Conference Handbook

What is the mock parliament?

The concept of the mock parliament is to actively involve Indian students in a simulation of the Pakistani parliament (the National Assembly). The main idea, is for participants to research political positions of various members of the Assembly, so as to gain a better understanding of the problems currently faced by the country. The mock parliament will be a platform where students will represent individual ministers, following the same procedure as that of the National Assembly. All in all, the mock parliament promises to be one of the most interesting and stimulating experiences of your life.

Before we begin... Delegate Preparation;

Badges/ID cards These will be handed out to the delegates on the first day of the conference. They are to be worn at all times. Food and Beverages Delegates will be provided with water and beverages, courtesy the American Centre. However, each delegate should carry their own food or have sufficient money to buy lunch for all three days of the conference. Dress Code Formal attire must be worn at all times. Dresses, shirts, pants and skirts are accepted, provided they are relatively formal. Traditional

Indian/Pakistani wear is also permitted. Mini-skirts, slippers and other informal clothes or footwear are not permitted and any delegate who does not adhere to the formal dress code will be asked to please leave.

Guide to Procedure Language

English will be the official working language of the conference.

Delegations
Delegates will work individually, and represent different ministers of the National Assembly.

General Powers of Committee Staff

All comments are addressed to the Speaker, who directs the flow of the debate, recognises delegates and enforces the observance of correct procedure. He/she may suspend the sitting for a time decided by him, in case of grave circumstances and can ask members to leave indefinitely if they prove to be an obstruction to the business of the house. The Press Corps is free to publish any material that lies within the scope of this conference/parliament. The Press can enter and observe parliamentary proceedings, subject to the MNAs (Members of the National Assembly) having no objections.

Quorum
The quorum for the committee/parliament is set at 1/4 th i.e. at least four members must be present for the House to transact its business. If the requisite quorum is not present, the committee will be suspended for a maximum of half an hour.

Getting Started
At the start of each sitting, the members collectively take their oath of office, and then sign the roll of members. This is followed by the recitation of a few passages from the Quran, and subsequently, its translation in Urdu. The session officially begins after these

formalities have been carried out. Members forming the government sit on the left side of the hall, while the opposition sits on the right. The first hour of every day is reserved for questions.

Types of Questions
There are four types of questions that can be addressed to the ministers in parliament. (i) Starred Questions These are those questions to which the ministers must give an oral answer. MNAs asking starred questions must give a minimum of 1 days notice. These questions are sent to the chair for approval the day before they are taken up in parliament, and are indicated by an asterisk mark. A maximum of two supplementary questions may be asked once an answer has been given on the floor of the House. Un-starred Questions - These are those questions to which the ministers must give a written answer. An MNA must send his question to the chair for approval a day prior to when it shall be addressed by the minister concerned. Once a written answer has been provided, no supplementary questions can be asked thereon. Short Notice Questions These are those questions which are of urgent importance, and need to be addressed instantly. These questions are sent to the chair during the first hour of committee itself, and if approved, can be subsequently placed before the minister concerned. No prior notice is required, and the minister is obligated to give an oral answer on the floor of the House. Private member questions These are those questions relating to a member who has a relationship with state matters or parliamentary proceedings. These questions are directed to MNAs who do not form the government and are asked, in the same manner as short notice questions, i.e. without prior notice and on the same day as the chair approves the question. Only one supplementary question

(ii)

(iii)

(iv)

can be asked once the answer to the original question has been given on the floor of the House.

Business of the Assembly

The business of the Assembly is classified into two parts: (i) Government Business- These are bills, motions, amendments or resolutions which are introduced in the Assembly by MNAs who are the ministers who form the government. (ii) Private Members Business- These are bills, motions, amendments and resolutions which are introduced by those MNAs who are not ministers in the government.

