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On the Legal Status of UN Resolutions and Implications Thereof

Correspondance from Dr. Nobuo Kazashi, NO DU Hiroshima

Just for your reference, here's some information about the legal status of UN resolutions, followed by its implications, drawn out by my colleague, for the legal status of resolutions adopted by UN Sub-commissions.

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On the term, nonbinding:

Nonbinding: A document, like a Declaration, that carries no formal legal
obligations. It may, however, carry moral obligations or attain the force of law
as Customary International Law.

http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/edumat/hreduseries/hereandnow/Part-5/6_glossary.htm

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Tracing United Nations (UN) Resolutions: the General Assembly and the Security
Council

Decisions and recommendations made by the United Nations take the form of
resolutions adopted by one of its principal organs. Most United Nations
resolutions are adopted either by the General Assembly or the Security Council.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY RESOLUTIONS

General Assembly resolutions contain decisions and recommendations adopted by
the member nations of the General Assembly. These resolutions are not intended
to be legally binding on the General Assembly's independent member nations.
Consequently, a nation's own government must accept a General Assembly
resolution before it can become binding upon that nation. Although General
Assembly resolutions are not sources of law, they may contribute to the
development of international law if they are supported by the General Assembly's
member nations.

Tracing a General Assembly Resolution

1. An item is proposed by a nation or nations for inclusion in the provisional
agenda of the General Assembly, or is held over from the previous year.

2. The item on the provisional agenda is approved by the General Committee of
the General Assembly and assigned to one of the seven main committees of the
General Assembly or to the Plenary; the General Assembly approves the
recommendations of the General Committee.

3. One of the main committees or Plenary discusses the item.
a. Each member nation gives its views in a general statement;

b. A draft resolution is proposed;

c. Amendments are proposed.

4. The Committee votes on the draft resolution and amendments.
a. If the draft resolution, as amended, is passed, the committee reports to the
General Assembly;

b. If draft resolution is not passed, the item is dropped.

5. The General Assembly discusses the report of the committee and its
recommendation (which is the draft resolution which has passed in the
Committee).
a. Further statements by member nations may be made;

b. Further amendments may be proposed.

6. The General Assembly votes on draft resolution, as amended. A two-thirds
majority is required on the most important questions (e.g., new member
admission); all others require a simple majority.

SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTIONS

Security Council resolutions contain decisions and recommendations adopted by
the member nations of the Security Council. Security Council resolutions have
the same legal status as General Assembly resolutions.

Tracing a Security Council Resolution

1. An issue is brought to the attention of the Security Council by the
Secretary-General, the General Assembly, a United Nations member nation, or a
non-United Nations member nation.

2. The members of the Security Council consult on whether or not to make the
issue in question an agenda item.

3. If the issue is made an agenda item, it is discussed by the members of the
Security Council.
a. Each member nation gives its views;

b. A draft resolution is proposed;

c. Amendments are proposed.

4. The members of the Security Council vote on the draft resolution, as amended.
Procedural issues (e.g., agenda adoption) require the affirmative vote of any
nine member nations. Non-procedural issues require a majority of nine votes,
including the concurring vote of the five permanent member states.

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(implications for the legal status of resolutions adopted by UN Sub-commissions)

   Resolutions of the General Assembly are essentially recommendations and are
generally not binding international law. At times they can be taken as
*evidence* of existing customary international law by International Court of
Justice, or UN International Law Commission in the process of codification.

   Resolutions of the UN Sub-commission on Prevention of Discrimination and
Protection of Minorities have the same legal status as General Assembly
resolutions, i.e. legally non-binding.

   Therefore, in order to make (certain content of) such a resolution to be
admitted worldwide to have legally binding power, we need either:

- to obtain ICJ's clear authorization of such a resolution as evidence of
existing customary international law, as seen in the 1996 ICJ Advisory Opinion
on the Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons, or;

- to codify such a resolution explicitly in the form of treaty, i.e., binding
international law, as seen in the codification of the 1966 International
Covenants of Human Rights, the contents of which were originally adopted in 1948
as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in the form of the UN General
Assembly resolution .

   For additional information, please pay special attention to the fact that some
of the UN Security Council resolutions are regarded as "decisions" which have
legally binding power, even under the same term of "resolution."

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