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UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Established in 1945 under the Charter of the United Nations, the General Assembly occupies a cen-
tral position as the chief deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the United Nations.
As for today, all 193 members of the United Nations have a seat in the General Assembly, with the
addition of Holy See and Palestine as observer states. (Article 9, UN Charter)
Further, the United Nations General Assembly may grant observer status to an international organi-
zation or entity, which entitles the entity to participate in the work of the United Nations General
Assembly.
The first session of the UN General Assembly was convened on 10 January 1946 in the Methodist
Central Hall in London and included representatives of 51 nations. The next few annual sessions
were held in different cities: the second session in New York City, and the third in Paris. It moved to
the permanent Headquarters of the United Nations in New York City at the start of its seventh regu-
lar annual session, on 14 October 1952.
The Assembly holds its annual regular session from September to December. When necessary, a
special session on subjects of particular concern may be called at the request of the Security Coun-
cil, of a majority of the Member States, or of one member if the majority of the Member States
agree.
POWERS AND FUNCTIONS
As stated in Article 10, the UN Charter specifies how the GA works in order to fulfil its duties and
grants it with a general competence to intervene on every matter related to the competencies of the
Organisation:
“The General Assembly may discuss any questions or any matters within the scope of the present
Charter or relating to the powers and functions of any organs provided for in the present Charter,
and, except as provided in Article 12, may make recommendations to the Members of the United
Nations or to the Security Council or to both on any such questions or matters.”
Functions and powers of the Assembly include:
- (^) To discuss any question relating to International Peace and Security (exceptions are made
when a dispute or situation is being discussed by the Security Council);
- (^) To make recommendations for the peaceful settlement of any situation which might harm
the friendly relations among nations;
- (^) To discuss and make recommendations on the powers and functions of any organ of the
United Nations;
- (^) To request studies and make recommendations to promote international cooperation, the de-
velopment of international law, the protection of human rights, and international collabora-
tion on economic, social, cultural, educational and health issues;
- (^) To receive and discuss reports from the Security Council and other UN organs;
- (^) To discuss and approve the UN budget;
- (^) To elect non-permanent members of the Security Council, the members of the Economic
and Social Council (ECOSOC) and additional members of the Trusteeship Council (if nec-
essary);
- (^) to elect the judges of the International Court of Justice (jointly with the Security Council);
and on the recommendation of the Security Council;
- (^) Some topics for Moderated Caucus debates, i.e. for short formal debates which should cover nar-
row aspects of each topic. For example, within the topic “Violence against women” Delegates can
hold a caucus "Ways of preventing genital mutilation”.
- Ideas for the Resolution, i.e. at least two or three paragraphs that your State would like to include
in the preamble and/or in the main body of the Resolution.
Furthermore, you should also learn Rules of procedure.
What will you do during the Simulation?
In Moderated Caucus you will hold short formal debates (usually 10-15 minutes long) on details of
each topic. Delegates will present the policy and solutions of the represented States in very short
(usually one minute) speeches.
In Unmoderated Caucus, you will exit the Zoom room and work and informally engage with
other Delegates to agree on your policies and solutions and to write draft resolutions together as a
Coalition on CWMUN Workplace
Draft resolutions will be checked and possibly edited by the Dais to conform to all formal require-
ments. Eventually, Coalitions will present their draft resolutions to the whole Committee. Other
Delegates will debate and then vote for or against. The scope for the Committee as a whole is to
produce a resolution on the topic of the agenda.
What is a resolution?
A Resolution is a very specific document, built of Preamble and Main body, expressing the will of a
particular UN Committee agreed upon by its Member States. Resolutions are central to the UN and
thus MUN gives all participants the opportunity to understand the process of creating them. Please
seize this opportunity and prepare in advance at least one or two paragraphs per each topic!
Sample resolution: Resolution 2349 (2017)
https://undocs.org/S/RES/2349(2017)
Tips (!)
Learn about your State from the CIA World Factbook, from the official website of your State’s per-
manent mission to the United Nations, and from other government websites (for example the web-
site and social media profiles of the Royal Family or President, Prime Minister, Ministry of Foreign
Affairs…). Make sure to know as much as possible about the foreign relations of your State with all
States listed here! Consider that at the United Nations, States generally lean towards their own
geopolitical blocks. Consider also organizations such as the European Union (EU), African Union,
Arab League, Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) etc.
Some countries chose to combine all possible measures to face the coronavirus and imple- ment them simultaneously. Some countries only partially. They carefully select the measures they consider necessary. Some countries chose another strategy called ‘herd immunity’ in order to bypass social distancing. It is a concept that describes the state were enough people are immune to a di- sease that it stops spreading in the population. Social distancing measures may be voluntary or mandatory. Some countries decided to im- pose social distancing and give the police force the task to make citizens applied to the rules. Other countries chose to favor a strategy of trust and asked their citizens to show a sense of responsibility and civic sense. Technology Some favor the use of the expression physi- cal distancing rather then social distancing con- sidering that people can still have social interac- tions through technological devices. Social dis- tancing in our highly connected society is cer- tainly less painful, isolating and damaging than it would be in a world without technology. In- deed, the success of social distancing mea- sures that are implemented over an extended period may depend on ensuring that people maintain social contact - from a distance - with friends, family and colleagues. Internet-based communications are therefore key tool for en- suring a successful social distancing strategy. Furthermore, the importance of technology in periods of social distancing is underlined a by the possibilities for industries to switch to tele- working when it is possible, In order to maintain a certain level of productivity. Furthermore, the importance of technology in peri- ods of social distancing is underlined a by the pos- sibilities for industries to switch to teleworking when it is possible, In order to maintain a certain level of productivity. Researchers estimate that at least 50% of the workforce has a job that is compatible with working at home for a portion of the week, such as those in sales, legal, media and military occupations. This workforce could contribute to the economy and limit their exposure to the coronavirus. Economic consequences Nevertheless, some industries cannot rely on technology to maintain their productivity. Social distancing can have disastrous consequences for places, events or activities which are based almost exclusively on gatherings : cinemas, theaters, events, conferences, festivals. Many are facing se- rious financial difficulties and will be forced to face a definitive closure. Consequently, the rate of un- employment will sharply rise. According to the International Labour Organization, 1,25 billion people are employed in industrial sec- tors which will be drastically affected by the social distancing measures. The ILO suggests that 25 mil- lion people could lose their job due to the measures undertaken to stop the coronavirus pandemic. At a global scale, the economic paralysis that is an effect of social distancing measures will have unprecedented consequences. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned that governments will face a ‘massive’ rise in public debts. The IMF also warned that the global economy will have to face its worst contraction since the Great Depression of the 1930s, with almost 170 countries which will face drops in their GDP rates.
Psychological consequences Furthermore, social distancing can also have profound psychological consequences for some individuals. A sense of panic, isolation, loss of freedom might affect individuals. Psy- chologists are concerned with the effect of a more or less long lasting social distancing and the negative effects it can have for mental health. Social distancing can trigger loneliness, reduce productivity and prevent access to the benefits associated with human interaction. interaction. Furthermore, some vulnerable groups already live on the fringe of society in normal times. Special treatment should be gi- ven to the elderly, those with underlying health conditions, disabled people, people with men- tal health problems, homeless people and un- documented migrants.
Until when?
Deadlines and exit strategies are evaluated by governments. Some countries already redu- ced their restrictions. Nevertheless, some ex- perts warned that physical distancing may need to be in place intermittently until 2022. Some scientist suggest that there could be re- surgences of Covid-19 for years to come. A factor that'll influence timelines is whether or not scientists across the globe will be able to develop a vaccine or identify stronger treat- ments. Many research centres are working non-stop in order to develop a safe vaccine, but usually it takes more than a year to com- mercialise this types of medical treatments. Another important factor regards the possibility of a slow-down of the spreading of the virus COVID- due to high temperatures. Despite the fact that the- re are not enough data to elaborate on whether the virus will halt during the summer season, many scientists unfortunately agree that high temperatu- res won’t make such a great difference on stopping the pandemic.
Your objective
As delegates, your aim is to try to develop compre- hensive plans through which the world may restart his ordinary life after the coronavirus outbreak, sug- gesting the best practices to be followed in order to maintain the safety of the human beings and also their economic status, avoiding other social cata- strophes which could explode after the pandemic.
