International School of Beijing

Model United Nations

Delegate Guide

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Note: This booklet has been prepared for the sole purpose of preparing student Delegates for the Beijing International Model United Nations (BEIMUN). Compiled for BEIMUN by Ean Burchell.

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Contents Page 5: Parliamentary Procedure

Page 6: What is a Resolution?

Page 7: Preambles and Operatives

Page 8: The Resolution – Step by Step

Page 9: Lobbying and Approval

Page 10: The Resolution Approval Process

Page 12: Opening the House Submitting a Resolution Launching a Debate Points of Information Page 13: Taking and Yielding the Floor Amendments Page 14: Voting

Page 15: Points and Motions

Page 16: Opening Speeches

Page 17: Sample Debate Script

Page 19: Key Terms – A Quick Reference

Page 21: Sample Resolutions

Page 32: BEIMUN Rules of Procedure

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Parliamentary Procedure

Whenever a MUN Forum is in session, Delegates must follow Parliamentary Procedures. Instructions and decisions of the Presiding Officer of a Forum must be followed and respected at all times. The Presiding Officer is the person officiating the Forum at any given moment. He/she may hold a variety of titles – Chair, President, Assistant President, Deputy Assistant President, Secretary General, Deputy Secretary General. Delegates may only speak when appropriate. This usually means when given permission by the Presiding Officer of the Forum. When an Officer asks a Delegate to speak, we say the Delegate has been Recognized. When an Officer permits a Delegate to come to the front of the Forum and give a speech, the Delegate has Taken the Floor (or Has the Floor) and can be referred to as the Speaker. Delegates must stand when speaking. A Delegate may speak without specific permission when making specific Points or Motions. Points and Motions are outlined on page 10. Delegates may not speak with each other while a Forum is in session. They may send appropriate notes to each other through a secretary. They may also send notes to Officers. Speeches, questions, responses, etc. must be delivered courteously and with formal language. Informal language, especially slang and insulting terms, is not permitted and a Delegate using such language will be censured by the Presiding Officer. When Taking the Floor, a Delegate should begin with a respectful address such as:

Honourable Delegates and Respected Chair Madame President and Distinguished Delegates Honourable Chair, ladies and gentlemen Mr. Assistant President and esteemed Members of the House

Delegates should not be called by their names or addressed in the second person (you). They should be addressed in a manner such as:

The Delegate of the Russian Federation The Honourable Delegate of Argentina The Distinguished Representative of the World Bank My Honourable Friend My Esteemed Colleague The Speaker

Delegates should not refer to themselves in the first person (I). Instead, Delegates should refer to themselves in the third person in a manner such as:

The Delegate wishes to state that… The Delegate of Lebanon urges that… The Republic of Ireland is strongly in favour of…

All procedural judgments are at the discretion of the Presiding Officer. If a Delegate objects with a ruling, he/she may send a respectful note to the Presiding Officer, but may not continue to speak once the ruling has been made.

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What is a Resolution? A Resolution, sometimes referred to as a “Reso”, is a series of proposals to resolve a specific problem. A Resolution must be written in a very specific format:

• It begins with a Heading that must include the name of the Forum, the Issue at hand, and the name of the Main Submitter. The Main Submitter is the country sponsoring the Resolution, not the person who will introduce it.

• The Heading is followed by the Salutation. This is simply the name of the Forum,

typed in capital letters.

• It is structured as one very long sentence, with the clauses separated by commas and semi-colons, ending with a period.

• It has two main sections – the Preamble and the Operative Section.

• The Preamble:

Sometimes referred to as the “Pream”, it consists of a several Preambulatory Clauses which outline the problem at hand and express the urgency in resolving it.

Each Clause is separated by a comma.

Each Clause must begin with a Preambulatory Verb or Adjective.

The first word in each Clause must be italicized.

The last Clause ends with a comma.

• The Operative Section:

Sometimes referred to as the “Operatives”, it consists of a several Operative Clauses that suggest ways to solve the problem at hand.

Each Clause is numbered with an Arabic numeral.

Each Clause begin with an Operative Verb and ends with a semi-colon.

The first word in each Clause must be underlined.

A Clause may have several Sub-clauses. A Sub-clause is indented, identified with a lower case Roman letter, and ends in a comma. The first Sub-clause is preceded by a colon and the last Sub-clause ends with a semi-colon.

A Sub-clause may have several Sub-sub-clauses. A Sub-sub-clause is

indented, identified with a lower case Roman numeral, and ends in a comma. The first Sub-sub-clause is preceded by a colon and the last ends with a semi-colon.

The final Operative Clause ends with a period.

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Preambulatory Verbs and Adjectives Acknowledging Desiring Noting with regret Affirming Dissatisfied Noting with satisfaction Alarmed Emphasizing Observing Approving Expecting Reaffirming Aware Having adopted Realizing Bearing in mind Having considered Recalling Believing Having examined Recognizing Cognizant Having heard Referring Concerned Having received Regretting Confident Having studied Satisfied Conscious Hoping Seeing Contemplating Informed Seeking Convinced Keeping in mind Taking into account Deeply disturbed Noting Taking note Deeply regretting Noting with approval Viewing with appreciation Declaring Noting with disapproval Welcoming Deploring Noting with concern You can add emphasis by adding modifiers:

Aware becomes Fully aware Concerned becomes Acutely concerned Noting with approval becomes Noting with sincere approval Recalling becomes Further recalling Regretting becomes Deeply regretting Taking note becomes Taking careful note

Operative Verbs Appeals Exhorts Proposes Asks Hopes Reaffirms Asserts Implores Recommends Beseeches Invites Suggests Calls for Resolves Supports Calls upon Requests Trusts Confirms Proclaims Urges Encourages

You can add emphasis by adding modifiers: Asks becomes Urgently asks Confirms becomes Resolutely confirms Recommends becomes Urgently recommends Requests becomes Further requests Supports becomes Firmly supports Urges becomes Strongly urges Only Security Council can Demand, Insist, Require, Mandate, etc.

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The Resolution – Step by Step

Heading

Salutation

Preamble

The first word in each Clause

is italicized.

Each Clause ends with a comma. Operative Section Each Clause is identified with an Arabic numeral.

The first word is each Clause is underlined.

Each Clause ends with a semi-colon. Each Sub-clause is identified with a Roman letter. The first Sub-clause is preceded by a colon.

Sub-clauses are separated by commas.

The last Sub-clause ends with a semi-colon. Each Sub-sub-clause is identified with a Roman numeral. Punctuation rules for Sub-sub-clauses are the same as for Sub- clauses. The final Clause ends with a period.

The full text of this Resolution is on page 21.

Forum: General Assembly (1st Committee) Question of: Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space Submitted by: Switzerland The General Assembly, Recognising the need to prevent an arms race in Outer Space, to avert possible conflicts arising from space warfare, Wishing to prevent Outer Space from being an arena of conflict, Firmly convinced the deployment of space weapons will destroy balance and stability, thus endangering international peace and security,

1. Encourages all states to sincerely consider their approaches of disarmament to understand and accommodate each other's security

concerns and threat perceptions in the context of outer space;

2. Suggests that military presence in Outer Space is to be regulated by a Regulatory Committee of Space Militarization (RCSM) formed by representatives of various national space agencies which are appointed by the conference of disarmament by: a. Earth based surveillance on space objects with the use of heat

sensors and chemical detectors, b. Space based surveillance missions to monitor orbits of space objects;

3. Calls Upon the Conference of Disarmament to draw up an additional agreement (in addition to the existing Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies) which aims to further prevent an arms race in Outer Space by: a. disallowing states to test, deploy and use any form of weapons

in the Earth’s orbit, celestial bodies, and Outer Space, b. encouraging states to promote the peaceful uses of Outer

Space by avoiding incidents and refraining from dangerous military practices in Space, including but not limited to: i. simulated attacks on outer space objects, ii. engaging in maneuvers that increase the risk of

collision, iii. nuclear weapons and devices to be deployed into

space, iv. testing and/or launching any form of weaponry

deployed from outer space targeting the other nations or other nations’ property of any kind;

4. Proposes referral of any party found to have violated the conditions of existing treaties and agreements on this issue to the Security Council.

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What do we do with a Resolution?

The ultimate goal when writing a Resolution is to have it debated in a Forum and adopted through a majority vote. However, a Resolution cannot be submitted for consideration until it has been signed by a minimum number of Delegates. Delegates who sign a Resolution in order to have it debated are called Co-submitters. The number of Co-submitters required varies from one MUN Conference to the next. One of the signatories is called the Main Submitter. This Delegate’s country will be named in the Heading of the Resolution and he/she will present the Resolution to the Forum. The Resolution that an individual Delegate will write, usually called a Draft Resolution, will not in itself be submitted for Debate. What will be submitted will be Merged Resolutions, i.e. a combination of ideas from Draft Resolutions of several Delegates. The process of merging Resolutions is called Lobbying.

