive
data such as social media
activity and bank details.
When personal information
is stolen from data
mines, the information can
be used for crimes such
as identity theft. Moreover,
there are little to no formal
laws that are enforced to
prevent corporations from
taking personal data.
However, there are a myriad
of ways to protect personal
data. A simple and quick
way to protect information
from potential hackers is to
change the password regularly
or use a different password
for every social media
account. This ensures that
in case someone gets a
hold of one’s password, not
all information is at risk.
Another method of data
protection is to update
apps and software regularly.
Older software and apps
that have not been updated
in a long time are at a much
greater risk to information
being stolen because it
is easy to make it through
encryption: encoding the
file that only certain people
can read it. So even if one
dislikes the newest Snapchat
update or the latest
iOS installment, it is better
to be safe than sorry.
Alternatively, one of the
most effective and popular
ways to protect data is to invest
in a virtual privacy network
(VPN) that encrypts
data while on the Internet.
VPNs are becoming more
and more useful, especially
for those living in nations
with strict censorship laws
or international students,
like many of the delegates
at THIMUN Singapore.
They can be used to change
a person’s IP address to
another location, often in
another nation, to help protect
data from being stolen.
Mireille Amro (Delegate
of Andorra of GA6, North
London Collegiate School
Dubai) uses a VPN whenever
she can because she
doesn’t “really want people
to see what [she’s] doing,”
and that if VPN is unavailable,
she’ll use a private
browser. The same goes for
Samuel Chong (Delegate of
Jordan of GA6, Australian
International School Malaysia),
who uses VPN to “stop
some websites from tracking
my stuff.”
While there are ways to
protect ourselves from personal
data being collected,
cooperation between both
corporations and users
needs to happen in regard
to the collection of personal
information. Delegates in
General Assembly 6 are exploring
the issue of personal
data collection and agree
that there needs to be
transparency between corporations
and users about
data collection. Anushka
Goyal (Delegate of Norway
of GA6, Dubai International
Academy) described the
importance of this transparency
and being able to
“know what we’re getting
into before getting into it”.
She further detailed her
thoughts on the issue, mentioning
that transparency
helps users to “be aware
of how to protect ourselves
if anything bad happens”.
Corporations shouldn’t be
using sensitive information
of their customers in order
to benefit themselves. People
deserve to feel safe on
the internet and not be paranoid
about becoming victims
of identity theft.
10

Do Cloning and Stem
Cell Research Create a
“Brave New World”?
Written by: Joey Lin
Edited by: Priyanka Krishna
Layout by: Jessie Liao
Artwork by: Ishwarya Krishna
Delegates always fear when their ideas are already
taken and their well-crafted speeches have
to be abandoned. What if one day, every delegate
in the room had the same idea and never needed
to debate? The stale uniformity of this scenario is
well explored in dystopian novels and is the concern
of many scientists and organizations around
the world. So on Wednesday, delegates of General
Assembly 6 (GA6) continued to lobby on the issue
of “establishing a legal framework for cloning
and stem cell research.”
Cloning enables geneticists to create genetically
identical copies of any organism, and stem cells
are cells capable of developing into other cells,
creating life and making cloning possible. Adult
stem cells can transform into limited cell types,
and embryonic stem cells, on the other hand, can
develop into all cell types.
The question of cloning and stem cell research
may remind delegates of the novel Brave New
World by Aldous Huxley, which centers around
the idea that families have been abolished, and
everyone is born through in-vitro fertilization. Although
Huxley’s world consists of perfect human
beings, the characters gradually discover that the
world they live in is an authoritarian dystopia. The
stark contrasts of the characters’ reactions to the
environment around them gave rise to questions
regarding the positives and negatives of genetic
technology.
The advantages and disadvantages of genetic
technology discussed in the work of fiction divided
the house in GA6 as well. According to Akhil
Venkatesh (deputy chair of GA6, Stamford American
International School) and Mollie Cheng (deputy
chair of GA6, International Bilingual School at
Hsinchu), 46 countries around the world, including
Japan, South Korea, and most of the European
Union, have banned human cloning or have restrictive
policies on them. On the other hand, China
and the United States seem to support human
cloning. Stem cell research and the reproduction
of human embryos are banned in most European
countries, but Asian countries such as China, Japan,
and India are supportive of them.
Anushka Goyal (delegate of Norway of GA6,
Dubai International Academy) stated that Norway
is “completely against” reproductive cloning.
Goyal explained that “reproductive cloning is genetically
copying the genes of an individual and
producing a second individual that is identical
to the subject,” which can cause identity and le-
11

