61st edition – Games – Pike & Hurricane

Model United Nations – A game with an impact

Julia Kavanto — Tue, 23 Mar 2021 17:11:15 +0000

UF Malmö’s Head of MUN Rebecca Coluccino

I first came across the Model United Nations (MUN) as a child when I was watching Northern American television shows for children. It was something American children did on TV: like prom, but for politics. I did not understand it, and I never got the chance to take part in it.

To learn more about this “simulation game”, I reached out to the one person I know is passionate about MUN: UF Malmö’s Head of MUN Rebecca Coluccino. She first became acquainted with MUN in her school in Italy. There was a bit of luck involved, too. Rebecca’s school sent her to her first-ever MUN Conference at the United Nations headquarters in New York in 2016. At the time, Rebecca did not understand the technical procedures of the conference. Regardless, she was very interested in learning to debate about political issues and understand other cultures.

Is the MUN conference a game?

The MUN is a simulation game. The players are called delegates, and each participant is assigned a country they will be representing in the discussions. The delegates are pretending to be diplomats of a specific country the delegate is assigned to, for example, ‘the diplomat of Sweden to the United Nations’, but that is just a technical term.

In every conference, there are two questions. The debates around the questions aim to obtain a resolution that your country would benefit, and that the resolution is acceptable to the other delegations. There is no ‘winning’ at the conference, but some people will try to win the simulation anyway. The goal is to have good debates and seek common good with the discussions. Sure, there are some awards, but you will not win it if you treat the conference as a competition.

Who organises the conference?

Technically anyone could organise a Model UN conference, but it is often a school organising the conference. In our case, though, it is a student association. UF Malmö has many different committees for different activities. One of them is the editorial committee making this particular magazine possible. Another is the MUN of Malmö committee. Rebecca was elected to be the head of MUN of Malmö for this semester, which means that she is the one organising the conference this year. She collected her team for organising the event this year, and they have set the dates to be 21.-23. of May 2021 (mark your calendars!).

Without going into further details on how exactly is the conference organised, I will say it seems like a lot of work but very doable. If you wish to take a closer look, there is a guide provided by the United Nations. But worry not, to join the conference as a delegate you would not have to know how to organise such an event. The first steps for this year’s conference have been completed as Rebecca has a team working on different topics, such as financial and logistics.

A month before the conference, the application process begins. You do not have to be a delegate, i.e. represent a country in the conference. You could also apply to be a member of staff or a chairperson. There is room for a ton of people, as there are many countries in the United Nations. The only restriction is that you need to be a student. Students at Malmö University will be prioritised, but all university students are considered. The size of the conference depends on the number of applicants. I asked Rebecca if I could join, being an English Studies student, not a Global Politics student. She said that there are people from all possible study paths. To be able to join the conference you just have to be motivated.

Why do students join?

I believe many would be interested to know what you get out of joining the conference: valuable experiences, for the first. Any employer would be interested in an employee who can collaborate with people from different cultures and state their opinions coherently. It looks good on your CV, in other words. There is also a social aspect to it that many are lacking during the pandemic. In ordinary times people taking part in the conference would spend time together after the debating. This year the conference is held in Zoom, so you “start zoom and start debating” as Rebecca says. Her team will try to come up with something to have the social aspect of the conference online, too. Even held in Zoom, you would meet new people who share an interest in global affairs. You should expect the application period to start in mid-April.

People are sometimes scared of the MUN conference, Rebecca says. They worry they do not know enough to join. Rebecca wanted to change that. She encourages people to ask questions and come as they are. Rebecca had her first experience in MUN too. No one explained to her the terms, but she will explain them to you. Remembering all the terms is not important, Rebecca says. You could say: “Ay, can we all just talk about this political issue?” and the chair would know that you mean round robin.

Here are four terms explained by Rebecca:

Round robin: All delegates participating in the debate give a short speech about their position after the chairperson calls their country.

Point of personal privilege: Literally, if something is annoying you and you want to say it. For example: “I can’t hear China’s Delegate, could they speak up?”

