JOINT-CRISIS COMMITTEE

JCC:SOVEREIGN

Topic: Egypt, Empire, and the Lost Tomb of Tutankhamun

BACKGROUND GUIDE to be released
rules of procedure GUIDE to be released

Committee Profile

The year is 1922, and Egypt has recently removed its status as a British protectorate to declare itself an independent kingdom. Yet, the ink of our declaration of sovereignty has barely dried, and British shadows loom exceptionally large over Egypt’s institutions. A battleground for our true independence has now shifted to the desert sands of our land. Rumors have carried that Western archaeologists led by Howard Carter and his wealthy financier, Lord Carnarvon, have expressed interest in finding King Tutankhamun’s tomb. Thus, the race is on. 

The intact tomb of King Tutankhamun has not yet been discovered, but finding it first is an imperative step towards cementing Egyptian sovereignty. The Sovereign bloc, a coalition composed of governmental officials, intellectuals, and persistent Egyptian journalists, believes that the treasures of King Tutankhamun are a profound ethical and cultural crisis that must be handled with extreme care and respect with regard to Egypt’s history. While our government navigates out of its protectorate status, we must firmly protect our heritage and prevent it from being treated as colonial assets. If the British breach the tomb first, our ancestors will be reduced to colonial plunder, boxed up, and shipped to foreign museums. The archaeological study of King Tutankhamun should be conducted only under strict Egyptian oversight, and artifacts from the tomb should remain inside Egyptian borders. This excavation is not a mere archaeological discovery; it is a test of Egyptian sovereignty and self-governance on the world stage.

Delegates within this bloc must not bend to the whims of foreign influences that threaten to derail Egypt’s right to their antiquities. Delegates will be expected to utilize Egypt’s newfound legal authority, nationalist media, and public mobilizations to freeze Western operations, seize control of the dig site, and ensure that the treasures of King Tutankhamun remain exclusively under Egyptian custody as definitive proof of our national sovereignty.

  • Eason Lu - Committee Chair (JCC:SOVEREIGN)

    Cornell University
    First-Year PacMUN Staffer

    Eason Lu is a first-year student at Cornell University, majoring in Public Policy and minoring in Actuarial Science. He will be serving as one of the JCC chairs. He participated in Model UN throughout middle and high school. In his free time, Eason enjoys reading The New York Times’ opinions and writing letters to the editor. If he is not in front of his typewriter, you can find him on the radio waves with callsign W5EL talking to stations in Europe and Australia. Although he has participated in PacMUN for three years as a delegate, this will be his first time Chairing. He is very excited to see all the solutions proposed and meet all the delegates!

  • Mia Castro - Crisis Director (JCC:SOVEREIGN)

    University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
    First-Year PacMUN Staffer

    Mia Castro is a second-year student at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, double-majoring in Biology and Political Science. She has a strong interest in environmental litigation and policy-making due to her upbringing on Oʻahu. Mia has participated in Model UN for most of her high school years, serving in administrative roles like event coordinator, vice president, and co-president in her time at Waipahu High School’s MUN. When she has free time in the week, you can often find her at the beach or trying new food places. She occasionally writes on the side and attends volunteer events around the island. This will be Mia’s 5th PacMUN (3 as a delegate, 1 as a volunteer staffer, and 1 as a Crisis Director). She hopes to help provide the best committee possible for this year’s JCC!

  • A young man smiling outdoors

    Adam Allibhoy - Coordinating Crisis Director (JCC:SOVEREIGN)

    University of California, San Diego
    First-Year PacMUN Staffer

    Adam Allibhoy is a fourth-year student at the University of California, San Diego, majoring in Neurobiology. He has been involved in Model UN for 11 years, starting in middle school and continuing throughout college as a delegate, staffer, and general participant with school clubs and the International Model UN Association. He is a crisis delegate through and through, having staffed and debated in all sorts of committees from the Kamakura Shogunate to the Star Wars Imperial Security Bureau. Outside of Model UN, he loves playing video games, watching basketball/soccer, baking, and going to sleep just past sunrise.