THE RESOLUTION PROCESS:
The draft resolution should provide the foundation for both informal and formal discussions and for debate. The document will go through various stages of writing and revision before it reaches its final form. Delegates should prepare a resolution for general debate prior to the conference, but understand that compromise and merging with other resolutions is essential once at the conference.
After the student has completed the necessary research, developed his policy statement, and written his draft resolution, he should hand it to his caucus leader who should read it carefully and revise it where necessary or make recommendations for improvement. If you are a delegate that is not from PASB, you can submit your draft resolution online for revision.
Once delegates get to the conference with their draft resolutions (now revised several times), they shouldn’t be too attached to the wording because in the lobbying and debate that accompanies the attempt to get a resolution passed, they are often revised and amended again and again. In reality, resolutions before being submitted to a vote should be considered a working paper.
The first step to getting your resolution submitted and passed is to lobby your fellow delegates to co-sign or support your resolution. The Lobbying process begins with informal discussions among delegates within their caucus about their resolutions or proposals. The main purpose in preparing resolutions prior to the conference is to ensure that delegates are fully versed in the facts of the issues, have already thought of some creative solutions, and are capable of representing their country’s perspective in relation to opinions of other delegates. Delegates cannot expect to register their draft resolutions without participating in the lobbying process. To do so would mean missing out on one of the most important processes of the United Nations experience, and would mean that delegates would be lacking the support needed from other nations for their resolution.
HOW TO WRITE A RESOLUTION:
Resolutions are the primary tools of discussion and decision-making at the United Nations. They form the basis for all UN debate, bringing one or several issues to the floor in a form that Representatives can discuss, amend, and reject or ratify as circumstances dictate.
Resolutions usually state a policy or action that the UN will undertake. They range from the very general to the very specific in content. They may call for or suggest a course of action, condemn an action, and require action or sanctions on the part of the member states. They may also give specific or general directions to the UN Secretariat at any time.
Amendments to resolutions are the means by which resolutions may be altered by the body involved. Amendments can create additions, deletions, or changes to a resolution in order to increase its acceptability to all nations involved. Amendments are usually needed to move toward a consensus on a resolution.
POINTS TO CONSIDER IN WRITING RESOLUTIONS:
The following list includes important points to consider when writing a resolution, either in advance or for submission at the Conference. This is by no means an exclusive list, but should provide a good starting point to make your resolutions as realistic as possible. Points to consider include:
SUBMISSION OF RESOLUTIONS:
Each country should bring to the Conference a resolution on a chosen topic (recent international events calling for UN intervention).
RESOLUTION GUIDELINES:
Each resolution should be written as a single sentence, with commas and semicolons separating the various parts (see "Sample Resolution" for specifics). In drafting the "heading" of resolutions, Representatives should state their country name, the name of the body to which it will be presented, and the topic of the resolution at the top of the document.
Following the "heading" section, resolutions are split into preambulatory and operative (sometimes called activating) clauses. Preambulatory clauses are listed first, and they are used to justify action, denote past authorizations and precedents for action, and/or denote the purpose for an action. Operative clauses are the statement of policy in a resolution. They are numbered, begin with a verb to denote an action (or suggested action), and each clause usually addresses no more than one specific aspect of the action to be taken.
RESOLUTION FORMAT:
The standard format is as follows:
RESOLUTION INTRODUCTORY PHRASES
The following phrases/words are a partial list of the appropriate introductions in resolutions:
PREAMBULATORY CLAUSES
Affirming Alarmed by Approving Aware of Believing Bearing in mind Confident Convinced Declaring Deeply concerned Deeply convinced Deeply disturbed Deeply regretting Desiring Emphasizing Expecting Fulfilling | Fully aware Fully alarmed Fully believing Further deploring Guided by Having adopted Having considered Having examined Having studied Having heard Having received Keeping in mind Noting with regret Noting further Noting with appreciation Noting with approval Noting with deep concern | Noting with regret Noting with satisfaction Observing Pointing out Reaffirming Realizing Recalling Recognizing Referring Reminding Seeking Taking into account Taking into consideration Taking note Viewing with appreciation Welcoming |
OPERATIVE PHRASES
Accepts Affirms Approves Authorizes Calls Calls upon Condemns Congratulates Confirms Considers Declares accordingly Deplores Draws the attention Designates Emphasizes Encourages Endorses Expresses its appreciation Expresses its hope | Further invites Further proclaims Further reminds Further recommends Further resolves Further requests Have resolved Notes Proclaims Reaffirms Recommends Reminds Regrets Requests Solemnly affirms Strongly condemns Supports Takes note of Transmits Urges |
Resolution Tips
Your success in M.U.N does not strictly depend on whether your resolution will pass or not. A well-written resolution that does not pass has much more credit than a simple and vague resolution that managed to pass because of the nonbinding nature of its content.
