|
OEA/Ser.G
CP/RES. 760 (1217/99)
15 December 1999
Original: Spanish |
CP/RES. 760 (1217/99)
AMENDMENTS TO THE RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY
THE PERMANENT COUNCIL OF THE ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES,
RECALLING that the General Assembly, in resolution AG/RES. 1603 (XXVIII-O/98),
"Modernization of the OAS and Renewal of the Inter-American System,"
established the Special Joint Working Group of the Permanent Council and the
Inter-American Council for Integral Development (CIDI) "for the purpose of
identifying the aspects with regard to which it is necessary to foster and
intensify the process of strengthening and modernizing the OAS by defining
strategies, procedures, and concrete actions with a view to promoting a
comprehensive renewal of the inter-American system, on the basis of the
dialogue of foreign ministers and heads of delegation of the General
Assembly";
RECALLING ALSO that the General Assembly, in resolution AG/RES. 1603
(XXVIII-O/98), authorized the Permanent Council to adopt such organizational
and structural measures as it considered suitable in pursuit of the aims set
forth in that resolution, including the adoption ad referendum of decisions
requiring authorization from the General Assembly, and to report to the
Assembly on the work carried out; and
CONSIDERING the report presented by the Chair of the Special Joint Working Group
of the Permanent Council and the Inter-American Council for Integral
Development on the Strengthening and Modernization of the OAS concerning the
proposed amendments to the Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly,
RESOLVES:
1. To adopt, ad referendum of the General Assembly, the "Rules of Procedure
of the General Assembly" contained in the appendix to this resolution.
2. That, without prejudice to the condition indicated in the preceding operative
paragraph, those Rules of Procedure shall enter into force on the date of
adoption of this resolution.
3. To report to the General Assembly at its thirtieth regular session on the
application of this resolution.
4. To express appreciation for the report presented by the Chair of the Special
Joint Working Group of the Permanent Council and the Inter-American Council for
Integral Development on the Strengthening and Modernization of the OAS and for
the effective work of the subgroup established by the Special Joint Working
Group to revise the Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly.
APPENDIX
RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1/
I. NATURE AND COMPOSITION
Article 1. The General Assembly is the supreme organ of the Organization of
American States and is composed of the delegations accredited by the
governments of the member states.
II. PARTICIPANTS
Delegations
Article 2. The delegations of the member states shall be composed of the
representatives, advisers, and other persons whom the governments accredit.
Each delegation shall have a head of delegation, who may delegate his duties to
any other member of his delegation.
Credentials
Article 3. The members of each delegation and the permanent observers to the
Organization of American States shall be accredited to the General Assembly by
their respective governments through written communication to the Secretary
General of the Organization.
Precedence
Article 4. The order of precedence of the delegations for each session shall be
established by lot by the Preparatory Committee of the General Assembly. The
order of precedence of the permanent observers shall be established in the same
manner.
General Secretariat
Article 5. The Secretary General of the Organization, or his representative, may
participate with voice but without vote in the deliberations of the General
Assembly.
Organs of the OAS
Article 6. The chairs or representatives of the following organs or agencies of
the inter-American system may attend the General Assembly with the right to
speak:
Inter-American Juridical Committee; Inter-American Commission on Human Rights;
Inter-American Court of Human Rights; Permanent Executive Committee of the
Inter-American Council for Integral Development; and Inter-American specialized
organizations.
United Nations
Article 7. The Secretary-General of the United Nations, or his representative,
may attend the sessions of the General Assembly and may speak if he so desires.
Permanent Observers
Article 8. Permanent observers or their respective alternates, as the case may
be, may attend the public meetings of the plenary General Assembly and the
General Committee. They may likewise attend any closed meetings when invited by
the corresponding presiding officer. Permanent observers may also request the
floor and the corresponding presiding officer will decide on the request.
Other observers
Article 9. The following may also send observers to the General Assembly:
a. Governments of American states that are not members of the Organization, with
the authorization of the Permanent Council;
b. Governments of non-American states that are members of the United Nations or
of its specialized agencies, when they express an interest in attending, with
the authorization of the Permanent Council;
c. Inter-American regional or subregional governmental entities or agencies that
are not included among the organs of the Organization, with the authorization
of the Permanent Council;
d. The specialized agencies of the United Nations and other international
agencies, when agreements concluded with the Organization and in force so
establish.
The observers referred to in this article may request to speak at meetings, and
the corresponding presiding officer shall decide whether to recognize the
observer.
