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Statute

[For the original Greek edition click here]

ACT OF CONSTITUTION AND STATUTE OF ASSOCIATION BY THE NAME OF:

ΕΝΩΣΗ ΑΘΕΩΝ [ATHEIST UNION]

ARTICLE1

Constitution – Headquarters – Duration

  1. An association is hereby established by the name of “Ένωση Αθέων [Atheist Union]”. For use abroad, it shall be translated as “Atheist Union of Greece”. The acronyms to be used to refer to the Atheist Union shall be “EN.A.” and “A.U.G.” respectively. From this point onward in the present Statute the Association to be established by this Statute shall be referred to as “the Union”.
  2. The headquarters of the Union will be in the Municipality of Athens.
  3. The Union may establish offices in other parts of the country.
  4. The duration of the Union is indefinite.

ARTICLE 2

Purpose

The main purpose of the Union is the promotion of state secularization, religious freedom, humanism, skepticism, rationalism, critical thought and the atheist viewpoint.

More specifically, the purposes of the Union are:

  1. Separation of church and state, religious neutralization of public services and the state in general, and equal treatment for all citizens regardless of their religious or philosophical beliefs. Cultural, informational and educative action for the promotion of the Unions’ main purpose, and further development of the community of atheists, agnostics and non-religious.
  2. Defending religious freedom and the rights of atheists, agnostics and non-religious by legal actions.
  3. Providing information to the public concerning their rights.

ARTICLE 3

Means of Realization of the Purposes

The realization of the Union’s purposes is to be achieved by all legal means, for instance and not exclusively by the following:

  1. By gestures, reports, denunciations to the competent administrative authorities and services, as well as by lawsuits, claims and other legal actions to the competent judicial authorities, whenever an issue turns up for which the Union considers such an action as opportune to itself or its Members.
  2. By information campaigns on specific subjects, promoted by every possible means, for instance and not exclusively by the internet and the mass media, by printed material, by demonstrations etc.
  3. By the formation of working groups, committees etc., which shall be formed by decision of the Secretariat in order to introduce propositions concerning important issues, as determined by the latter, which concern the realization of the Union’s purposes.
  4. By participating in and by organizing congresses, workshops and informative and educational events, in collaboration with cultural, scientific and intellectual bodies or organizations and with any relevant group in general, both at home and abroad.
  5. By composing and disseminating informative texts, announcements and press releases concerning the Union’s activities and interests.
  6. By organizing offices and clubs for facilitating communication between Members.
  7. By organizing entertainment events.

ARTICLE 4

Policy

  1. The Union does not adopt any political or religious ideology.
  2. The Union promotes its purposes exclusively by pacific means.
  3. The Union does not recognize any discrimination between people based on differences in race, religious beliefs, social class, gender, health, education or sexual orientation.
  4. The personal opinions of the Union’s members do not express the Union’s opinions. The Union’s positions are expressed solely by its legal representatives.

ARTICLE 5

Members

  1. Inscription
  2. Any individual who agrees with the purposes and principles of the Union can become a member, provided she or he is over 18 years of age, by submitting to the Secretariat a petition and a declaration of acceptance of the Statute. The petitions are examined and approved by the Secretariat.
  3. The details of the petition content and the manner of inscription are determined by the Secretariat.
  4. The Union makes a reasonable effort to ascertain the identity of each Member. Each Member has to provide the data required for certification of her or his identity. The responsibility for accuracy of these data lies solely on the person making the declaration. Should a false declaration be discovered, the Member will be immediately excluded.
  5. The Members of the Union must have legal capacity.
  6. Whoever has lost the right to freely establish cooperative societies or associations of persons, as well as whoever has been deprived of this right by an Authority, may not become a Member of the Union.
  7. Membership is an ad personam attribute and is acquired on the day of inscription in the Union’s registry.
  8. The inscription is completed after payment of the inscription fee.
  1. Rights

Members of the Union have a right to:

  1. Participate as equals in the General Assemblies, as sell as elect and be elected members of the Secretariat.
  2. Leave the Union freely.
  3. Enter the Union again at any time after their departure, provided they still fulfill the requirements determined by the Statute.
  1. Obligations

Members of the Union have to:

  1. Pay the inscription fee to the Union.
  2. Pay the regular contribution and the extraordinary contributions, should there be any, to the Union.
  3. Display a brotherly conduct and solidarity among them and not act in ways that endanger the smooth function of the association.

