Forms for enrolment can be found on our web site at 5th edition IX Annual Session Helsinki International Model United Nations

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2 HELIMUN Guide should be read by all participating MUNdirectors. It includes conference details, a provisional program of events, a provisional agenda, student officer appointments, general information on and suggestions for preparation for the conference, general conduct of the conference and rules of procedure. Forms for enrolment can be found on our web site at 5th edition IX Annual Session Helsinki International Model United Nations Sirpa Hildén Klaus Castrén Joonas Sarvamaa Thomas Cousins All rights reserved by Helsinki International Model United Nations HELIMUN ry HELIMUN Guide, 5th edition Published by Helsinki International Model United Nations HELIMUN ry Helsinki, Finland October Helsinki International Model United Nations

3 3 4 Provisional Programme of Events, 4 Provisional Agenda, 4 Conference Management, 5 HELIMUN Board of Directors , 5 6 What is a MUN?, 6 History, 6 The Role of a MUNdirector, 6 How to Use This Guide, 7 10 The UN Organization, 10 Delegation Assignments, 12 Delegation Sizes, 12 Ambassadors, 14 Research, 14 The Opening Speech, 18 Mock Debates, 18 PreLobbying, 18 8 Registration Schedule, 8 Request for Participation (FORM A), 8 Student Officer Application (FORM B), 8 Online Registration, 8 Statement of Entry, 9 21 Badges, 19 Dress Code, 19 Conduct, 19 Lobbying, 19 Giving a Speech, 20 Opening and Closing Ceremony, Secretaries General, 21 Presidents and Chairs, 21 Administrative Staff, HELIMUN Guide, IX Annual Session 3

4 8.00 Registration and lobbying (Briefing for MUNdirectors) 9.15 Opening Ceremonies General Assembly, Security Council, ECOSOC and ICJ in session Lunch Committees of the General Assembly, Security Council, ECOSOC and ICJ in session Reduction of military budgets The situation in Pakistan Delegation Photographs (optional) 9.00 Committee work, Security Council, ECOSOC and ICJ in session Lunch ( Feedback Meeting for MUNdirectors) General Assembly, Security Council, ECOSOC and ICJ in session Closing Ceremonies The question of the oil reserves in the arctic circle The question of reduced or endangered fresh water resources The question of promoting renewable energy sources Assistance to survivors of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda The question of the role of the UN organization in fighting epidemics The question of South American drug cartels Peace, security and reunification of the Korean peninsula External debt crisis and development in SubSaharan Africa The Question of the rights and responsibilities of multinational companies Territorial and maritime dispute (Nicaragua v. Colombia) 4 Helsinki International Model United Nations

5 Conference Management In all questions regarding the VIII Annual Session of HELIMUN, please contact the conferencene management. Mr. Klaus Castrén Conference Manager Mrs. Sirpa Hildén Chair of Board of Directors Tel. Tel Chair Ms. Sirpa Hildén Deputy Chair Mr. Teemu Känsälä Secretary Mr. Niklas Begley Press Officer Mr. Klaus Castrén Treasurer Ms. Maria Lehtonen Mr. Ilmari Perälä Mr. Otto Sarvamaa Ms. Kaisa Castrén Mr. Ville Kallonen Deputy Members Mr. Jaakko Junttila Mr. Panu Pikkanen Helsinki International Model United Nations HELIMUN ry is a registered nonprofit organisation, which organises an annual, international Model United Nations conference for secondary school students. Visit us online: You can contact members of the HELIMUN Board of Directors via . The address for each member is firstname.surname@helimun.org. HELIMUN Guide, IX Annual Session 5