Lobbying Simply stated, Lobbying is a series of informal discussions amongst Delegates in an attempt to come to agreement on a Resolution. Your skills of persuasion are very important in Lobbying, but equally important are your listening skills and willingness to make compromises. It is your job to represent the interests of your country or organization, but you should also be creative in the search for solutions. Remember, you will be discussing real world problems that the international community has not yet resolved, so novel ideas are important. While ideally you may want all of the proposals from your Draft Resolution to be in the final version to be submitted, you must be willing to “let go” of some of your proposals. Inclusion of some of your ideas along with ideas of other Delegates reflects the spirit of Internationalism that is central to MUN. Part of Lobbying is deciding which Delegate will be the Main Submitter of the Resolution. Delegates may also make agreements about yielding the floor and supporting each in other ways during debate. Lobbying will take up a significant amount of time during a MUN Conference. However, you should be contacting other country Delegates in advance to try reach some preliminary agreements. You should also be aware which countries are likely to agree/disagree with your proposals.

Approval Once Lobbying has been successful and a merged Resolution has been written, it must be submitted to the Approval Panel. The Approval Panel may approve the Resolution immediately or it may require specific revisions. An approved Resolution is numbered and copies will be given to the Presiding Officer and all members of the Forum.

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BEIMUN Resolution Approval Process The Resolution Process at BEIMUN is meant to be simple, efficient, and as close to paper-less as feasible. Delegates

• Each Delegate will bring at least one hard copy of each of his/her Draft Resolutions for Lobbying and Merging. Ideally, he/she will also have a digital version of each Draft.

• As Delegates agree to merge their Draft Resolutions, they will create a digital

version of this Merged Resolution using the approved format.

• Delegates must ensure that they have the minimum number of Co-Submitters – generally 15 for larger forums and 10 for small forums. The exact number required will be made clear by the Student Officers in each forum.

• Once a Resolution is merged and the Co-Submitter Sheet is complete, Delegates

will provide the Student Officers with a digital version of the Resolution and the Co-Submitter Sheet.

Student Officers

• Student Officers will ensure that the minimum numbers of Co-Submitters has signed off on the merged Resolution and review the Resolution for grammatical or other technical errors, formatting, and possible plagiarism. Officers will not comment on the Resolution’s content.

• If the Resolution is acceptable, the Student Officers will give it “D-Number” (D for

Draft). D-Numbers should designate the forum, sub-committee if appropriate, and issue number; these should be followed by a number indicating the order in which the proposed resolution was reviewed by the Officers and the letter “D”. For example, the first proposed Resolution from the General Assembly 3rd Committee on the second agenda issue will be numbered GA3-2-1-D; the second proposed Resolution from the Security Council on the first agenda item will be numbered SC-1-2-D.

• The Student Officers will return the numbered Resolution, in digital form, to the

Submitters and instruct the Submitters to send one Delegate to the Approval Panel with the Resolution and Co-Submitter Sheet.

Approval Panel

• Each computer in the Approval Panel will have an Approved folder on the desktop. A central computer will also have an Approved folder.

• As delegates arrive at the Approval Panel, they will be invited to enter when a

MUN Director is available.

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• The MUN Director will copy the digital version of the proposed Resolution onto his/her computer and review it for grammatical or other technical errors, formatting, and clarity. They will not comment on the Resolution’s content.

• The Submitter will sit with the MUN Director as he/she reviews the Resolution and

make changes directly in the document as suggested by the MUN Director.

• When a Resolution is amended as required and approved, the MUN Director will save the changes and remove the D from the Resolution’s designation – thereby GA3-2-1-D becomes GA3-2-1.

• An approved Resolution should immediately be put into the Approved folder as

well as into the Approved folder on the central computer. Administrative Staff

• Designated Administrative Staff will collect Approved Resolutions from the central computer, print them, and make sufficient copies for the specific forum.

• Copies of Approved Resolutions will be brought by Administrative Staff to the

Student Officers.

* * * Student Officers will decide the order of debate for Approved Resolutions, ensure passed amendments are included, and mark all passed Resolution “P”. All passed Resolutions will be included in the official Resolution Booklet which will be sent to all participating schools electronically.

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Opening the House Before Debate can begin, Presiding Officer must convene the Forum, or “Open the House”. The Officer will call the House to order and take Roll Call. As names of the countries represented are called out, each Delegate must respond “Present and Voting” or simply “Present”. (Roll Call must be on the first session of the day, but it may not be taken at each subsequent session on that day.) Once the House is called to order, Delegates are not to speak to each other. If a Delegate wishes to communicate with another Delegate or with the Officers, he/she must write a note on official Note Paper and pass the note to one of the Secretaries for delivery.

Submitting the Resolution

When a Forum is ready for Debate, the Presiding Officer will name the Issue to be debated and ask the Main Submitter to “take the floor” and read the Operative Clauses. The Main Submitter will stand at the podium and read the Operative Clauses directly from the Resolution.

Launching the Debate After the Operative Clauses are read, the Presiding Officer will set the Debate Time for the Resolution. Time For and Time Against a Resolution is set at some MUN conferences. At BEIMUN, there will be Open Debate, during which a Delegate may be given the right to speak at any time regardless of his/her stance on the Resolution. Once Debate Time has been set, the Main Submitter will be given permission from the Presiding Officer to give a short speech in support of the Resolution. After the Main Submitter has finished his/her speech, the Presiding Officer will ask if the Delegate is open to Points of Information. The Delegate can respond that he/she is not open to any Points of Information, open to a specific number of Points of Information, or open to “Any and All”. The Officer will announce the number of Points of Information that will be permitted.

The Flow of Debate Point of Information

This is the primary instrument of Debate. A Point of Information is a question addressed directly to the Speaker, i.e. the Delegate at the Podium. It must be posed in the form of a question, not a statement or short speech, and it must directly address the Resolution being debated. There are three primary purposes to a Point of Information:

1. A Delegate who opposes a Resolution may challenge its intent, worth, or efficacy. 2. A Delegate who approves of a Resolution may highlight its value and give the

Speaker an opportunity to speak further in its favour. 3. A Delegate may seek further information or clarification.

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After announcing the number of Points of Information to be permitted, the Presiding Officer will as if there are any Points of Information in the House. Delegates indicate their desire to ask a Point of Information by raising their placards. The Officer will recognize a number of Delegates. Points of Information are asked in the order in which the Officer recognizes Delegates. A recognized Delegate stands, addresses the Speaker, and asks the Point of Information. A Delegate may not repeat or rephrase a Point of Information unless directed to do so by the Officer. A Delegate may request a Follow-up, i.e. one additional Point of Information, which will be granted or denied at the discretion of the Officer. Yielding the Floor

Once all Points of Information have been asked and answered, the Presiding Officer will ask the Speaker, to Yield the Floor, i.e. to return to his/her seat. The Speaker may not refuse to yield or request further speaking time. The Speaker may request permission to yield to another Delegate. This means the Speaker can choose which Delegate will speak next. The Presiding Officer may grant or deny this request. If the request is denied, the floor is yielded to the Chair (i.e. the Officer) and the Officer decides who will speak next. If the request is granted, the floor cannot thereafter be re-yielded to a third Delegate and must be yielded to the Chair. Taking the Floor

When the floor is yielded, the debate will continue with the next recognized Delegate Taking the Floor to speak for or against the Resolution. Delegates indicate their desire to speak for or against a Resolution by raising their placards when the Presiding Officer asks if anyone wishes to speak. Upon being recognized, a Delegate approaches the podium, addresses the Officer and other Delegates, and gives a short speech. If the Officer judges that a speech is taking an undue amount of time, the Delegate will be asked to conclude – the Delegate must finish the speech immediately within a few seconds. After the Speaker has concluded, the Presiding Officer will ask if he/she is open to Points of Information. When the Delegate responds, the Officer will announce the number of Points of Information that will be permitted and debate will continue as already described.

Amendments

In addition to requesting the floor to speak for or against Resolution, a Delegate may request the floor in order to propose an Amendment. An Amendment is a request to change part of a Resolution. Amendments should be designed so as to improve a Resolution. Any Delegate can propose an Amendment to delete (“strike”), add, or re-phrase specific words or entire sections within the Operative Clauses.