Moderated Caucus: a debate on a determined issue (usually “motion for a 10 minutes moderated caucus on topic A/to discuss […] with 30 seconds speaking time”), where delegates have to raise their placards and wait for the chair to allow them to speak. Not everyone has the chance to speak, and it is up to the chair who does and when. In this case, when the 10 minutes end, the Caucus ends too. The “30 seconds speaking time” means that you can only talk for 30 seconds once you have been allowed to do so. Time changes, and theoretically, one can propose anything.

Unmoderated Caucus: same rules apply for timing, but delegates are free to move around and speak to other delegates without restraints or lists. People get confused about this because sometimes it can also be called a lobbying session or informal session.

Have questions about MUN of Malmö? Ask Rebecca at munmomalmo@gmail.com or reach out to her on LinkedIn.

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The Olympic Games Tokyo 2020(1): Can it change the way the Olympics Games are held in the future?

Rozarina Bakher — Tue, 23 Mar 2021 17:11:09 +0000

The coronavirus pandemic has seen many events either postponed or cancelled. The most globally known event by far would be the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo which was originally scheduled from 22 July to 9 August.

The global sporting event is now rescheduled to be held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 instead, but will still retain the name as the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. Despite general worry from the Japanese population on the pandemic and its aftereffects, The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has announced that there is no “Plan B” and that the games will go ahead as planned. Around 206 National Olympic Committees are scheduled to participate and approximately 11,091 athletes in various sporting games are expected to compete. The choice for the organizer to carry out this event is being met with declining support from the general population over renewed concern of a new strain of the coronavirus. Japan will only begin its vaccination program late February (as of the date of this article, Japan has begun local clinical trials with the Moderna vaccine in January). Many believe vaccination of its 127 million citizens is crucial for the game to take place. A massive $14 billion has been set aside by the government to roll out the vaccine before the games begin, despite growing uncertainty amongst a population which has a history of being deeply wary of vaccines.

A question remains, why is the Japanese government planning to go ahead with its plan to host these Olympic games amidst the threat of the pandemic?

Surely, a potential Plan B would be to cancel it all together? In the Olympics history, the games have been cancelled three times before, in 1916, 1940 and 1944. In fact in 1940, both the summer and winter Olympics were scheduled to take place in Japan but were cancelled due to WW2.

Too far gone

Hosting an Olympic is a big deal for any country, but it also carries huge financial implications. Going ahead with it is a way to recoup the investment that Japanese government and its public sponsors have spent on the games. Japan reportedly spent $75 million for the campaign to host the games and provided a $7.3 billion budget during its bidding in 2013. The coronavirus delay reportedly cost around $2.4 billion, and since then the Tokyo organizing committee has upped the outlays to $15.4 billion. It is now set to be the most expensive summer Olympics. So, the show must go on as the IOC depends on selling broadcasting rights and sponsorships which accounts for 90 percent of its revenue. Note, that this game could go ahead without the anticipated spectators that would bring additional income through ticket sales. It was reported that around 70 percent of tickets are reserved for buyers in Japan and sales are expected to be worth $800 million to local organizers. The remainder is reserved for overseas visitors, who may not be able to travel if the pandemic’s infection numbers continue to rise.

Postponing the game further would also jeopardize plans for the 2024 Olympic games to be held in Paris. A few reasons put forward by IOC President, Tomas Bach was that they simply cannot have overlapping games one after another, the next Olympic game scheduled, the Beijing Winter Olympics in February 2022, is only 6 months away, neither can the committee keep employing the 3,000 – 5,000 people for an indefinite time. If Tokyo Olympics 2020 does not go ahead this year, it could lead to the games taking place further along in 2024, Paris will be 2028 and LA in 2032.

The proud nation

Tokyo Governor, Yuriko Koike has a vision for Tokyo and is betting on Hong Kong’s losing appeal after Chinese crackdowns and Singapore becoming more expensive for investment, that Tokyo will win back some of its former glory as a regional hub for foreign companies in Asia. The Tokyo metropolitan government has launched marketing campaigns, particularly aimed at high-tech and fintech firms, and the Olympics are an excellent chance to highlight the city.

There is also a sense of pride in reliving the 1964 Tokyo Olympics in which Japan gained fame for showcasing to the world how the country recovered from the devastation of the WW2 less than two decades later and how it reformed from an aggressive empire-seeker to a model of peace and democracy. It still craves to showcase the glory of the ’64 successful event, and what better way to reclaim the fame than by hosting the very event that demonstrates the best of Japan and help the world celebrate as it turns the corner on the Covid-19 pandemic.

