Rules of Parliamentary Procedure - Raffles Model United Na8ons 2016 General Rules 1. Scope: These rules apply to all RMUN 2016 commi:ees, though the United Na?ons Security Council, Arab League and Crisis Commi:ees will have slightly different rules set by their Dais 2. Language: English will be the official and working language of the Conference. 3. Delega8ons: Each member state will be represented by one delegate (two delegates in the case of UNSC) and shall have one vote on each commi:ee. Representa?ves of accredited observers will have the same rights as those of full member states, except that they may not vote on resolu?ons as a whole. The Dais will provide a list of member states and accredited observers for each commi:ee. 4. General Powers of the CommiGee Staff: The structure of each Dais will consist of one Head Chair, with two Deputy Chairs. The Head Chair can transfer his/her powers to one of his Deputy Chairs at his/her discre?on. The Dais in Crisis Commi:ees will consist of one Head Chair and one Deputy Chair, with one suppor?ng backroom staff per council at least. 5. Quorum: The Dais may declare a Commi:ee open and permit debate to proceed when at least half the vo?ng members of the Commi:ee is present. 6. Use of Electronic Devices: The use of electronic devices, such as but not limited to laptops and cellphones, are not permi:ed during formal debate and moderated caucuses. Use of such devices is allowed during commi:ee breaks, unmoderated caucuses or outside of Commi:ee. 7. Courtesy: Delegates will show courtesy and respect to the Commi:ee staff and to other delegates. The Dais will immediately call to order any delegate who fails to comply with this rule. Rules Governing Debate 8. Roll Call: At the start of every Commi:ee session, the Dais will take a Roll-Call. The Roll Call will be taken in the English alphabe?cal order of the names of the Commi:ee delega?ons. When the name of a delega?on is called, one delegate from that delega?on will raise the country placard and call out either Present or Present and Vo?ng. The difference between the two is that delegates who c a l l P r e s e n t a n d V o? n g m a y n o t a b s t a i n f r o m a s u b s t a n? v e v o t e. If a delegate or delega?on is not present during the Roll-Call, the delegate or delega?on is considered absent and therefore has no vo?ng and speaking powers. If a delegate is late, he or she will only be considered present when the delegate sends a wri:en note to the Dais indica?ng that they are present and a^er the Dais has acknowledged the note. 9. Agenda: The first order of business for the Commi:ee, if the Commi:ee has more than one Topic Area to discuss, will be the considera?on of the agenda. A mo?on to should be made to set the agenda to one of the Commi:ee s Topic Areas. If the Commi:ee only has one agenda, then it is
adopted immediately. The chair will first establish two speaker s list, each having two speakers for and two speakers against. Once this is done, the Commi:ee will then move on to set agenda on one of the topics. A simple majority is required for the mo?on to pass. If the mo?on fails, the second Topic Area will be automa?cally placed before the Commi:ee. Once a resolu?on has been passed, the Dais will entertain a mo?on to close debate and move on to the next Topic Area. This mo?on requires a simple majority to pass. a. In the event of an interna?onal crisis, the Dais may call upon Commi:ee to table debate on the current Topic Area to discuss the more urgent ma:er. A^er a resolu?on has been passed, the Commi:ee will return to debate on the tabled Topic Area only at the discre?on of the Dais. 10. Debate: A^er the agenda has been set, one con?nuously open speakers list will be established for the dura?on of the Topic Area, except as interrupted by procedural points or mo?ons, caucuses, discussion of amendments, and introduc?on of dra^ resolu?ons. Speakers may speak generally on the Topic Area being considered and may address any working paper or any dra^ resolu?on currently on the floor. 11. Unmoderated Caucus: An unmoderated caucus temporarily suspends formal debate and allows members to discuss ideas informally in the commi:ee room. A mo?on for an unmoderated caucus is in order at any?me when the floor is open. The delegate making the mo?on must briefly explain the purpose and set a?me limit of no more than 20 mins. Vo?ng will commence immediately and a simple majority is required for this mo?on to pass. The Dais may prematurely end an unmoderated caucus if he/she feels it has been unproduc?ve, and this decision is not subject to appeal. The Dais may also rule this mo?on dilatory and his/her decision is not subject to appeal. 12. Moderated Caucus: The purpose of the moderated caucus is to facilitate substan?ve debate and cri?cal junctures in the discussion. A mo?on for a moderated caucus is in order at any?me when the floor is open. The delegate making the mo?on must briefly explain the purpose, speaking?me and set an overall?me limit of no more than 20 mins. Vo?ng will commence immediately and a simple majority is required for this mo?on to pass. The Dais may also rule this mo?on dilatory and his/her decision is not subject to appeal. The Dais will call on delegates to speak at his or her discre?on for the s?pulated?me. The Dais may prematurely end a moderated caucus if there are no speakers, and this decision is subject to appeal. 13. Closure of Debate: When the floor is open, a delegate may move to close debate on the substan?ve on the procedural ma:er under discussion. The Dais may also rule this mo?on dilatory and his/her decision is not subject to appeal. The Dais will recognise two speakers for and against this mo?on. A mo?on to close debate requires a two-thirds majority to pass. If the mo?on is passed, the Dais will declare the closure of debate, and any amendment or resolu?on on the floor will be brought to an immediate vote. 14. Suspension and Resump8on of Debate: Whenever the floor is open, this mo?on can be used by a delegate to suspend debate on a proposed Dra^ Resolu?on that is being discussed. The Dais will allow one speaker For and one speaker Against this mo?on before it is put to a vote. The mo?on requires a simple majority to pass. No debate will be allowed on the Dra^ Resolu?on if the Mo?on to suspend debate passes. A mo?on to Resume Debate on a suspended Dra^ Resolu?on will require a simple majority to pass. The Dais will allow one speaker For and one speaker Against this mo?on before it is put to a vote.
