Genre: Legal

Regulations Governing the Status , Basic Rights and Duties of Officials other than Secretariat Officials , and Experts on Mission United Nations New York , 2002 ST / SGB / 2002 / 9 18 June 2002 Secretary-General's bulletin Regulations Governing the Status , Basic Rights and Duties of Officials other than Secretariat Officials , and Experts on Mission The Secretary-General promulgates the following Regulations Governing the Status , Basic Rights and Duties of Officials other than Secretariat Officials , and Experts on Mission ( hereinafter " the Regulations " ) . Section 1 General provisions 1.1 By its resolution 56 / 280 of 27 March 2002 , the General Assembly adopted the Regulations . 1.2 The text of the Regulations is attached to the present bulletin . Section 2 Final provision The present bulletin shall enter into force on 1 July 2002 . ( Signed ) Kofi A. Annan Secretary-General Contents Introduction Article 105 , paragraph 3 , of the Charter of the United Nations empowers the General Assembly to make recommendations with a view to determining , inter alia , the privileges and immunities of officials of the Organization or to propose conventions to Member States for this purpose . The Assembly did so by adopting the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations on 13 February 1946 ( hereinafter called " the General Convention " ) . The United Nations has persons performing full-time services for it , at the direction of its legislative organs , who are not staff . For example , article 13 of the statute of the Joint Inspection Unit ( approved by the General Assembly in its resolution 31 / 192 of 22 December 1976 ) provides that the Inspectors shall have the status of officials of the Organization but shall not be staff members . In addition , pursuant to article V , section 17 , of the General Convention , the Secretary-General has specified and submitted to the Assembly proposals that a number of persons who occupy certain positions within the Organization be accorded privileges and immunities under articles V and VII of the General Convention , even though they are not staff members . Those persons are the presiding officers of United Nations organs performing functions for the Organization on a substantially full-time basis ( for example , the Chairman of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions and the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the International Civil Service Commission ) . Those officials are not in a separate category under the General Convention , but their names are submitted by the Secretary-General to the host country together with those of Secretariat officials who are staff members . These persons have been consistently referred to by the General Assembly as " officials other than Secretariat officials " . Experts on mission may be retained by way of a contract known as a consultant contract , which sets out the terms of their appointment and the tasks that they must discharge . Other individuals may have the status of experts on mission , even though they do not sign a consultant contract , if they are designated by United Nations organs to carry out missions or functions for the United Nations ( for example , rapporteurs of the Commission on Human Rights , rapporteurs and members of its Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and members of the International Law Commission ) . Article VI of the General Convention provides that experts ( other than officials coming within the scope of article V ) shall be accorded privileges and immunities necessary to enable them to carry out their missions for the United Nations and specifies a number of those privileges and immunities . Article VII , section 26 , of the General Convention provides that facilities similar to those specified in section 25 ( concerning applications for visas and facilities for speedy travel ) shall be accorded to experts and other persons who are travelling on the business of the United Nations . The Regulations contained in the present bulletin will apply to officials other than Secretariat officials , and to experts on mission . The Regulations are in most parts very general since they must apply to all officials other than Secretariat officials , and experts on mission . However , the application of the Regulations and the commentary to officials other than Secretariat officials , and to experts on mission who perform functions in respect of the United Nations and other organizations in the common system in accordance with their mandates ( e . g . , the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the International Civil Service Commission and the Inspectors of the Joint Inspection Unit ) , is explained in various provisions of the Regulations and the commentary ( see , e . g . , regulation 1 ( f ) , paragraph 3 of the commentary to regulation 1 ( a ) and the commentary to Regulation 1 ( b )) . The Regulations contained in the present bulletin will form part of the contract of employment or terms of appointment of any individual , including officials other than Secretariat officials , and experts on mission , who are appointed through Assembly action or through the actions of other representative bodies . Role of the commentary Each provision of the Regulations set out in the present bulletin is followed by a commentary . The commentary is designed to explain those provisions and will thus be of help to those persons subject to the Regulations . The commentary is not part of the Regulations adopted by the Assembly , and so is not a legal norm ; nor does it have the legal force of a rule . It is , however , an official guide published by the Secretary-General on the scope and application of the Regulations . The commentary will be updated from time to time in the light of experience gained in applying the Regulations