For the purposes of this article, the Secretary General of the Organization
shall transmit the appropriate communications.
Special guests
Article 10. With the authorization of the Permanent Council and the consent of
the government of the country in which the Assembly session is to be held,
representatives of the specialized agencies of the United Nations and other
governmental or nongovernmental international agencies and organizations not
included in the previous article may attend the General Assembly as special
guests, as long as they have expressed interest in doing so.
For the purposes of this article, the Secretary General of the Organization
shall extend the appropriate invitations.
Requests to attend General Assembly sessions as special guests shall be
presented to the General Secretariat of the Organization at least 30 days in
advance of the opening of the Assembly session.
III. PRESIDENT
Article 11. The head of the delegation indicated by the order of precedence
established under these Rules of Procedure shall serve as provisional president
until the General Assembly elects its president.
Article 12. At the first plenary session, the General Assembly shall elect a
president, who shall hold office until the close of the Assembly session. The
election shall be by the vote of a majority of the member states.
Article 13. The heads of delegation shall be vice presidents ex officio of the
Assembly and shall replace the president in the event of his disability, in
accordance with the order of precedence.
Article 14. When the officer presiding over a session wishes to take part in the
discussion or in the voting on a matter, he shall request the appropriate
representative, in accordance with Article 13, to preside.
Powers of the president
Article 15. The president shall call the plenary sessions; decide on the order
of business thereof; open and close the plenary sessions; direct the
discussions; recognize speakers in the order in which they request the floor;
submit points under discussion to a vote and announce the results thereof;
decide on points of order in accordance with the provisions of Article 57;
install the General Committee of the Assembly; and, in general, comply with and
enforce the provisions of these Rules of Procedure.
IV. SECRETARIAT
Article 16. The General Secretariat, as the central and permanent organ of the
Organization, is the Secretariat of the General Assembly. To this end, the
Secretary General shall, on a permanent basis, provide it with adequate
Secretariat services and shall carry out the duties and assignments given him
by the Assembly.
Article 17. The General Secretariat shall provide the delegations with the
official documents of the General Assembly. It shall also provide these
documents, except those for which it has been decided to limit distribution, to
the permanent observers, other observers, and special guests.
Article 18. The president of the General Assembly shall establish the maximum
duration of the statements of the heads of delegation.
V. COMMITTEES
Preparatory Committee
Article 19. The Preparatory Committee of the General Assembly shall be governed
by Articles 60 and 91.c 2/ of the Charter and by the
applicable provisions of these Rules of Procedure.
Article 20. No later than 15 days before the opening of the General Assembly
session, the Preparatory Committee shall adopt recommendations on the following
topics:
a. Agreement on the draft agenda; b. Agreement on the proposed program-budget;
c. Agreement on the time limit for the presentation of proposals; d. Agreement
on the duration of the Assembly session; e. Agreement on the minutes of the
meetings.
Article 21. The chair of the Permanent Executive Committee of the Inter-American
Council for Integral Development, or his representatives, may participate in
the deliberations of the Preparatory Committee, with the right to speak.
The Committee may invite representatives of other entities of the inter-American
system to participate in its deliberations when it considers matters directly
related to the activities of those entities.
General Committee
Article 22. The General Assembly may establish a General Committee, which may
establish such subcommittees and working groups as it deems necessary. Each
subcommittee and working group shall elect a chair, who shall present a report
to the General Committee containing its conclusions.
Article 23. At each special session, the General Assembly may establish a
General Committee, which may establish such subcommittees and working groups as
it deems necessary.
Article 24. The General Committee shall be composed of representatives of all
the member states participating in the General Assembly. The General Committee
shall elect a chair, a vice chair, and a rapporteur. The chair shall have, as
appropriate, the same powers as those indicated for the president of the
Assembly in Article 15. In the event of the absence of the chair, the vice
chair shall assume that position. In the event of the absence or incapacity of
the latter, a representative of a delegation selected according to the order of
precedence shall preside.
Work of the General Assembly
Article 25. The president of the General Assembly shall see that the work of the
General Assembly proceeds satisfactorily and, to this end, shall present such
recommendations as he considers appropriate. The president, if necessary, shall
coordinate the draft declarations, recommendations, and resolutions adopted by
the General Committee before they are submitted to a plenary session. The
president shall also perform the other duties assigned by these Rules of
Procedure and any others assigned by the General Assembly itself.