There are two main parts to a resolution, the preambulatory clauses and the operative clauses. In the pre-ambulatory part of the resolution, the delegate(s) will need to state the current issue and explain all the details involved on the topic of this resolution. There are several ways of starting a pre-ambulatory clause using phrases like, “Recognizing”, “Taking into consideration”, “Understanding”, these different introductory words of the clause should always be underlined. Each line of a preambulatory clause needs to be numbered and also ends with a comma, for example:
“(01) Taking into consideration that the Bush Power Plant is in accordance to the (02)NPT recommendations and has been undergoing inspections for further verification,”
Also try to backup the information by citing some past resolutions based on that topic (if applicable) and be sure to mention organizations that are linked to your resolution’s topic.
In the operative clauses you are actually showing steps that need to be taken to minimize or resolve the situation. The operative clauses also have introductory words such as, “Recommends”, “Urges”, “Encourages”. Unlike the perambulatory clauses, the clauses are numbered by blocks and not by line, with the possibility of attaching subparts such as “a.)” and “b.)”. Operative clauses end with semicolons and the last one ends with a period. Here is an example:
“1.) Urges all nations to promote international cooperation in order to address the root causes which make women girls more vulnerable to trafficking, among them:
a. economic causes such as poverty and unemployment,
b. social and cultural causes such as violence against women and girls, and gender discrimination in the family, community and state, and
c. political and legal causes such as lack of appropriate legislation concerning trafficking and corruption in the public sector;”
(Please note that the format of the Sample Resolution is inaccurate here, please check the printed handout for the right format)
SAMPLE RESOLUTION:
COMMITEE: Security Council
QUESTION OF: Assisting the International Community in Boosting the Peace-making, Anti-terrorist, and Anti-trafficking Efforts in Afghanistan
Main Submitters: Belgium, Croatia
Co-Submitters: United Kingdom, Panama, South Africa
The Security Council,
(01)Recognizing the efforts of the United States, United Nations, and North Atlantic Treaty (02)Organization (NATO) in stabilizing the security situation in Afghanistan,
(03)Aware that Afghanistan is still riddled with landmines and explosives left over from (04)previous wars, that it is one of the most contaminated countries in the world with more (05)than 640 square kilometers of its territory still covered in landmines which results in (06)over 50 civilian casualties per month,
(07)Keeping in mind that the UN Mine Clearing Agency (UNMACA) has voiced the need (08)for additional funding in order to meet the deadline established by the Ottawa Treaty, (09)which establishes that Afghanistan should be free of unexploded ordnance by March (10)2013,
(11)Alarmed by reports from United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (12)(UNAMA), which states that 2,118 Afghan civilians were killed in 2008, the highest (13)reported number since the initial invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 and that 40% of the (14)Afghan civilians have no access to medical treatment,
(15)Concerned with the growing Taliban insurgency activity on the Afghan-Pakistani (16)border, which has increased both civilian and military casualties,
(17)Pointing out that the Taliban has previously threatened international communities and (18)destabilized international peace by giving aid, shelter and technical assistance to the (19)terrorist Osama Bin Laden and the terrorist group Al Qaeda,
(20)Deeply regretting the severe human rights abuses against civilians, especially women, (21)occurring on the southern border of Afghanistan and the northwestern border of (22)Pakistan which are exclusively promoted by Taliban insurgents in an effort to establish (23)their control over the area,
(24)Realizing that the lack of troops presents a significant problem, as there are not enough (25)personnel in order to secure the civilian population, hold the current territories against (26)insurgent assaults and coordinate strikes in order to drive away Taliban insurgents,
(27)Having considered that the opium trade is one of the main funding activities for (28)organizations such as the Taliban, providing them with up to 300 million US dollars a (29)year, and that the organization encourages illegal poppy cultivation among civilians,
(30)Acknowledging the importance of bringing economic growth to Afghanistan in order to (31)avoid civilian defection to the Taliban insurgent movement,
(32)Deeply disturbed by reports of growing decentralization in the Afghan Government due (33)to corruption and security concerns, as such trend is likely to inhibit the (34)implementation of a working democracy in Afghanistan,
