Our Rules

Art. 1  - NAME

The association “Friends of Puglia” is hereby formed in London and will henceforth be referred to as the Association

 

Art. 2 - OBJECTIVES

2.1. The Association is nondenominational, non-profit and independent of any political party.

2.2. The Association’s objectives are:

a) To promote and affirm the cultural identity of Apulians in Great Britain;

b) To promote the image of Apulia and Apulians in Great Britain;

c) To bring together firstly Apulians, both those who were born in the region and those of Apulian descent, and secondly Apulians and residents of Great Britain with an interest in Apulia. This will be done in accordance with the principles of equality and equal dignity, without distinction of any kind, such as sex, race, colour, language, political opinion, religion;

d) To encourage and assist Apulians in Great Britain to integrate socially, economically and culturally;

e) To promote and maintain relations with Apulia, with the involvement of the Regional government, the local authorities and the local community.

f) To promote and maintain relations with the Italian authorities in Great Britain.

 

Art. 3 - ACTIVITES

The Association aims to achieve these objectives by means of the following activities:

a) The organisation of social, cultural and recreational events;

b) The coordination, gathering, circulation and exchange of information amongst members using, when appropriate, the internet and e-mail;

c) To join and promote other organisations with similar objectives to those set out in these Rules;

d) Any other activities which are relevant to the pursuit of the objectives listed in article 2 of these Rules.

 

Art. 4 - MEMBERSHIP

4.1. Anyone born in Apulia or of Apulian descent and anyone residing in Great Britain with an interest in Apulia may join the Association provided that they share its aims and objectives.

4.2. There are three kinds of members: Founding Members, Honorary Members and Ordinary Members.

4.3. The founders of the Association are members by their own right.

4.4. Apulians who have excelled in their contribution to the attainment of the Association’s objectives and have distinguished themselves in their activities by giving prestige to Apulia may be appointed Honorary Members. The appointment shall be made by the Executive Committee for one or more years or even for life, with unanimous consent, upon the proposal by at least two members and after consultation at a General Meeting. Honorary Members are exempt from the payment of subscriptions.

4.5. All other members are Ordinary Members. The application to join the Association shall be made according to the procedure established by the Executive Committee. The Committee will decide whether to accept or refuse membership. The decision shall be communicated to the applicant.

 

Art. 5 - RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF MEMBERS

5.1. Membership implies acceptance and observance of these Rules and of any bylaw adopted by the Association bodies in accordance with the Rules.

5.2. Members shall pay the annual subscription by the date and in the amount decided at the General Meeting.

5.3. All members who have paid the annual subscription shall be entitled to vote at meetings and to be elected to executive posts.

5.4. Any service provided by the members is deemed to be free of charge. Only expenses for activities carried out in accordance with the directions of the Executive Committee may be reimbursed.

5.5. Any member may resign from the Association at any time.

5.6. Any Member may be expelled from the Association by decision of the Committee if the due payment has not been made or in cases of severe violation of the regulatory duties as well as for behaviour conflicting with the aims of the Association.

5.7. Members who have ceased to belong to the Association cannot claim back any money paid towards the association nor claim any right on its funds.

 

Art. 6 - FUNDS

6.1. The Association is funded by

• annual subscriptions decided at the General Meeting;
• exceptional or una tantum contributions decided at the General Meeting;
• voluntary contributions made by members or non-members;
• governmental contributions or other public contributions;
• the result of an activity expressly carried out to obtain funds;
• sponsors of the Association;
• any other income or contribution

6.2. The Chairman and the Treasurer shall administer the funds in accordance with the decision of the Executive Committee.

6.3. In case of liquidation, the funds which remain after the payment of debts shall be devolved to public or private organisations pursuing similar objectives to those of this Association and operative in Apulia or Great Britain. They shall be identified at the General Meeting with the liquidation decision.

 

Art.7 – ASSOCIATION BODIES

The bodies of the Association are:

- the Executive Committee;

- the Chairman;

- the General Meeting of the Members.