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Amendments must be written on official Amendment Paper and must make clear reference to the Clauses to be amended. A proposed Amendment must be submitted to the Presiding Officer, through a Secretary, before it can be presented for debate. When the Presiding Officer asks if there are Delegates who wish to take the floor, if the proponent of an Amendment is recognized, he/she stands and says, “The Delegate has submitted an Amendment”. The Officer may reject the Amendment by ruling it not in order and the Delegate must sit down. If the Presiding Officer believes the proposed Amendment is worth consideration, he/she will rule it in order and read the wording of the Amendment aloud. The Officer will set a short Debate Time For the Amendment and a short Debate Time Against the Amendment. The Delegate who submitted the Amendment will then take the floor and make a short speech in favour of the Amendment. Debate continues with Points of Information as described above. However, at this stage, Points of Information may only pertain to the Amendment, not the Resolution as a whole. Additional speakers who wish to take the floor can only do so during “For Time” if they want to speak in favour of the Amendment, and during “Against Time” if they wish to oppose the Amendment. When time for debate on an Amendment has elapsed, the Presiding Officer will call for a vote. Delegates may not abstain from voting on an Amendment, i.e. they must vote one way or the other. (This, of course, does not include Non-member Delegates who have no voting rights.) If all Co-submitters of a Resolution agree to an Amendment, it is called a Friendly Amendment and is adopted without debate. Delegates may also propose an Amendment to an Amendment. Procedures are the same as for Amendments. Voting Procedures

Upon closing debate on an Amendment or Resolution, the Presiding Officer will ask the Secretariat to “secure the doors” and take up their positions to count the vote. No-one may enter or leave the Forum during voting procedures. Delegates vote for or against a Resolution or Amendment by raising their placards at the appropriate time. A simple majority is required for an Amendment or Resolution to pass. A Delegate may abstain from voting for a Resolution (not on an Amendment), i.e. choose not to vote. The Secretariat will inform the Presiding Officer of the vote count and the Officer will announce the results to the House. Delegates may applaud when an Amendment or Resolution is passed. They may not applaud when an Amendment or Resolution is defeated.

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Points and Motions

Point of Order: A Delegate may call for a Point of Order if she/he feels that some procedural error has been made. The Presiding Officer will ask the Delegate to explain the concern and make a ruling. Point of Information to the Chair: A Delegate may request permission to stand and ask the Presiding Officer to clarify a point or provide an explanation. The Officer is unlikely to rule such a Point in order unless the issue raised is interfering with the Debate. Point of Personal Privilege: A Delegate may call for a Point of Personal Privilege if the Speaker in inaudible. The Officer will ask the Speaker to speak more clearly. Point of Parliamentary Procedure (or Enquiry): A Delegate may ask the Presiding Officer a question about the rules of procedure. Orders of the Day: If a Delegate believes that the forum has drifted away from the topic at hand, he/she may request that the Presiding Officer move the forum back on topic. Motion to Extend Points of Information: A Delegate may ask the Presiding Officer to permit additional Points of Information. Motion to Extend Debate Time: A Delegate may ask the Presiding Officer to permit additional time for debate. Motion to Move Directly into Voting Procedures: A Delegate may ask the Presiding Officer to end debate and call for a vote on the matter before the House. Motion for Re-vote: A Delegate may ask for a re-vote on a Resolution if there was a substantial number of abstentions, or if the vote was tied or very close. Motion to Divide the House: A Delegate who has serious doubts about the vote count may ask the Presiding Officer to have Delegates to move to opposite sides of the room to indicate their votes.

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Notes on Points and Motions

A Delegate may raise any of these Points and Motions without first being recognized. With the exception of a Point of Personal Privilege, raising such Points or Motions must not interrupt a Speaker. Motions need to be Seconded – at least one additional Delegate must approve of a Motion by calling out “second”, either spontaneously or when the Presiding Officer asks for a second. No motion can proceed if any Delegate calls out “objection”, either spontaneously or when the Presiding Officer asks for Objections.

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Opening Speeches In some Forums, every Delegate is given time for a very brief speech outlining one of his/her country’s chief concerns regarding the issues at hand. Time for an Opening Speech is usually less than one minute. Opening Speeches are may be given at the opening of a MUN Conference, before Lobbying and submission of Resolutions. Some Opening Speeches may be given between Debates. An Opening Speech is not part of regular Debate. Delegates may be given the opportunity to respond to each other’s Opening Speeches. This called a Right of Reply. If Rights of Reply are allowed, the Presiding Officer will announce the number of Replies to be heard and recognize Delegates who raise their placards when prompted. Rights of Reply should are usually limited to 30 seconds.

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Sample Debate Script Presiding Officer: The House will now come to order. We will now debate a Resolution on the question of The Protection of Children in Zones of Armed Conflict. Will the Main Submitter take the floor and read the Operative Clauses. Delegate of Uganda stands, walks to the podium and reads directly from the Resolution. Presiding Officer: Thank you, Delegate. The Chair sets and open debate time of 60 minutes for this Resolution. Delegate, you may begin. Delegate of Uganda: Honourable Delegates and Respected Chair, as we sit in this most distinguished house today, millions of children are in peril… (Speech continues for about 2 minutes with the Delegate outlining why he believes members should vote for his Resolution.) Presiding Officer: Thank you, Delegate. Is the Delegate open to Points of Information? Delegate of Uganda: Any and all. Presiding Officer: The House will entertain three Points of Information. Are there any in the House? (Many placards are raised.)

Presiding Officer: Delegates of Ireland, Togo, the Chile, and you have been recognized. Delegate of Ireland: Is the Delegate of Uganda aware that the Ottawa Treaty already addresses many of the concerns set out in this Resolution?

Delegate of Uganda: Thank you, Delegate. Uganda is keenly aware of this fact, but…

Delegate of Ireland: Thank you.

(Delegates of Togo and Chile follow in similar fashion.)

Presiding Officer: Will the Delegate yield the floor to the Chair?

Delegate of Uganda: The delegate yields the floor to the Chair.

Presiding Officer: Are there any delegates who wish to speak on this resolution? (Many placards are raised. One Delegate is recognized. The debate continues with the speech followed by Points of Information.) Presiding Officer: Are there any delegates who wish to take the floor?

(Many placards are raised. Delegate of Canada is recognized.)

Delegate of Canada: The Delegate has submitted an Amendment.

Presiding Officer: That is in order. The Amendment reads: “Add to Clause 3, Sub-clause a, ‘in accordance with the Ottawa Treaty’.

We will have 5 minutes for and 5 minutes against this Amendment.

(Delegate of Canada takes the floor and speaks about the Amendment. Points of Information are asked and answered. The Chair invites

speakers for the amendment. Two speakers take the floor, speak in favour of the Amendment, and answer Points of Information. The

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Chair invites speakers against the amendment. Two speakers take the floor, speak against the Amendment, and answer Points of Information.)

Delegate of France: Motion to move directly into voting procedures.

Presiding Officer: We have a motion to move directly into voting procedures. Do we have a second? (Several shouts of ‘second”.)

Presiding Officer: Do we have any objections? (Silence.)

Presiding Officer: Seeing as we have no objections, we will move directly into voting procedures. The Chair reminds the Delegates that there are no abstentions on Amendments.

Secretaries secure the doors and take up voting positions.

All those in favour of this Amendment, please your placards high. (Votes counted and recorded.)

All those opposed to this Amendment, please raise your placards high. (Votes counted and recorded.)

With 75 votes for and 68 votes against, this Amendment is approved. Clapping is in order.

Presiding Officer: We will now resume debate on the main resolution. Does any Delegate wish to take the floor? (Debate continues with speakers in favour of the Resolution and speakers against the Resolution, Points of Information, and and Amendments.)

Presiding Officer: Debate time on this Resolution has now elapsed and we will more into voting procedures.

Secretaries secure the doors and take up voting positions.

All those voting for this Resolution, raise your placards high. (Votes counted and recorded.)

All those voting against this Resolution, raise your placards high. (Votes counted and recorded.)

All those wishing to abstain, raise your placards high. (Votes counted and recorded.)

With 88 votes for, 43 votes against, and 12 abstentions, this Resolution has passed. Clapping is in order. (Applause.)

Presiding Officer: We will now have a one-hour recess for lunch. The House will reconvene at 12:30. Delegates are dismissed.

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Key Terms – A Quick Reference

Address To greet the members of the Forum before speaking.

Abstain To choose not to vote.

Amendment A request to change part of a Resolution.

Approval Panel A group of teachers who proofread a Resolution.

Chair Presiding Officers in a Forum.

Co-submitter Any of the Delegates who submit a Resolution for debate.

Debate Formal discussion of the pros and cons of a Resolution.

Delegate Person representing a country or international organization.

Draft Resolution Resolution written by an individual Delegate.

First person The pronouns “I” or “me”; not used while a Forum is in session.

Follow-up Request for an additional Point of Information.

Forum Any committee, council, or assembly in the UN.

Friendly Amendment Amendment adopted without debate.

Have the Floor To be in front of a Forum to give a speech.

House A committee, council, or assembly when in session.

In order Permitted by the Presiding Officer.

Issue Topic of Debate (also called a Question)

Lobbying Negotiations aimed at creating a Merged Resolution.

Main Submitter Delegate who introduces a resolution into a Forum for Debate.

Merged Resolution Combination of Draft Resolutions.

Motion Request for a specific action while a Forum is in session.

Non-member Delegate Representative of an organization; may not vote.