Credentials
Article 26. The Secretary General shall receive the credentials presented to him
under the provisions of Article 3 and shall submit a report on the matter to
the General Assembly.
Style Committee
Article 27. The Permanent Council of the Organization shall constitute a Style
Committee composed of delegations appointed at the last regular meeting it
holds before each regular or special session of the General Assembly, and each
such delegation shall represent one of the four official languages of the
Organization.
The Style Committee shall receive the resolutions, declarations, and
recommendations issued by the General Assembly, shall correct their defects of
form, and shall ensure equivalency among the versions in the official
languages. If it notes defects of form that it cannot correct, the Style
Committee shall submit the matter to the Permanent Council for resolution.
Reports
Article 28. The rapporteur of the General Committee shall present to the plenary
General Assembly a report on the topics assigned to that committee, which shall
include the conclusions reached by the committee and the results of the votes
taken. The duration of the report may not exceed five minutes, unless the
president gives express authorization to that effect. The plenary Assembly
shall take cognizance of the report and consider the proposals recommended
therein.
VI. AGENDA
A. Regular sessions
Article 29. For each regular session of the General Assembly, the Preparatory
Committee shall prepare a preliminary draft agenda that will be sent with a
report by that committee to the governments of the member states, so that they
may have an opportunity to make the observations they deem pertinent or to
propose the inclusion of additional topics within whatever time period the
Committee may set. In preparing this preliminary draft agenda, the Committee
shall take into account the provisions of the Charter, the topics proposed by
the governments of the member states, those agreed to by the Assembly at
previous sessions, and, if such is the case, by the Meeting of Consultation of
Ministers of Foreign Affairs, those recommended by other organs of the
Organization, and matters that, in the opinion of the Secretary General, might
threaten the peace and security of the Hemisphere or the development of the
member states.
Article 30. The agenda for each regular session of the General Assembly shall
include the following matters, in addition to those mentioned in the previous
article:
a. Adoption of the agenda; b. The observations and recommendations of the
Permanent Council on the reports of the Inter-American Council for Integral
Development, the Inter-American Juridical Committee, the Inter-American
Commission on Human Rights, the General Secretariat, the specialized
organizations and conferences, and the other organs, agencies, and entities; c.
Determination of the place and date of the next regular session; d. Election of
officers of organs, agencies, and entities of the Organization; e. Adoption of
the annual program-budget of the Organization; f. Determination of the quotas
of the member states.
Article 31. Taking into account the observations and proposals referred to in
Article 29, the Preparatory Committee shall prepare the draft agenda, which
shall be transmitted to the governments at least 45 days before the opening
date of each regular session of the General Assembly. The Preparatory Committee
may recommend that, in view of their importance, certain topics be considered
on a priority basis at the opening of the regular session of the Assembly. The
draft agenda shall be accompanied by a report of the Committee, which shall
contain such factual and legal background information and, when appropriate,
other criteria as may facilitate consideration of the topics.
Article 32. Once the Preparatory Committee has approved the draft agenda, new
topics may be included only by the vote of two thirds of the members of that
committee, at least 30 days prior to the opening date of the session of the
General Assembly.
Article 33. Once the regular session of the General Assembly has begun, only
urgent and important matters may be added to the agenda. The admission of such
topics shall require the vote of two thirds of the member states.
Article 34. The General Assembly shall adopt the agenda by the vote of two
thirds of the member states, following a report by the Preparatory Committee.
B. Special sessions
Article 35. The agenda of each special session of the General Assembly shall be
confined to the subject or subjects for which the session was convoked.
The procedures and time periods for the preparation of the agenda of a special
session shall be established in each case by the Preparatory Committee.
VII. DRAFTS AND WORKING DOCUMENTS
A. Regular sessions
Draft treaties or conventions
Article 36. A government of a member state or an organ of the Organization that
wishes to submit to the General Assembly for consideration a draft treaty or
convention relating to any topic on the agenda shall transmit the text thereof
to the Secretary General of the Organization at least 45 days prior to the
opening of the Assembly session, so that the governments may give it advance
consideration. If such a draft is not submitted within the time specified, it
may be considered by the Assembly only if the latter so agrees by the vote of
two thirds of the member states.
Draft declarations, resolutions, or recommendations
Article 37. Whenever possible, draft declarations, resolutions, or
recommendations relating to the agenda shall be presented to the Secretary
General of the Organization prior to the beginning of the Assembly session. The
deadline for the presentation of drafts after the session has begun shall be
established by the General Assembly at its first plenary session.
Reports and studies
Article 38. The observations and recommendations of the Permanent Council
concerning the reports of the specialized organizations and bodies of the
Organization may be combined into a single document and shall be sent directly
to the plenary General Assembly together with those reports as information
documents. Any delegation may request separate consideration of such
observations and recommendations, in which case they shall be sent to the
General Committee for that purpose.
Article 39. Reports from the Meeting of Consultation, those requested by the
General Assembly itself, and any observations and recommendations that the
Permanent Council may present on the reports of the Inter-American Council for
Integral Development, the Inter-American Juridical Committee, the
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the General Secretariat, the
specialized organizations and conferences, and the other organs, agencies, and
entities must be transmitted to the governments of the member states no later
than 30 days prior to the opening date of the regular session of the General
Assembly.
Article 40. Any draft, study, or report that, in the opinion of a delegation or
of the Secretary General, is not clearly related to the agenda shall be
presented to the General Committee so that it may decide on the matter.
Article 41. In adopting any resolution providing for a project or activity that
entails expenditure by the Organization, the General Assembly shall take into
account financial estimates, which the General Secretariat shall prepare in
advance, on the impact of such projects or activities on the budgetary
calculations of the Organization, as well as prior statements by the Committee
on Administrative and Budgetary Affairs of the Permanent Council or, as the
case may be, by the General Committee of the General Assembly on such financial
repercussions.
B. Special sessions
Article 42. For special sessions of the Assembly, the Preparatory Committee may,
if necessary, change the procedures and time periods established in this
chapter with respect to drafts and working documents.
VIII. SESSIONS
A. Regular sessions
Schedule of sessions and opening dates
Article 43. The General Assembly shall hold a regular session each year,
preferably during the second quarter.
At each of these sessions, the General Assembly shall determine the opening date
of its next session, taking special account of the work of preparing and
adjusting the program-budget of the Organization.
Article 44. At each regular session, the General Assembly shall determine the
place of its next regular session, taking into account the offers made by the
member states and in accordance with the principle of rotation.
Article 45. If for any reason the General Assembly session cannot be held at the
place chosen, it shall be held at the headquarters of the General Secretariat,
unless a member state should offer to host the session in its territory at
least three months in advance of the date determined in accordance with Article
43 of these Rules of Procedure, in which case the Permanent Council may decide
that the General Assembly shall meet at that place.
Transmittal of the notice of convocation
Article 46. The Secretary General shall transmit to the member states the notice
of convocation of each regular session of the General Assembly at least 60 days
prior to the opening date thereof.
B. Special sessions
Article 47. The General Assembly shall hold a special session when the Permanent
Council convokes it in accordance with Article 58 3/ of the
Charter.
The Secretary General shall immediately transmit the corresponding notice of
convocation to the governments.
IX. SESSIONS AND MEETINGS
Types of sessions
Article 48. The General Assembly shall hold an inaugural session, the necessary
plenary sessions, and a closing session. Nevertheless, in the case of a special
session, the inaugural session may be eliminated.
Public and closed sessions
Article 49. The plenary sessions of the General Assembly and the meetings of the
General Committee, the subcommittees, and the working groups shall be public,
unless the respective body decides that they shall be closed.
Article 50. Only the delegations of the member states, necessary Secretariat
personnel, and the permanent observers, in accordance with Article 8, may
attend closed sessions or meetings.
X. DEBATES AND PROCEDURE
Official languages
Article 51. English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish shall be the official
languages of the General Assembly.
Quorum
Article 52. A majority of the member states shall constitute a quorum at the
plenary sessions. In the General Committee, its subcommittees, and its working
groups, a quorum shall consist of one third of the delegations comprising those
bodies. Nevertheless, in order for a vote to be taken, the presence of at least
two thirds of such delegations at the session or meeting concerned shall be
required.
Article 53. Proposals shall be presented in writing to the Secretariat and may
not be discussed until 12 hours after they have been distributed to the
delegations in all four official languages. Nevertheless, the General Assembly,
by the vote of two thirds of the member states, may authorize discussion in the
plenary sessions of a proposal that has not been distributed on time.
Amendments
Article 54. During the consideration of a proposal a motion may be made to amend
it.
A motion shall be considered to be an amendment to a proposal only when it adds
to or eliminates something from that proposal or changes part of it. A motion
that would totally replace the original proposal or that is not directly
related to it shall not be considered to be an amendment.
Withdrawal of proposals and amendments
Article 55. A proposal or an amendment may be withdrawn by its proponent before
it has been put to a vote. Any delegation may present again a proposal or
amendment that has been withdrawn.
Article 56. For the reconsideration of a decision taken by the plenary General
Assembly, the General Committee, a subcommittee, or a working group, the
approval of the corresponding motion by the vote of two thirds of the
delegations that are members of the body in question shall be required.
Points of order
Article 57. During the discussion of a topic, any delegation may raise a point
of order, which shall be decided upon immediately by the president or chair.
Any delegation may appeal this decision, in which case the appeal shall be put
to a vote.
While raising a point of order, a delegation may not go into the substance of
the matter under discussion.
Suspension of debate
Article 58. The president or chair or any delegation may propose that debate be
suspended. Only two delegations may speak in favor of, and two against, such a
motion, which shall then be put to a vote immediately.
Closing of debate
Article 59. The president or chair or any delegation, when he or it considers
that a topic has been discussed sufficiently, may propose that debate be
closed. This motion may be opposed briefly by two delegations, after which it
shall be declared approved if so voted by two thirds of the delegations present
at the session or meeting.
Suspension or adjournment of the session or meeting
Article 60. During the discussion of any topic, the president or chair or any
representative may propose that the session or meeting be suspended or
adjourned. Such a motion shall be put to a vote immediately and without
discussion.
Article 61. Decisions on the matters dealt with in Articles 57, 58, and 60 shall
be taken by the vote of a majority of the delegations present.
Order of procedural motion
Article 62. Except as provided in Article 57, the following motions shall have
precedence, in the order set forth below, over all other proposals or motions:
a. Suspension of the session or meeting; b. Adjournment of the session or
meeting; c. Suspension of debate on the topic under consideration; d. Close of
debate on the topic under consideration.
Provisions common to all deliberative bodies of the General Assembly
Article 63. The provisions regarding debate and procedure contained in this
chapter shall govern the plenary sessions and the meetings of the committees,
subcommittees, and working groups.
XI. VOTING
Right to vote
Article 64. Each delegations shall have the right to one vote.
Majority required
Article 65. In both the plenary sessions and the General Committee meetings,
decisions shall be taken by the vote of a majority of the member states, except
in those cases in which the Charter of the Organization or these Rules of
Procedure may provide otherwise.
Article 66. In the subcommittees and working groups of the General Committee,
decisions shall be taken by the vote of a majority of the delegations present,
except in those cases in which these Rules of Procedure may provide otherwise
Article 67. Votes shall be taken by a show of hands, but any representative may
request a roll-call vote, which shall be taken beginning with the delegation
whose name is drawn by lot by the president or chair and continuing in the
order of precedence of the delegations.
Votes shall be taken by secret ballot only in the cases and in the manner
provided for in these Rules of Procedure.
No representative may interrupt the voting, except for a point of order relating
to the manner in which it is being conducted. This rule applies to the votes
provided for in this article and in the following articles of this chapter.
Voting on proposals
Article 68. After discussion is closed, the proposals presented, together with
any amendments thereto, shall be put to a vote immediately.
Proposals shall be voted upon in the order in which they are presented.
Voting on amendments
Article 69. An amendment shall be submitted for discussion and shall be put to a
vote before the proposal that it is intended to modify is voted upon.
Article 70. When several amendments to a proposal are presented, the vote shall
be taken first on the one that departs furthest from the original text. The
other amendments shall be voted upon in like order. In case of doubt in this
regard, they shall be considered in the order of their presentation.
Article 71. When the adoption of one amendment necessarily entails the exclusion
of another, the latter shall not be put to a vote. If one or more of the
amendments is adopted, the proposal as amended shall be put to a vote.
Article 72. When any delegation so requests, a proposal or amendment shall be
voted upon by parts. If any delegation opposes such a request, the opposing
motion shall be put to a vote, in which case the majority called for in Article
65 or Article 66, as applicable, shall be required for approval. If voting by
parts is accepted, the proposal or amendment thus approved shall be put to a
final vote in its entirety. When all the operative parts of a proposal or
amendment have been rejected, such proposal or amendment shall be considered to
have been rejected as a whole.
Elections
Article 73. Elections shall be by secret ballot except when they are by
acclamation.
Article 74. In cases where only one member state or one person is to be elected,
if no candidate obtains the vote of a majority of the member states on the
first ballot, a second and, if necessary, a third ballot shall be taken,
limited to the two candidates receiving the largest number of votes. If after
the third ballot no candidate has obtained the required majority, the election
shall be suspended for the period of time determined by the Assembly or, if
applicable, the committee concerned. When the election is resumed, two
additional ballots shall be taken. If neither of the two candidates is elected
the balloting procedure established in this article shall be started again at
the time indicated by the Assembly, with respect to the candidates who are
presented.
Article 75. When two or more elective posts are to be filled at the same time
and under the same conditions, the candidates obtaining the vote of a majority
of the member states shall be declared elected. If the number of candidates
obtaining such a majority is smaller than the number of persons or members to
be elected, there shall be additional ballots to fill the remaining posts, the
voting being limited to the candidates who have received the most votes on the
previous ballot, in such a way that the number of candidates will not be more
than twice the number of posts remaining to be filled.
Explanation of vote
Article 76. After voting has ended, and except when it has been by secret
ballot, any representative may request the floor to give a brief explanation of
his vote.
XII. MINUTES AND OTHER DOCUMENTS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Verbatim and summary minutes
Article 77. The minutes of the plenary sessions shall be verbatim. The minutes
of committee meetings shall be summary, unless the Preparatory Committee
decides otherwise.
Article 78. The Secretariat shall distribute the provisional minutes to the
delegations and, when applicable, to the permanent observers as promptly as
possible. It shall do the same for the other observers in the case of public
meetings at which these observers have spoken. The delegations, permanent
observers, and other observers may present to the Secretariat any corrections
in style that they deem necessary.
The corrected minutes shall be published as part of the official proceedings of
the session.
Journal
Article 79. The Secretariat shall publish a brief summary of the sessions and
meetings held on the preceding day. This publication shall also include:
a. The list of documents distributed during the preceding 24 hours; b. The
orders of business for the next sessions and meetings; and c. Brief
announcements of interest to the delegations.
Resolutions, declarations, and recommendations
Article 80. The resolutions, declarations, and recommendations issued by the
General Assembly shall be published in the official languages of the
Organization and shall be distributed to the delegations, permanent observers,
other observers, and special guests immediately after they are approved. The
General Assembly may entrust the Permanent Council with coordinating the texts
of the resolutions after each session. The General Secretariat shall distribute
the official versions of these resolutions to the governments.
Reservations and statements
Article 81. Any delegation that wishes to make a reservation or statement with
respect to a treaty or convention, or a statement regarding a resolution of the
General Assembly, shall communicate the text thereof to the Secretariat, so
that the latter may distribute it to the delegations no later than at the
plenary session at which the instrument in question is to be voted upon. Such
reservations and statements shall appear along with the treaty or convention
or, in the case of a resolution, in the corresponding minutes.
Official version of the proceedings
Article 82. The General Secretariat shall publish as soon as possible the
official version of the proceedings of each Assembly session.
The General Secretariat shall adopt an appropriate system for numbering the
resolutions of the General Assembly.
Article 83. The General Secretariat shall send certified copies of the treaties,
conventions, and resolutions adopted by the Assembly to the governments of the
member states. It shall also register the said treaties and conventions with
the United Nations.
XIII. ADMISSION OF NEW MEMBERS
Article 84. The General Assembly shall consider the recommendations made by the
Permanent Council concerning the requests for admission presented by
independent American states, in accordance with the provisions of Article 7 of
the Charter.
By a vote of two thirds of the member states and following a report by the
competent committee, the General Assembly shall determine whether it is
appropriate to authorize the Secretary General to permit the applicant state to
sign the Charter and for him to accept the deposit of the corresponding
instrument of ratification.
XIV. AMENDMENT OF THE RULES OF PROCEDURE
Article 85. These Rules of Procedure may be amended by the General Assembly,
acting either on its own initiative or on a proposal by the Preparatory
Committee or the Permanent Council. For the adoption of a proposed amendment,
the vote of a majority of the member states shall be required, except in the
case of articles in which a two thirds majority has been established, for the
amendment of which that same majority shall be required.
_______________________
1. Proposed amendments agreed upon by the Special
Joint Working Group of the Permanent Council and CIDI on the Strengthening and
Modernization of the OAS have been incorporated.
2. Numbering resulting from the entry into force of the
Protocol of Washington.
3. Numbering resulting from the entry into force of the
Protocol of Washington.
| Resolutions Index |
|