Bills, Resolutions and Directives

A bill is a written motion for making a law, or altering an existing one. A resolution is a written motion, which discusses and expresses an opinion on a matter of general importance. Directives are similar to working papers; however, once passed by parliament, they are binding on all members. In the case of all three, the Government Business gets precedence in the Assembly, over the Private Members Business, unless decided otherwise by the Speaker. All the business of the Assembly is first submitted to the Speaker for his/her approval, and for example, if he/she deems a Private Members bill to be of pressing importance, he/she may approve of taking it up in the Assembly, even giving it precedence over a bill submitted by a minister of the government. Within the Private Members business, the order of taking up bills, directives and resolutions is decided by the Assembly as a whole, through the system of secret ballot. This ballot will be held half an hour prior to when the Assembly begins debate, on the first day i.e. halfway through the first hour, reserved for questions. It is therefore recommended to bring bills or directives written individually using your own research to the Assembly on the first day. The order of taking up the bills and directives over the next few days will then subsequently be according to the order in which the Speaker receives

them. However, the result of the ballot and subsequent order of the business of the Assembly can be over-ruled by the Speaker, at his/her discretion. Only a single final resolution will be passed at the end of the three days of the conference- all bills and directives will be written and passed, keeping the final objective of this resolution in mind. The final resolution must contain a comprehensive solution to the problem at hand, as well as detailed, tangible steps to working towards achieving the aforementioned goal.

Orders of the Day

Once the Speaker has decided the order of the business to be taken up in the Assembly, the Secretary will then make copies of this list, and hand it out to all the members, for their use. The business of the day will follow that which is predetermined in the Order of the Day, unless dictated otherwise by the Speaker himself/herself. If the business listed in the Order of the Day is completed before the end of the sitting, further business can be taken up according to the Speakers discretion. However, not more than three bills and two directives, outstanding from the previous day of business can be carried forward to the next day. The MNAs are required to give a notice of an hour and a half before introducing a bill or directive i.e. they should hand it in to the Speaker one and a half hours prior to when it will be introduced in the Assembly. However, due to the predetermined Order of the Day, as the day proceeds, the bills and directives may be introduced after a longer time interval.

Format of a Bill
The format of a bill, which is a motion for either an amendment to, or creating an entirely new law, is different from that of a resolution.

Headings- It is titled simply, naming the law which is being amended or the name of the new law being introduced. Body- The bill opens with a statement, beginning with the word Whereas which explains why it is necessary to introduce the new law, or amend the existing one. Most such statements simply say that the reasons are enumerated below. (Please refer to the example) The amendments or points of the law are then listed below. They are numbered, and each point is in the form of one long sentence, with only the last word of each point being followed by a full stop. The points must be listed clearly, and in detail, following a systematic and logical pattern. Conclusion- Once all the points are listed, the second part of the bill, headed as Statement of Objects and Reasons is written down, where the author of the Bill states what needed to be amended or introduced, and what the purpose and effects of this Bill are. This is a summary of the importance of passing this Bill and hence must be worded well, and have an impact. The Bill is ended with the signature of the author. For a Bill to be introduced, three members must second the Bill before it is sent to the Speaker for his approval to take it up on the floor of the House. An example of a Bill is included below:
http://www.na.gov.pk/passed_bill/passed_bill_2010/pakistan_penal_code_amend_act2010_1 20310.pdf

Format of a Resolution
The format of a Resolution in the National Assembly is the same as that followed in the United Nations. Headings- The draft resolution is titled according to the authors discretion and is followed by a mention of the topic area and the House of Parliament (the National Assembly). Body- The Pre-ambulatory clauses follow, which describe the issue being tackled. They should include references to past action taken,

and the purpose of the resolution. Each Pre-ambulatory clause begins with an italicised phrase and is ended with a comma. The Operative clauses are the crux of the resolution and are numbered, stating purposeful action that the National Assembly is authorising to be taken. These begin with present tense active verbs, which are more powerful than those used in the Preamble. Each operative clause ends with a semi colon, except the last one, which ends with a full stop. Resolutions must have at least four signatories, including the author himself/herself. Resolutions must provide clear and effective solutions to the matter at hand. They should be logical, dealing with innovative ideas, which must also be realistic.

Format of a Directive
Directives are intended to aid the Assembly in its discussion and formulation of the final resolution, however they need not be written in the format of a resolution. They can be presented as a one page draft, as a cartoon, or an essay- as long as they can be understood. Directives must be concise and to the point, and can be about anything under the topic area. Directives are very similar to working papers- the only difference being, once passed by the Assembly, they are binding on all members of the House. Pre-ambulatory Phrases Affirming Alarmed by Approving Aware of Believing Bearing in mind Cognizant of Confident Contemplating Convinced Declaring Deeply concerned