6 MUN, the Model United Nations, is a conference simulating the work of the United Nations Organisation (UNO). Helsinki International Model United Nations, HELIMUN, is a two day MUN conference for secondary school students (ages 1418) held annually at Kulosaari Secondary School, Helsinki, Finland. The conference is organised by Helsinki International Model United Nations HELIMUN r.y., which is a nonprofit association founded by Kulosaari Upper Secondary School students. The aims of HELIMUN are to simulate the work of the UNO, to give secondary school students an opportunity to seek solutions to contemporary issues through lobbying, discussion and debate, and The role of a MUNdirector is of great importance in participating the HELIMUN conference. Most of the MUNdirectors responsibility lies in the preparation process: if the students are well prepared and know what to expect of a MUNconference, they will get the most out of it. Getting the most out of the conference is exactly what we want the students to experience: it is only then that the true, farreaching educational value of MUN can be achieved. MUNdirectors need togather a group of students that will participate in the conference, bearing in mind that on one hand the preparation process requires tremendous input from all participants, but on the other hand gives at least equivalent output in the form of experience that would otherwise be impossible to gain, handle all communication between the school and HELIMUN, including but not limited to the Request for Participation and registration, organise travel and accommodation, as these are not taken care of by HELIMUN, understand or learn how the United Nations organisation and the MUN works so that preparing students for the conference is possible as instructed in this guide, help each delegation in appointing their Ambassador or Head of Delegation: Ambassadors and Heads of Delegations should preferably have previous MUN experience, because they will act as the leaders of their delegation, help students in the preparation process by for example arranging guided preparative sessions, mock debates and other exercises and supporting the students in independent research, supervise the school s delegates when attending the conference, both inside and outside the venue of the conference, and contribute to the conference for example by proof reading resolutions, screening notes in the General Assembly, etc. to give students the chance to practice their English language skills. The story of HELIMUN started in 2001 when a group of Kulosaari Upper Secondary School students participated in The Hague International Model United Nations (THIMUN). Two of these delegates, Ms. Aino Efraimsson and Ms. Milla Paalanen, got the idea of organising a MUNconference for the 9th grade students at Kulosaari secondary School. The first MUNconference, MINIMUN, was held in May During the following three years the MUNconference, now known as KUMUN, expanded. Besides Kulosaari Secondary School students other schools were also invited to participate in the conference. In August 2004 the name of the conference was changed to Helsinki International Model United Nations (HELIMUN) to encourage foreign schools to participate in the conference too. The first conference under the new name was arranged successfully in May 2005 with an even wider variety of participating schools. 6 Helsinki International Model United Nations

7 This guide provides MUNdirectors with information on how to prepare the students for the conference, general conduct of the conference and Rules of Procedure. Each section has been divided into subsections, and includes examples that will get you started in your preparations. We would also like to emphasise that no MUNdirector or delegate needs to know this guide by heart: HELIMUN is, after all, learning and having fun while working hard! HELIMUN Guide, IX Annual Session 7

8 Send your Request for Participation (FORM A) and any Student Officer applications (FORM B) to HELIMUN Board of Directors via mail so that they arrive on October 31, 2008 at the latest. More information will be sent to you via concerning the registration together with your delegation assignments and the amount of students you will be able to register for the conference. Student Officer applicants will receive a reply via and Student Officer appointments will be published on HELIMUN web site. Last date for Registration. Statement of Entry will be sent to you via . All schools interested in participating in the IX Annual Session of Helsinki International Model United Nations need to fill in a Request for Participation (FORM A), which can be found online at our web site at In the request for participation, you need to provide us with contact information and the amount of delegates, MUNdirectors and Student Officer applicants you will be sending to the conference. At least one (1) MUNdirector is required per participating school, and he or she needs to be present at the conference at all times. Having more MUNdirectors makes it more flexible, since only one of them is required for attendance at the conference at a time. There is no fixed number of students per school that are allowed to participate in HELIMUN, but please notice that in case of a large request, the amount of students per school might have to be limited. All requests for participation are due October 31, Requests received after this date will not be considered unless there is still room for more delegates. All schools that sent a request for participation will be notified via on October 7, 2008 of how many students they are allowed to send to the conference. This electronic mailing will also include delegation assignments and further information on how to finish the registration. 8 Helsinki International Model United Nations All students wishing to apply for a Student Officer position at the IX Annual Session of HELIMUN need to fill in a Student Officer Application (FORM B), which can be found on our web site at FORM B should be completed online by each applicant. All Student Officer applications are due October 31, Applications received after this date will not be considered. All applicants will receive a reply via . Successful applicants are expected to actively take part in the preparation period before the conference. Notice that the same form is used for applying a position in the ICJ. Unsuccessful applicants may register for the conference as delegates if there stil is available seats in committees. Student Officer appointments will be published on our web site.

