Each delegate has the opportunity to address the Council during its opening session. This should be treated as a serious occasion, and,
although the delegates opening speech
can be either of general or specific nature, it must be representative of
that nation’s primary concerns about the state of the world. Speakers should not attempt to state their country’s positions on as
many agenda issues as possible in the allotted speaking
time and, under no circumstances, may they abuse the
privilege by insulting other members of the United Nations or by presenting their country in an unworthy fashion.
A delegate might come to a conclusion about what it considers to be the single most important theme in the current atmosphere of relations
within the world community. This might be in the field of war and peace, on
human rights, ecology, development or disarmament. Another
delegate might be able to emphasize the
interrelatedness of the areas of concern, such as the effects of “development” on the “environment”. Yet another delegate might prefer to concentrate on a single item
of contention, affecting many of the UN members, such as the
Palestinian Question.
DELIVERING
THE SPEECH
Every speech should, of
course, be preceded by a formal greeting e.g. “Madame President,
Honorable Delegates…” and should finish with a phrase such as “Thank you Madame President”. Delegates should avoid making such introductions
and conclusions too long, however, since they only have
one minute to speak and the Council will soon become
bored with long, flowery introductions.
It should be obvious from
the speeches below that the design of a speech should be content
based as well as dramatic in tone. The participants at the conference will respond to a speech that is both informative and
emphatic. A primary purpose of the opening speech is to
allow a delegation to communicate what it perceives to be an
important message for the world community.
RIGHTS OF REPLY
Following the delivery of a
number of opening speeches, the Chair entertains rights
of reply. Again, the right to speak should be treated seriously and should not be abused. A right of reply should not be confused with a
point of information. Rights of reply are statements
pertaining to an item or items presented in opening speeches, not questions to
the speaker. Like the opening speeches themselves they should be content-based
and may be dramatic in tone but should not be purely rhetorical.
SAMPLE OPENING SPEECHES
"Liberté, Égalité,
Fraternité!" These were the first words General Charles de Gaulle addressed to the French population after the liberation of our
country following World War II. They stand for
Humanity has already
experienced the tension produced by armament races and is currently
sensitive and conscious of how such situations could possibly conclude in war. The French government recognizes that Fraternity
cannot be ensured while nations seek to broaden their
armament power, yet
Acting according to these
principles,
Only when the Palestinians
and others stop undermining Israeli security, will