Forfeiting the games is not an option, as the world’s next global sporting event will be the Beijing Winter Olympics 2022. In the realm of Asian rivalry, this is one that Japan would not want to see itself losing. Japan was the 2nd largest economy after the US from 1968 to 2010, before losing the spot to China, and a few billion dollars to make the games happen may be a small price to pay for a chance at glory.

At this point, pulling off the Olympics is not just a matter of economic damage-control. It is a national project, a matter of honour and saving face from being seen as a nation of give-ins.

The Playbook

The IOC announced on February 3 that the game would take place and have issued the Tokyo Olympic playbooks meant to outline measures against Covid-19. Some of the actions-in-plan from the playbook which aims to keep participants and citizens of Japan safe are:

A vaccination will not be compulsory for those attending the games, although a negative test for Covid-19 is required four weeks leading up to the event and athletes will be tested every four days.
Those coming to the games will be asked to cheer by clapping instead of chanting or shouting.
Athletes, and those attending the games will not be permitted to visit tourist sites or travel on public transport.
A 14-day activity plan is to be submitted ahead by those attending.

In addition to the above, plans are in place to keep strict attendance numbers in the opening ceremony on July 23. Athletes cannot check into the Olympic Village more than five days before the opening and must leave two days after finishing their competition.

Despite all the measures in place, will it be enough to not turn the Olympic Games Tokyo into the “mother of all super-spreader events”?

Certainly, the Tokyo Olympics will be very different from what we are all used to in the past, with a stadium full of spectators cheering and waving their nations’ flag and will be without the grandeur of the opening and closing ceremonies. The IOC have stressed the focus is to host a sporting event without the extravagant hoopla that has become a part of the Olympics. For a while now, the Olympics have been known to cause economic strain to the country that hosts them. Some past examples: Athens spent $15 billion to host the 2004 Olympics, taxpayers in Athens will continue to be assessed annually until the debt is paid and most of the facilities built during the games remain empty. In a nearly similar example of another endemic, the 2016 Olympic in Brazil was affected due to the Zika virus. Extra accommodation was built for the expectation of tourists; however, the virus scares saw the decline in tourists expected during the Games.

While Tokyoites and the rest of the world are Covid-weary, and despite the budget to host the Games having risen, the IOC is still head-on strong to proceed with the Olympics 2020, even if it could mean less spectators and a potential loss in income. The Olympics history has showcased a few past examples as to how the games have caused economic strain to its host country and perhaps the Tokyo Olympic 2020 Games can serve as an inspiration for future Olympics Games and other countries to look for alternative, more cost effective and sustainable ways of hosting.

Note: All currency is in US$

Related articles:

A Volunteer’s View of the Rio Olympics

Photo credits:

Tokyo Tower Special Lightup by t-mizo (CC BY 2.0)

Tokyo Olympics 2020 by Danny Choo on Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

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The #strajkkobiet phenomenon

Ioana Pavel — Tue, 23 Mar 2021 17:11:08 +0000

The #strajkkobiet phenomenon in Poland is made up of two sides. The first can be grossly defined as the hundreds of thousands of women protesting and demanding unencumbered access to legal abortion, and the Government vehemently trying – and ultimately succeeding – to restrict this particular right. How is the phenomenon unfolding?

On October 22, 2020, Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal imposed a near-total ban on abortions. The ruling allows for abortions in cases of sexual assault, incest or when the mother’s life in danger, but bans it in cases of fetal abnormalities, whereas around 96% of abortions in Poland have taken place in cases of fetal abnormalities. The ruling Law and Justice Party (PiS) has been pursuing an agenda of restricting abortions since the beginning of its mandate, and has promoted it as a campaign promise. Since February, the decision has taken effect.

Both sides use human rights rhetoric to justify their positions. Government rhetoric argues that a human life must be protected from the moment of conception until death, citing the right to life as well as the freedom of conscience and religion, as protected by the Polish Constitution. Meanwhile, the protesters speak of women’s sexual and reproductive rights, arguing that the ban will not prevent abortions, but merely force women to seek them illegally. Beyond the approximate 1,000 abortions carried out legally, women’s rights groups estimated that 200,000 polish women still seek abortions either illegally. Those who can afford it will seek an abortion abroad. Those who carry out illegal abortions and those who aid women in seeking out illegal abortions risk a sentence of imprisonment for up to three years. About a dozen convictions of this kind take place annually.