9 After the HELIMUN Board of Directors has approved your request for participation you will receive further information on how to complete the registration. Please see section III Preparation: Delegation Assignments, Delegation Sizes for more information on the division of students into delegations and committees. You will need to complete the registration online at the HELIMUN website by December 12, 2008 at the latest. Detailed information about the registration will be included in the confirmation letter. If you have trouble meeting the deadline then please notify HELIMUN Conference Manager Mr. Klaus Castrén immediately. Otherwise your attendance might be subject to cancellation. The Statement of Entry will be issued by HELIMUN Board of Directors and mailed to your school on December 17, 2008 with a letter to the MUNdirectors. HELIMUN Guide, IX Annual Session 9

10 HELIMUN conference simulates the General Assembly with four committees and the Security Council. All delegates need to be familiar with at least the body they will be working in. The Rules of Procedure have been simplified from the official procedures. This makes it possible for the delegates taking part in HELIMUN conferences to concentrate on the content rather than on all the various, often difficult procedures. The ones that remain in use at HELIMUN create an official, democratic atmosphere where all delegates can easily voice their views and join the debate. More information on these bodies and their work can be found on the United Nations web site at and in the Charter of the United Nations that can be found at the end of this guide. General Assembly is the main deliberative organ of the United Nations. Each member state is present there and has one vote. Decisions made in the General Assembly are not binding in the same way as those of the Security Council. The General Assembly is divided into a number of specialised committees. Decisions taken by these committees are brought to the whole of assembly in the plenary session where they are then adopted. At HELIMUN the plenary session debates the resolutions by the committees without the option of simply (not) adopting them without debate and vote. The Security council has 15 member states out of which five are permanent members. The rest are elected by the general assembly for a two year term not renewable. The five permanent members China, France, Russian Federation, United Kingdom and the United States of America all have a veto right meaning a negative vote from any of these permanent members automatically fails the motion. The decisions of the Security Council are binding on all member states. 10 Helsinki International Model United Nations The Economic and Social Council is one of the main organs of the United Nations. It has 54 member states which are elected by the General Assembly for overlapping threeyear terms. Member states are allotted according to geography with 14 African states, 11 Asian states, six Eastern European states, ten to Latin America and Caribbean and 13 to Western European and other member states. ECOSOC serves as a central international body for discussion and policymaking on international social and economic issues. ECOSOC also oversees and coordinates the work of many specialized agencies and regional bodies of the UN. Resolutions of the ECOSOC serve as reports and recommendations and are not binding in the same way as the Security Council resolutions. The International Court of Justice is the judicial organ of the United Nations, it was established in 1945 by the Charter of the United Nations to settle international legal disputes, as well as offer advisory opinions for international organizations and agencies. UN Member states that have not signed the UN Charter may also appear before the Court. The HELIMUN model ICJ will be held for the first time during the 2009 conference and students wishing to participate in the ICJ must apply by using the student officer application form.

11 Chart published by the UN Department of Public Information, August HELIMUN Guide, IX Annual Session 11

12 Each delegation will represent a United Nations member state or a NonGovernmental Organisation (NGO), all listed on the following page. Each school can decide upon the grouping of students into delegations, based on the delegation assignments given by HELIMUN. Delegation assignments will be ed to participating schools on November 7, When forming your delegations, we would kindly like you to consider a few aspects. It is important that the groups are formed so that they are cooperative and able to function both as a team and as individuals. It might be a good idea for the MUNdirectors to keep an eye on the division of students todelegations. Each delegation should also have at least one experienced delegate. Please also keep in mind the delegation size when assigning your students. There might be exceptions in the permitted allocations by forum. Please find these in the confirmation sent to you by November 7, HELIMUN VIII Annual Session will simulate the General Assembly with four committees, the Security Council and the Economic and Social Council. This means that all delegations should have a representative in each of the General Assembly committees, all current Security Council member states (see list on the following page) in all of the General Assembly committees and the Security Council and so on as shown in the table below. All delegates within one delegation need to be allocated evenly to different committees so that no single committee has more than one delegate from one delegation in one committee. NonGovernmental Organisations (NGOs) and Normal Delegations (NDs) are smaller delegations and thus do not necessarily have a delegate in all of the committees. To help you in dividing the delegates correctly to different delegations, you can print out a form or fill it in in the Online Registration System. Even if you fill the form in print, you need to copy and submit the information to the Online Registration System! Delegation Type Number of Delegates Allocate Delegates to NonGovernmental Organisation (NGO) 23 Specified Committees (check the confirmation ) Normal Delegation (ND) 34 General Assembly Committees Security Council Delegation (SC) 5 All General Assembly Committees, Security Council Economic and Social Council Delegation (ECOSOC) 5 All General Assembly Committees and Economic and Social Council Security Council and Economic and Social Council Delegation (SC+ECOSOC) 6 All General Assembly Committees, Security Council and Economic and Social Council 12 Helsinki International Model United Nations

13 Dominica Afghanistan Dominican Republic Albania Ecuador Algeria (ECOSOC) Egypt Andorra El Salvador (ECOSOC) Angola (ECOSOC) Equatorial Guinea Antigua and Barbuda Eritrea Argentina Estonia Armenia Ethiopia Australia Fiji Austria (ECOSOC) Finland Azerbaijan France (SC+ECOSOC) Bahamas Gabon Bahrain Gambia Bangladesh Georgia Barbados (ECOSOC) Germany Belarus (ECOSOC) Ghana Belgium (SC) Greece (ECOSOC) Belize Grenada Benin (ECOSOC) Guatemala Bhutan Guinea Bolivia (ECOSOC) GuineaBissau (ECOSOC) Bosnia and Herzegovina Guyana (ECOSOC) Botswana Haiti (ECOSOC) Brazil (ECOSOC) Honduras Brunei Darussalam Hungary Bulgaria Iceland (ECOSOC) Burkina Faso (SC) India Burundi Indonesia (SC+ECOSOC) Cambodia Iran (Islamic Republic of) Cameroon (ECOSOC) Iraq (ECOSOC) Canada (ECOSOC) Ireland Cape Verde (ECOSOC) Israel Central African Republic Italy (SC) Chad Jamaica Chile Japan (ECOSOC) China (SC+ECOSOC) Jordan Colombia Kazakhstan (ECOSOC) Comoros Kenya Congo (ECOSOC) Kiribati Costa Rica (SC) Kuwait Côte d'ivoire Kyrgyzstan Croatia (SC) Lao People's Democratic Cuba (ECOSOC) Republic Cyprus Czech Republic (ECOSOC) Latvia Lebanon Democratic People's Lesotho Republic of Korea Democratic Republic of the Liberia Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Congo (SC) Denmark Liechtenstein (ECOSOC) Djibouti Palestine Holy See Amnesty International ECA FAO Friends of the Erath Human Rights Watch ICRC ILO IMF Interpol OCHA Lithuania Luxembourg (ECOSOC) Madagascar (ECOSOC) Malawi (ECOSOC) Malaysia (ECOSOC) Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Mauritania (ECOSOC) Mauritius Mexico Moldova (ECOSOC) Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Morocco Mozambique (ECOSOC) Myanmar Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands (ECOSOC) New Zealand (ECOSOC) Nicaragua Niger (ECOSOC) Nigeria Norway Oman Pakistan (ECOSOC) Palau Panama (SC) Papua New Guinea Paraguay (ECOSOC) Peru Philippines (ECOSOC) Poland (ECOSOC) Portugal (ECOSOC) Qatar Republic of Korea (ECOSOC) Republic of Moldova Romania (ECOSOC) Russian Federation (SC+ECOSOC) Rwanda Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia (ECOSOC) Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Samoa San Marino Sao Tome and Principe Saudi Arabia (ECOSOC) Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia (ECOSOC) South Africa (SC) Spain Sri Lanka (ECOSOC) Sudan (ECOSOC) Suriname Swaziland Sweden (ECOSOC) Switzerland Syrian Arab Republic Tajikistan Thailand The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia TimorLeste Togo Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Tuvalu Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (SC+ECOSOC) United Republic of Tanzania United States of America (SC+ECOSOC) Uruguay (ECOSOC) Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela Viet Nam (SC) Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe UNHCHR UNCTAD UNDP UNEP UNHCR UNICEF WHO World Bank WTO HELIMUN Guide, IX Annual Session 13

14 The students will be divided into delegations that will represent certain countries and organisations. Inside these delegations it is necessary to appoint a group leader: an ambassador, or a head of delegation for organisations and nonmember delegations. All ambassadors need to be delegates who have been appointed to any of the General Assembly Committees. To represent any given delegation as accurately as possible, it is vital that all students study their delegation as well as possible and write a short research paper. The country analysis should include the following points: current political and economical situation, contemporary history, and Ambassadors will be responsible for: foreign relations. registration at the conference (retrieving badges, note paper, placards and other material), Delegates who are representing organisations need to find out detailed information about it and their involvement in the United Nations. preparing (together with the rest of the delegation) and giving an opening speech during the opening ceremonies of the conference, and representing the delegation in committees where they do not have any permanent delegates (not applicable to all delegations). On top of these, each ambassador should work as a group leader of his or her delegation. Because of this HELIMUN would kindly like to suggest that only students who have previously attended MUNs and/or have otherwise proved themselves capable of leading a group be appointed as ambassadors. To ensure maximum enjoyment of the conference, a sufficient amount of research work should be carried out beforehand. This allows the delegate to devote more attention to the actual debate instead of being paralysed by the lack of factual knowledge. The MUNdirector should evaluate the work done by each delegate before the conference. The work doesn t need to be sent to HELIMUN at any point. To be able to debate the issues that have been set for each committee, the delegates need to have broad factual knowledge on the given issue. This knowledge can be acquired for example through news, internet and various publications. Policy statements should follow the actual policy of the country or organisation in question, but it is understandable that not all nations have public information regarding all issues. It is important that the student is able to use the information gained through the country analysis to his or her advantage when writing the policy statement. The policy statement should include the following points: definitions of key terms regarding the issue, current situation regarding the issue, treaties, resolutions, reports and other recent international action regarding the issue, policy of the country concerning the issue with specific suggestions to what should be done in order to solve the question. A recommended length for a policy statement is 34 paragraphs. It is possible that committee chairs ask delegations to read out their policy statements in the conference if it is in the interest of the debate and there is time for that. Students should prepare a policy statement on all of the issues in their committee, concentrating especially on the one they find the most interesting. 14 Helsinki International Model United Nations