to specific instances . Regulations Governing the Status , Basic Rights and Duties of Officials other than Secretariat Officials , and Experts on Mission Regulation 1 Status ( a ) The responsibilities of officials other than Secretariat officials ( hereinafter referred to as " officials " ) and of experts on mission are not national but exclusively international . ( b ) Officials and experts on mission shall make the following written declaration witnessed by the Secretary-General or an authorized representative : " I solemnly declare and promise to exercise in all loyalty , discretion and conscience the functions entrusted to me by the United Nations , to discharge these functions and regulate my conduct with the interests of the United Nations only in view , and not to seek or accept instructions in regard to the performance of my duties from any Government or other source external to the Organization . " ( c ) The Secretary-General shall seek to ensure that the rights and duties of officials and of experts on mission , as set out in the General Convention , are respected . The Secretary-General shall also seek to ensure , having regard to the circumstances , that all necessary safety and security arrangements are made for officials and experts on mission carrying out the responsibilities entrusted to them . ( d ) Experts on mission will receive a copy of the present Regulations Governing the Status , Basic Rights and Duties of Officials other than Secretariat Officials , and Experts on Mission ( hereinafter referred to as " the Regulations " ) when they receive documentation from the United Nations relating to their mission and will be required to acknowledge receipt of the Regulations . Officials will receive a copy of the Regulations at an appropriate opportunity . ( e ) The privileges and immunities enjoyed by the United Nations by virtue of Article 105 of its Charter are conferred in the interests of the Organization . These privileges and immunities furnish no excuse to those who are covered by them to fail to observe the laws and police regulations of the State in which they are located ; nor do they furnish an excuse for non-performance of their private obligations . In any case where an issue arises regarding the application of these privileges and immunities , an official or an expert on mission shall immediately report the matter to the Secretary-General , who alone may decide whether such privileges and immunities exist and whether they shall be waived , in accordance with the relevant instruments . The Secretary-General should inform and may take into account the views of the legislative bodies that appointed the officials or experts on mission . ( f ) These regulations are applicable to the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the International Civil Service Commission and the Inspectors of the Joint Inspection Unit , without prejudice to and in accordance with the statutes of the International Civil Service Commission and the Joint Inspection Unit , which stipulate that these officials perform their functions in respect of the United Nations and other organizations that accept their statutes . Regulation 2 Conduct ( a ) Officials and experts on mission shall uphold the highest standards of efficiency , competence and integrity . The concept of integrity includes , but is not limited to , probity , impartiality , fairness , honesty and truthfulness in all matters affecting their work and status . ( b ) In the performance of their duties , officials and experts on mission shall neither seek nor accept instructions from any Government or from any other source external to the Organization . ( c ) Officials and experts on mission shall discharge their functions and regulate their conduct with the interests of the Organization only in view . Loyalty to the aims , principles and purposes of the United Nations , as set forth in its Charter , is a fundamental obligation of all individuals covered by the present Regulations . ( d ) While the personal views and convictions of officials and experts on mission , including their political and religious convictions , remain inviolable , they shall ensure that those views and convictions do not adversely affect their official duties or the interests of the United Nations . Officials and experts on mission shall conduct themselves at all times in a manner befitting their status . They shall not engage in any activity that is incompatible with the proper discharge of their duties with the United Nations . They shall avoid any action and , in particular , any kind of public pronouncement that may adversely reflect on their status , or on the integrity , independence and impartiality that are required by that status . ( e ) Officials and experts on mission shall not use their office or knowledge gained from their official functions for private gain , financial or otherwise , or for the gain of any third party , including family , friends and those they favour . Nor shall they use their office for personal reasons to prejudice the positions of those they do not favour . ( f ) Officials and experts on mission shall exercise the utmost discretion in regard to all matters of official business . Officials and experts on mission shall not communicate to any Government , entity , person or any other source any information known to them by reason of their official position that they know or ought to have known has not been made public , except as appropriate in the normal course of their duties or by authorization of the Secretary-General . If they are not appointed by the Secretary-General , such authorization shall be conferred by the body that appointed them . These obligations do not cease upon the cessation of their official functions . ( g ) Officials and experts on mission may not accept any honour , decoration , favour , gift