RULES
OF PROCEDURE OF CONGRESSES
Article 1
General provisions
The present Rules of Procedure (hereinafter referred to as "the Rules") have been drawn up pursuant to the Acts of the Union and are subordinate to them. In the event of a discrepancy between one of their provisions and a provision of the Acts, the latter shall prevail.
Article 2
Delegations
1 The term "delegation" shall denote the person or body of persons designated by a member country to take part in a Congress. The delegation shall consist of a Head of delegation and, if appropriate, his deputy, one or more delegates and, possibly, one or more attached officials (including experts, secretaries, etc.).
2 Heads of delegation, their deputies, and delegates shall be representatives of member countries within the meaning of article 14, paragraph 2, of the Constitution if in possession of credentials which comply with the conditions laid down in article 3 of these Rules.
3 Attached officials shall be admitted to meetings, and shall have the right to participate in the proceedings, but they shall not normally have the right to vote. However, they may be authorized by the Head of their delegation to vote on behalf of their country at Committee meetings. Such authorizations shall be handed, in writing, to the Chairman of the Committee concerned, before the beginning of the meeting.
Article 3
Delegates' credentials
1 Delegates' credentials shall be signed by the Head of State, the Head of Government or the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the country concerned. They shall be drawn up in due and proper form. The credentials of delegates entitled to sign the Acts (plenipotentiaries) shall specify the scope of such signature (signature subject to ratification or approval, signature ad referendum, definitive signature). In the absence of such specific information, the signature shall be regarded as being subject to ratification or approval. Credentials authorizing the holder to sign the Acts shall implicitly include the right to speak and to vote. Delegates on whom the relevant authorities have conferred full powers without specifying their scope shall be authorized to speak, to vote and to sign the Acts unless the wording of the credentials is explicitly to the contrary.
2 Credentials shall be deposited at the opening of Congress with the authority designated for that purpose.
3 Delegates who are not in possession of credentials or who have not deposited their credentials may, provided their names have been communicated by their Government to the Government of the host country, take part in the debates and vote from the moment they participate in the work of Congress. The same shall apply to those whose credentials are found to be not in order. Such delegates shall cease to be empowered to vote from the time Congress approves the last report of the Credentials Committee establishing that their credentials have not been received or are not in order until such time as the position is regularized. The last report shall be approved by Congress before any elections other than that of the Chairman of Congress and before approval of the draft Acts.
4 The credentials of a member country which arranges for the delegation of another member country to represent it at Congress (proxy) shall be in the same form as those mentioned in paragraph 1.
5 Credentials and proxies sent by telegram shall not be admissible. However, telegrams sent in reply to requests for information relating to credentials shall be accepted.
6 A delegation which, after it has deposited its credentials, is prevented from attending one or more meetings, may arrange to be represented by the delegation of another country, provided that notice in writing is given to the Chairman of the meeting concerned. However, a delegation may represent only a single country other than its own.
7 The delegates of member countries which are not parties to an Agreement may take part in the debates of Congress concerning that Agreement, without the right to vote.
Article 4
Order of seating
1 At Congress and Committee meetings, delegations shall be seated in the French alphabetical order of the member countries represented.
2 The Chairman of the Council of Administration shall draw lots, in due course, for the name of the country to be placed foremost before the rostrum at Congress and Committee meetings.
Article 5
De jure observers
1 Representatives of the United Nations shall be admitted as observers to attend and /.../ take part in the debates of Congress.
2 (Deleted.)
3 Restricted Unions shall be admitted as observers to Congress and its Committees.
3bis The League of Arab States and the African Union (AU) shall be admitted as observers to Congress and its Committees.
4 Members of the Consultative Committee shall be admitted as observers to Congress and its Committees.
5 The observers referred to in paragraphs 1 to 4 shall not be entitled to vote, but may take the floor with the permission of the Chairman of the meeting.
5bis In exceptional circumstances, the right of observers referred to in paragraph 4 to participate in certain meetings, or parts of meetings, may be restricted if the confidentiality of the subject dealt with so requires. They shall be so informed as quickly as possible. This restriction may be decided on a case-by-case basis by any body concerned or its Chairman. Such decisions shall be reviewed by the Bureau of Congress, which shall have the authority to confirm or reverse such decisions by a simple majority vote.
Article 5bis
Invitees
1 Representatives of UN specialized agencies and intergovernmental organizations shall be designated by the Council of Administration to attend specified meetings of Congress and its Committees when questions of interest to these organizations are discussed.
2 Representatives of any international body, any association or enterprise or any qualified person duly designated by the Council of Administration shall be admitted to specified meetings of Congress or its Committees.
3 The invitees referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not be entitled to vote but may take the floor with the permission of the Chairman of the meeting.
Article 6
Doyen of Congress
1 The postal administration of the host country of Congress shall suggest the person to be appointed as Doyen of Congress in agreement with the International Bureau. The Council of Administration shall approve this appointment in due course.
2 At the opening of the first plenary meeting of each Congress, the Doyen shall act as Chairman until Congress has elected one. He shall also exercise the functions assigned to him under the present Rules.
Article 7
Chairmanships and vice-chairmanships
of Congress and Committees
1 At its first plenary meeting, Congress shall elect, on the proposal of the Doyen, the Chairman of Congress and then approve, on the proposal of the Council of Administration, the appointment of the member countries which are to assume the vice-chairmanships of Congress and the chairmanships and vice-chairmanships of the Committees. These posts will be assigned taking as much account as possible of the equitable geographical distribution of the member countries.