Not in order Not permitted by the Presiding Officer.

Objection Opposition of a Delegate to a Motion.

Open the House To start session in a Forum.

Operative Clauses Part of a Resolution that suggests solutions.

Operative Verbs Specific words that must start Operative Clauses.

Open Debate Debate with no restrictions regarding Time for or Time against.

Opening Speech Short speech stating a country’s position; not part of debate.

Parliamentary Procedure Rules governing proceedings in a Forum.

Preamble Introduction to a Resolution.

Preambulatory Verbs / Adjectives Specific words that must start the Preamble.

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Presiding Officer Person who runs a Forum.

Point Request for information while a Forum is in session.

Point of Information Question asked of a Speaker during Debate.

Question Topic of Debate (also called an Issue).

Recognize To permit a Delegate to speak.

Reso Resolution.

Resolution Formal, written proposal to solve a problem.

Right of Reply Short speech reacting to an Opening Speech.

Roll Call Attendance taken at the opening of a session.

Second To voice approval of Motion.

Second person The pronoun “you”; not used while a Forum is in session.

Secretariat Group of Secretaries who deliver messages and count votes.

Secretary Member of the Secretariat.

Secure the doors Prevent anyone from entering or leaving a Forum during a vote.

Speaker Person at the podium making a speech.

Take the Floor To approach the podium to make a speech.

Time Against Debate time specified for arguing against a proposal.

Time For Debate time specified for arguing against a proposal.

Voting Procedures Process of approving or defeating a proposal.

Yield the Floor To leave the podium after a speech.

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Sample Resolution Forum: General Assembly (1st Committee) Question of: Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space Submitted by: Switzerland

The General Assembly, Recognising the need to prevent an arms race in Outer Space, to avert possible conflicts arising from space warfare, Wishing to prevent Outer Space from being an arena of conflict, Firmly convinced the deployment of space weapons will destroy balance and stability, thus endangering international peace and security, Pointing out that Outer Space is neutral territory and should only be explored and used for peaceful purposes, Aware of the fact that an arms race in Outer Space entails a proliferation of space debris which may pose a considerable hazard to space activities in the future, Aware of the fact that nuclear weapons in Outer Space may release radioactive debris onto Earth, Firmly convinced that resources devoted to an arms race in Outer Space could be better utilized in solving more pertinent issues in our world today, Reaffirming the will of all nations to preserve international peace and security, and to maintain the tranquility of Outer Space, Welcoming more international negotiations to take place regarding the prevention of an arms race in Outer Space,

1. Encourages all states to sincerely consider their approaches of disarmament to understand and accommodate each other's security concerns and threat perceptions in the context of outer space;

2. Strongly urges all states to sign and conform to the Treaty on Principles Governing the

Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, Including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, taking special notice of Article I, II and IV detailing the peaceful nature of Outer Space and how it is not subject to national appropriation;

3. Calls upon all states, especially those with major space capabilities, to limit activities in

Outer Space to those with peaceful intent, including but not limited to: a. commercial and communication purposes in that states and corporations would be

allowed to deploy satellites for the purpose of telecommunications, disseminating information and navigation,

b. scientific research purposes in that states would be allowed to deploy probes into space for the advancement of scientific knowledge and the monitoring of weather and environment changes for the setting up of disaster warning systems;

4. Approves limited military activities in space as military activities on Earth rely heavily on

space technology, and hence nations would be allowed to utilize space for military

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purposes restricted to that of command and control, communication, monitoring, and navigation with the Global Positioning System (GPS);

5. Suggests that military presence in Outer Space is to be regulated by a Regulatory

Committee of Space Militarization (RCSM) formed by representatives of various national space agencies which are appointed by the conference of disarmament by: a. Earth based surveillance on space objects with the use of heat sensors and chemical

detectors, b. Space based surveillance missions to monitor orbits of space objects, c. On site inspections of space stations by members of the RCSM;

6. Calls Upon the Conference of Disarmament to draw up an additional agreement (in

addition to the existing Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies) which aims to further prevent an arms race in Outer Space by: a. disallowing states to test, deploy and use any form of weapons in the Earth’s orbit,

celestial bodies, and Outer Space, b. restricting the usage of weapons on the Earth, including from land, sea or air, against

Outer Space objects, c. encouraging states to promote the peaceful uses of Outer Space by avoiding incidents

and refraining from dangerous military practices in Space, including but not limited to: i. simulated attacks on outer space objects, ii. engaging in maneuvers that increase the risk of collision, iii. nuclear weapons and devices to be deployed into space iv. testing and/or launching any form of weaponry deployed from outer space

targeting the other nations or other nations’ property of any kind, d. adopting confidence-building measures and transparency of space activities like:

i. earlier submission of comprehensive information and on-site inspections about space objects to be launched,

ii. inspection of sites from where space objects are to be launched, iii. encouraging the use of evasive manoeuvres to avoid collision with other

satellites or space objects as an alternative to more aggressive defensive mechanisms,

e. allowing, if necessary the possibility to develop and test technology to deflect meteors and small space debris by the RCSM;

7. Requests that the UN Committee on Peaceful Use of Outer Space, intellectual communities and NGOs, collaborate to establish the principles and regulations on the peaceful use of Outer Space, promote international cooperation on the peaceful use of Outer Space, and explore and study scientific and legal issues concerning the peaceful use of Outer Space;

8. Proposes referral of any party found to have violated the conditions of existing treaties

and agreements on this issue to the Security Council.

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Sample Resolution Forum: Human Rights Council Question of: Combating the persecution of individuals for their religious beliefs. Submitted by: Denmark

The Human Rights Council,

Recalling Universal Declaration of Human Rights, International Convention on Social and Political Rights, Declaration on Elimination of all forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief,

Viewing with appreciation the works of the Special Rapporteur on religious intolerance,

Emphasizing the importance of religions in the promotion of humanitarian values and purpose to peoples’ lives,

Taking Note of the complexity of religions and their practices within each culture,

1. Calls for the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion to report religious freedom violations through:

a. Investigating all countries, particularly the religiously disputed countries, b. Further approving privileged access to the Special Rapporteur on

Freedom of Religion that will help the Special Rapporteur observe and carry out tasks more freely and clearly,

c. Reporting the governments’ efforts to promote religious freedom as well as recommend policies and provide advice on problem solving regarding

religious freedom and persecution;

2. Recommends all member states guarantee the provision and enhancement of the protection of religious asylees by developing government cooperation with some or all of the following: Inter-Governmental Organizations (IGO), Non- Governmental Organizations (NGO), and United Nation Organizations (UNO) to

aid religious asylums;

3. Calls upon all member states to condemn the practice of denying support or amnesty for refugees for reasons based on religion and belief;

4. Encourages member states to remove any religious prejudices in educational materials and public media;

5. Endorses member states to promote understanding of religions, thus preventing persecution by laying the foundation of religious respect through:

a. providing students with education that includes: i. Classes that cover diversity and multiculturalism,

ii. Religion classes offered but not forced in all schools, b. initiating regular communications between:

i. Different religious communities, so that they have opportunities to understand each others’ religions and learn to respect the differences without persecuting each other,

ii. Religious communities and secular communities to promote respect and tolerance toward one another,

c. using media appropriately, with documentaries, television and radio programs, articles, pamphlets, and websites that introduce and deliver deeper understanding of diverse cultures and religions;

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6. Requests member states to clarify possible restrictions on religious freedom while setting domestic legal framework so that there will be no confusion between proper government action and religious persecution pertinent but not limited to:

a. National security, b. Public order, c. Public safety, d. Protection of freedom and rights of others, e. Violation of other human rights;

7. Strongly urges NGOs such as Amnesty International to: a. Work with the United Nations (UN) to further reinforce the

freedom of religions in all regions, b. Stop violence and hostility towards women and other ethnic races

within countries, c. Help end further religious intolerance by educating the people to

learn to respect others’ opinions and their humanitarian rights;

8. Asks all public and state organizations to accept religious attire; 9. Draws attention to religious extremism that motivates violence and terrorist acts

and fully acknowledges and condemns their behavior by strict measures for those individuals who disturb basic human rights in order to:

a. Cause people to have fewer misunderstandings and wrong impressions of religions,

b. Lessen persecution and encourage fewer restrictions on religious practices while carrying out justice and providing security to citizens;

10. Suggests all member nations enforce mandatory religious education for convicts

convicted of religious persecution;

11. Calls upon all member states that have not done so to translate the text of Declaration into their respective national languages and thus disseminate the text of the Declaration within their country;

12. Calls for the UN to declare the 20th August to be the United Nations Religions

Awareness Day;

13. Seeks all member states to abolish the policy of formal identification which includes religious preference;

14. Expresses its hope for all Member States to cooperate to improve human rights by

educating their citizens what rights they have and combat the persecution of individuals for free practice of religious beliefs by reducing the gap and misunderstanding in terms of religion;