15 EXAMPLE POLICY STATEMENT DELEGATION: Switzerland FORUM: General Assembly 3 QUESTION OF: Promotion and protection of the Rights of Children Especially in Areas of Armed Conflict The question of promotion and protection of the Rights of Children Especially in Areas of Armed Conflict is very current because various nations continuously disregard the rights of Children. This is seen especially in the use of child soldiers, which has been clearly disapproved of in the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) and signed and ratified by the majority of the UN Member States. The key document on this issue is the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989). This document hasn t been to date ratified by two member states, the United States of America and Somalia. Switzerland feels that the rights of the children are very important, and takes them into consideration in all her policies and urges all UN Member States to do the same by ratifying and fully implementing the convention and investigating possibilities of helping children all over the world for example, but not limited to, by providing them with medical assistance and shelter. A resolution outlines the current situation concerning the issue in question as well as states the actions to be taken by the UN member states in order to find a solution to the problem. All debate, both in the committees and the Security Council, is based on the draft resolutions written by the delegates. A resolution consists of two parts: the preambulatory clauses that present the current situation and background information and the operative clauses that outline the action to be taken. Each clause begins with a specific phrase, which are all listed below. Each resolution to be debated needs to have a main submitter and five cosubmitters, and the resolution has to be accepted and signed by one of the Student Officers of the committee before it is copied, distributed and debated. Because each draft resolution needs five cosubmitters it is important to merge draft resolutions during prelobbying in the discussion forum and during lobbying at the conference. Each draft resolution will then include various views and is more likely to be passed by the committee. HELIMUN Guide, IX Annual Session 15

16 (NB: Those printed in italic may only be used by the Security Council) Acknowledging Affirming Alarmed by Approving Aware of Believing Bearing in mind Confident Congratulating Contemplating Convinced Declaring Deeply concerned Deeply conscious Deeply convinced Deeply disturbed Deeply regretting Deploring Desiring Emphasising Expecting Expressing its appreciation Expressing its satisfaction Fulfilling Fully alarmed Fully aware Fully believing Further deploring Further recalling Guided by Having adopted Having considered Having considered further Having devoted attention Having examined Having heard Having received Having studied Keeping in mind Noting further Noting with appreciation Noting with approval Noting with deep concern Noting with regret Noting with satisfaction Observing Pointing out Reaffirming Realizing Recalling Recognising Referring Reminding Seeking Taking into account Taking into consideration Taking note Viewing with appreciation Welcoming (NB: Those printed in italic may only be used by the Security Council) Accepts Affirms Approves Asks Authorises Calls for Calls upon Condemns Congratulates Confirms Declares (accordingly) Deplores Designates Encourages Expresses its hope Further invites Further proclaims Further recommends Further requests Further resolves Hopes Invites Proclaims Proposes Recommends Endorses 16 Helsinki International Model United Nations Regrets Expresses its appreciation Requests Resolves Seeks Strongly affirms Strongly condemns Strongly urges Suggests Supports Trusts Transmits Urges