A key player on the Government’s team is the Catholic Church, which supports the ban wholeheartedly. In 2015, 92% of the population identified as Catholic and 61% said that religion has a very high or a high importance in their life. Whereas the state and the church are by law supposed to be independent from each other, a Reuters analysis shows that priests have been known to display election posters on parish property and talk about the elections during mass.

Meanwhile, a key player on the protesters’ side is the European Union, which nonetheless has no competence to impose law on reproductive rights. It does, however, take a stand on the issue. In a 2020 submission by the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, the Commissioner found that “since 2014 almost 4,000 Polish doctors have signed a “Declaration of Faith of Catholic doctors and medical students regarding human sexuality and fertility”, through which they expressed their commitment to following “divine law” in their professional work and to reject abortion, contraception and in vitro fertilisation.” Whereas a doctor who signs such a declaration must refer the patient to another practitioner, in practice, timely access to an abortion is severely and systematically hindered. According to the same submission, in some areas and in some hospitals, virtually all doctors have signed such a declaration and women are forced to seek an abortion illegally.

The same report found that sexual and reproductive health is further dampened by a 2017 decision that the emergency contraceptive pill would be made available only on prescription, as opposed to over-the-counter. However, prescriptions are delayed by doctors who refuse to sign them based on the same freedom of conscience and religion clause, the long wait or the cost for an appointment, and the fact that minors need a legal guardian to accompany them when making such an appointment.

In a press release on November 26, 2020, the European Parliament has spoken out against the ban, citing that women’s rights were being violated and their lives were put at risk. The EP had found that access to prenatal screening, which could find fetal abnormalities and result in a request for an abotion, was being restricted by doctors using the conscience clause. Meanwhile, Poland has announced that it plans to withdraw from the Istanbul Convention, wherein member States of the Council of Europe vow to “protect women against all forms of violence, and prevent, prosecute and eliminate violence against women and domestic violence”, on that grounds that the Convention imposes “a leftist ideology”. It is up to the same Constitutional Tribunal to review the Istanbul Convention and make a final decision.

Meanwhile, the #strajkkobiet phenomenon is not about a protest against one particular ruling by the Constitutional Tribunal. The phenomenon is about a system of oppression that pushed women to break the law in order to have access to the same rights that other European Union countries choose to protect. Women who do not have the means to go abroad for an abortion will end up getting an illegal one. The lucky ones will be under some kind of medical supervision. Those without that option will go for an at-home improvisation that will, in some cases, be fatal. The #strajkkobiet phenomenon is about a system of oppression that left women with no choice but to protest.

Related articles:

The legality of abortion

Photo credits:

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The Politics of Video Games

Filip Zahariev — Tue, 23 Mar 2021 17:11:01 +0000

Many in the gaming industry have gone to great lengths to declare their products “apolitical”. A strangely reactive defense of a genre that has long sought to be accepted as an art form—few would deny that novels, movies, photography, all other art forms are inherently political. It’s not impossible to make art that is apolitical, of course; the result is most often bad art.

Doublethink

The great irony is, political statements are evident by the content of the games that most ardently push for an apolitical label. Look no further than Ubisoft’s The Division 2, a game about the socio-political fracture of the USA to the point of a second civil war (sound familiar?) that somehow “is not a game about politics,” according to creative director Terry Spier. Earlier in 2018, the same publisher had released Far Cry 5, another game about US society breaking down, this time in the state of Montana, and under the strain of religious fundamentalism. In the link above, PC Gamer had aptly described it as “ultimately toothless”; one imagines this a direct consequence of an unwillingness to examine any one political ideology for fear that it might alienate parts of its player base.

But then, Ubisoft’s development teams and the company’s management seem two very different beasts trapped in the same body. The company’s track in the politics of sexual harassment is even murkier, as became apparent over the summer of 2020, when some of the highest-positioned management staff were embroiled in a string of sexual misconduct reports; later, a survey at the company revealed that as much as 25% of employees at the French publisher had experienced some form of workplace misconduct. Industry critic Jim Sterling covered at length the extent of protection the company extended to these executives—for years prior to the breaking of the story.