15. Trusts all member states will actively carry out this resolution.

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Sample Resolution Forum: Special Conference on Sustainable Development Question of: The development of strategies to reduce the impact of climate change on industrialdevelopment Submitted by: Lao PDR

The Special Conference,

Noting with regret the economical downside of placing restrictions on emission, as it will also limit the growth of large corporations,

Convinced that the rise of temperature around the world is causing intense droughts, reducing agricultural gains, destructive hurricanes, costing governments more repairs, subsequent flooding destroying rural towns, and smog problems which impacts the elderly, ill, or vulnerable citizens,

Bearing in mind 150,000 people die every year from climate change because of causes aforementioned, which is more deaths than those that result from all of terrorist attacks combined,

Noting with deep concern that the rise in temperature is allowing development of diseases threatening to human lives such as Malaria as stated by the World Health Organization (WHO),

Keeping in mind that alternative energy sources such as solar, wind, hydroelectric, and biomass, rather than fossil fuels, do not release any greenhouse-gas into the earth’s atmosphere,

1. Calls upon all member states to adopt and meet the terms of the Kyoto Protocol therefore creating an international strategy to resolve the issue of global climate change by the end

of the year 2009;

2. Urges all governments to make any ratifications or additions to international treaties such as the Kyoto Protocol and the Montreal Protocol including but not limited to:

a. Placing limits on the emission of greenhouse-gases in developing nations but controlling that level so that the economy of the nations are not damaged, through measures not restricted to:

i. Activating the Clean Development Mechanism, Joint Implementation, the trading of Certified Emission Reduction (CER), and Emission Reduction Units (ERU) to help industrialized countries to compensate for the exceeding carbon dioxide emission by providing LEDCs of environmentally friendly facilities or sustainable development projects such as renewable energy power plants,

ii. Activating carbon market to support the carbon reduction schemes, as well as to fund or compensate the industries for their loss or cost taken to reduce the carbon emission,

iii. Urging non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and UN agencies such as the Task Force Bureau on National Greenhouse Gas Inventories (TFB), National Greenhouse Gas Inventories Programme (NGGIP), and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to take an active role in supporting governmental efforts,

b. Creating a more effective mechanism to monitor the amount of greenhouse-gases countries emit into the atmosphere by involving NGOs such as those aforementioned as well as Friends of the Earth (FOE), Environmental Justice and

Climate Change (EJCC), and Climate Action Network (CAN);

3. Requests that Transparency International (TI), TFB, and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to take a leading role in leading and investigating operative clause 2-a-i by:

a. Demanding all member states to produce an annual report on the usage of money provided from “carbon market” to support economical programs within the nation,

b. Carefully examining and recording all release of greenhouse-gas within the nation

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by creating a separate committee within the organization to collect accurate data;

4. Supports development of governmental programs on the development and conservation of: a. Soil, by growing more trees on the land to reduce carbon dioxide in the

atmosphere by: i. Reducing the amount of harmful chemicals getting injected into the

ground directly or through the flow of contaminated chemicals in rivers, ii. Educating all farmers of proper techniques in soil and water conservation,

iii. Raising specific plants on the land, such as the vetiver grass, to prevent soil erosion and moisture protection,

b. Water sources to preserve water at times when rising temperatures are causing severe droughts in many parts of the world by creating dams classified into watershed damn, or silt-collecting dam,

c. Forest resources to eliminate the carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere by: i. Stopping the illegal clearance of land for cultivation, and illegal chopping

that cause deforestation with the help of NGOs such as Earth First (EF), FOE, and Greenpeace,

ii. Attempting reforestation without planting to allow the forest of it’s natural cycles and which can be achieved by any member state as this method has

no expense attached to it;

5. Invites United Nations Industrial development Organization, UNOs such as CAN, EJCC, FOE, TFB, Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF), and other NGOs that are in support of preventing global climate change to fully support any government that has proven to be in support of the action stated in operative clause 4, but are economically unable to by

providing necessary funds, man-power, and advice to successfully implement of the plan;

6. Further recommends all regional alliances such as the European Union (EU), and Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and international organizations such as the Emergency Relief Coordinator to work closely to develop specific contrivances to effectively address the issue in the region more by, but not limited to:

a. Understanding which problems, such as severe drought, rise in sea-surface, stronger hurricane seasons, and intense heat waves, are the most threatening in the area,

b. Activating Hyogo Protocol and Hyogo Framework for Action released by the World Conference on Disaster Reduction (WCDR) to plan and program at all levels with a special emphasis on disaster prevention, mitigation, preparedness, vulnerability reduction, as well as the integration of disaster risk consideration into sustainable development policies,

c. Addressing most threatening issue efficiently and effectively by: i. Using of chemicals to carry out “cloud-seeding,” a method in which with

certain chemicals will fly over spraying the chemicals to form artificial clouds creating rain over an area in need of water due to severe drought,

ii. Constructing protective barriers along the area of the beach to prevent the rise of water, rougher seas and higher waves, caused by global climate change from destroying nearby villages,

iii. Creating a regional scientific research center supported by NGOs such as EJCC, CAN, and NGGIP, to support regional alliances in establishing and carrying out specific operations by such as but not limited to:

iv. Dispensing trained expertise to work in such research centers, to further investigate the issue and the purpose of the scientific research center will be to carry out some of these actions,

v. Researching further into the contemporary issue concerning global climate change and how it’s affecting the region;

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7. Encourages countries to annually come forward in UNFCC to speak before the committee to specifically speak of consequences faced in the region and how the region had covered the issue;

8. Strongly urges the UN to provide specialized experts who will educate the citizens of countries such as but not limited to United Kingdom, Germany, Sudan, and other Third-World Countries about the global climate change and teach them ways to further prevent the changes by networking with the NGOs such as Eco Forest (EF), The World Laboratory (TWL), Future Age Energy (FAE), and National Ecological Center (NEC) to:

a. Visiting schools and educate the children about the global climate change and its potential effects on their nation’s wildlife and their habitats, how by following simple steps they can prevent such as turning off lights, and conserving water

b. Educating people how to recycle or reuse electronics or donate these equipments to schools or other organizations for the purpose of deterring global climate change;

9. Asks for all member states to take action in preventing further acceleration and damage from climate changes by promoting the development of another energy source such as solar energy by the Implementation of the World Solar Programme, to replace fossil fuels, through measures such as:

a. Considering the economical, geographical, natural climates of every region and giving each nation the right to choose their main eco-friendly and renewable energy resources,

b. Encouraging countries with efficient database and research of renewable energy resources of energy to provide the information to all member states that are willing to take in the new energy sources and put it into actual use,

c. Providing countries that are unable to develop new energy sources due to lack of research teams and lack of human resources support from NGOs and funding from the World Bank,

d. Setting different standards and achievement goals for each countries regarding their different status quo in each region considering their development rate;

10. Calls for additional meetings between the regional alliances every three months, and

international meeting every year, for the purpose of gaining knowledge about how the other regions had addressed the issue about and how much progress every member state has made and thus set new appropriate goals.

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Sample Resolution Forum: Economic and Social Council Question of: Increasing the availability of women’s literacy programs in LEDCs, Submitted by: Japan The Economic and Social Council,

Recognizing the need for women to receive elementary education for the betterment of their future,

Aware that, for millions of women throughout the world, the need for women’s literacy programs, in many cases, especially for those living in poverty, is a goal becoming increasingly remote,

Mindful of the need to promote the availability and importance of women’s literacy programs,

Taking into account previous documentation, such as United Nations Resolutions A/RES/59/149, A/RES/59/164, A/RES/59/260, A/RES/60/138, and A/RES/60/210, which suggest preexisting frameworks and methods taken to increase women’s literacy programs in LEDCs,

Recalling the United Nations Millennium Declaration (UNMD), along with the United Nations Millennium Goals (UNMG) relevant to literacy, which states the goal of achieving universal primary education for the world by the year 2015,

Reaffirming that the language being taught to the women in the literacy programs are to the governments discretion,

1. Encourages the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and other related Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) along with local governments in need of aid, to increase the availability of women’s literacy programs in the nations through measures such as but not restricted to:

a. Constructing more learning centers throughout the developing countries, especially in rural areas, where literacy rates are most likely to be lower compared to their urban counterparts, so as to allow all citizens the chance to improve their literacy,

b. Expanding currently existing primary educational facilities to incorporate co-educational education between both genders at the local level,

c. Incorporating literacy education in the micro-credit system, in order to enhance the opportunity for women to achieve occupations as well as improve their literacy, so as to promote literacy programs,

d. Training volunteers or citizens in need of employment through ways such as but not limited to:

i. Forming tutorial courses that will prepare these people on the methods to teach others as well as the basic information that the students must be informed on,

ii. Appointing an NGO personnel specialized in this area, to guide the volunteer at the center, until he/she is able to handle the load by themselves, in order to offer them aid whenever needed and teach them the basis of teaching,

iii. Promoting volunteer participation with universities around the world as international aid opportunities,

