STATUTES FOR THE ASSOCIATION OF MEDITERRANEAN FISHING PROFESSIONALS

Transcription

1 EP(03)31 rev. 6 CP(03)18S3 rev. 6 STATUTES FOR THE ASSOCIATION OF MEDITERRANEAN FISHING PROFESSIONALS MEDISAMAK Association of Mediterranean Fishing Professionals

2 ARTICLE I - NAME - REGISTERED OFFICE - DURATION - MEMBERS 1.1 The name of the Association shall be: MEDISAMAK. (Association of Mediterranean Fishing Professionals). The association consists of representatives of the Professional Organisations of all Mediterranean rim states Legal form: AISBL (International not for profit association) Members of the Association shall be organisations that fulfil the provisions of paragraph 4.1. of Article IV The Association shall be set up for an indefinite period. It shall be located provisionally in Puerto Pesquero, El Serrayo Tarragone, Spain. This location may be modified by the General Assembly. ARTICLE II - DURATION OF THE FINANCIAL YEAR The resources available to the Association for achieving and developing its ends will be: a) members subscriptions b) any subsidies received from various governments or international bodies c) gifts or legacies d) any other extraordinary income. The financial year corresponds with the calendar year. The association s accounting corresponds to the accounting standards that are legally applicable in the country of its head office. The results and budgets for each financial year must be approved by the General Assembly. ARTICLE III PURPOSE AND FUNCTIONS 3.1 The purpose of the Association shall be, in particular: a) to represent and defend the general and specific interests of Mediterranean fishing professionals, regardless of nationality; b) to promote relationships between its member organisations, by establishing bonds of cooperation and collaboration between them (in particular by exchanging information on the methods and types of fishing practised in their countries, and by exchanging information on the particular features of fishing zones and of the fish species present in them); c) to develop proposals for actions, reforms or measures aimed at improving the activities of Mediterranean fishing professionals, and the preservation of all marine resources they depend on; d) to undertake any activity or research which could promote the broader development of the above-mentioned objectives and to promote the realisation of pilot research programmes favouring the development of the profession.

3 e) to look for possible consensus between the administrations of the various countries and professional fisheries organisations in order to harmonise the regulations governing the defence and sustainable development of marine fishing resources The Association shall not operate for profit. It can act directly or indirectly within the framework of its objectives. It may co-operate with or take part in any initiative which is related to its objectives and may take part in RFOs, forums, meetings, congresses etc. at which questions concerning fishing or related matters are discussed. ARTICLE IV - MEMBERSHIP AND REPRESENTATION 4.1 Any organisation of Mediterranean fishing professionals which is legally recognised as such at national level may apply for membership of the Association. This application must be accompanied by a document giving the legal form of the organisation, the statutes, the list of members and a commitment by the applicant to respect the statutes and regulations of the Association. 4.2 The Executive Committee shall examine the affiliation requests and shall either agree or not while awaiting the ratification of its decision by the General Assembly. If the membership should be the subject of a confidential vote (at the request of a national organisation), the vote shall have to be submitted by simple majority. ARTICLE V RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF MEMBER ORGANISATIONS 5.1. Member organisations undertake in particular to: respect the provisions of the statutes and the other measures adopted by the legal bodies of the Association; pay their financial dues within the prescribed deadlines Member organisations are entitled in particular to: participate in the meetings of the legal bodies of the Association, via their legal representatives or persons expressly designated as such; participate in the elections to the management of the Association. ARTICLE VI - TERMINATION OF MEMBERSHIP 6.1 Membership shall be terminated at the date when: a) the member organisation announces its withdrawal to the President by registered letter sent at least between three to six months in advance; in this event, it remains liable for all financial obligations linked to the whole financial year concerned ; b) the General Assembly so decides because the member organisation has failed to fulfil its obligations The General Assembly shall terminate membership (article 6.1.b) when a member organisation fails to comply with the provisions of these statutes, does not fulfil its financial obligations within the prescribed deadlines, deliberately acts in a manner contrary

