Constitution
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PREAMBLE
1. The Asia-Pacific LSP and Professional Communication Association (henceforth the Association) is an association of Asia-Pacific teachers, trainers, and researchers specializing in the study and teaching of languages for specific purposes and professional and organizational communication, and fostering such activities in a broad range of disciplinary fields.
2. Within this framework, the Association aims to:
• Organize congresses, seminars, conferences, workshops, and any type of meeting of a cultural, professional or scientific nature.
• Publish any type of material directly related to the objectives as set out by the Association, be it printed (magazines, books, information sheets, etc.), or graphic or audiovisual (tapes, videos, films, etc.) or electronically-mediated.
• Establish, in conjunction with other bodies, agreements or contracts that contribute to a more effective promotion of the Association's objectives.
3. The main characteristics of the Association are as follows:
• Members may be drawn from a range of academic, professional, and organizational sectors.
• The Association includes users of a range of modern languages, and does not privilege any specific languages in its focus.
4. The activities carried out by the Association are:
• The holding of a Biennial General Meeting (at the time and place of the Association’s Biennial Conference) at which all regular members in good standing shall have the rights to be heard and to vote.
• The publication of an informative e-bulletin in English to be distributed amongst all members twice a year.
5. The Association's registered office is Department of English, City University of Hong Kong, 83 Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
CHAPTER I
THE ASSOCIATION IN GENERAL
Art. 1º. The objectives of the Association are: to foster research into and teaching of modern languages and professional and organizational communication as they are applied to a broad range of relevant disciplines, fields and professions. In order to realise its objectives, the Association will endeavour to:
a) Organize and participate in congresses, seminars, conferences, symposiums, as well as any type of meeting of a cultural, scientific, academic, or professional and organizational nature related to matters concerning the objectives of the Association.
b) Publish any type of printed (magazines, books, informative bulletins, etc.) audiovisual or computer-mediated material related to matters concerning the objectives of the Association.
c) Establish, in conjunction with other public and private entities, agreements that contribute to the improved promotion of the objectives of the Association.
Art. 2º. The registered office of the Association shall be housed within the organization to which the person who holds the office of President pertains.
Art. 3º. Members of the Association shall include all those professionals whose work involves the contexts within which the Association's objectives are set.
Art. 4º. The Executive Committee shall be the authority qualified to interpret the provisions contained within these statutes and to make good for any omissions they may contain, at all times by referring to the current legal regulations as regards Association-related matters. These statutes shall be implemented and upheld by way of the agreements validly adopted by the Executive Committee at the Biennial General Meeting.
CHAPTER II
THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE AND THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE ASSOCIATION
Art. 5º. The Association shall be enabled to dissolve itself if and when at least two thirds of its members are thereupon agreed. In this event, a Management Committee composed of three members of the last Executive Committee shall be elected. The Management
Committee shall take charge of all existing funds. Once any outstanding obligations have
been fulfilled, all remaining funds, should there be any, shall be handed over to any legally constituted entity whose objectives are similar to those of the Association, or, alternatively, to a charitable institution. The Management Committee shall also take charge of the appropriate procedures as regards the dissolution of the Association.
Art. 6º. The management and administration of the Association shall be performed by the Executive Committee, chaired by the President of the Association, or her/his alternate, and in response to and in keeping with decisions made and agreed by members at the Biennial General Meeting.
Art. 7º. The President of the Association shall oversee the implementation of the agreements adopted by the Executive Committee and the General Assembly, presiding over the sessions held by both of the bodies in question.
Art. 8º. The Executive Committee with voting right shall initially consist of the President, the Secretary/Treasurer, the Immediate Past President, and up to twelve Executive Committee Members. Proposals for any additional office-bearers or ordinary members may be issued by the Executive Committee, and are to be laid before and confirmed by the membership at the next appropriate Biennial General Meeting. Such proposals may be made at any time and persons so nominated may act in a temporary capacity until so confirmed at the Biennial General Meeting.
Art. 9º. The members holding office on the Executive Committee shall receive no remuneration. They shall be elected by the Biennial General Meeting and shall have tenure for four years. A person shall not be permitted to stand for the same office if and when they have held the said office for two consecutive terms. The positions of office on the Executive Committee shall be renewed in accordance with the following plan: President, Secretary/Treasurer, First and Third Voting Committee Member, after the second year, Second and Fourth Voting Committee Member, after the fourth year. In the event of vacancies occurring before the conclusion of a term of office, these shall be filled on a temporary basis by those persons decided upon by the remaining members of the Executive Committee until such a time as a new member can be elected by the General Assembly.