Profit Trumps All

No one aware of it could forget Activision Blizzard’s kowtowing before the interests of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) when the company severely censured and punished Blitzchung, a champion player of their digital card game, Hearthstone. When the latter showed support for the 2019 Hong Kong protests going on at the time, he was banned from taking part in any Hearthstone championships for a year, and his championship prize of $10,000 rescinded. Blizzard’s explanation? Blitzchung’s statement had violated a tournament rule, which prohibits the player from engaging in any activity that “brings [them] into public disrepute, offends a portion or group of the public, or otherwise damages Blizzard image [sic].” If they only knew the amount of damage that move would cost them in that most valuable of intangible resources, reputation. The reaction was so fervent, it caused a rare bipartisan rebuke from members of US Congress in addition of turning large swathes of the Blizzard community against the company.

Yet, one cannot help but consider the dotted line—like any Triple-A company in the gaming industry, Activision Blizzard is eager to tap into the enormous gaming market that China has to offer; a market strictly regulated by the CCP, whose propaganda offices are all too happy to deny access to any studio that gives offence to the party. Though the revenue stream Activision Blizzard currently receives from the entire Asia Pacific region is dwarfed by both the Americas and the EMEA(Europe/Middle Eastern Area), it’s no petty cash by any means.

Ubisoft’s reason for claiming that apolitical label for games whose content is blatantly political in nature is similar—committing to one side of any political debate risks offending half the player base at a time of great political polarization.

What developers seem to struggle with is the notion that pointing a finger at a piece of art and proclaiming it apolitical does not automatically minimise the political thought inherent in that piece of art.

The latest offenders

Two topics have commanded the news cycle more than all others during these early months of 2021: COVID-19 and the insurgency at Washington DC in January. Certain game developers have managed to show remarkable aloofness in dealing with both topics. SCS Software, the developer behind Euro Truck Simulator 2 released a press announcement, which originally read “We Do Not Take A Stand Neither For Or Against Vaccines”. Later chalked up to a mistake in translation (the corrected statement read “No matter if you stand for vaccines or against them, these truckers still have to work really hard and we wanted to give them their well-deserved 15 minutes of fame”), this message was met with consternation by many—why would a medium-sized European studio feel the need to make so blatant a non-statement of political conformity? The answer can only be guessed at.

On the other side of the coin rests Six Days in Fallujah, a video game that portrays the Second Battle of Fallujah. It is also not political, if you believe Peter Tamte, head of the game’s publisher, Victura. Despite the game aiming to be a faithful representation of the fiercest battle of the Iraqi War, Tamte claims:

For us as a team, it is really about helping players understand the complexity of urban combat. It’s about the experiences of that individual that is now there because of political decisions. And we do want to show how choices that are made by policymakers affect the choices that [a Marine] needs to make on the battlefield. Just as that [Marine] cannot second-guess the choices by the policymakers, we’re not trying to make a political commentary about whether or not the war itself was a good or a bad idea.

The complexity of urban combat, one might suppose, itself has a great deal of political weight behind it. “Helping players understand” it in 2021 brings particular connotations to the fore, especially after what the world witnessed happening in the United States’ Capitol on January 6. Tamte exhibits the same wilful ignorance towards the wider context of politics as other executives do, a context which rests well outside of what is enacted by “policymakers”.

Politics reach further than well-kempt parliamentary buildings and senate floors. In an age where more and more issues are politicized, to be apolitical might seem a tempting prospect, a siren call to those too tired of the polarized climate across the public sphere. But attempting to faithfully render blatantly political situations in the format of a video game, only to stand apart from the messages that come with these is nothing if not dishonest and cowardly—and worth condemning.