17 FORUM: General Assembly 3 QUESTION OF: Promotion and protection of the Rights of Children Especially in Areas of Armed Conflict THE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION, Concerned that the human rights of children are violated in several countries, Acknowledging the situation of children in areas of armed conflict all over the world, Emphasizing the importance of actions to promote and secure the rights of children, Having studied the alarming facts of the past decade that show the proportion of children as victims in civilian casualties in armed conflicts to be half of all the civilian casualties, Noting that the estimations of child victims that have been psychologically traumatised to be at ten million during the last decade, Realising that more than child soldiers are being used in Africa alone and in the world, 1. Urges a. all UN member states to realise the harm that is caused on all children that suffer under armed conflicts by the traumatising happenings around them, b. all governments to stop recruiting child soldiers on the grounds that being a child soldier causes traumas to the children, c. all UN member states that have not ratified the Convention on the Rights of Children and the optional protocol to do so immediately; 2. Calls for all UN member states to give areas under armed conflict support in the form of, but not limited to, a. food and medicine, b. doctors, nurses and other medical staff, c. peacekeepers, d. groups to build safe shelters for the children; 3. Hopes that all children, especially in areas of armed conflict, have a chance to live a secure and stable life; 4. Strongly urges the nation that is under an armed conflict to take into consideration the children of the country; 5.Seeks for immediate actions to be taken in order to result in progress on the question of the rights of children especially in areas of armed conflict. HELIMUN Guide, IX Annual Session 17

18 All delegations will give an opening speech during the opening ceremonies of the conference. The opening speech should be written beforehand by the whole delegation, and given in the conference by the head of delegation. Opening speeches will be held in the General Assembly, the Security Council and ECOSOC separately, so in addition to the head of delegation giving a speech in the General Assembly, all delegates in the Security Council and ECOSOC are required to prepare and give a speech. An opening speech should discuss at least one of the issues on the agenda of any committee and should not exceed the time limit of one minute which will be strictly adhered to. Some tips and guidelines for giving a speech in formal debate and an opening speech with examples can be found in section IV Conference: Debate Giving a speech. We encourage you to arrange mock debate sessions for your students. Mock debate is a formal debate, where the students get a chance to practise their debate skills and HELIMUN rules of procedure. If you have been to a MUN before, a mock debate is simply practising the formal debate with HELIMUN rules of procedure. To arrange a mock debate you need someone who knows the rules of procedure and will chair the debate and students who are preparing for participation. Having a few students who already know the procedures as delegates might also spice up the debate especially at the beginning. Also if there are any chairs from your schools, a mock debate is a good opportunity for them to practice chairing. It might be difficult to arrange a mock debate if you haven t been to a MUN yourself. To help you, we have included a sample debate with complete notes in this guide. It can be found in section IV Conference: Debate. Mock debates are discussed also in that chapter. Mock debate sessions will also be held by the HELIMUN organisation. These mock debates will 18 Helsinki International Model United Nations be open to all participating students and teachers, but attending them requires signing up beforehand. Also, all the sessions will be held in Helsinki, Finland and even though attendance is free, possible travel and accommodation costs are fully at participants own expense. HELIMUN mock debate sessions will be chaired by appointed student officers who will also be glad to answer any questions you might have. Dates of these sessions will be posted on HELIMUN web site once confirmed. Exchange of ideas and development of a policy statement is an essential part of preparation for the conference. To support the students commitment to the preparation process, we offer each participant access to an online discussion forum. We encourage students to write only formal messages in the forum. This formality allows the students to practice linguistic skills that are an important part of the conference, and because for example speeches follow certain structure, it would be a good idea for the students to follow this structure whenever posting messages to the discussion forum.the discussion forum can be found at

19 All participants will receive an official badge on the first day of the conference. All delegates and MUNdirectors will need this badge so that they can be easily distinguished as conference guests. The conference badge will include the participant s full name, school, assignment, permitted forum and possibly other credentials. All participants will be required to present the badge when entering a conference room. Badges need to be returned at the end of the conference. If there are any unreturned badges, a bill of five euros (5 ) per missing badge will be sent to the school. It is also possible for conference participants to purchase the badge for a small fee if they wish to keep it. Dress code during the whole conference is formal. Students are expected to wear suits if they have one, and if not, the closest equivalent they do have. During the conference the participants do not only represent themselves, but also their school and the delegations their assigned delegation. The participants are expected to behave appropriate to the nature of the conference at all times, both in and outside the conference center. HELIMUN claims no responsibility for any unofficial programme arranged by MUNdirectors or delegates outside or during the conference. For schools from outside Helsinki area and accommodated in a hotel/hostel/host family: MUNdirectors staying with their students are responsible for their students also outside the conference and should supervise them at all times necessary. MUNdirectors are advised to check the code of conduct of the hotel where they are staying and go it through with the delegates. Host families will have their own code of conduct regarding e.g. curfew. Participants, including delegates, Student Officers and MUNdirectors, are expected to be present at the conference according to the schedule. Unauthorised absencies and unrespective behaviour of an individual might cause the school concerned not to be accepted to the conference in the following years. MUNdirectors may request more detailed information by contacting the conference management. There will be some time reserved for lobbying the exchange of ideas between delegates aiming at allying and merging resolutions in the conference. However because HELIMUN is only a twoday conference, the time reserved for lobbying is very limited. Therefore we encourage delegates to take full advantage of the online discussion forum and do most of their lobbying there. In the conference the delegates will work in the committees they have been assigned to. The debate will follow general rules of formal debate set in the HELIMUN Rules of Procedure that can be found at the end of this guide. In the debate the chairs (in all general assembly committees one chair and one or two deputies, in the Security Council one chair and one deputy) conduct the debate impartially and maintain order in the house consisting of all the delegates. For debate there always needs to be a main motion, or a resolution submitted by a delegation, which will be voted on in the end of the debate. All delegates should be familiar with the HELIMUN Rules of Procedure and the general conduct of the debate. It is thus very important that participating students practise debate, as it is something that doesn't come natural to the students who have not previously attended MUNs. A very good way of practising is to organise mock debates. In a mock debate the students get to practice the rules of procedure, writing resolutions, giving speeches and presenting their ideas diplomatically. On the following pages we have included examples of formal debate and giving speeches. The examples include complete notes for your convenience. HELIMUN Guide, IX Annual Session 19