Art. 10º. The purpose of the Executive Committee is that of programming and managing the academic activities and the economic and administrative running of the Association. Other duties include the presentation of the biennial budget and the previous two years' balance sheet to the Biennial General Meeting.
Art. 11º. The Executive Committee shall hold at least one ordinary Biennial General Meeting following the notice of a meeting (stating place, date and time) called by the President. Furthermore, either on the initiative of the Executive Committee as a whole or at the request of any of its component members, it shall be possible to hold as many extraordinary meetings as deemed necessary. Ordinary Biennial General Meetings and Extraordinary General Meetings shall at all times by chaired by the President or, in her/his absence, by the Secretary/Treasurer and shall be attended by a minimum of 10 percent of the members of the Association, including a minimum of three members of the Executive Committee. In order for the agreements reached by the Executive Committee to be valid, they shall have to be carried by majority vote of those present. For this to occur, the concurrence of at least four Executive Committee Members is required. The Secretary/Treasurer shall take the minutes of the sessions, which will be published.
Art. 12º. In addition to the authority set down in Art. 7, the President of the Executive Committee shall have the following powers, to:
a) Perform the executive management of the Association.
b) Undersign the agreements and contracts referred to in article 1c) of these statutes, with the exception of those cases in which the Executive Committee decides to assume the authority of approval.
c) Call and adjourn the sessions held by both the Executive Committee and the General Assembly, supervise the deliberations of one and the other and decide, using her/his casting vote, in the event of a tie.
d) Propose the activity plan general action plan drawn up by the Executive Committee and be both the driving force behind and monitor of the tasks implemented.
e) Prescribe any expenses and payments agreed upon as being valid.
Art. 13º. The Secretary/Treasurer shall administer both the membership registration file and be responsible for the management of the administrative tasks of the entity.
Furthermore, she/he shall monitor the current legal regulations regarding association matters in order to ensure that these are complied with and shall be responsible for the safekeeping of the official documentation of the entity. In addition, she/he shall record the minutes of the ordinary and extraordinary General Meetings held.
Art. 14º. The Secretary/Treasurer shall further manage the accounts of the Association, make notes and keep an account of the income and expenditure, and be consulted and give approval to all operations of a financial nature. She/he shall collect and keep safe all funds pertaining to the Association and authorize the expenditure and payment orders made out by the President. Furthermore, she/he shall draw up the draft of the biennial budget, as well as the previous two years' balance sheets in order that these can be presented to the Executive Committee, which shall, in turn, put them before the Biennial General Meeting for final approval.
Art. 15º. Each one of the component members of the Executive Committee shall be assigned the duties befitting of their office, as well as those resulting from the delegations or commissions that the Executive Committee itself assigns to them.
Art. 16º. The Biennial General Meeting, made up of all the Association's members, is the highest ranking authority of the Association and it shall meet during the period of the
Biennial General Meeting, at a time called by the President. Its tasks shall include the
approval of the Association's general action plan, consideration of any disapproval of the Executive Committee's management policy where appropriate, and the approval, where relevant, of the biennial budget, as well as of the balance sheets corresponding to the previous two year period.
Art. 17º. An extraordinary session of the General Meeting may be called if and when so demanded by the current regulations or if deemed necessary by the Executive Committee in order to attend to matters that have to be dealt with and, in all events, for the following reasons:
• The regulation or expropriation of assets.
• The election of a Management Committee.
• The application for a declaration of public use.
• The modification of the Statutes.
• The dissolution of the Association.
• The constitution of federations or integration into an existing federation.
Art. 18º. General Meetings, both ordinary and extraordinary, shall be convened in writing, stating the place, date and time of the meeting, as well as the agenda. A period of at least fifteen days shall have to pass between the date the General Meeting is convened and the date it first sits.
Art. 19º. The constitution of the first convening of General Meetings, both ordinary and extraordinary, shall be considered as being valid when they are attended by the majority of the regular members, either in person or by representation.