Related articles:

A game of chess at the Greek-Turkish border

Photo credits:

Wiki-background by Prachatai on Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Hearthstone at Gamescom 2013 by Sergey Galyonkin on Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)

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The Battle of the Grandmasters

Franziska Fink — Tue, 23 Mar 2021 17:10:56 +0000

Whilst reading a newspaper, one will often stumble upon catchy headlines such as “What Is the End Game of US-China Competition?” (The Diplomat), “Russian lawmaker on US-China power game: Don’t play us ‘as a card’” (Nikkei Asia) or “Erdogan’s great game: The Turkish problem on the EU’s doorstep” (The Financial Times). Each of these examples makes use of a metaphor depicting politics as a game of some sort. Of course, those headings are phrased as enticing as possible to win the reader’s interest. But by the same token, they subtly (and, most likely, unintentionally) reveal a core feature of political theory and practice.

It is not by a whim of nature that state leaders, transnational corporations and even whole nations are repeatedly referred to as “players” within the discourse of global politics. There is even an entire political and economic theory which is built around the analogy of politics as a game, the classic game theory. Scholars of International Relations, for example, make frequent use of this theory to showcase how international conflict and other political phenomena occur as a result of decisions made by people.

This politics-as-a-game allegory is even further underpinned by one of the oldest and most successful games known to humankind. Chess, which used to be especially popular among the Shahs of Persia and has since enjoyed great renown as a sophisticated leisure time activity of known politicians and state-leaders (Napoleon, Queen Elisabeth II, Willy Brandt and Jimmy Carter to only name a few), is currently enjoying a revival even outside political circles (which, to be fair, might have to be accredited to the less sophisticated leisure time activity of us mortals watching The Queen’s Gambit on Netflix, an exceptionally well-made show that follows the life of an orphan chess prodigy, Elizabeth Harmon, during her quest to become the world’s greatest chess player).

Chess is often described as a battle-game, during which both players are attempting to beat their opponent by taking down the king. But the king is of course very well protected and in order to get him into a position from which he cannot flee anymore (to put him in checkmate), you need to move around your pieces on the board tactically and follow a thought-through strategy. It is important to think long-term and often it is an enduring, nerve-racking process during which many victims and losses will occur.

Basically, chess is a miniature version of world politics. This might explain its frequent use among journalists, since the usage of chess terminology is an easy yet helpful way of breaking down complex events into vivid game metaphors. This comes in especially handy when trying to make sense of geopolitical issues.

Even though the Cold War was officially frozen for good by 1991, a new tension between the East and West has become more and more visible. With the difference however, that the Soviet Union has now been replaced by the new warily observed opponent of the US: China. Since 2013, China has massively invested into the establishment and expansion of its intercontinental trade and infrastructure networks. Within the framework of the One Belt, One Road initiative (BRI), China is subtly yet determinedly reaching for a shift in the balance of power among the world’s political players in its own favour. What on the surface seems to be nothing more than an infrastructure project, is actually an immense use of soft power executed by the Chinese state.

To translate this into the world of chess: If the US hegemony was the black king on the chess board, even though still well-protected by its many pawns of economic and military superiority, the white army, China, would be bringing its figures in a seemingly innocent, yet threatening position …

One of the many “points of attack” of the BRI that China is working on can be found in Nicaragua. Through a country that is rather rarely mentioned in the major international headlines, China is building a canal with the purpose of connecting the Atlantic and the Pacific Ocean. This is neither a new nor a groundbreaking project, since it has already been realized in close proximity to Nicaragua. The Panama Canal has the exact same purpose and has furthermore already been in place since 1914. Why are the Chinese building another one, you ask? Remember: in chess, no unnecessary moves are made. They all have a purpose and follow a grand strategy. In this case, it is to pose a direct threat to the US which is a great ally of Panama. Together, the American and Panamanian marine are securing the Panama Canal. So even though the canal itself is an internationally neutral corridor, its passage depends on the benevolence of the US.

Of course, as an ambitiously ascending superpower, China does not put up with that and instead simply builds its own canal.

Yet, Central America is not the only arena where the two world powers are settling their disputes. China’s massive BRI investments in Africa, for example, have been given much more attention in the international press coverage. It is nevertheless crucial to maintain a global perspective, in order to keep track of all the moves the two grand masters are making during this enthralling game of East versus West.

Related articles:

A game of chess at the Greek-Turkish border

Between waters: the dilemma of the Nicaragua Canal

Photo credits:

Putin vs Obama by Svenn Sivertssen (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-76052-0335 by Ulrich Kohls (CC-BY-SA 3.0)

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