(35)Welcoming the United States’ commitment to supply 20,000 more troops to aid in the (36)defense of southern Afghanistan, a contested territory between the military and the (37)Taliban insurgents,
(38)Emphasizing the need for training, equipping and supporting Afghanistan’s national (39)security forces, so that the nation may defend itself from further Taliban attacks and (40)enforce its own laws,
(41)Noting with concern the inefficiency of the Afghan police force and army due to lack (42)of counter-insurgency training, weapons, and leadership which has resulted in many (43)police officers quitting the force due to pressure and threats from Taliban insurgents,
(44)Reminded of the 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai perpetrated by the Lashkar-e-Taiba, (45)a terrorist organizations with ties to Al-Qaeda and based on Pakistan, which resulted in (46)the death of over 160 Indian civilians and international citizens,
(50)Deeply concerned by reports stating that Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence agency (51)has been actively supporting terrorist activities by supplying information and (52)maintaining diplomatic ties to terrorist organizations such as the Taliban and the (53)Lashkar-e-Taiba, both believed to be based on Pakistan,
(54)Acknowledging Pakistan’s passiveness toward the progressive occupation of their (55)territory by Taliban insurgents and its decision to comply with the demands of Taliban (56)leaders by implementing Shariah law in the Swat valley region,
(56)Referring to the Security Council’s past resolutions 1833, 1806, 1805, 1803, 1735, (58)1617. 1526, 1456, 1455, 1390, 1388, 1363, 1333, 1267 and the United Nation’s actions (59)taken towards the matter,
1. Demands that the Pakistani government immediately halt their support of terrorist activities along the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, the North Western Frontier Province and Balochistan by:
a. Publicly expressing their disapproval of the Taliban as a whole, and not solely some specific sectors of it as they have historically done,
b. Freezing all of their assets originally destined to the funding of terrorist activities by the Taliban, the HEI and the remnants of the International Islamic Front in the aforementioned areas
c. Cutting off all diplomatic relations with the Taliban, the HEI and the IIF as a whole,
d. Accepting and welcoming without posing any restrictions any future peace keeping operations led by either the UN or NATO with the intent of fighting terrorist insurgencies in the region,
e. Handing over of Taliban and HEI terrorist infrastructure to NATO, under the premise that NATO would effectively prevent the infrastructure from being used for illicit purposes,
f. Guaranteeing that the Pashtun refugees who reside within Pakistani territory will still be allowed to vote in the Afghan presidential elections without any intentional hindering by the Pakistani government or the ISI;
2. Decides that if Pakistan does not comply with the conditions mentioned in clause 1, then all nations’ members of the UN who are currently sending financial aid to Pakistan halt their aid. If Pakistan continues to refuse to comply after a period of 6 months, then the introduction of possible military and economic sanctions would be made a priority in the following UNSC meeting and the UN sanctions committee;
3. Determines that the quantity of 1 billion dollars (US$ 1,000,000,000) be diverged to the sector of the Pakistani military that deals with counter terrorist operations. Due to the lack of accountability of the Pakistani military as of the moment, the counter terrorism sector of the military would be placed under the command of UN military advisors to be chosen by the DPKO within the maximum time period of six months. This sector of the military would be given full independence and freedom to act within Pakistani territory without being restricted by the traditional military hierarchy. 30% of the money will come from the DPKO`s fund, 40% from the Counter Terrorism fund, 20% from the UNSC`s budget and the remaining 10% from volunteering nations;
4. Increases the contingent of the UN peace-keeping troops currently present in Afghanistan by at least 2 battalions. Specifics of this surge would naturally be determined by the DPKO. The purpose of this surge would be to:
a. Primarily deal with terrorist activities along the Afghan border with the NWFP, by: carrying out constant patrols along the designated areas with the intent of:
i. Avoiding the smuggling of refugees, weaponry and drugs related to the Taliban, the HEI or other independent terrorist cells to and from Afghanistan,
ii. Strategically preventing attacks in southern Afghanistan and the subsequent withdrawal of terrorists into Pakistan,