 

Art. 8 - EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

8.1. The management of the Association, together with the widest administering powers which have not been expressly assigned to the General Meeting, shall be entrusted to the Executive Committee.

8.2. The Committee may delegate some of its activities to its members.

8.3. The Committee shall consist of not more than eleven members.

8.4. The first Committee shall serve for a period of two years. At the end of this initial period the General Meeting shall elect a new Committee. The newly elected Committee and the subsequent ones shall serve for two years.

8.5. The members of the Committee may be re-elected.

8.6. The Committee shall meet at the request of the Chairman or three of its members.

8.7. The Committee shall be responsible for the keeping of the members’ book, the decisions book and the accountancy book.

8.8. The committee shall prepare the annual accounts.

8.9. All decisions shall be taken by simple majority of the members participating, unless otherwise stated. In the case of equality of votes the Chairman shall decide.

8.10. The Committee may pass decisions if at least three of its members are present.

 

Art. 9  - CHAIRMANSHIP

9.1. The Association is represented by the Chairman who shall be appointed by the Committee from amongst its members.

9.2. The Chairman shall summon and chair the Annual General Meetings, the Executive Committee Meetings and any Extraordinary General Meetings.

9.3. The Chairman shall promote the Association’s activities and at the end of the first year in office shall present a report to the Annual General Meeting on the activities of the past year and a programme for the coming year with the relevant budget.

9.4. The Chairman shall execute the decisions taken by the Committee and at the General Meeting unless another party has been delegated to do so. In this case, the Chairman shall supervise their implementation.

Art. 10 - GENERAL MEETING

10.1. An Annual General Meeting shall be held between 15 June and 15 September to approve and discuss the annual accounts prepared by the Committee and to approve and discuss the reports prepared by the Chairman in accordance with article 9.

10.2. An Extraordinary General Meeting shall be summoned whenever the Committee deems it necessary for the needs of the Association or whenever at least a third of the members so requires, provided that specific reasons are stated together with the request. In the latter case the meeting shall be summoned within 15 days of receiving the application and shall take place within the following 30 days.

10.3. The summoning shall include the order of the day and be communicated at least 15 days before the date established for the meeting. The decisions can be taken only on objects included in the order of the day.

10.4. The General Meeting shall elect the Committee according to the procedure set out in article 12.

10.5. The General Meeting shall decide upon the annual subscription and upon extraordinary payments.

10.6. The General Meeting shall also decide upon any other issue that the Committee deems appropriate.

10.7. The General Meeting may make decisions whatever the number of the members taking part in the meeting. The favourable vote of the majority of those attending the meeting shall be sufficient to approve any resolution, except as provided in article 10.8.

10.8. Any amendment to these rules and any decision to liquidate the Association shall be approved by the favourable vote of two thirds of the members attending the meeting.

Art 11 - MEETINGS AND RESOLUTIONS

11.1. The General Meeting and the Committee may vote in reality or virtually.

11.2. Virtual meetings may last more days. The Committee shall make bylaws to state the principles regulating the discussions and the validity of the votes.

Art. 12 - ELECTION OF THE COMMEETEE

12.1. Every two years at the Annual General Meeting the Chairman shall present a report on the activities of the outgoing Committee and call the election of a new one. Voting shall be by secret ballot unless the General Meeting decides otherwise. It shall be possible to vote for one candidate only.

12.2. Those candidates who receive the most votes shall be elected.

12.3. Those who wish to run for the election shall communicate so to the Secretary at least 15 days before the General Meeting.

12.4. The in-coming Committee shall appoint the Chairman, the Treasurer and the Secretary at the first meeting.

 

Art. 13 - DISPUTES

Disputes amongst members or between members and the Association, whenever caused by the execution, the interpretation and the application of these regulations, shall be settled by a single arbitrator. The arbitrator shall take a decision with equity within 30 days upon receiving the assignment. The arbitrator shall be chosen by the parties involved by mutual consent. If they cannot agree the General Meeting shall vote for the proposed arbitrators. Whoever receives the most votes shall be appointed.

 

  London, 4th June 2006

Summary table of the decision-making procedures of Friends of Puglia -->