20 The main submitter of a resolution will always give a speech for the resolution. All delegations cosubmitting or those that will vote for the resolution are encouraged to hold a speech as well in the time for the resolution. In the time against, those opposing the resolution have their chance of holding speeches. In a speech the delegate tries to convince the other delegates why the resolution in question should be voted for or against. A good speech should include facts and maybe refer to some of the clauses. All speeches start with addressing the house: Honourable chair(s), fellow delegates and end with: Thank you. The following example gives guidelines for what a speech in formal debate could be like: Honourable Chair(s) and fellow delegates, Switzerland believes that the question of the promotion and protection of the rights of children, especially in area of armed conflict is a very important one. Millions of children are killed, seriously injured or orphaned in armed conflicts around the world. This resolution is a good example of how the rights of children could be promoted and protected and offers realistic aims. Switzerland urges all member states that have not yet done so to ratify the Convention of the Rights of the Child and the Optional Protocol to the Convention of the Rights of the Child, and further urges all delegates to vote for this resolution. Thank you. Whenever giving a speech, it is important to remember to mention the name of the delegation you are representing as many times as possible. Also remember, that you are not allowed to refer to yourself it is the opinions of your delegation that you are representing! All delegates, including the Security Council and ECOSOC, are present in the opening ceremony. The President of the General Assembly and the Secretaries General open the conference and hold a speech which is usually followed by a music presentation and possible guest speakers. After the opening ceremonies, the General Assembly, the Security Council and the Economic and Social 20 Helsinki International Model United Nations Council will be in session. In the General Assembly, the heads of delegations will hold their opening speeches. ECOSOC delegates will also hold their own opening speeches in their committee room. All delegates will be present in the closing ceremony, where closing speeches will be delivered by a member of the board of directors, the Secretary General and possibly one of the committee chairs.

21 The Secretary General is responsible for the smooth running of the conference. His/her tasks include: supervising the chairs, the administrative staff and the delegates, guiding the MUNdirectors, reading draft resolutions and signing them, and public relations. The Secretary General is responsible to the HELIMUN Board of Directors. Deputy Secretary General helps the Secretary General in his/her tasks. All presidents and chairs are trained students who have previously participated in several MUNconferences and have applied for the chairing position. President of the General Assembly is the head of the Chairs of the Committees of the General Assembly and chairs the General Assembly and supervises the chairs. Presidents of the ECOSOC and the Security Council together with their Assistant Presidents chair the debate in their respective committees. All chairs and assistant presidents are responsible to the President of their respective forum, who is responsible to the Secretary General. Members of the Administrative Staff are trained lower secondary school students. Their tasks include: screening and passing notes during debate, counting votes during voting, guiding the delegates, MUNdirectors and guests during the conference, typing and distributing resolutions, organising the committee rooms, taking care of registration, and other tasks appointed by the Secretary General and the committee chairs. Administrative staff is led by an executive administrative officer, who is responsible to the Secretary General. HELIMUN Guide, IX Annual Session 21