2. Recommends that developing nations collaborate with the United Nations (UN), the United Nations Department of Public Information (UNDPI), and other related NGOs in order to increase the public’s awareness of women’s’ literacy programs in their countries and inform them of the value of these courses through ways such as but not limited to:

a. Using the means of mass media in two distinct forms such as but not limited to: i. Means of public announcement, including, educational short films,

portable slide shows and presentations, mobile public announcement with

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cars and megaphones, regional congregations and meetings, and public announcement assemblies,

ii. Means of spreading information, including portable public announcement devices, distribution of manually-charged radio devices, pamphlets with pictorial guides,

b. Sending NGO personnel to rural areas, where mass media is unable to reach, so as to inform the citizens in those areas of the courses that are already or going to be established in the near future,

c. Training volunteers to inform the public on women’s’ literacy programs, in order to increase the development of the issue, by sending them along with NGO personnel, thus allowing them to realize the process of notifying the public on this

solution to the issue at hand;

3. Calls for local governments along with the UN and UNDP to pinpoint areas that are particularly in need of literacy programs, so as to use the funding and aid, received from member nations as well as NGOs, efficiently and appropriately through ways such as but not limited to:

a. Locating specific areas that are more in need of these courses compared to other regions, through measures such as but not refrained to:

i. Observing the literacy rates of women in regions, so as to see the progression of the issue at hand, and comparing this data to other places, so as to ensure that the appropriate amount of aid is being given to these areas,

ii. Sending NGO personnel to various parts of developing nations, surveying local citizens on the basic steps to literature, so as to determine which areas of the countries require more attention than others,

b. Having representatives from the NGOs and governments meet periodically, to their discretion as well as to the extremity of the problem in the country, in order to decrease the misuse of aid, as well as reduce the problems caused by this issue, through ways such as but not limited to:

i. Discussing the ways funding and support has been distributed in the nation, and hence, making changes where necessary,

ii. Deliberate ways to progress the improvements made on the situation at hand and other ways to decrease the problem,

iii. Submit the results and solutions from their discussions to the UN so as to inform them of the progression made within the issue;

4. Suggests member nations along with UNESCO and other such NGOs collaborate in focusing on educating girls in these developing nations, so as to decrease the issue of illiterate women in the future, through ways such as but not restrained to:

a. Creating and funding new local as well as international schools and/or curriculums in the developing nations, with the focus on educating children of age regardless of their gender, status and such,

b. Offering benefits and incentives to citizens under the poverty line, through ways such as paying for their school tuitions, in order to increase employment opportunities for these children in the future,

c. Providing appropriate transportation to and from the schools, so as to ensure the safety of the children as they travel;

5. Strongly Urges member states, especially the developed nations, and Global Education Associates (GEA), UNESCO as well as other related NGOs, to increase global awareness about the importance of female education through multiple means such as but not limited to:

a. Using mass media such as television, radio, newspapers, pamphlets, and/or billboards focusing on topics pertaining to:

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i. The importance of literacy, and the negative effects of what illiteracy could cause,

ii. Methods that the public can do to relieve illiteracy and/or help to eliminate it, through ways such as offering support for current projects on improving literacy rates,

b. Having seminars on public locations or events in both urban and rural areas, focusing on topics such as but not limited to:

i. The importance and benefits for women to receive education, ii. The importance of global cooperation in order to relieve the issue so that

the citizens may support governmental actions,

6. Proposes Economically Less Developed Countries (LEDCs) collaborate with NGOs such as the International Labor Organization (ILO), Education International (EI), as well as various companies and employment agencies within the nations, in order to improve the availability of women’s literacy programs, not to mention employment opportunities through ways such as but not limited to:

a. Setting up classes/courses inside or outside of working hours, that will educate women mainly on the terms used in their occupations, so as to enhance their ability to perform tasks as well as literacy rates,

b. Restructuring working hours in order to allow women the chance to attend these courses, through incentives such as improved performances of the workers,

c. Sending volunteers but moreover students to come and educate the women as service opportunities not to mention a chance to experience the ways these

companies are managed and such,

7. Proposes a new perspective to be set upon developing nations with the help of the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) so as to allow their female population the opportunities to attend the provided literacy programs through ways such as but not limited to:

a. Encouraging women to improve their literacy despite obstacles such as religion, that may discourage these sorts acts, of by attending literacy courses, though ways such as:

i. Having successful women hold talks in LEDCs in order to promote literacy programs

ii. Through incentives such as an increase in employment opportunities as well as improved performances in their occupations,

iii. Offering benefits such as the provision of food from the World Food Programme (WFP) for their families as well as aid in finding employment for the future by attending the literacy programs,

b. Provide men the incentives to allow women to attend literacy courses, through the help of the UN and related NGOs such as UNDP and the Inter-Agency Network on Women and Gender Equality (IANWGE), by ways such as but not limited to:

i. Showing the husbands the importance and the benefits of the family if the women were to become literate through ways such as but not limited to the improvement of family standards from the wages of possible jobs of the women and the upgrade of family education for children,

ii. Providing them with a certain amount of money as well as with the help with the aid of NGO’s due to circumstances when the women of the family attend the literacy programs,

c. Offer governments in developing nations the benefits of allowing their female populace to attend these programs through ways such as showing the relationship between the literacy levels and the country’s economy and comparing it to the one of the MEDC in order to show them:

i. Low literacy rates affect the economy negatively, ii. Improving and raising the literacy rate is the first step into developing and

strengthening the country economically.

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BEIMUN Rules of Procedure

I. APPLICATION

Rule 1 These rules of procedure apply to the proceedings of the all forums of the Beijing International Model United Nations as determined by the BEIMUN Directorate. For purposes of these rules, the words “General Assembly” are to be understood as referring to the BEIMUN General Assembly, its Committees, the forum in question or all forums collectively, as applicable. The word ‘committees’ may include other forums. The word “President” is to be understood to refer to the President of the General Assembly or the presiding officer in a given forum. The word “Chair” may also be used to refer to the presiding officer in a given forum, actual title notwithstanding.

Rule 2

All matters are conducted in accordance with these rules and Robert’s Rules of Parliamentary Order, with the former taking precedence over the latter.

II. SESSIONS

Rule 3 The General Assembly shall meet every year in session commencing on a date to be determined by the BEIMUN Directorate. The BEIMUN Directorate shall fix a closing date for the session.

Rule 4 The General Assembly shall meet in Beijing at a site to be determined by the BEIMUN Directorate.

III. AGENDA

Rule 5 The provisional agenda for a session shall be drawn up by the Secretary-General and communicated to the Members of the United Nations at least ninety days before the opening of the session.

Rule 6 The provisional agenda of a regular session shall include: (a) The report of the Secretary-General; (b) Reports from the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the International Court of Justice, the subsidiary organs of the General Assembly and the specialized agencies; (c) All items proposed by the other principal organs of the United Nations; (d) All items which the Secretary-General deems it necessary to put before the General Assembly.

Rule 7 Any Members of the United Nations or the Secretary-General may, at least sixty days before the date fixed for the opening of a session, request the inclusion of supplementary items in the agenda. Upon approval, such items shall be communicated to Members at least thirty days before the opening of the session.

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Rule 8 Any item proposed for inclusion in the agenda shall be accompanied by an explanatory memorandum and, if possible, by basic documents or by a draft resolution.

Rule 9 All items on the agenda, except those deemed necessary by the Secretary-General, may be deleted or referred for consideration at the next session by the General Assembly by a majority of the members present and voting.

Rule 10 All items on the agenda shall be given priority by the Secretary-General.

Rule 11 Debate on a proposal to amend an item on the agenda shall be limited to one speaker in favour of, and one against, the amendment. The President may limit the time to be allowed to speakers under this rule.

IV. DELEGATIONS

Rule 12 The delegation of a Member shall consist of not more than one representative per forum, except in the Security Council, where each Member shall have two representatives.

V. CREDENTIALS

Rule 13 The credentials of representatives and the names of members of a delegation shall be submitted to the BEIMUN Director before a date to be determined by the BEIMUN Directorate. The credentials shall be issued by the participating school through the Director of that school’s delegation.

VI. PRESIDENT

Rule 14 Before the opening of each session of the General Assembly, the BEIMUN Directorate shall appoint a President, who shall hold office until the close of the session for which he/she is appointed.

Rule 15 If the President finds it necessary to be absent during a meeting or any part thereof, he/she shall designate a subordinate to take his/her place who shall have the same powers and duties as the President.

Rule 16 If the President is unable to perform his/her functions, a new President shall be appointed by the BEIMUN Directorate for the unexpired term.