or remuneration from any Government or non-governmental source for activities carried out during the course of their official functions while in the service of the United Nations . ( h ) Officials and experts on mission shall not be actively associated with the management of , or hold a financial interest in , any profit-making , business or other concern , if it were possible for them or the profit-making , business or other concern to benefit from such association or financial interest by reason of their position with the United Nations . Officials or experts on mission who are in such a situation shall either dispose of that financial interest or formally excuse themselves from participating with regard to any involvement in that matter that has given rise to the conflict-of-interest situation . ( i ) Officials and experts on mission shall file financial disclosure statements if requested to do so by the Secretary-General . The Secretary-General shall prescribe the format and information to be provided in such statements and shall establish procedures for filing them . The financial disclosure statements will remain confidential and will be used , as prescribed by the Secretary-General , only in making determinations pursuant to regulation 2 ( h ) . It will be for the Secretary-General , in due consultation with the appointing authority in the case of officials not appointed by the Secretary-General , to judge whether a particular fact has given rise to a conflict-of-interest situation . ( j ) Officials and experts on mission must comply with local laws and honour their private legal obligations , including , but not limited to , the obligation to honour orders of competent courts . ( k ) Any form of discrimination or harassment , including sexual or gender harassment , as well as physical or verbal abuse , at the workplace or in connection with work , is prohibited . ( l ) Officials and experts on mission shall not intentionally misrepresent their functions , official title or the nature of their duties to Member States or to any entities or persons external to the United Nations . ( m ) Officials and experts on mission participating , as part of their official functions , in activities organized by a Government , intergovernmental organization , non-governmental organization or other private source may receive from the Government , intergovernmental organization , non-governmental organization or private source accommodation and travel and subsistence allowance generally in line with those payable by the United Nations . In such cases , the travel and subsistence allowance that may otherwise be payable by the United Nations shall be reduced in the same manner as in respect of staff members of the Organization . Regulation 3 Accountability Officials and experts on mission are accountable to the United Nations for the proper discharge of their functions . Regulations Governing the Status , Basic Rights and Duties of Officials other than Secretariat Officials , and Experts on Mission , with commentary Regulation 1 Status Regulation 1 ( a ) The responsibilities of officials other than Secretariat officials ( hereinafter referred to as " officials " ) and of experts on mission are not national but exclusively international . Commentary The United Nations has persons who perform services for it on a substantially full-time basis but who are not staff members . These persons have consistently been referred to by the General Assembly as " officials other than Secretariat officials " . In addition , pursuant to article V , section 17 , of the General Convention , the Secretary-General has specified and submitted to the Assembly proposals that a number of persons who occupy certain positions within the Organization be accorded the privileges and immunities under articles V and VII of the General Convention , even though they are not staff members . These persons have also been referred to as " officials other than Secretariat officials " . The United Nations also has experts who perform assignments for the Organization . Article VI of the General Convention provides that experts ( other than officials coming within the scope of article V ) shall be accorded privileges and immunities necessary to enable them to carry out their missions for the United Nations and specifies a number of those privileges and immunities . These experts have been referred to as " experts on mission " . The Regulations and the commentary , as applied to the Chairman and the Vice-Chairman of the International Civil Service Commission , the Inspectors of the Joint Inspection Unit and other officials and experts who perform functions in respect of the common system , in accordance with the statute of the International Civil Service Commission or that of the Joint Inspection Unit , respectively , or other mandates approved by the General Assembly or other relevant main bodies and organs of the United Nations , should be construed in the light of those functions and mandates . References to the United Nations or the United Nations Organization in the context of these Regulations and the commentary should be applied , bearing in mind that the functions of those officials and experts are related to the common system . Regulation 1 ( a ) is similar to the second sentence of staff regulation 1.1 ( a ) . Regulation 1 ( b ) Officials and experts on mission shall make the following written declaration witnessed by the Secretary-General or an authorized representative : " I solemnly declare and promise to exercise in all loyalty , discretion and conscience the functions entrusted to me by the United Nations , to discharge these functions and regulate my conduct with the interests of the United Nations only in view , and not to seek or accept instructions in regard to the performance of my duties from any Government or other