2 The Chairmen shall open and close the meetings over which they preside, direct the debates, give speakers the floor, put proposals to the vote and announce what majority is required for their adoption, announce decisions and, subject to the approval of Congress, interpret such decisions if necessary.
3 The Chairmen shall see that the present Rules are observed and that order is maintained at meetings.
4 Any delegation may appeal to Congress or the Committee against a decision taken by the Chairman on the basis of a provision or interpretation of the Rules. The Chairman's decision shall nevertheless hold good unless rescinded by a majority of the members present and voting.
5 Should the member country appointed to the chairmanship be no longer able to exercise this function, one of the Vice-Chairmen shall be appointed by Congress or the Committee to replace it.
Article 8
Bureau of Congress
1 The Bureau shall be the central body responsible for directing the work of Congress. It shall consist of the Chairman and Vice-Chairmen of Congress and the Chairmen of the Committees. It shall meet periodically to review the progress of the work of Congress and its Committees and to make recommendations designed to facilitate such progress. It shall assist the Chairman in drawing up the agenda of each plenary meeting and in coordinating the work of the Committees. It shall make recommendations relating to the closing of Congress.
2 The Secretary-General of Congress and the Assistant Secretary-General, mentioned in article 11, paragraph 1, shall attend the meetings of the Bureau.
Article 9
Membership of Committees
1 The member countries represented in Congress shall, as of right, be members of the Committees responsible for studying proposals relating to the Constitution, the General Regulations and the Convention.
2 Member countries represented in Congress which are parties to one or more of the optional Agreements shall, as of right, be members of the Committee and/or Committees responsible for the revision of these Agreements. The right to vote of members of the Committee or Committees shall be confined to the Agreement or Agreements to which they are parties.
3 Delegations which are not members of Committees dealing with the Agreements may attend meetings of those Committees and take part in the debates without the right to vote.
Article 10
Working parties
Congress and each Committee may set up working parties to study special questions.
Article 11
Secretariat of Congress and of Committees
1 The Director-General and the Deputy Director-General of the International Bureau shall act as Secretary-General and Assistant Secretary-General of Congress, respectively.
2 The Secretary-General and the Assistant Secretary-General shall attend the meetings of Congress and of the Bureau of Congress and take part in the debates without the right to vote. They may also attend, under the same conditions, Committee meetings or be represented thereat by a senior official of the International Bureau.
3 The work of the Secretariat of Congress, the Bureau of Congress and the Committees shall be performed by the staff of the International Bureau in conjunction with the postal administration of the host country.
4 Senior officials of the International Bureau shall act as Secretaries of Congress, of the Bureau of Congress and of the Committees. They shall assist the Chairman during meetings and shall be responsible for writing the /.../ reports.
5 The Secretaries of Congress and of the Committees shall be assisted by Assistant Secretaries.
6 (Deleted.)
Article 12
Languages of debates
1 Subject to paragraph 2, French, English, Spanish and Russian may be used for debates, by means of a system of simultaneous or consecutive interpretation.
2 The debates of the Drafting Committee shall be held in French.
3 Other languages may also be used for the debates mentioned in paragraph 1. The language of the host country shall have priority in this connection. Delegations using other languages shall arrange for simultaneous interpretation into one of the languages mentioned in paragraph 1, either by means of the simultaneous interpretation system, when the necessary technical alterations can be made, or by special interpreters.
4 The cost of installing and maintaining the technical equipment shall be borne by the Union.
5 The cost of the interpretation services shall be divided among the member countries using the same language in proportion to their contributions to the expenses of the Union.
Article 13
Languages used for drafting Congress documents
1 Documents prepared during Congress including draft decisions submitted to Congress for approval shall be published in French by the Secretariat of Congress.
2 To this end, documents produced by delegations of member countries shall be submitted in French, either direct or through the intermediary of the translation services attached to the Congress Secretariat.
3 The above services, organized at their own expense by the language groups set up in accordance with the relevant provisions of the General Regulations, may also translate Congress documents into their respective languages.
Article 14
Proposals
1 All questions brought before Congress shall be the subject of proposals.
2 All proposals published by the International Bureau before Congress shall be regarded as being submitted to Congress.
3 Two months before Congress opens, no proposal shall be considered except those amending earlier proposals.
4 The following shall be regarded as amendments: any proposal which, without altering the substance of the original proposal, involves a deletion from, addition to or revision of a part of the original proposal. No proposed change shall be regarded as an amendment if it is inconsistent with the meaning or intent of the original proposal. In case of doubt, Congress or the Committee shall decide the matter.
5 Amendments submitted at Congress to proposals already made shall be handed in to the Secretariat in writing, in French, before noon on the day but one before the day on which they will be discussed, so that they can be distributed to delegates the same day. This time limit shall not apply to amendments arising directly from the debates in Congress or in a Committee. In the latter case, if so requested, the author of the amendment shall submit a written version in French, or in case of difficulty, in any other language used for debates. The Chairman concerned shall read it out or have it read out.
6 The procedure laid down in paragraph 5 shall also apply to the submission of proposals that are not designed to amend the text of the Acts (draft resolutions, draft recommendations, draft formal opinions, etc.).
7 Any proposal or amendment shall give the final form of the text which is to be inserted in the Acts of the Union, subject, of course to revision by the Drafting Committee.
Article 15
Consideration of proposals in Congress and in Committees
1 Drafting proposals (the number of which shall be followed by the letter R) shall be assigned to the Drafting Committee either direct, if the International Bureau has no doubt as to their nature (a list of such proposals shall be drawn up for the Drafting Committee by the International Bureau), or, if the International