Delegate’s Guide: DISEC

ABA MUN 2021

Introduction

- The Model United Nations is an extra-curricular activity in which students act as delegates of the United Nations, represent countries assigned to them, and debate about certain topics.

- The Model United Nations involves substantial researching, public speaking, debating, and writing, as well as a great way to develop your critical thinking, teamwork, and leadership abilities.

- Every student gives speeches detailing their country’s position on a specific topic and offers possible solutions. Part of what makes Model UN beneficial is that students are directly involved in diplomatic global issues such as global warming and climate change, water scarcity and sanitation, peace and security, human rights, world hunger and poverty, social and economic development, globalization, etc.).

- A different theme is chosen every year and it constitutes the main topic of the whole conference, which is one of the features that makes MUN relevant to the world around us.

- Students who participate accurately reproduce the actual working procedures of the major UN multilateral bodies.

- During the conference, you will cooperate with each other to build concrete proposals, negotiate to reach consensus, and eventually pass resolutions that represent the results of an intercultural creative process addressed to face our world’s most pressing troubles.

About our committee: DISEC!

- The Disarmament and International Security committee (DISEC) was created as the first of the Main Committees in the General Assembly when the charter of the United Nations was signed in 1945. Thus, DISEC is often referred to as the First Committee. The First Committee deals with disarmament, global challenges and threats to peace that affect the international community and seeks out solutions to the challenges in the international security regime.

- DISECs headquarters is located in New York, United States, and all 195 full member and full observer-‐status States are allowed to attend and participate.

MUN conference structure 1) Roll call (this is the register – reply ‘present and voting’ when called) 2) Position paper reading 3) Moderated Caucus 4) Unmoderated Caucus 5) Resolution writing 6) Repeat for next topic

POSITION PAPERS – everything you need to know What is a position paper? This the first part of the conference. It is a short speech that you will read out to the rest of the committee, detailing your country’s stance on the given topic. A motion should be made to begin this process. When the chair says, “Are there any motions on the floor?”, raise your placard. If you are recognized, say, “A motion to start position paper reading.” What do I include in my position paper?

- Begin your position paper by addressing the committee: ‘Honorable chairs and fellow delegates.’

- Typically, your position paper should include three main sections. Here are some prompts to help you understand what to write about in each section:

1) A brief outline of the topic and your country’s stance (do they agree, disagree, or are they neutral? Why?)

2) Background information (What events/treaties/laws have there been in the past surrounding the topic, locally and internationally? How was your country involved? Did your country support these previous actions?)

3) Proposed solutions (What can be done to solve the issue? What advice would you give other nations on how to approach the topic? What do you want other nations to consider?)

A good position paper will include:

• A brief introduction to your country and its history concerning the topic and committee;

• How the issue affects your country; • Your country’s policies with respect to the issue and your country’s justification for

these policies; • Quotes from your country’s leaders about the issue; • Statistics to back up your country’s position on the issue; • Actions taken by your government with regard to the issue; • Conventions and resolutions that your country has signed or ratified; • UN actions that your country supported or opposed; • What your country believes should be done to address the issue;

• What your country would like to accomplish in the committee’s resolution; and • How the positions of other countries affect your country’s position.

At the end, say ‘The delegate yields the floor back to the chair.’ What happens during position paper reading?

- The chair will call upon your country when it is your turn to read out your paper. - After you finish, you are asked whether you are open to questions from other

delegates (and if so, how many? Or any and all?). - This process will repeat for every delegate, so listen attentively and try to come up

with questions to ask other delegates after they finish reading. - If you are not satisfied with a response to a question you have asked, you may ask

permission from the chair to follow up. How do I come up with questions?

- Listen closely to what the speaker is saying. - If there are any inconsistencies/loopholes in their points, ask them to clarify

themselves. - If there is something they have not explained properly, ask them to. - If they have not backed up a point with evidence, ask them to provide some. - Refer to the suggestions under ‘What I should include in my position paper’ for more

ideas. - Be intuitive! There is no exact formula to tell you what to ask, as every position paper

varies. Instead, use your instincts and creativity to come up with questions and start a debate.

What if I don’t know the answer to a question?

- Don’t worry – you can ask the chair for permission to reply in note form. - This gives you extra time to find an answer, write down your response, and send it to

the delegate who asked you the question. Key points to remember:

- Keep it concise and clear; you want other countries to easily recognize your ideas. - You are writing based on your country’s point of view, NOT your own, even if you

disagree with your country’s stance. - Your paper does not have to be long; you will typically have a designated time of 1-

1.5 minutes so make sure you can say everything you need to in this timeframe. - Speak loudly and don’t rush; it is important that other delegates understand what you

are saying so that they can ask you questions later. - Always provide factual information only – your claims may be cross-checked.