source external to the Organization . " Commentary Regulation 1 ( b ) , which is similar to staff regulation 1.1 ( b ) , contains the declaration of office of officials and experts on mission . In view of the system-wide functions of the International Civil Service Commission and the Joint Inspection Unit , the term " United Nations " in the written declaration will be replaced by the words " United Nations and other participating organizations " , and the word " Organization " will be replaced by the word " organizations " in the case of the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the International Civil Service Commission and the Inspectors of the Joint Inspection Unit . Regulation 1 ( c ) The Secretary-General shall seek to ensure that the rights and duties of officials and experts on mission , as set out in the General Convention , are respected . The Secretary-General shall also seek to ensure , having regard to the circumstances , that all necessary safety and security arrangements are made for officials and experts on mission carrying out the responsibilities entrusted to them . Commentary The first sentence of regulation 1 ( c ) , which is similar to staff regulation 1.1 ( c ) , codifies an implicit duty that falls upon the Secretary-General , namely , to seek to ensure that the rights and duties of officials and experts on mission as set out in the General Convention are respected ( as such rights are granted by Governments , the Secretary-General can only " seek to ensure " that they are respected ) . The protection accorded to officials and experts on mission under this provision relates to their official acts and thus does not lapse upon cessation of their service for the Organization , or , if they are part-time , on days when they are not in service . The second sentence of regulation 1 ( c ) , which reproduces the essence of the second sentence of staff regulation 1.2 ( c ) , sets forth the responsibility of the Secretary-General to seek to ensure the safety of officials and experts on mission . Regulation 1 ( d ) Experts on mission will receive a copy of the present Regulations Governing the Status , Basic Rights and Duties of Officials other than Secretariat Officials and Experts on Mission ( hereinafter referred to as " the Regulations " ) when they receive documentation from the United Nations relating to their mission and will be required to acknowledge receipt of the Regulations . Officials will receive a copy of the Regulations at an appropriate opportunity . Commentary Experts on mission retained by the Secretariat sign a consultant contract or receive a letter or other documentation indicating the scope of their mission for the Organization . The consultant contract or other documentation will incorporate the Regulations by reference , and experts will be required to acknowledge that they will abide by the Regulations . At times , legislative bodies entrust tasks to individuals to perform assignments for those bodies ( for example , members and special rapporteurs of the International Law Commission and other bodies ) . Those individuals have the status of experts on mission . Although their appointments may have been concluded without the signature of any document of appointment , their attention will be drawn to the Regulations when they receive documentation from the Secretariat relating to their functions and / or their assignment . That documentation will include a copy of the Regulations explaining that they were adopted by the General Assembly and thus constitute part of the conditions of those individuals' assignment for the United Nations . Officials will receive a copy of the Regulations at an appropriate time , such as when they make the declaration of office ( see regulation 1 ( b )) . Regulation 1 ( e ) The privileges and immunities enjoyed by the United Nations by virtue of Article 105 of its Charter are conferred in the interests of the Organization . These privileges and immunities furnish no excuse to those who are covered by them to fail to observe the laws and police regulations of the State in which they are located ; nor do they furnish an excuse for non-performance of their private obligations . In any case where an issue arises regarding the application of these privileges and immunities , an official or an expert on mission shall immediately report the matter to the Secretary-General , who alone may decide whether such privileges and immunities exist and whether they shall be waived , in accordance with the relevant instruments . The Secretary-General should inform and may take into account the views of the legislative bodies that appointed the officials or experts on mission . Commentary Regulation 1 ( e ) , which deals with privileges and immunities , is similar to staff regulation 1.1 ( f ) ( see paras . 32 , 49 , 54 and 55 of the report on standards of conduct in the international civil service 1954 , which was prepared by the International Civil Service Advisory Board ( hereinafter referred to as " the ICSAB report " )) . Regulation 2 ( j ) specifies the obligations on those who are covered by such privileges and immunities to honour their private legal obligations . Pursuant to article V , section 20 , and article VI , section 23 , of the General Convention , it is only the Secretary-General who has the right to waive the privileges and immunities accorded to officials and experts on mission . In deciding whether such privileges and immunities exist and whether they should be waived , the Secretary-General may take into account the views of the legislative body that appointed the officials or experts on mission . Regulation 1 ( f ) These regulations are applicable to the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the International Civil Service Commission and the Inspectors of the Joint Inspection Unit , without