International Relations Council Announces New Officers

Mustafa M. Siddiqui '99 was chosen to succeed Ali J. Q. Satvat '98-'00 as president of The Harvard International Relations Council (IRC), at the organization's election meeting Sunday evening.

The IRC's Board of Directors gathered in the Lamont Forum Room to cast their ballots for next year's corporate officers.

IRC members called last night's meeting--which lasted approximately five hours--relatively short and friendly. The annual election, which consists of speeches as well as question-and-answer periods, has historically lasted late into the night.

"The atmosphere was much more congenial than it has been in year's past. The elections went more smoothly and quickly than expected," said new Vice-President of Corporate Relations Carey E. Schwaber '00.

John F. Kosmidis '01 was elected treasurer, and Phyra M. McCandless '00 and Sarah E. Wood '01 will join Schwaber as vice-president of operations and vice-president of strategy, respectively.

The meeting was well-attended, members said, and while most of the races were uncontested, members said the qualifications of the candidates were especially impressive.

"Overall, I was happy with the elections," said newly-elected Corporate Clerk Christian J. Westra '01, who lost his campaign for vice president of operations to McCandless. "We had a good showing and the candidates were of a high caliber."

The IRC is the largest entirely student-run organization on campus with nearly 500 members, and serves as the umbrella organization for six constituent programs, including the Model United Nations.

The general membership elects the Board of Directors yearly, and the corporate officers are elected from qualified candidates among the board.

The new officers include Sultan S. Yassin '00 as Secretary; and Jamie L. Simpson '01, Laura E. Clancy '02, Alexander G. Kuo '01 and Susan H. Gim '00 as members of the Board of Auditors.

Ziad Obermeyer '00, Daniel A. Lyons '00, Shirley K. Hung '00, Martha E. Kytle '02, Yassin and Westra were elected to the Board of Strategy.