gality issues regarding the cloned individual. For
example, what if, like in Brave New World, people
are stripped of their identity and cultural differences?
Also, what if the cloned individual commits
a crime, and the genetically identical individual
is marked guilty? Moreover, Goyal observed
that many believe that cloning humans “infringes
on privacy and human rights,” and is considered
as “playing god,” and that the major obstacle restraining
the advance in genetic technology is
one concerning ethics.
However, Norway is generally supportive of stem
cell research with “some regulations” like banning
research on embryonic stem cells, but allowing research
on adult stem cells. This is because adult
stem cells enable therapeutic cloning, which is
the production of embryonic stem cells to replace
or repair damaged tissues or organs. Additionally,
therapeutic cloning runs few risks because it
does not insert foreign cells into the human body.
Therefore, Goyal, representing Norway, believed
that stem cell research is less dangerous when
regulated, unlike outright human cloning.
Alice Wang (delegate of China of GA6, Pacific
American School), presented an opposing point
of view as a representative of the People’s Republic
of China. Supportive of both cloning and stem
cell research, China “has always been in a competition
with other countries over research and
development in [genetics],” and would not give up
their edge over other countries in a budding major
industry. “One of the positive effects of cloning
and stem cell research would be improvement in
the medical field,” Wang says, “negative [consequences]
would primarily concern ethics.”
Elina Du (chair of GA6, Beijing World Youth Academy)
holds a more neutral opinion. She credited
cloning and stem cell research with creating
“more ways to treat patients and cure deadly diseases.”
But she also noted that cloning and stem
cell research are highly controversial in the international
community. Du pictured the readiness
of the world to accept these technologies as a
line drawn on the track of the long race of human
evolution: “if [this] line is not ready, [world governments]
should not implement these technologies.”
In essence, she, like other chairs, believed
that regulations are important in the development
of genetic technology.
Although it is established that cloning and stem
cell research are crucial for the medical industry,
the delegates and chairs of GA6 raised multiple
points of concern, citing the risks of security,
health hazards, and most importantly, ethical concerns.
Most delegates and all chairs recommended
regulations to accompany the technological
advancements to keep the skyrocketing progress
in check, and prevent the improvements from devolving
into a dystopia such as that of Huxley’s
imagination.
12

Religion
and
Technology
Written by: Jade Henry
Edited by: Aastha Gokani
Photographs by: Jerry Lin
Layout by: Angel Yang
Artwork by: Jessie Liao,
Angel Yang
The rise of technology in the early
2000’s brought religions and
faiths onto social media platforms,
which ultimately influence
more and more audiences globally,
but then force us to consider
whether or not this is a good thing.
The internet can benefit certain
faiths and religions, said Sebq
Abu Khamsin (delegate of Iceland
of GA6, Dhahran Ahliyya
Schools). She thinks social media
help spread faiths in that they
are great platforms “to spread
religion and can really open up
people’s minds about it.” The idea
of everyone from all around the
world being linked by the same
access to a range of religions and
beliefs can help some find what
best fits their spiritual needs.
Being able to ask questions anonymously
through different platforms
also encourages people to come
forward to religious websites and
ask questions that they’d not necessarily
ask in person. The benefit
of anonymity installs a barrier between
the person asking and the
person answering, and the global
exposure of that original anonymous
question ensures that no
matter where one is, another will
be there to answer the person’s
inquiries about a certain religion.
With social media platforms being
open to faiths, those who
seek wisdom or who are just willing
to learn benefit as well. After
being asked thoughts on religion
being on these platforms,
Sami Shih, (Delegate of Greece
of GA6, Kaohsiung American
School) said “On social media
you meet a lot of people with different
religious backgrounds and
you can change yourself on your
own agenda; some people adopt
a new religion or try new ones.”
On the other hand, religion and
faith being linked to social media
platforms could also be used in
less constructive ways, according
to Baptiste Gaud (Delegate
of Poland of GA4, Lycee Francais
de Singapour), who has a much
more pessimistic point of view in
regard how social media can influence
religious beliefs and their
impacts. Gaud stated that “It’s
more negative in today’s world,
because of insults and memes,
when you see the whole world
13

through social media and Internet,
it’s so much more different.” When
asked if it is favourable or not for
a religion to be exposed to the
internet, he replied, “No, I think
it does the absolute opposite.”
Indeed, religion on the internet is
more exposed to criticism, which
eventually leads to a backlash and
damage towards the holy texts of
said faith. Whether it is a scientific
or religious point of view with concrete
arguments attacking another
faith, anything that is put on the
internet is never safe from critics.
In the same vein, the close contact
religions have with each other
through easy communication can
be ‘toxic’. All it takes is a believer,
claiming his religion is more important
than the beliefs of another.
Furthermore, religion on the Internet
has allowed terrorism to
flourish on social media platforms.
Cyberterrorists spread
their specific doctrines and beliefs,
which arouse violence or
strong emotions, on social media
platforms. The low cost and global
spread make social media the
perfect platform to reach a wider
audience, putting nations at risk.
The rejection of religion by the
newer generations results as a rise
of individualism which puts a person’s
self-interest forward rather
than a community, or in this case
a religion as a whole. For example,
an article in Quartz asserted that
12% of college students during
the 1970s never attended religious
services compared to 27%
of college students from 2000.
During that 30 year span, students
who identified as having no religion
increased from 13% to 25%.
Overall, anything concerning faith
and different beliefs will always
be a sensitive subject and adding
the internet as another variable
makes it even more delicate. Re-
ligion on the internet could have
a positive outcome, but when
associated with incessant critiques
and terrorism, it brings a
more sinister undertone to the
whole issue, achieving the exact
opposite of what a religion is
supposed to do in the first place.
14

EDITORS IN CHIEF
Xuan Lin Tan
Ray Chen
TEXT EDITORS
Priyanka Krishna
Hyoree Kim
Aastha Gokani
LAYOUT & ARTISTS
Ryan Hsiao
Angel Yang
Jessica Hsu
Jessie Liao
Ishwarya Krishna
REPORTERS
Ella Hirmato
Isabella Wood
Jade Henry
Joey Lin
Ping Tsai
Joshua Tang
PHOTOGRAPHERS
Dorian Chen
Zara Yap
Jerry Lin
Joshua Tang
VIDEOGRAPHERS
Jerry Lin
Nicolas Paccaud
Tijn Van Der Dikkenberg