prejudice to and in accordance with the statutes of the International Civil Service Commission and the Joint Inspection Unit , which stipulate that these officials perform their functions in respect of the United Nations and other organizations that accept their statutes . [ There is no commentary to this provision . ] Regulation 2 Conduct Regulation 2 ( a ) Officials and experts on mission shall uphold the highest standards of efficiency , competence and integrity . The concept of integrity includes , but is not limited to , probity , impartiality , fairness , honesty and truthfulness in all matters affecting their work and status . Commentary Regulation 2 ( a ) , which describes basic values expected of officials and experts on mission , is similar to staff regulation 1.2 ( b ) . The first sentence of regulation 2 ( a ) is derived from Article 101 , paragraph 3 , of the Charter of the United Nations by virtue of affirmatively placing upon officials and experts on mission the obligation to uphold the highest standards of efficiency , competence and integrity . As pointed out in paragraph 4 of the ICSAB report , the concept of integrity includes " honesty , truthfulness , fidelity , probity and freedom from corrupting influences " . Regulation 2 ( b ) In the performance of their duties , officials and experts on mission shall neither seek nor accept instructions from any Government or from any other source external to the Organization . Commentary Regulation 2 ( b ) , which is similar to staff regulation 1.2 ( d ) , flows from the first sentence of Article 100 , paragraph 1 , of the Charter of the United Nations ( see ICSAB report , paras . 7 , 18 and 31 ) . Regulation 2 ( c ) Officials and experts on mission shall discharge their functions and regulate their conduct with the interests of the Organization only in view . Loyalty to the aims , principles and purposes of the United Nations , as set forth in its Charter , is a fundamental obligation of all individuals covered by the present Regulations . Commentary Regulation 2 ( c ) in substance contains the same obligations as are contained in staff regulation 1.2 ( e ) applicable to staff . The first sentence of regulation 2 ( c ) sets forth an idea that is contained in staff regulation 1.1 ( a ) and in staff regulation 1.1 ( b ) , which contains the written declaration of office , that is to say , the idea that staff must regulate their conduct with the interests of the Organization only in view ( ibid. , para . The second sentence of regulation 2 ( c ) focuses on the concept of loyalty to the aims , principles and purposes of the Organization as set forth in the Charter of the United Nations ( which is alluded to in the declaration contained in regulation 1 ( b )) ( ibid. , paras . 5 , 6 and 21 ) . Regulation 2 ( d ) While the personal views and convictions of officials and experts on mission , including their political and religious convictions , remain inviolable , they shall ensure that those views and convictions do not adversely affect their official duties or the interests of the United Nations . Officials and experts on mission shall conduct themselves at all times in a manner befitting their status . They shall not engage in any activity that is incompatible with the proper discharge of their duties with the United Nations . They shall avoid any action and , in particular , any kind of public pronouncement that may adversely reflect on their status , or on the integrity , independence and impartiality that are required by that status . Commentary Regulation 2 ( d ) is similar to staff regulation 1.2 ( f ) . The core idea of conduct befitting an international civil servant was considered by the International Civil Service Advisory Board in 1954 . The Advisory Board remarked that " high standards of conduct are best attained by a universal understanding among staff members of the relation between their conduct and the success of the international organizations , and by the development of a strong tradition among men and women who are jealous of the reputation of the organizations that they serve and are anxious to safeguard it " ( ICSAB report , para . 2 ; see also para . 4 , on the integrity expected of international civil servants ; paras . 5 , 6 and 21 , on loyalty ; paras . 7 and 18 , on independence ; and paras . 8 and 48 , on impartiality ) . In respect of the last sentence of the regulation , it would be for the Organization to characterize an action or pronouncement as adversely reflecting on the status of an official or an expert on mission . Regulation 2 ( e ) Officials and experts on mission shall not use their office or knowledge gained from their official functions for private gain , financial or otherwise , or for the gain of any third party , including family , friends and those they favour . Nor shall they use their office for personal reasons to prejudice the positions of those they do not favour . Commentary Regulation 2 ( e ) , which is similar to staff regulation 1.2 ( g ) , codifies principles set out in the ICSAB report ( see paras . 