15. Suspension of Mee8ng: Whenever the floor is open, this mo?on can be used by a delegate to suspend the Commi:ee un?l the next Commi:ee Session. The Dais has discre?on as to whether this mo?on is in order. When in order, this mo?on will immediately be put to a vote. This mo?on is valid only 15 minutes prior to the end of scheduled Commi:ee?me. This mo?on requires a simple majority to pass. 16. Adjournment of Mee8ng: Whenever the floor is open, this mo?on can be used by a delegate to suspend the Conference un?l the next year. The Dais has discre?on as to whether this mo?on is in order. When in order, this mo?on will immediately be put to a vote. This mo?on is valid only 15 minutes prior to the end of scheduled Commi:ee?me. This mo?on requires a simple majority to pass. Rules Governing Speeches 17. Speakers List: The Commi:ee will have an open speakers list for the Topic Area being discussed. Countries may request to be added to the list by (i) raising their placard when the Dais calls for countries to be added or (ii) sending a note to the Dais. The speakers list for the second Topic Area will not be open un?l the Commi:ee has proceeded to that topic. 18. Speeches: All speeches shall adhere to the?me limit set by the Dais at the beginning of the debate, which is 90 seconds or otherwise stated by the Dais, unless the Commi:ee decides otherwise by raising a mo?on. No speaker may speak without permission of a Dais member. A Dais member may reprimand a delegate (i) who makes irrelevant statements, (ii) who violates Ar?cle 7 or (iii) who goes above the given?me limit. 19. Yields: At the end of a speech during the General Speaker s List, delegates must yield their?me in one of the following manners: a. Yield to Another Delegate i. Any remaining?me will be given to that delegate, who may not yield the remaining?me to another delegate. b. Yield to Ques8ons: i. Ques?oners will be selected by the Dais and limited to only one ques?on each. Follow-ups may be granted at the discre?on of the Dais. c. Yield to Chairs: i. Such a yield should be made if the delegate as finished speaking and does not wish to yield to another delegate or to ques?ons. The Dais will then move on to the next speaker on the speakers list. d. Yields are not required during moderated caucuses. 20. Right to Reply: A delegate whose personal or na?onal integrity has been impugned by another delegate may request a Right to Reply, subject to approval by the Dais whose decision is not subject to appeal. It will take the form of a 30 second speech.
