Model United Nations

STRUCTURE AND PROCEDURES

MUN is made up of two main parts: committee sessions and the General Assembly.  These two parts will follow similar rules and procedure, that is Parliamentary Procedure applies to both.  Certain rules will vary slightly for the committee sessions and General Assembly but these are not very many. 
 

Committee sessions come first and in these delegates will debate resolutions on their specific committee question, e.g. the question of the protection and equitable use of water resources.  The committees are run by their respective Committee Chairs and delegates will defer to the Chair.  The Chair does not participate in the debate but instead plays the role of a regulator whereby it is the job of the Chair to rule on points of order etc. and maintain order.  It is the Chair who will open committee sessions, call recess and adjourn sessions.
 

Between each committee session there is a caucusing period during which delegates are allowed to approach each other and form resolutions.  These resolutions will then be passed onto the vetting committee, who will examine the resolutions and decide  whether or not it is fit to be passed onto the committee floor for debate and voting.  During committee sessions, copies of each resolution will be given out by one of the submitters of the resolution.  Then a Speaker's List will be drawn up during which delegates will be asked if they wish to be put on this list.  (The Speaker's List compiles of speakers against the resolution, for the resolution and to the question.  Details of this will be explained later.)  The resolution will then be put to the floor and when the debate over it is done, the committee members will vote for, against or they may choose to abstain.  A committee may pass more than one resolution, however, at the end, only one resolution will pass through to the General Assembly.  This is usually done by majority vote, which resolution received the most "for" votes.  The Speaker's List for the General Assembly, on the resolution that passed will then be drawn at the end of the committee sessions.
 

In the General Assembly, basically all the rules that apply to the committee apply here.  (Details on differences will be supplied later.)  However, the General Assembly will be run by the Secretary General, whose role is very similar to that of a Committee Chair.  During the General Assembly, the final resolutions that come through the individual committees will be debated.  Then the whole of the General Assembly will vote whether or not to adopt the resolutions.  After all the resolutions have been debated and voted upon, delegates will be given an emergency issue (the contents of which are previously unknown).  Delegates are required to form resolutions on an issue and the General Assembly will have an emergency meeting to debate and vote on the resolutions that are put forward.

H. Berghuis