Example position paper:

The Moderated Caucus

This occurs when position paper reading has finished. The chair will say, “The position paper reading is now over. If there are any motions on the floor, please raise your placards now” after this, you raise your placards and if you are recognized, you should say, “the delegate of [country you represent] would like to raise a motion for initiating a moderated caucus for a time of ... minutes”

What happens during the Moderated Caucus?

- This is time allocated for formal debate. You have the opportunity to address questions to other countries and debate about anything related to the topic. You may request a follow up question if you are not satisfied with a response, or if you wish to continue the debate.

- If you wish to take part (which you should!), you will need to be added to the Speakers’ List. When the chair asks, ”Are there any delegates who wish to be added to the Speakers’ List”, raise your placard. When you are recognised by the chair, you may begin to ask your questions.

- You may only address one country in a round. When everyone on the Speakers’ List have had their say, the process may repeat several times (or until the time ends) if anyone still wants to address questions to another country.

What if I don’t understand the question?

- You can ask the other delegate to clarify or rephrase the question. If you are still struggling to find an answer, you may request permission from the chair to reply in note form.

The Unmoderated Caucus

This occurs after the moderated caucus is over. The chair will start by saying, “The moderated caucus is now over. If there are any motions on the floor, please raise your placards now.” You then raise your placard and if you are recognized, you should say, “The delegate of [country you represent] would like to raise a motion for initiating an unmoderated caucus for a time of ... minutes”.

An unmoderated caucus is informal. Delegates are allowed to get up from their places and talk to other delegates. This is the time where alliances are formed, and blocs are made. Blocs are a group of delegates who form an alliance due to common interests.

RESOLUTIONS – everything you need to know What are resolutions? A resolution in MUN is a document which clearly outlines the main issues related to the topic and then gives a list of possible solutions to solve those issues. Remember, the whole point of this whole process, debating and researching the issues, is to come up with a way to fix them. How does resolution writing work? During the unmoderated caucus, you have the chance to seek out your country’s allies (countries that share the same stance and ideas as yours). You will then form blocs (teams) and work together to write a resolution. Here’s an example:

Main sections of the resolution: Heading

- At the top of the document, state the committee, sponsors (all the countries involved in writing the resolution), signatories (all the countries that voted to pass the resolution after it is presented), and the topic.

Pre-ambulatory clauses

- The pre-ambulatory clauses are essentially a list of the issues that you want to solve. - It may state reasons why the committee is working on this issue and highlight previous

international actions on the issue. Pre-ambulatory clauses can include:

▪ Past UN resolutions, treaties, or conventions related to the topic ▪ Past regional, non-governmental, or national efforts in resolving this topic ▪ References to the UN Charter or other international frameworks and laws ▪ Statements made by the Secretary General or a relevant UN body or agency ▪ General background info formation or facts about the topic, its significance, and its impact.

- First, take a statement that you want to write about (perhaps an issue you want to solve or a specific fact from one of the five bullet points above). You then take that statement, combine it with an underlined pre-ambulatory phrase, and end it with a comma.

- Here are some example pre-ambulatory phrases that you can choose from:

- Strategy Tip: In general, you want fewer pre-ambulatory clauses than operative clauses. More operative clauses convey that you have more solutions than you have problems.

Operative clauses:

- Operative clauses are your proposed solutions to the issues you outlined in your pre-ambulatory clauses.

- First, take a solution that you want to include in the resolution. You then take that solution, combine it with an underlined operative phrase, and end it with a semicolon (the last operative clause ends with a period). Operative clauses are also numbered.

- Here are examples of operative phrases you may want to use:

What happens after we finish writing our draft resolutions?

1) One of the members of your bloc will present your resolution to the rest of the committee.

2) Other delegates will have the opportunity to make amendments to your resolution. This is a proposal to change something in your bloc’s resolution – perhaps adding something, altering something, or removing something. The whole committee will then vote whether or not to pass the amendment.

3) After all amendments, if any, have been made, the committee will vote whether or not to pass the resolution.

4) This process repeats for every bloc’s resolution. Key points to remember:

- The whole point of MUN is to pass resolutions! It is not about ‘winning’; if you don’t agree with something on another bloc’s resolution, propose an amendment and be prepared to compromise. This means being reasonable when suggesting changes.

- You should usually have at least three pre-ambulatory clauses and at least five operative clauses.

- Always be diplomatic and respectful to your fellow delegates; this is not a competition. You need to collaborate and be open-minded in order to solve global issues.