Points 21. Point of Personal Privilege: A Point of Personal Privilege is raised when a delegate feels personal discomfort during Commi:ee session. For example, when the room is too cold, delegates can request to have the air-condi?oning turned up. Points of Personal Privilege are also in order during speeches. For example, a delegate may request that the speaker raise his volume. Delegates are discouraged from exercising Points of Personal Privilege for frivolous requests. This is however, the only point that can disrupt a speech. All other points or mo?ons can only be raised in between speeches. 22. Point of Order: A Point of Order is raised when a delegate feels that an error has been made in the Rules of Procedure by a delegate or by the Dais. Points of Order cannot be used to interrupt speeches unless the speech itself is out of order. Delegates are strongly discouraged from exercising points of order needlessly. 23. Point of Parliamentary Inquiry: A Point of Parliamentary Inquiry is raised when a delegate raises a ques?on about the Rules of Procedure with the Dais. It can never interrupt a speaker. Rules Governing Substantive Matters 24. Working Paper: Working Papers are documents that serve as aids to Commi:ee discussions by providing viewpoints and ideas suggested during the debate. There are no fixed formats for Working Papers - they may come in the form of text, presenta?on or a diagram. For delegates to introduce their Working Papers, delegates must first submit the paper to the Dais, who will then vet and give approval for the paper to be printed and distributed. No Working Paper may be distributed without the permission of the Dais. Working Papers do not require signatories or sponsors, only the name of the submi:er(s) of the paper. 25. Resolu8ons: A Dra^ Resolu?on must be signed by at least 20% of the total number of countries in the Commi:ee. This includes both sponsors and signatories. The maximum number of sponsors per resolu?on is 5. The number of signatories required for each Commi:ee will be made known to delegates at the start of Commi:ee session. a. Sponsors of a Resolu?on are countries that fully support the Resolu?on and wish to see the Resolu?on passed in its en?rety. They will have contributed ideas or clauses to the Dra^ Resolu?on. During vo?ng procedures on the Dra^ Resolu?on, sponsors have to vote Yes on the Dra^ Resolu?on. Signatories on a Resolu?on are not necessarily suppor?ve of the Resolu?on; they only wish to see it debated on the Commi:ee floor. They may be either For or Against the Resolu?on. b. A^er all the necessary signatures have been gathered, the Dais needs to give final approval before allowing the introduc?on of the Dra^ Resolu?on. This includes venng for language and content. c. More than one resolu?on may be on the floor at any one?me, but at most one resolu?on may be passed per Topic Area 26. Introducing Resolu8ons: A^er the requirements above have been met, any sponsor of the Dra^ Resolu?on may Mo?on to Introduce Dra^ Resolu?on to the floor. This mo?on can only be made
when Debate is on the General Speaker s List. The mo?on requires a procedural vote; hence a simple majority is required for the mo?on to pass. a. Once the Mo?on has passed, a representa?ve from the sponsors of the Dra^ Resolu?on will come forward to the podium. This will be followed by a five minutes Ques?on and Answer session, where any delegate may ask the representa?ve ques?ons pertaining specifically to the wording of the Resolu?on. A^er the five minutes has elapsed, Debate will then move back into the General Speaker s List. b. Delegates may therea^er refer to the Dra^ Resolu?on by its designated number. Any Dra^ Resolu?on will remain on the floor un?l debate on that specific Dra^ Resolu?on is postponed or a Resolu?on on that Topic Area has been passed. c. Delegates are allowed and encouraged to talk about the resolu?on in greater detail through the use of moderated caucuses 27. Amendments: Amendments are proposed changes to specific clauses of the Dra^ Resolu?on. Delegates may mo?on to amend any Dra^ Resolu?on on the floor. There are two types of Amendments - Friendly Amendments and Unfriendly Amendments. a. Friendly Amendments are changes to a Dra^ Resolu?on that have been agreed upon by all Sponsors of said Dra^ Resolu?on. i. No signatories are required, and such amendments require the approval of the Dais first. A^er approval is given, a delegate may Mo?on to Introduce Friendly Amendment. As the amendment is friendly, no vo?ng is required to pass the amendment. Instead, the amendment will directly be incorporated into the Dra^ Resolu?on. Friendly amendments can also be used to make linguis?c correc?ons to a clause, such as to correct a spelling or gramma?cal error. b. Unfriendly Amendments are changes to a Dra^ Resolu?on that have not been agreed on by all Sponsors of said Dra^ Resolu?on. i. A Dra^ Unfriendly Amendment must have been signed by at least 20% of the Commi:ee. This includes both sponsors and signatories. The number of signatories required for each Commi:ee will be made known to delegates at the start of Commi:ee session. ii. The Unfriendly Amendment also requires the approval of the Dais first. A^er approval has been given, a delegate may mo?on to Introduce Unfriendly Amendment. This can only be done when Debate is on the General Speaker s List. The mo?on requires a procedural vote; hence a simple majority is required for the mo?on to pass. If the mo?on passes, the Dais will move Debate into a Speaker s List on the Proposed Amendment. Regular Rules of Procedure will apply,but any Unmoderated Caucus cannot exceed fi^een minutes. iii. Delegates may mo?on to Close Debate on the Unfriendly Amendment a^er at least one speaker both For and Against the amendment has spoken. The Dais will recognise up to two Delegates who mo?on against this Mo?on to speak. A simple majority is required to pass the Mo?on to Close Debate. If the Mo?on passes, the Debate on the Unfriendly Amendment will be closed. Debate will then move into vo?ng procedure on the Unfriendly Amendment. The vote is a substan?ve vote, and therefore a two-thirds majority is required for the Unfriendly Amendment to pass. If the Unfriendly Amendment passes and is added to the Dra^ Resolu?on, a Sponsor may choose to withdraw their support of the Dra^ Resolu?on by sending a note to the Dais.