Rule 17 In addition to exercising the powers conferred upon her/him elsewhere by these rules, the President shall, subject to the most recent programme of events, declare the opening and closing of each plenary meeting of the session, the adjournment of the meeting, direct the discussions in plenary meeting, ensure observance of these rules, accord the right to speak, put questions and announce decisions. He/she shall rule on points of order and, subject to

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these rules, shall have complete control of the proceedings at any meeting and over the maintenance of order thereat. The President may, in the course of the discussion of an item, decide the limitation of the time to be allowed to speakers, the limitation of the number of times each representative may speak or the closure of the debate. He/she may also propose the suspension of the meeting or the adjournment of the debate on the item under discussion.

Rule 18

The President, in the exercise of his/her functions, remains under the authority of the Secretary-General, who shall be assisted by the Deputy Secretary-General and Under Secretary-General, and the BEIMUN Directorate.

VII. GENERAL COMMITTEE

Rule 19 The General Committee shall comprise the President of the General Assembly, who shall preside and make the agenda for meetings of the committee, the Chairs of the committees and the Chairs of other forums which are to meet during the session. The Secretary-General and his/her deputies shall be entitled to attend meetings of the General Committee.

Rule 20 The President of the General Assembly must be present at all meetings of the General Committee. The Chairs of the committees must be present at all meetings of the General Committee, unless they are exempted by the President of the General Assembly.

Rule 21 The General Committee shall assist the President and the General Assembly in drawing up the agenda for each plenary meeting, in determining the priority of its items and in coordinating the proceedings of all committees of the Assembly. It shall assist the President in the general conduct of the work of the General Assembly which falls within the competence of the President.

Rule 22

The General Committee shall meet periodically throughout each session to review the progress of the General Assembly and its committees and to make recommendations for furthering such progress. It shall also meet at such other times as the President deems necessary.

Rule 23 The General Committee may revise the resolutions adopted by the General Assembly, changing their form but not their substance.

VIII. ADMINISTRATION

Rule 24 The Under Secretary-General shall at his/her own discretion provide and direct the staff required by the General Assembly.

Rule 25 The Administrative Staff shall receive, print, and distribute documents, reports and resolutions of the General Assembly, its committees and its organs; prepare, print and circulate the records of the session; have the custody and proper preservation of the

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documents in the archives of the General Assembly; distribute all documents of the Assembly to the Members of the United Nations.

Rule 26 The Executive Committee shall establish regulations concerning Administrative Staff.

IX. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Rule 27 The Executive Committee shall comprise the Secretary-General, who shall preside and make the agenda for meetings of the committee, and the Deputy Secretary-General, Under Secretary-General, and President of the General Assembly.

Rule 28 The Secretary-General, in exercise of his/her functions, remains under the authority of the BEIMUN Directorate.

Rule 29 All decisions of the Secretary-General shall be taken in consultation with the BEIMUN Directorate.

Rule 30 The Secretary-General shall act in that capacity in all meetings of the General Assembly and its committees. He/she may designate a member of the Office of the Secretary-General to act in his/her place at these meetings.

Rule 31 The Secretary-General shall make an annual report to the General Assembly on the work of the Organization. He/she shall communicate the annual report to the Members of the United Nations at least thirty days before the opening of the session.

Rule 32 The Secretary-General, with the consent of the Security Council, shall notify the General Assembly at each session of any matters relative to the maintenance of international peace and security which are being dealt with by the Security Council, and shall similarly notify the General Assembly immediately when the Security Council ceases to deal with such matters.

Rule 33 The BEIMUN Directorate shall establish regulations concerning the Executive Committee.

X. COMMISSION ON RULES OF PROCEDURE

Rule 34 The Executive Committee shall act as the Commission on Rules of Procedure. The Commission shall be chaired by the Secretary-General in consultation with the BEIMUN Director.

XI. LANGUAGE

Rule 35 English shall be both the official and the working language of the General Assembly and its committees. All resolutions, records, and other documents shall be published in the language of the General Assembly.

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XII. RECORDS AND RESOLUTIONS

Rule 36 Summary records of the meetings of the General Assembly and its committees shall be drawn up by the Executive Committee, or its designates, and published after approval by the presiding officer.

Rule 37 Resolutions adopted by the General Assembly and its committees shall be compiled by the Under Secretary-General and communicated by the Secretary-General to the Members after the close of the session.

XIII. MEETINGS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Rule 38 The meetings of the General Assembly and its committees shall be held in public unless the organ concerned decides, with approval of the President, that exceptional circumstances require that the meeting be held in private.

Rule 39 All decisions of the General Assembly and its committees taken at a private meeting shall be announced at an early public meeting of the Assembly or committee.

Rule 40 Immediately after the opening of the first plenary meeting and immediately preceding the closing of the final plenary meeting of each session of the General Assembly, the President may, at his/her discretion, invite the representatives to observe one minute of silence dedicated to prayer or meditation.

Rule 41 The General Assembly shall not make a final decision upon any item on the agenda until it has consulted an appropriate committee on that item.

Rule 42 Discussion of a report of a committee in a plenary meeting of the General Assembly shall take place if at least one third of the members present and voting at the plenary meeting consider such a discussion to be necessary. Any proposal to this effect shall not be debated but shall be immediately put to the vote.

Rule 43 The President may declare a meeting open and permit the debate to proceed when a quorum of at least one-third of the members of the General Assembly are present. The presence of a majority of the members shall be required for any decision to be taken.

Rule 44 No representative may address the General Assembly without having previously obtained the permission of the President. The President shall call upon speakers in an order determined by the President. The President may call a speaker to order if his/his remarks are not relevant to the subject under discussion.

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Rule 45 A Rapporteur may be accorded precedence for the purpose of explaining the conclusions arrived at by that committee.

Rule 46 The Secretary-General, or a designated member of the Executive Committee, may at any time make either oral or written statements to the General Assembly concerning any question under consideration.

Rule 47 During the discussion of any matter, a representative may rise to a point of order, and the point of order shall be immediately decided by the President in accordance with these rules. A representative rising to a point of order may not speak on the substance of the matter under discussion. Debate will continue immediately following the President’s ruling. The President’s ruling will stand unless the Commission on Rules of Procedure, upon written appeal by a representative, deems otherwise. A decision of the President shall be reversed by the Commission on Rules of Procedure only if said decision has a demonstrable and egregious effect on the resolution of the question at hand or the integrity of the General Assembly.

Rule 48 The President may limit the time to be allowed to each speaker and the number of times each representative may speak on any question. When any representative exceeds his/her allotted time, the President shall call him/her to order without delay.

Rule 49 During the discussion of any matter, a representative may move the adjournment of the debate on the item under discussion. In addition to the proposer of the motion, two representatives may speak in favour of, and two against, the motion, after which the motion shall be immediately put to the vote. The President may limit the time to be allowed to speakers under this rule.

Rule 50 A representative may at any time move the closure of the debate or the item under discussion. Permission to speak on the closure of the debate shall be accorded only to two speakers opposing the closure, after which the motion shall be immediately put to the vote. If the General Assembly is in favour of the closure, the President shall declare the closure of the debate. The President may limit the time to be allowed to speakers under this rule.

Rule 51

During the discussion of any matter, a representative may move the suspension of the meeting. Such motions shall not be debated but shall be immediately put to the vote. The President may limit the time to be allowed to the speaker moving the suspension of the meeting.

Rule 52 Proposals according to BEIMUN regulations shall be submitted in writing to the forum and shall be distributed to the delegations. As a general rule, no proposal shall be discussed or put to the vote at any meeting of the General Assembly unless copies of it have been circulated to all delegations. The President may, however, permit the discussion and consideration of motions as to procedure, even though such motions have not been circulated.

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Rule 53 Amendments shall not be submitted during plenary meetings.

Rule 54 Any motion calling for a decision on the competence of the General Assembly to adopt a proposal submitted to it shall be put to the vote before a vote is taken on the proposal in question.

Rule 55 The President may, upon objection to a motion by any Member, deny the motion without discussion or vote by Members.

Rule 56

A motion may be withdrawn by its proposer at any time before voting on it has commenced. A motion thus withdrawn may be reintroduced by any member.

Rule 57 When a proposal has been adopted or rejected, it may not be reconsidered at the same session unless the General Assembly, by a two-thirds majority of the members present and voting, so decides. Permission to speak on a motion to reconsider shall be accorded only to two speakers opposing the motion, after which it shall be immediately put to the vote.

Rule 58 Each member of the General Assembly shall have one vote.

Rule 59

Decisions of the General Assembly on important questions shall be made by a two-thirds majority of the members present and voting. These questions shall include: recommendations with respect to the maintenance of international peace and security and the suspension of the rights and privileges of membership.

Rule 60 Decisions of the General Assembly, including the determination of additional categories of questions to be decided by a two-thirds majority, shall be made by a majority of the members present and voting.

Rule 61 For the purposes of these rules, the phrase “members present and voting” means members casting an affirmative or negative vote. Members which abstain from voting are considered as not voting.