ADDITIONAL RULES

- Your cameras must be ON throughout preparation sessions and especially the conference; this will make the process a lot more enjoyable, engaging and realistic for everyone!

- Always keep your microphone muted unless you are speaking. - Dress code: School uniform OR business attire (shoulders must be covered) - Do NOT use personal pronouns (e.g. I, we, you, they, he, she). Refer to yourself and

other countries as ‘The Delegate of [country].’

Motions and points

- Point of personal privilege: Refers to the comfort of the delegate. For example: “Point of personal privilege! Can you open the window?” “Point of personal privilege! May the speaker raise their voice”

- Point of order: used when there is a wrong fact stated by one of the delegates. You say “point of order! And then correct them” after they have finished speaking.

- Point of Parliamentary Enquiry: Point of information to the Chair concerning rules of procedure. Example: “Could the Chair please explain to the house what is meant by ‘unmoderated caucus?’”

- A point CANNOT interrupt a speaker UNLESS it’s a point of personal privilege due to audibility (voice of speaker)

MUN key terminology

• Abstention: A vote during the voting process; to abstain is to be considered as not voting. An abstention does contribute to the passage of a draft resolution/report segment. Note: Member States may only abstain if they are “Present” during formal roll call. Example: A draft resolution that received 30 votes in favour, 10 votes against, and 40 abstentions would still pass due to a larger number of votes in favour, as compared to votes against.

• Appeal of the Chair: A motion to challenge the decision of the Chair and refers to a specific MUN rule.

• Chair: People who are in charge of leading the committee’s formal debate in accordance to the NMUN Rules of Procedure.

• Explanation of Vote: Allows a sponsor of a draft resolution/report segment to explain why they voted against the draft resolution/report segment after it had been amended or changed by a division of the question

• Friendly Amendments: Amendments proposed by ALL the sponsors of a draft resolution; once approved by the Dais these amendments are automatically included in the draft resolution.

• General Assembly: The main deliberative organ of the UN system, comprised of all Member States of the UN.

• Majority Vote: A threshold at which many motions pass. A motion passes with majority vote if more people vote yes than vote no (in the case of substantive during the conference.

• Non-governmental organization: NGOs, also known as civil society organizations or CSOs, are nonprofit groups independent from governments. Normally organized around specific issues, NGOs deliver a variety of public and humanitarian services.

• Operative Clauses: Proposes a new measure(s) and/or an extension of an existing measure(s), which has not already been outlined in a previous resolution.

• Pre-ambulatory Clause: Sets up historical context and relevant international law for a resolution, which justifies future action.

• Present: Establishes a delegation as present in the committee, with the opportunity to abstain during substantive votes.

• Present and Voting: Establishes a delegation as present in the committee. There is no opportunity to abstain during substantive votes; delegations must vote “yes” or “no.”

• Principal Organs: Principal Organs are established pursuant to the Charter of the United Nations. There are six principal organs of the UN: the General Assembly (Art. 9), the Security Council (Art. 23), the Economic and Social Council (Art. 61), the Trusteeship Council (Art. 86), the International Court of Justice (Art. 92), and the Secretariat (Art. 97). Each organ maintains its own area of responsibility from international peace and security (Security Council) to human rights and economic affairs (ECOSOC). The only organ that is currently inactive is the Trusteeship Council.

• Programs and Funds: Programs and Funds are established pursuant to Article 22 of the Charter of the United Nations in order to meet needs not envisaged in the founding of the UN, such as addressing the needs of Palestinian refugees, development assistance, food aid, or the environment. They are subordinate to the UN, but since they are immediately controlled by distinct inter-governmental bodies and are financed through voluntary contributions rather than assessed contributions.

• Right to follow up: Used to respond to the delegate after they have said something. You should say, “Request for the right to follow up”. The chair will then decide and say, “Right granted/denied”

• Secretariat: The Directors, the Assistant Directors, the Under-Secretaries- General, and the Assistant Secretaries-General, are designates and agents of the Secretary-General and Director-General and are collectively referred to as the “Secretariat.”

• Secretary-General: Member of the MUN Secretariat. Chief administrative officer of the Conference.

• Signatories: Member States/NGOs or Observers who are interested in bringing the resolution paper forward for consideration of the committee. They are only allowed to vote and cannot speak for the resolution.

• United Nations: An intergovernmental organization established in 1945, designed to promote international cooperation.

• Model United Nations: Educational conferences that simulate the purpose and practices of the UN.

• Motion: A request to do something during formal debate; motions are voted on by the committee.

• Motion Out of Order: An incorrect motion or a motion used at an incorrect time