Art. 20º. The agreements arrived at by the Ordinary General and Extraordinary General Meeting shall be adopted by the simple absolute majority of those present or represented. Proxies are to be allowed, providing that submissions, signed by both the member and proxy for the member, are received and acknowledged by the Secretary/Treasurer at least fifteen days before the date of the Meeting in question.
CHAPTER III
MEMBERSHIP AND THE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF MEMBERS
Art. 21º. The Association admits several different types of members:
a) Ordinary Members
Ordinary Members are full members of the Association and as such are entitled to receive all benefits of membership of the Association and to have the right to vote.
b) Associate/Institutional Members
Associate/Institutional Members are those organizations who support the aims and objectives of the Association and wish to receive benefits of such membership, including presence at the Association's Biennial Conferences, an entitlement to reduced registration charges for up to two persons at such Conferences, and a reduced charge for any conference displays of their organization's work. They are also entitled to be declared as such members in the various publicity media of the Association. They have the right to a single vote.
c) Student Members
Student Members are full members of the Association and as such are entitled to receive all benefits of membership of the Association and to have the right to vote. Such members must be in fulltime registered study in a recognised tertiary institution and will be required to provide evidence of such registration on application for Student Membership.
d) Life Members
Life Members are full members of the Association and as such are entitled to receive all benefits of membership of the Association and to have the right to vote.
e) Honorary Members
Honorary Members are those distinguished persons who have been so designated as Honorary Members after a process of proposal by one or more Ordinary Members in good standing and following acceptance of the proposal by the Executive Committee of the Association. They have the right to vote.
Art. 22º. Those wishing to belong to the Association shall have to apply for membership in writing to the Secretary/Treasurer who shall, in turn, take note of the views of the Executive Committee. It shall be the Executive Committee that decides on the admission or non-admission of a member. Membership shall not be granted until any registration fees have been settled by way of a banker's order, bank transfer, or, preferably, by credit card.
Art. 23º. Members shall be entitled to request their membership of the Association to be withdrawn voluntarily. However, this shall not exempt them from the settlement of any outstanding obligations they might have with the Association. The Executive Committee shall be entitled to expel those members who do not settle their biennial fees from the Association.
Art. 24º. On confirmation of membership, each applicant shall be accredited as being a full member of the Association and therefore entitled to the following rights:
a) To participate in the activities promoted by the Association and in the academic meetings and social events that it organizes for all its members.
b) To implement the rights to speak and vote at the General Meetings.
c) To be appointed as a member of the Executive Committee as specified by these Statutes.
d) To be in possession of a copy of these Statutes and to be made aware of the agreements adopted by the managerial bodies.
e) To be informed as regards the biennial balance sheet, income and expenditure of the Association during the General Meeting.
f) To receive copies of all those publications (printed, graphic or audiovisual material) produced by the Association over the period corresponding to payment of fees.
g) To propose the inclusion of points in the Agenda to be debated at the General Meeting. To do this, the member shall have to apply in writing to the Secretary/Treasurer fifteen days in advance of the Meeting in question being held with her/his application being endorsed by at least a tenth part of the membership.
Art. 25º. All members shall be obliged to:
a) Abide by these Statutes and by all validly approved agreements.
b) Pay, by way of a banker's order, bank transfer, or by credit card, the fees proposed by the Executive Committee and subsequently approved by the General Meeting.
c) Faithfully carry out, whenever applicable, the obligations pertaining to her/his office.
Art. 26º. Members may be required to resign from the Association on the authority of the Executive Committee for repeatedly infringing these Statutes or as a consequence of any resolutions of the General Meeting or the Executive Committee.
CHAPTER IV
FINANCES AND BUDGETS
Art. 27º. The Association was founded without assets, but raises fees from its members and finance from its activities, and has a budget that is approved by the General Meeting on a biennial basis.
Art. 28º. The financial resources foreseen for the development of the programmed activities shall be the following:
a) The registration fees as defined by the Executive Committee.
b) The periodical contributions as agreed upon by the above.
c) The products of its corresponding assets and rights.
d) The income earned by the Association by way of its legitimate activities carried out in agreement with the Executive Committee, at all times in adherence with its statutory objectives.
e) An income contribution as defined by the Executive Committee from the proceeds of the Biennial Conference.
Art. 29º. The administration of the Association's funds shall be subject to a biennial report by the Secretary/Treasurer on behalf of the Executive Committee and made available to the membership.