Deeply conscious Deeply convinced Deeply disturbed Deeply regretting Desiring Emphasizing Expecting Expressing its appreciation Expressing its satisfaction Fulfilling Fully aware Fully alarmed Fully believing Further deploring Further recalling Guided by Having adopted Having considered Having considered further Having devoted attention Having examined Having heard Having received Having studied Keeping in mind Noting further Noting with regret Noting with satisfaction Noting with deep concern Noting with approval Observing Realizing Reaffirming Recalling Recognizing Referring Seeking

Taking into account Taking note Viewing with appreciation Welcoming Operative Phrases Accepts Affirms Approves Authorizes Calls for Calls upon Condemns Congratulates Confirms Considers Declares accordingly Deplores Draws attention Designates Emphasizes Encourages Endorses Expresses its appreciation Expresses its hope Further invites Further proclaims Further reminds Further recommends Further requests Further resolves Has resolved Notes Proclaims Reaffirms Recommends Reminds

Regrets Requests Resolves Solemnly affirms Strongly condemns Supports Takes note of Trusts Urges

Once Introduced...
Once a bill, directive or the final resolution has been introduced by the Speaker in the Assembly, the first 15 minutes are set aside for discussing it. The Speaker decides the individual speaking time for each member, and the discussion is strictly limited to the subject matter of the paper under consideration. After this, the floor is open for amendments and the time for discussing each amendment will be decided by the Speaker. Each amendment which the Speaker approves of will be voted on, before moving to discuss the next one. Voting on amendments is informal, and a simple majority is required to pass the amendment. Members abstaining from voting do not count as a negative vote. Once all the amendments have been debated on, and the bill, directive or resolution has been modified, or when the Speaker deems it necessary, the Assembly will move into formal voting.

Voting for Bills and Resolutions

The procedure for voting for bills, directives and resolutions is the same. All non-members and viewers shall be asked to leave the room and then there will be three rounds of voting. In the first round the members have five options: Yes No Yes with rights No with rights Abstain

Members who wish to explain their vote can opt for yes or no with rights (only in the first and second round) and can defend their choice in the next round, speaking for a limited period of time predetermined by the Speaker. However in the third round, those who had abstained in the previous two must vote either yes or no. For a bill, directive or resolution to pass, it must have at least 2/3rds of the members voting in favour of passing it.

Types of Motions
A motion can be made by any MNA at any point in the day, provided that it doesnt interrupt a speaker, and is relevant to the proceedings of the Assembly. (i) Motion of Thanks- MNAs motion for a motion of thanks when they want to discuss the Presidents Address or message, which is explained under the next heading. (ii) Motion to Approach the Chair- It is a motion which shall be used only when the MNA needs to submit his resolution or bill to the Speaker, or when he needs clarification on a particular matter urgently. (iii) Adjournment Motion- This is a motion by any MNA who feels that the current topic being discussed is not very important, and there is another matter of general public importance which should be taken up instead, If the Speaker entertains this motion it should be seconded by at least half of the MNAs present and voting.

Other Important Points of Parliamentary Procedure

(i) Point of Order- Points of order refer to raising a question regarding the interpretation or enforcement of the rules and regulations of the Assembly. A point of order can be raised in relation to the business of the Assembly at that moment, provided that the Chair has disposed of any earlier points of order. There will be no discussion on a point of order, and it shall not be used to explain ones position, ask for information or as a point of privilege.

(ii)

(iii)

(iv)

Point of Personal Privilege- This is the only point which can interrupt an MNA when he/she is speaking, to express any sort of physical discomfort. For example, not being able to hear what is being said on the floor of the House. Right of Reply- This is a privilege that can only be exercised by those MNAs who are ministers forming the government. It can be used to defend themselves or the governments policies in the Assembly when they are under attack by any other member. It cannot interrupt a speech, but once a member has completed talking, a minister can motion for a right of reply. Yielding- If an MNA finishes speaking before the lapse of the time predetermined by the Speaker for each individual, he may yield his time in 3 ways: To another delegate To questions To the chair If a MNA yields to questions, the number of questions to be directed to him will be decided by the Speaker.

Presidents Address and Messages from the President

The President may address the Assembly as and when he/she wishes, or may send messages to the Assembly, which the Speaker will read out to the Assembly. A discussion on the Presidents address or message may ensue, in the form of a motion of thanks, which must be seconded by a simple majority of the Assembly. The Speaker will set a time period for the discussion as well as a time for the individual speeches, keeping the agenda of the Assembly for the day in mind. The Presidents business may interrupt the regular proceedings of the House.

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