17 , 28 and 42 ) . The use of one's office for personal gain is clearly unacceptable . This includes not only conducting a business from a United Nations office but also such activities as using United Nations facilities for a business , using the United Nations name , logo or address for a business and approving a contract for a family business without disclosure . Regulation 2 ( e ) also reflects the principle set out in staff regulation 1.2 ( g ) that a staff member shall not use information that has not been made public for the private advantage of the staff member or of any third party . The regulation , for clarity , makes specific reference to prohibiting an official or expert on mission from so favouring a third party , including family or friends , as to enable that third party to profit from the position of the official or expert on mission or from the exercise of his or her functions . The term " friends " is broad and seeks to encompass not only friends as normally understood , but also relationships that are not recognized by the United Nations as creating a dependency . The regulation also prohibits the use of office or knowledge gained from that office for personal reasons to prejudice or harm third parties . Regulation 2 ( f ) Officials and experts on mission shall exercise the utmost discretion in regard to all matters of official business . Officials and experts on mission shall not communicate to any Government , entity , person or any other source any information known to them by reason of their official position that they know or ought to have known has not been made public , except as appropriate in the normal course of their duties or by authorization of the Secretary-General . If they are not appointed by the Secretary-General , such authorization shall be conferred by the body that appointed them . These obligations do not cease upon the cessation of their official functions . Commentary Regulation 2 ( f ) , which is similar to staff regulation 1.2 ( i ) , reflects the principle that official information may not be used for private purposes , except with authorization . This flows from the idea that officials and experts on mission are obligated to regulate their conduct with the interests of the Organization only in view ( see ICSAB report , para . 4 ) and also from the requirements of regulation 2 ( e ) . It follows that permission must be obtained for disclosure to third parties of information that has not been made public , unless such disclosure is specifically authorized or is in the normal course of duties of the official or expert on mission . Authorization of the Secretary-General is not required for officials and experts on mission who have not been appointed by the Secretary-General . Those officials and experts on mission would require the authorization of the body that had appointed them if the communication of the information was not a normal part of their duties . The last sentence of the regulation provides that the obligations contained in the provision do not cease upon cessation of official functions . It may be difficult to enforce such a provision , but , at the very least , if a former official or expert on mission ignored the obligations contained in this regulation , the official file of the former official or expert on mission could be noted so as to prevent his or her re-engagement . Regulation 2 ( g ) Officials and experts on mission may not accept any honour , decoration , favour , gift or remuneration from any Government or non-governmental source for activities carried out during the course of their official functions while in the service of the United Nations . Commentary To ensure that officials and experts are perceived as impartial , regulation 2 ( g ) prohibits the acceptance of any honour , decoration , favour , gift or remuneration from any Government or non-governmental source for activities carried out during the course of their official functions while in the service of the United Nations . Regulation 2 ( h ) Officials and experts on mission shall not be actively associated with the management of , or hold a financial interest in , any profit-making , business or other concern , if it were possible for them or the profit-making , business or other concern to benefit from such association or financial interest by reason of their position with the United Nations . Officials or experts on mission who are in such a situation shall either dispose of that financial interest or formally excuse themselves from participating with regard to any involvement in that matter that has given rise to the conflict-of-interest situation . Commentary The first sentence of regulation 2 ( h ) is similar to staff regulation 1.2 ( m ) . The purpose of the provision is to put officials and experts on mission on notice that they can not be actively associated with a profit-making , business or other concern , if either the concern or the official or expert on mission is to profit therefrom by reason of the association with the Organization . It will be for the Secretary-General or the appointing authority to judge whether a particular act has given rise to a conflict-of-interest situation . The second sentence of regulation 2 ( h ) is similar to the second part of staff rule 101.2 ( n ) , which deals with the consequences of a staff member 's having a possible conflict-of-interest situation . In such cases , the official or expert on mission shall dispose of the interests or , if practicable , shall excuse himself or herself from dealing with the matter on behalf of the Organization . Generally , experts on mission are appointed on a part-time basis , and it is therefore likely that they are engaged in other activities , including employment , when they are not performing services for the Organization . While there is no question that experts on mission may be so engaged , they must ensure that those activities are not incompatible with their status or functions as experts on mission . Regulation 2 ( i ) Officials and experts on mission shall file financial disclosure statements if requested to do so by the Secretary-General . The Secretary-General shall prescribe the format and information to be provided in such statements and shall establish procedures for filing them . The financial disclosure statements will remain confidential and will be used , as prescribed by the Secretary-General , only in making determinations pursuant to regulation 2 ( h ) . It will be for the Secretary-General , in due consultation with the appointing authority in the case of officials not appointed by the Secretary-General , to judge whether a