iii. Stabilizing the region’s security by seizing and apprehending terrorist facilities within Afghan territory,
iv. Hampering the transition of terrorists in the region by setting up guard posts along key sectors of the existing Afghan infrastructure such as roads and railways,
b. Apprehend Opium and Heroin producing facilities throughout Afghanistan with intelligence provided for by the UN commission on drugs, the Afghan military and any other intelligence agencies that would be willing to contribute,
c. Locate and close down madrasas, media facilities and arrest anyone who is proven to be spreading terrorist beliefs,
d. Aid the undergoing counter terrorism operations in the area by:
i. Working in conjunction with the Pakistani Counter Terrorist sector of the military by giving them full access to related intel and not legally and bureaucratically hindering their movement through Afghan territory proven to be under significant terrorist influence,
ii. Providing intel for the Pakistani military, NATO and coalition forces regarding the location of terrorist infrastructure;
5. Strongly encourages diplomatic talks to be held immediately with the Afghan government and representatives of NATO, the coalition forces and the peace keeping contingent as to remove some of the limitations that have hindered the counter terrorist actions in the region;
6. Decides that 2 billion dollars (US$ 2,000,000,000) be diverged to Afghanistan with the purpose of improving the country’s current political, economical and security panorama by funding projects at the local level to impact ordinary Afghans, such as:
a. Seeking better performance from the Afghan government, and support that performance through tough anti-corruption safeguards on aid, enforced by the sending of 200 UN election advisors with the intent of supervising local and national elections and producing reports on corruption within the government. These reports would be sent back to the UN political committee every bimester and the PC would then decide how to act
b.Development of alternative livelihoods for poppy farmers, occupation replacement will be assisted and incentive to do so be provided by organizations such as the EU, SAARC, CHF International and Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), by implementing the following measures:
i. Encourage the replacement of poppy fields for agricultural produce such as vegetable oil, fruits, dry fruits, wheat, wool, mutton, sheepskins, lambskins to help farmers earn same amount of money as before,
ii. Giving financial backing from these organizations if needed to jumpstart these farmers’ businesses, in which case methods such as:
1. Micro-credit/micro-lending which are used to help individuals that lack collateral, steady employment and a verifiable credit history as is in the case of many Afghan farmers will provide as an extremely great incentive for occupation replacement,
2. Donation of financial aid by previously mentioned organizations, other organisms such as the World Bank and IMF,
3. Incentiveand financially assisting the Afghan government to give farmers subsidies on their crops, giving a poppy farmer a reasonable living, convincing them to convert over to alternative produce,
iii. Help replacing occupations of present poppy seed farmers and further boost Afghanistan’s economy with industries such as, furniture, shoes, fertilizer, cement, carpets and copper,
c. Improving existing infrastructure,
d. Building new hospitals and ensuring basic sanitary conditions for a significant part of the population
e. Improvement of existing educational facilities
f. Investing in the creations of schools and other educational facilities in strategic locations that will
i) Counter the extremist Madrasas already installed in the country by offering the population secular education and not education based on the extremists` ideology of hate,
ii) Commencing further awareness campaigns and educating farmers around Afghanistan the negative effects of growing poppy seeds and eventually causing immediate erosion to the land, supplying the majority of the world’s heroin causing more people to get addicted to it,
g.Investing 20% of the total fund to improvements in the training of the Afghan police force and military. Improvement would be made feasible through improvement of training facilities, buying better equipment, getting professionals from proven police forces around the world to teach them advanced military, civilian control and counter terrorism tactics,
The money required for the measures detailed above would be provided for by the UNSC (the 20% related to security), the Counter Terrorism Commission (40%), the ECOSOC (30%) and any member nation willing to volunteer;
7. Urges the Afghan military and police force to work in conjunction and even be integrated with existing coalition and NATO counter terrorism operations in the region.