c. If more than fi^y percent of the resolu?on has been amended, it will be tabled by the Dais, at the Dais discre?on. Rules Governing Voting 28. Procedural and Substan8ve Vo8ng: There are two types of vo?ng: procedural vo?ng and substan?ve vo?ng. a. A vote on any ma:er other than Dra^ Resolu?ons and Amendments is considered procedural. Every member of the Commi:ee, including non-members, must vote on all procedural mo?ons; no absten?ons are allowed. Procedural votes require either a simple or two-thirds majority to pass. b. A vote on any Dra^ Resolu?on or Amendment is considered substan?ve. A substan?ve vote requires a two-thirds majority to pass. Once the Commi:ee closes debate on the Topic Area or Amendment, it will move into substan?ve vo?ng procedures. The Commi:ee venue will be sealed and no interrup?ons are allowed. At this point, the only points and mo?ons that are in order are Point of Personal Privilege, Point of Order, Point of Parliamentary Inquiry, Reordering Dra^ Resolu?ons, Division of the Ques?on, and Mo?on for a Roll-Call Vote. If there are no mo?ons, the Commi:ee will proceed to vote on all Dra^ Resolu?ons. i. For substan?ve vo?ng, each delega?on will have one vote. Each vote may be a Yes, No, or Abstain. Abstaining members are not considered to be vo?ng members; therefore absten?ons are not counted in the total number of votes. All ma:ers will be voted upon by a show of placards unless a mo?on for a Roll-Call vote is accepted. Once a Resolu?on has passed, vo?ng procedure ends as only one Resolu?on may be passed per Topic Area. ii. In the Security Council, the five permanent members have the power to veto any substan?ve vote. A No vote by one of the five permanent members results in the immediate failure of the Dra^ Resolu?on. 29. Roll Call Vote: When Commi:ee moves into Vo?ng Procedure on a resolu?on, a delegate may mo?on to move into Roll Call Vote, and has to be seconded by another delegate. Vo?ng will then be done in alphabe?cal order. 30. Division of the Ques8on: A^er debate on a Topic Area or amendment has closed, a delegate may mo?on to divide the ques?on on any item about to be voted on. Division of the ques?on means that a specified set of opera?ve clauses be voted on separately from the rest. Perambulatory clauses may not be included under this mo?on. The Dais will then entertain two speakers for and two speakers against. It requires a two-thirds majority to pass. a. If the mo?on passes, the Dais will accept proposals on how to divide the ques?on. Such proposals may divide the item into two or more parts. A^er all proposals have been accepted, they will then be voted on in order of most severe to least severe, and each will be voted on. If no division passes, the item remains intact. b. If any proposal passes, a substan?ve vote must then be taken on each divided part to determine whether or not it is included in the final dra^. A simple majority is required to include each part. A^er all the divided parts have been voted on, they are then combined into the final dra^ resolu?on, which must be voted on as well as a resolu?on. If all the opera?ve clauses are rejected, the resolu?on will be tabled by the Dais.
