What is a resolution?

A resolution is a document drafted by delegates from a specific committee which attempts to address a problem or an issue by either condemning, applauding, or suggesting a plan of action to be implemented within a certain time frame. A resolution also states goals and desires of a specific committee or the United Nations in general.

Why resolutions?

With the exception of the Security Council, resolutions passed by bodies of the United Nations technically hold no enforcement mechanism, making them appear useless on the surface. However, resolutions will often set the norm of what eventually becomes international law. Common international law concerning human rights, nuclear non-proliferation, genocide, etc. all had their beginnings in a resolution.

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Pair students up and have them pick an issue that is important to them, then have them write a resolution concerning the issue.

After students have done some research on their committee’s topics, have them write a few draft resolutions. Encourage them to cite prior resolutions or treaties to add some weight to their resolution.

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To download the PDF version of this sample resolution, click here.

Resolution writing follows a strict format. A resolution (working paper) generally is broken down into two parts: perambulatory clauses and operative clauses.

• Preambulatory clauses
  • These clauses are the first grouping in any resolution, and the end of each clause should have a comma.
  • While perambulatory clauses are not the “meat” of a resolution, they serve an important part in establishing the importance of an issue by laying out the problem, establishing precedence through citing resolutions, treaties, etc. and explaining what has and has not worked beforehand.
    • You not only cite the resolution, but also you explain what it was about.
• Operative clauses
  • These clauses are the second grouping in a resolution and clause should end with a semicolon, with the final clause ending in a period.
  • These clauses generally establish the “game plan” by citing what needs to be done and how it should be implemented.
  • While these clauses are frequently very detailed, they at times can be strategically vague in order to gain a consensus.

Note:
Once a working paper is approved by the director/chair and becomes a resolution, it will be voted on separately and can pass by a simple majority.

Things to Remember

• Sponsors are countries who write the resolution and must vote for the resolution. If they vote against a resolution they sponsored, the resolution will automatically fail.
• Signatories are countries/NGOs who are willing to discuss the issue, but do not have to vote in favor of.
• Before a resolution is approved by a chair, it is referred to as a “working paper.”
• The heading at the top of the paper includes committee name and topic – the resolution number will be assigned by the chair once the resolution has been approved.
• Pre-written resolutions are not allowed at BYUMUN.
• More than one resolution can pass for the same topic.
  

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To download the PDF version of these phrases, click here.

Preambulatory phrases:

Operative phrases:

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All content copyright 2010 David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies.