ARTICLE 15

Motions, resolutions and amendments

1. No motion, resolution or amendment shall be discussed unless it has been seconded.

2. (1) Motions as to procedure may be moved verbally and without previous notice. They may be moved at any time except after the President has called upon a speaker and before the speaker has finished speaking.

(2) Motions as to procedure include the following:

(a) a motion to refer the matter back;

(b) a motion to postpone consideration of the question;

(c) a motion to adjourn the sitting;

(d) a motion to adjourn the debate on a particular question;

(e) a motion that the Conference proceed with the next item on the agenda for the sitting;

(f) a motion to ask for the opinion of the President, the Secretary-General or the Legal Adviser of the Conference;

(g) a motion for the closure of the discussion.

3. All resolutions and amendments other than motions as to procedure must be submitted in writing in one of the official languages or in Spanish.

4. (1) No resolution relating to an item on the agenda shall, unless it be a motion as to procedure, be moved at any sitting of the Conference unless a copy has been handed in to the Secretariat of the Conference at least two days previously.

(2) Any resolution thus handed in shall be translated and circulated by the Secretariat not later than the day following that on which it was received.

5. Resolutions relating to matters not included in the agenda of the Conference shall be subject, in addition to the applicable provisions of this article, to the special rules set forth in article 17.

6. Amendments to a resolution may be moved without previous notice if a copy of the text of the amendment is handed in to the Secretariat of the Conference before the amendment is moved.

7. (1) Amendments shall be voted on before the resolution to which they refer.

(2) If there are several amendments to a motion or resolution the President shall determine the order in which they shall be discussed and put to the vote, subject to the following provisions:

(a) every motion, resolution or amendment shall be put to the vote;

(b) amendments may be voted on either individually or against other amendments according as the President may decide, but if amendments are voted on against other amendments, the motion or resolution shall be deemed to be amended only after the amendment receiving the largest number of affirmative votes has been voted on individually and adopted;

(c) if a motion or resolution is amended as the result of a vote, that motion or resolution as amended shall be put to the meeting for a final vote.

8. (1) Any amendment may be withdrawn by the person who moved it unless an amendment to it is under discussion or has been adopted.

(2) Any amendment so withdrawn may be moved without previous notice by any other member of the Conference.

9. Any member may at any time draw attention to the fact that the Standing Orders are not being observed, and the President shall give an immediate ruling on any question so raised.