Presentation Transcript

1. Writing a Resolution Clark College Model United Nations

2. What is a Resolution????? A Resolution is a statement of international opinion, or a piece of international law. It is the primary output of committees in the United Nations and other Inter-Governmental Organizations (IGOs). Most committees produce resolutions that are statements; the Security Council (and Reformed Security Council) produce resolutions that may be defined as having the force of law.

3. Resolution Stages: The Working Paper: A document is a working paper when it has just been created until it has been approved by the dias, which means it has been edited and meets the formatted rules of the committee. It can’t be brought up in speeches until it has been seen by the dias. A working paper can have sponsors and signatories added to it as it develops.

4. The Draft Resolution: The Draft Resolution phase begins with being codified, at which point the code is added to the top of the document, and the sponsor and signatory lists are removed. At this point it can be voted upon by the members of the committee. It can be printed and distributed to the delegates and now it can be referred to in speeches. It is also now the “property of the body,” meaning that it is no longer “owned” by the authors, but by the committee at large. The Draft Resolution phase ends when delegates move into Voting Bloc on the topic.

5. Introducing a Draft Resolution: To introduce a draft resolution, a motion must be made by a sponsor from the Speaker’s List at the podium. 2. No draft resolution will be introduced to the Committee until it has been typed, authorized, and coded by the signed approval of the Director and Chair, photocopied, and distributed to all members of the committee. 3. Once a draft resolution has been introduced, it is the only topic open for discussion. 4. Any member wishing to be added to the list of sponsors must have the approval in writing of all the sponsors. Upon the receipt of such approval, the Director will announce the addition of the new sponsor(s).

6. Resolution: After a draft resolution has been voted on in voting bloc, it becomes a Resolution (if it passes). A Resolution can be voted upon as a whole or clauses can be voted upon individually if a motion is made to do so. A Resolution will have a vote of yes, no, or abstain.

7. What is a Sponsor??? Working papers and resolutions require a specified number of sponsors. Sponsors are the main authors of a resolution and should agree with the ideas therein presented.

8. What are Signatories??? Working papers and resolutions also require a specific number of signatories. Being a signatory does not necessarily mean being in support of or in opposition to the ideas presented, you may just want to see them debated in front of the rest of the committee.

9. What in the heck is an Observer??? Delegates who sit in a committee and are allowed to speak, but DO NOT have voting privileges (e.g. Palestinian Liberation Organization, PLO)

10. Preambulatory Clauses… Any Guesses??? The Perambulatory Clauses should outline the history of the problem, show that the topic falls under the authority of the committee, and demonstrate that there is a need for a resolution, possibly referring to previous UN Resolution and major international documents. The first portion of the clause is italicized. Perambulatory clauses may not be amended or divided. Each perambulatory sentence is followed by a semi-colon (;). EX: Affirming the right for all peoples to be free;

11. Who put the "Opera" in Operative Clause??? The portion of the resolution which contains proposed solutions to a problem and actually do something are composed of a series of sequentially numbered operative clauses. Each operative clause calls for a specific action, condemning a country’s action, sending in peacekeepers, giving money, etc. Operative clauses begin with an active, present tense verb and are followed by a semi-colon. A period follows the final clause. The first portion of the clause is underlined, and each operative clause is numbered. EX: Calls for an immediate increase in UN funding forthe infrastructure of underdeveloped countries’.

12. Friendly Amendments  1. If an amendment to a draft resolution has the approval of the original sponsors and the Director, the amendment is automatically incorporated into the resolution upon introduction to the Committee. 2. It is NOT necessary for signatories to approve the amendment.

13. Unfriendly Amendments  1. If an amendment to a draft resolution presented does not have the approval of all the original sponsors, the amendment requires the signature of one-fifth of all the committee members to be considered. 2. The amendment must be approved by the director, coded, copied, and distributed before it is introduced. 3. A motion for an unfriendly amendment suspends the debate. 4. Upon introduction of an unfriendly amendment, the Dias will immediately take a Speaker’s List of two for the amendment and two speakers against it. 5. After the committee has heard from the four speakers, the committee votes on the amendment. The amendment requires a two-thirds majority vote to be added to the draft resolution.

14. The End,Honorable Chair,Fellow Delegates Peace in the Mid’ East…