8. Recommends that the current president of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai, assist in coordinating efforts between local and international forces in order to establish a safe political and military environment for the 2009 Afghan elections.
9. Requests that NATO Member States contribute further to the peace-making efforts in Afghanistan by:
a) Contributing military personnel so as to guarantee security in southern Afghanistan where the Taliban’s presence is strongest,
b) Contributing funds to both UNAMA and UNMACA in order to boost the delivering of humanitarian aid and the mine clearing efforts in Afghanistan,
c) Lifting restrictions on the deployment of their troops, allowing for a fast, efficient mobilization to the areas where they are most needed,
d) Contribute with additional resources such as equipment, training, vehicles
e) Contribute with personnel prepared to assist in the development of Afghan agriculture and economy as well as the formation of the Afghan Independent judiciary system;
10. Urges the Afghan government, under the supervision of the UN, to revise their legislation concerning human rights and national freedom in order to ensure implementation of United Nation’s action plans on:
a) preventing the risk of terrorists acquiring weapons of mass destruction and combating the illicit trade of small arms and weapons by the promotion of border control with the cooperation of International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) and the national police force,
b) increasing the transparency of information on the manufacturing and trafficking of weapons under the supervision of United Nations Institute for Disarma­ment Research (UNIDIR),
c) implementing the disarmament process, under the supervision of UN inspectors, with the cooperation and the collaboration of Department for Disarmament Affairs (DDA), which will assist the Afghan government in the determination of the locations for the destruction of detected weapons,
d) determining the deterrent penalties for the combatants and violators of the legislative measures in order to hamper any acts threatening the security of Afghani­stan;
11. Asks the United Nations Mine Action Program to send their XXXVIII Annual Session - 2006 164 Reports and Resolutions specialists to Afghanistan in order to ensure that landmines do not pose a threat to the civilians of Afghanistan by:
a) monitoring the landmine destruction process,
b) providing technical assistance to farmers on the shielded elimination of landmines,
c) accommodating education services to civilians in order to raise awareness of the risks of illiteracy in situations involving landmines,
d) prohibiting the entrance of civilians to conflict areas until the landmine destruction process is over with the help of INTERPOL to maintain security,
e) assisting farmers by providing technical assistance in order to make the fullest use of secured areas for their livelihood,
f) ensuring the availability of medical treatment and rehabilitation provided by the World Health Organization(WHO) for the Afghan people who are affected by landmines;
12. Asks the World Food Program (WFP), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the International Fed­eration of the Red Cross to provide Afghan civilians with temporary food and water aid until alternative methods for obtaining necessary amounts of nutrition are possible and to guide them in the resumption of planting by providing reconstruction equipment and technical assistance in order to eliminate the effects of the significant reduction in the planting of all crops, the increasing vulnerability caused by the current drought, and the amount of starvation and hunger in the area;
13. Calls upon the assistance of United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the WHO to augment the Afghan health sector through:
a) the establishment of hospitals in areas in urgent need,
b) the installation of mobile health centers which will pro­vide health services at any time in the areas lacking permanent medical aid,
c) the conduct of research on the amount and type of medical supplies demanded so that further measures can be taken,
d) the training of new medical staff who will be employed by hospitals and mobile health centers;
14. Proposes the establishment of rehabilitation centers, in order to serve female and young victims who have been subjected to human rights abuses, including domestic and sexual violence, as well as armed conflict, which will:
a) provide support to victims, including psychological rehabilitation and medical treatment if necessary,
b) confirm a safe environment where the security and human rights of victims will be ensured,
c) provide victims with vocational training for their reinte­gration into society and their economic stability,
d) cooperate with local offices to prepare a secure environment where victims can report crimes which infringe on their fundamental freedoms and rights
15. Endorses any local or international measure that will serve to further secure the future peace and stability of Afghanistan;
16. Suggests the implementation of alternative measures to deal with illegal poppy cultivation, such as the implementation of the Poppy to Medicine program proposed by the International Council on Security and Development (ICOS);
17. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.