4 to the objectives of the Association or promotes interests other than those of the Association Membership may not be terminated as long as the member organisation in question has not had an opportunity to present its defense before the General Assembly within no more than six months of the decision to terminate the affiliation Any member that has been excluded, has resigned or whose membership has been terminated has no right to the assets of the Association. ARTICLE VII THE DECISION-MAKING BODIES OF THE ASSOCIATION 7.1 The decision-making bodies of the Association shall be: 1) the General Assembly 2) the Executive Committee: one representative of each country represented in the Association 3) the Bureau: the President, the Vice-Presidents (four in number), the Treasurer and the Vice-Treasurer with each of these officers coming from a different country. ARTICLE VIII - THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY 8.1. The General Assembly shall be the supreme body of the Association The General Assembly shall be made up of all full members of the Association, with a single representative for each member organisation or by country The General Assembly shall not conduct business or take decisions other than in the context of the provisions of Article IX, paragraph The General Assembly shall be convened by the President at least once a year, or whenever he considers appropriate in order to defend the interests entrusted to it. A meeting may be convened at the request of members representing at least 3 member organisations, from at least 3 Mediterranean countries, addressed to the President Each member organisation shall be invited to the sessions of the General Assembly by letter, fax or , at least 1 month in advance Meetings shall be held in principle in turn in every country represented in the Association upon proposal of the members 8.7. All meetings of the General Assembly shall be chaired by the President or in case of absence by one of the Vice-Presidents, as provided for in the Internal Rules of Procedure. ARTICLE IX POWERS OF THE GENERAL ASSSEMBLY 9.1 The General Assembly shall have full powers to realise the objectives of the Association. 9.2 In particular, the General Assembly shall: a) determine the general policy to be taken in order to attain the objectives of the Association;

5 b) validate the appointment of the members of the Executive Committee; c) revise, if necessary, the number of Vice-Presidents in function of the number of countries represented in the Association; d) ratify the decisions of the Executive Committee with regard to the elections of the members of the Bureau; e) ratify the decisions of the Executive Committee with regard to the affiliation or exclusion of a full member or an observer; f) decide on the creation of technical working commissions or specialised working parties; g) set the budget and approve the annual accounts; h) approve the statutes and any amendments; i) decide to wind up the Association Decisions and resolutions of the General Assembly shall be taken by general consensus. In case of a vote by consensus, the rule of one vote per country shall be followed, irrespective of the number of member organisations per country Decisions on amendments of the statutes, the winding up of the Association and the exclusion of a member organisation shall be taken by three-quarters of the according to the rule defined in paragraph 9.3 of Article IX. ARTICLE X THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE The Representatives (one per country) are elected by each national delegation of the countries represented within the Association Outside the meetings of the General Assembly, the executive management of the Association lies with the Executive Committee The Executive Committee meets at least two times a year. ARTICLE XI THE BUREAU The Bureau consists of the President, the four Vice-Presidents, the Treasurer and the Vice- Treasurer, elected by simple majority by the Executive Committee among the members of the Association, for a period of three years, except for the President for whom Article 12.2 is applied. They may be re-elected only once The Bureau appoints the Secretary General The Association is represented in law, both as plaintiff and defendant, by the President or the Bureau.

6 ARTICLE XII THE PRESIDENT The President represents the Association towards both its members and the outside world The President is elected by the Executive Committee according by three quarters of the votes in the first round and by simple majority in the second round. Only the candidates that have collected the highest number of votes will be eligible for the second round. The President is elected for three years and can only be re-elected once The President chairs the General Assembly, the Executive committee and the Bureau of the Association. ARTICLE XIII- THE SECRETARY GENERAL The Secretary General shall prepare and carry out the decisions of the Association and represent it towards the outside world, in so far as the presence of the President or the Bureau is not required The Secretary General s rights, duties and the duration of his/her function shall be governed by an employment contract with the Association in accordance with the internal rules of procedure The Secretary General shall report directly to the President, or in the incapacity of the latter, to the Bureau. ARTICLE XIV - CONTRIBUTIONS VOTES The General Assembly shall approve the annual budgets The number of votes within the Association is defined by the rule of one vote per country. ARTICLE XV - BUDGET AND ACCOUNTS The Treasurer (or in his absence, the Vice Treasurer) shall submit yearly for approval to the General Assembly the accounts of the past financial year and the budget for the next financial year. At the same time, the General Assembly shall decide whether or not to grant discharge to the President and Treasurer for the past financial year. The Treasurer shall prepare the account and send a copy to each member for evaluation at least 30 days prior to the General Assembly The Treasurer shall be responsible for verifying the accounts. After submittal to the Assembly, these must be approved by the Bureau The budget shall consist of the subscriptions equal for every Member Country of the Association, and any other source of income The annual membership fees shall be paid on 31 January. In case of difficulty to pay their membership fee in one part, the members can pay a second part on 30 June of the financial year. The observers do not pay any membership fee and shall not have the right to vote.

7 15.5. If there are different Member Organistions in one country, the distribution of the sum of the membership fees is decided at national level. ARTICLE XVI OBSERVERS The regional, national or international bodies being interested in questions relating to Mediterranean fishing, may ask for the statute of observer. The General Assembly decides to either or not grant the statute of observer to the applying bodies. The observers may contribute to the debates in the General Assembly when the Presidents believes that, on the basis of the agenda, this may enrich the work of the Association. ARTICLE XVII - DISSOLUTION In the event that the Association is dissolved, the General Assembly shall determine the procedure to be followed and the manner in which any remaining surplus shall be distributed amongst all members. *****