31. Mo8on to Divide the House: When a vote on a resolu?on is close or?ed, a delegate may mo?on for a Mo?on to Divide the House. This mo?on requires a simple majority to pass. Once passed, absten?ons are no longer in order and delegates can only vote For or Against when vo?ng on a resolu?on and similarly the dra^ resolu?on as a whole will require a two-thirds majority to pass. 32. Reordering Resolu8ons: When Debate moves into Vo?ng Procedure on a Dra^ Resolu?on, a delegate may Mo?on to Reorder Dra^ Resolu?ons. This mo?on can only be proposed when there are mul?ple Dra^ Resolu?ons on the same topic. This mo?on requires a procedural vote of a simple majority to pass. The Chair will take all mo?ons to reorder Dra^ Resolu?ons and then vote on them according to the order in which they were proposed. Vo?ng will con?nue un?l either a mo?on passes by receiving a simple majority or all of the mo?ons fail, in which case the Commi:ee will move into vo?ng procedure with the Dra^ Resolu?ons in their original order. The original order is the order in which the resolu?ons were submi:ed. Only one mo?on to reorder Dra^ Resolu?ons is in order in each round of vo?ng procedures. Separate Rules for Specialised Committees 33. Specialised commi:ees refer to the United Na?ons Security Council, European Union (Council), African Union, Special Poli?cal and Decolonisa?on Commi:ee and Arab League. 34. There will be no change from the above ROP for the European Council, African Union, and SPECPOL. For Crisis Commi:ees, please refer to the separate Crisis Rules of Procedure document. 35. United Na8ons Security Council a. On Procedural Mo8ons: i. Passing mo?ons on procedural ma:ers will require an affirma?ve vote from at least 9 out of the 15 vo?ng members in the council, ii. Any member of the council can introduce a mo?on to amend the rules of procedure in the council and such a mo?on will similarly require an affirma?ve vote from at least 9 vo?ng members, b. On DraY Resolu8ons: i. Any dra^ resolu?on passed by the council is considered to be legally binding, that is to say, every opera?ve clause in the passed resolu?on will be implemented unless phrased to be otherwise, ii. Opera?ve clauses are permi:ed to begin with Demand, Decide and Authorises, iii. Decides to remain ac?vely seized on the ma:er is permi:ed to be used as the last clause of the resolu?on, c. On Substan8ve Mo8ons: i. Passing mo?ons on substan?ve ma:ers will require an affirma?ve vote from 2/3rds of vo?ng members, excluding those who choose to abstain, and an affirma?ve vote or absten?on from the Permanent 5 members (P5) of the UNSC - the United States of America, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the French Republic, the Russian Federa?on and the People s Republic of China. ii. The use of the veto by any of the P5 members will fail substan?ve ma:ers regardless of the number of affirma?ve votes,
iii. Delegates represen?ng the P5 countries are not required to explain the reason for their veto, however, on the discre?on of the Dais, an inappropriate or excessive use of the veto may require delegates to explain the reason for their veto, iv. The use of the veto only applies to substan?ve ma:ers and not on procedural ma:ers, 36. Arab League a. On Procedural Mo8ons: i. Mo?on to Limit Debate: Focusing on a specific topic in the agenda, this mo?on crea?ng a separate speaker s list that takes precedence over the Main Speaker s List. Will remain in this speakers list un?l a mo?on to expand debate is passed or un?l debate is adjourned. Debate can be limited 3?mes in succession, allowing delegates to focus on specific sub-items of the specific topic. A resolu?on, however, can only be introduced on the general speaker s list; delegates can then limit debate to specific areas or clauses of the resolu?on using this mo?on. Requires simple majority to pass. If mul?ple Resolu?ons are on the floor, sponsors can introduce a mo?on to limit debate to their resolu?on. ii. Mo?on to expand debate; can be introduced by delegates if prior Mo?ons to Limit Debate have been passed. Will move debate back into the previous speaker s list, or into general debate if all speaker s lists have been cleared. Requires simple majority to pass. b. On Resolu8ons: i. Be it hereby resolved that the League of Arab States: appears in bold following the Preamble, signifying that the following clauses are ac?ons that will be taken by the League. ii. Binding Votes: Unanimous decisions on substan?ve affairs of the Council will be considered binding upon all member-states of the League; majority decisions on substan?ve ma:ers shall be binding only upon those states which have accepted them. In either case the decisions of the Council shall be enforced in each memberstate according to its respec?ve laws. Precedence of Mo?ons (in order) Summary 1. Parliamentary Points a. Points that may interrupt a speaker i. Points of Personal Privilege b. Point in order only when the floor is open: i. Points of Parliamentary Inquiry ii. Point of Order iii. Point of Informa?on to the Chairs 2. Procedural mo?ons that are not debatable a. Adjournment of Mee?ng b. Suspension of Mee?ng c. Unmoderated Caucus d. Moderated Caucus
e. Mo?on to change the speaking?me f. Introduc?on of a dra^ resolu?on g. Introduc?on of an amendment 3. Procedural mo?ons that are applicable to a Resolu?on or an Amendment under considera?on a. Closure of Debate b. Postponement of Debate c. Division of the Ques?on d. Mo?on to Divide the House e. Reordering of Resolu?on 4. Substan?ve mo?ons a. Amendments b. Resolu?ons 5. Other procedural mo?ons Summary of Vo?ng on Mo?ons More Than 2/3 Majority Required Mo?on to Close Debate Vo?ng on Unfriendly Amendments Vo?ng on a Resolu?on Mo?on to Divide the Ques?on Mo?on to Divide the House Simple Majority Required (non-exhaus8ve) Mo?on for the various caucuses Senng the Agenda Mo?on to Introduce a Resolu?on or Unfriendly Amendment Suspension/Resump?on of Debate Suspension/Adjournment of Mee?ng Reordering Dra^ Resolu?ons