22 HELIMUN Rules of Procedure are binding to all participants during formal debate. The Secretary General and the Chairs of all committees will apply these rules to facilitate democratic debate and will not tolerate any misuse of the rules. All conference participants will receive the official HELIMUN badge, which has to be presented for the right to enter the conference area. All HELIMUN delegates have to a. follow the decisions of the Secretary General or Chair, b. obtain the floor before speaking, which is not provided by the HELIMUN organisation but has to be provided by each delegation. Messages must clearly state to and from whom the message is sent and be written in English. Only messages concerning the orders of the day will be passed by the administrative staff that has full right to refuse any inappropriate messages. Opening speeches at the first session of the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council will be given by the Ambassador or Head of Delegation of each delegation and shall not exceed one minute. Opening speeches will be in alphabetical order. Security Council can decide whether or not not to entertain opening speeches in their first session. c. stand when speaking, d. yield the floor when required, e. be diplomatic at all times, and f. use only parliamentary language. Delegates have to act in accordance with the articles of the United Nations Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human rights. The United Nations Charter cannot be amended in HELIMUN. The Chair will apply the rules of parliamentary procedure and know the proper procedure. The chairs are available to give help and information and the delegates should therefore ask for clarification and information whenever needed by rising to a point of order, a point of information to the Chair or to a point of parliamentary enquiry. These points cannot, however, interrupt a speaker. Written communication between delegations must be written on official delegation notepaper, 22 Helsinki International Model United Nations No more than three rights of reply to an opening speech will be entertained after five opening speeches. These replies may not exceed thirty seconds and must refer to one of the preceding opening speeches. A majority of the total membership of each forum shall constitute a quorum. The chair will propose the limitation of debate time for each motion. This will normally be: Main motions: 20 minutes for and 20 minutes against Amendments: 5 minutes for and 5 minutes against When debate time has elapsed the chair will propose either the extension of debate time or the closure of debate and subsequent vote. The chair may then decide to change into open debate. Open debate will be a norm for the Security Council.

23 The chair may, in the interest of debate, call upon a particular delegation to speak, even if they have not requested the floor. The chair may also, for the same reasons, restrict the speaking time of an individual delegate. The maximum debate time (guillotine time) in committees is 90 minutes unless otherwise set by the Chair at the beginning of the debate and at the end of this time a resolution must either be voted or tabled. Only the Secretary General and the Chairs have the right to call recesses or adjournments or to suspend the rules. A delegate objecting to the consideration of a proposed resolution will be required to explain, in a speech not exceeding one minute, the reason for his objection. The main submitter of the resolution will then have the right of reply of equal length after which a vote is taken on the objection. The objection to the consideration of a main motion requires a twothirds majority, and will not be entertained in the General Assembly plenary sessions. The intention of proposed amendments to resolutions should normally be to improve the resolution and thus helping the resolution to pass. In closed debate, amendments will normally be moved in debate time against the resolution and they can only be moved by a speaker who has the floor. No amendments are in order in the General Assembly plenary session. There are no friendly amendments at HELIMUN. The floor may be yielded by one delegation to another only once consecutively. In the General Assembly plenary session delegates from the same delegation may not yield the floor to each other. A speech may not be interrupted by any point except a point of personal privilege referring to audibility. All other points will be dealt with only when the speaker yields the floor either to points of information, to another delegate, or to the chair. A point of personal privilege must refer to the wellbeing of the delegate. A point of order may relate to procedural matters only. A point of information may be directed to the chair or to the speaker and it has to be formulated as a question, e.g. Is the speaker aware that? A point of parliamentary enquiry is a point of information directed to the chair concerning the rules of procedure. The motion to lay a resolution on the table is not debatable and temporarily disposes of the main motion and pending subsidiary motions. A twothirds majority is needed to take matters from the table, although tabling itself only needs a simple majority. HELIMUN Guide, IX Annual Session 23

24 Only a member state of the United Nations, which was present during the rollcall, may vote by raising its placard. The Chair may decide to divide the house (do a rollcall vote) in case of a close resolute. Voting on amendments the amendment will be voted on after the debate time on the amendment has elapsed. If an amendment to the amendment is proposed, it will be voted on before the first amendment. The amendment will pass automatically if the amendment to the amendment passes. Conduct during voting after the Chair has moved to voting procedures, no points will be entertained except for points of order directly connected to the actual conduct of the voting. Explanation of the vote explanations of the vote will not be entertained at HELIMUN. Abstentions delegates have the right to abstain except when voting on procedural matters. Abstaining means that the vote will be recorded but will not count for or against the resolution. Voting in the Security Council the Security Council will apply special rules concerning voting as stated in the UN Charter. 24 Helsinki International Model United Nations

25 HELIMUN Guide, IX Annual Session 25

26 For more information, please visit or contact Mr. Klaus Castrén Conference Manager