particular fact has given rise to a conflict-of-interest situation . Commentary Regulation 2 ( i ) is similar to , but more general than , staff regulation 1.2 ( n ) , which requires all staff at the assistant secretary-general level and above to submit financial disclosure statements upon appointment and at intervals as prescribed by the Secretary-General , in respect of themselves and their dependent children , including any substantial transfers of assets and property to spouses and dependent children from the staff member or from any other source that might constitute a conflict of interest . This requirement is designed to minimize the risk of a perception of officials and experts on mission as using their position for personal gain . The regulation enables the Secretary-General to require officials and experts on mission to file financial disclosure statements , which will remain confidential and will be used only in dealing with conflict-of-interest situations ( for example , in assessing whether an official was in such a situation ) . Regulation 2 ( j ) Officials and experts on mission must comply with local laws and honour their private legal obligations , including , but not limited to , the obligation to honour orders of competent courts . Commentary Regulation 2 ( j ) , which is similar to staff rule 101.2 ( c ) , is really an amplification of regulation 1 ( e ) , which provides that the privileges and immunities of the Organization afford no excuse for non-performance of private obligations ( ibid. , paras . 32 , 54 and 55 ) . Regulation 2 ( j ) makes clear that private obligations must be honoured . It is the responsibility of those subject to the present Regulations , if they have a court order against them that they contest , to avail themselves of all means existing under the applicable national law to appeal the order and / or to secure relief from the obligation to comply with the order pending its appeal . Regulation 2 ( k ) Any form of discrimination or harassment , including sexual or gender harassment , as well as physical or verbal abuse , at the workplace or in connection with work , is prohibited . Commentary Regulation 2 ( k ) , which is similar to staff rule 101.2 ( d ) , reproduces the core of Secretary-General's bulletin ST / SGB / 253 of 29 October 1992 , which established United Nations policy on equal treatment of men and women in the Secretariat and also prohibited all forms of discrimination or harassment . Regulation 2 ( l ) Officials and experts on mission shall not intentionally misrepresent their functions , official title or the nature of their duties to Member States or to any entities or persons external to the United Nations . Commentary Regulation 2 ( l ) is similar to staff rule 101.2 ( f ) , which prohibits the intentional misrepresentation of an official title or duties to outside parties ( for example , by placing misleading titles on business cards ) . The use of the word " intentional " makes clear that this does not refer to careless or accidental acts . Regulation 2 ( m ) Officials and experts on mission participating , as part of their official functions , in activities organized by a Government , intergovernmental organization , non-governmental organization or other private source may receive from the Government , intergovernmental organization , non-governmental organization or private source accommodation and travel and subsistence allowance generally in line with those payable by the United Nations . In such cases , the travel and subsistence allowance that may otherwise be payable by the United Nations shall be reduced in the same manner as in respect of staff members of the Organization . Commentary Regulation 2 ( m ) , which is similar to staff rule 101.2 ( s ) , deals with the issue of participation at various official functions . Officials and experts on mission who as part of their official functions participate in activities organized by a Government , intergovernmental organization , non-governmental organization or other private source may receive from it accommodation and travel and subsistence allowance generally in line with those payable by the United Nations , and in such cases the allowances that may otherwise be payable by the United Nations shall be reduced in the same amount as in respect of staff members of the Organization . Such provisions are presently found in staff rule 107.15 ( a ) . It should be noted that accommodation and travel and subsistence allowance may be accepted only if their acceptance would be appropriate to the status of officials and experts on mission and to the integrity , independence and impartiality that are required by that status . There may therefore be situations in which it would not be appropriate to accept those allowances from a Government , intergovernmental organization , non-governmental organization or other private source . Regulation 3 Accountability Officials and experts on mission are accountable to the United Nations for the proper discharge of their functions . Commentary Regulation 3 , which is similar to staff regulation 1.3 ( a ) , makes clear that officials and experts on mission are accountable for their actions . The method of accountability may vary . For officials appointed by the General Assembly , that accountability would be a matter for the Assembly . For experts on mission , it would be the Secretary-General or the appointing authority who could terminate an assignment or otherwise admonish the expert . United Nations , Treaty Series , vol. I , No. 4 , p. 15 . Hereinafter , references to staff regulations and rules denote the provisions contained in article I of the Staff Regulations and chapter I of the 100 series of the Staff Rules that came into effect on 1 January 1999 , pursuant to General Assembly resolution 52 / 252 . A / 52 / 488 , annex III . iii