Rule 62 The General Assembly shall normally vote by show of placards, but any representative may request a roll-call. The roll-call shall be taken in the English alphabetical order of the names of the members. The name of each member shall be called in any roll-call, and one of its representatives shall reply “yes”, “no” or “abstention”.

Rule 63 After the President has announced the beginning of voting, no representative shall interrupt the voting except on a point of order in connection with the actual conduct of the voting. The President may permit members to explain their votes, either before or after the voting. The President may limit the time to be allowed for such explanations. The President shall not permit the proposer to explain his/her vote on his/her own proposal.

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Rule 64 A representative may move that parts of a proposal should be voted on separately. If objection is made to the request for division, the motion for division shall be voted upon. Permission to speak on the motion for division shall be given only to two speakers in favour and two speakers against. If the motion for division is carried, those parts of the proposal which are approved shall then be put to the vote as a whole. If all operative parts of the proposal have been rejected, the proposal shall be considered to have been rejected as a whole.

Rule 65 If two or more proposals relate to the same question, the General Assembly shall, unless it decides otherwise, vote on the proposals in the order in which they have been submitted. The General Assembly may, after each vote on a proposal, decide whether to vote on the next proposal.

Rule 66 If a vote is equally divided, the proposal shall be regarded as rejected.

XIV. COMMITTEES

Rule 67 The General Assembly may establish such committees as it deems necessary for the performance of its functions.

Rule 68 Items relating to the same category of subjects shall be referred to the committee or committees dealing with that category of subjects. Committees shall not introduce new items on their own initiative.

Rule 69 The Main Committees of the General Assembly are the following: (a) Disarmament and International Security Committee (First Committee) (b) Economic and Financial Committee (Second Committee) (c) Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee (Third Committee) (d) Special Political and Decolonization Committee (Fourth Committee) (e) Legal Committee (Sixth Committee).

Rule 70 Each Member may be represented by one person on each committee; Members of the Security Council are to be represented by two persons in that forum only.

Rule 71

Before the opening of each session, the Executive Committee shall appoint a President/Chair and up to three Deputies/Assistants, as deemed appropriate by the Executive Committee, for each committee, who shall hold office until the close of the session for which they are appointed.

Rule 72

If the Chair finds it necessary to be absent during a meeting or any part thereof, the Assistant/Deputy Chair shall take his/her place. An Assistant/Deputy acting as Chair shall have the same authority and duties as the Chair. If any officer of the committee is unable to perform his/her functions, a new officer shall be appointed by the Secretary-General for the unexpired term.

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Rule 73 The Chair shall, subject to the most recent programme of events, declare the opening and closing of each meeting of the committee, the adjournment of the meeting, direct its discussions, ensure observance of these rules, accord the right to speak, put questions, and announce decisions. He/she shall rule on points of order and, subject to these rules, shall have complete control of the proceedings at any meeting and over the maintenance of order thereat. The Chair may, in the course of the discussion of an item, decide the limitation of the time to be allowed to speakers, the limitation of the number of times each representative may speak, or the closure of the debate. He/she may propose the suspension of the meeting or the adjournment of the debate on the item under discussion.

Rule 74

The Chair, in the exercise of his functions, remains under the authority of the Executive Committee and the BEIMUN Directorate.

Rule 75 The Chair may declare a meeting open and permit the debate to proceed when a quorum of at least one-third of the members of the committee are present. The presence of a majority of the members shall be required for any decision to be taken.

Rule 76 No representative may address the committee without having previously obtained the permission of the Chair. The Chair shall call upon speakers in an order determined by the Chair. The Chair may call a speaker to order if his/her remarks are not relevant to the subject under discussion.

Rule 77 A Rapporteur of a committee or subcommittee may be accorded precedence for the purpose of explaining the conclusions arrived at by that committee or subcommittee.

Rule 78 The Secretary-General, or a designated member of the Executive Committee, may at any time make either oral or written statements to any committee or subcommittee concerning any question under consideration by it.

Rule 79 During the discussion of any matter, a representative may rise to a point of order, and the point of order shall be immediately decided by the Chair in accordance with these rules. A representative may appeal against the ruling of the Chair to the Commission on Rules and Procedure, as defined in Chapter X. The debate will continue and the Chair’s ruling shall stand unless overruled by the Commission. A representative rising to a point of order may not speak on the substance of the matter under discussion.

Rule 80 The Chair may limit the time to be allowed to each speaker and the number of times each representative may speak on any question. When the debate is limited and a representative exceeds his/her allotted time, the Chair shall call him/her to order without delay.

Rule 81

During the discussion of any matter, a representative may move the adjournment of the debate on the item under discussion. In addition to the proposer of the motion, two

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representatives may speak in favour of, and two against, the motion, after which the motion shall be immediately put to the vote. The Chair may limit the time to be allowed to speakers under this rule.

Rule 82 A representative may at any time move the closure of the debate on the item under discussion. Permission to speak on the closure of the debate shall be accorded only to two speakers opposing the closure, after which the motion shall be immediately put to the vote. If the committee is in favour of the closure, the Chair shall declare the closure of the debate. The Chair may limit the time to be allowed to speakers under this rule

Rule 83

During the discussion of any matter, a representative may move the suspension of the meeting. Such motions shall not be debated but shall be immediately put to the vote. The Chair may limit the time to be allowed to the speaker moving the suspension of the meeting.

Rule 84 Proposals according to BEIMUN regulations shall be submitted in writing to the forum and shall be distributed to the delegations. As a general rule, no proposal shall be discussed or put to the vote at any meeting of the committee unless copies of it have been circulated to all delegations. The Chair may, however, permit the discussion and consideration of motions as to procedure, even though such motions have not been circulated.

Rule 85 Amendments shall be submitted in writing during committee meetings.

Rule 86 Any motion calling for a decision on the competence of the General Assembly or the committee to adopt a proposal submitted to it shall be put to the vote before a vote is taken on the proposal in question.

Rule 87 The Chair may, upon objection to a motion by any Member, deny the motion without discussion or vote by Members.

Rule 88 A motion may be withdrawn by its proposer at any time before voting on it has commenced, provided that the motion has not been amended. A motion thus withdrawn may be reintroduced by any member.

Rule 89 When a proposal has been adopted or rejected, it may not be reconsidered at the same session unless the committee, by a two-thirds majority of the members present and voting, so decides. Permission to speak on a motion to reconsider shall be accorded only to two speakers opposing the motion, after which it shall be immediately put to the vote.

Rule 90

Each member of the committee shall have one vote.

Rule 91 Decisions of committees shall be made by a majority of the members present and voting.

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Rule 92 The committee shall normally vote by show of placards, but any representative may request a roll-call. The roll-call shall be taken in the English alphabetical order of the names of the members, beginning with the member whose name is drawn by lot by the Chair. The name of each member shall be called in any roll-call, and its representative shall reply “yes”, “no”, or “abstention”.

Rule 93 After the Chair has announced the beginning of voting, no representative shall interrupt the voting except on a point of order in connection with the actual conduct of the voting. The Chair may permit members to explain their votes, either before or after the voting. The Chair may limit the time to be allowed for such explanations. The Chair shall not permit the proposer of a proposal or of an amendment to explain his/her vote on his/her own proposal or amendment.

Rule 94 A representative may move that parts of a proposal or of an amendment should be voted on separately. If objection is made to the request for division, the motion for division shall be voted upon. Permission to speak on the motion for division shall be given only to two speakers in favour and two speakers against. If the motion for division is carried, those parts of the proposal or of the amendment which are approved shall then be put to the vote as a whole. If all operative parts of the proposal or of the amendment have been rejected, the proposal or the amendment shall be considered to have been rejected as a whole.

Rule 95 When an amendment is moved to a proposal, the amendment shall be voted on first. If one or more amendments are adopted, the amended proposal shall then be voted upon. A motion is considered an amendment to a proposal if it merely adds to, deletes from, or revises part of the proposal.

Rule 96 If a vote is equally divided the proposal shall be regarded as rejected.

XV. ADMINISTRATIVE AND BUDGETARY QUESTIONS

Rule 97 No resolution shall include either financial amounts or names of specific financial resources.

XVI. SUBSIDIARY ORGANS OF THE

GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Rule 98 The General Assembly may establish such subsidiary organs as it deems necessary for the performance of its functions. The rules relating to the procedure of committees of the General Assembly shall apply to the procedure of any subsidiary organ unless the Assembly or the subsidiary organ, with approval of the Assembly, decides otherwise.

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XVII. AMENDMENTS TO THE BEIMUN RULES OF PROCEDURE

Rule 99 These rules of procedure may be amended by a decision of the BEIMUN Directorate in consultation with the Executive Committee.

The BEIMUN Rules of Procedure have been adapted from the THIMUN Rules of Procedure <http://thimun.org> for the sole purpose of the Beijing Model United Nations annual conference. Adapted 2009.

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