ARTICLE 6

Disciplinary Audit

  1. The disciplinary audit is exercised by the Secretariat and in extraordinary cases, according to its judgment, by the General Assembly, and consists in:
  1. Reprimand.
  2. Suspension of Membership for a finite amount of time.
  3. Suspension of Membership for an indefinite amount of time, to be repealed by a decision of the body that imposed it.
  4. Permanent expulsion from the Union.
  5. The disciplinary audit may be conducted among other cases, when a Member:
  1. Does not pay hers or his contributions.
  2. Does not participate actively in the association for a time space of over two months.
  3. Acts against the association purposes.
  4. Violates the terms of the present Statute and/or the Bylaws of the Union.
  5. Acts in ways that endanger the smooth function of the association.
  6. Any Member of the Secretariat may be exempted from participating, if she or he has asked for exemption and the Secretariat has agreed to it.

ARTICLE 7

Member Exclusion

  1. Any Member may at any time ask to be excluded from the Union by a petition to the Secretariat.
  2. In case of exclusion of a Member, be it voluntary or by decision of the secretariat, the contributions paid are not returned.
  3. The Secretariat, for an important reason, of those mentioned in the Statute or the relevant legislation, may proceed to the exclusion of a Member from the Union.
  4. Against the Secretariat decision for Member exclusion an appeal can be made to the General Assembly and/or to a Court of Justice.
  5. A Member who has been excluded may enter the Union again by decision of the Secretariat, if the exclusion reasons have ceased to exist or if the remaining reasons are deemed unimportant.

ARTICLE 8

Union Resources

  1. The Union’s resources are:
  1. The inscription fee, the regular contribution and the extraordinary contributions of the Members.
  2. Donations, inheritances and revenues from the Union’s properties and estate.
  3. Revenues from events organized by the Union.
  4. Any other revenues legally acquired.
  5. The Union cannot accept contributions and support from political parties or political of religious organizations.

ARTICLE 9

General Assembly

  1. The Members’ General Assembly is the superior and dominant body of the Union and it expresses the will of the Members.
  2. The Members’ General Assembly consists of all the financially consistent Members of the Union.
  3. The GA convenes whenever the Secretariat decrees so.
  4. The quorum of the GA is the presence of at least ten (10) Members.
  5. The present Members elect a person to act as Chairperson of the Assembly and a person to act as Secretary of the Assembly.
  6. Decisions are taken by a majority of the present Members and by open vote. In case of a tie, the vote of the President of the Assembly determines the result.
  7. For an amendment of the Statute, suspension of operations or dissolution of the Union, the required number of participants and the required plurality shall be those determined by law.
  8. The minutes of the convention are drawn by the Secretary of the Assembly, approved by the President of the Assembly and delivered to the Secretary of the Union for safekeeping.

ARTICLE 10

General Assembly Responsibilities

  1. The General Assembly considers issues submitted to it by the Secretariat.
  2. Issues considered exclusively by the General Assembly are:
  1. Annual report of the Secretariat’s work at the end of each year.
  2. Election of Secretariat Members. The elections take place either by decision of the Secretariat or two (2) years after the previous elections. Votes can be sent by regular mail through a procedure determined and announce by the Secretariat at least thirty days earlier.
  3. Election of Audit Committee Members.
  4. Election of electoral committee members when the elections take place.
  5. Supervision and inspection of the Union administration.
  6. Appeals against the decisions of the Secretariat.
  7. Amendment of the Union Statute.
  8. Suspension of Secretariat Members or of Audit Committee Members for an important reason or for a serious breach of duty or for lack of competence.
  9. Suspension of operations of the Union.
  10. Dissolution of the Union.
  11. In the cases concerning Statute amendment, suspension of operations or dissolution of the Union, the required number of participants and the required plurality for decision making shall be those determined by law

ARTICLE 11

Secretariat 

  1. The Union is administrated by a Secretariat of five (5) Members, which consists of one (1) President, one (1) Secretary, one (1) Treasurer and two (2) counselors, whose positions are all honorary and who are elected by the General Assembly of the Union’s Members from among the Members, along with three (3) deputy members. The Secretariat is the main administrative body of the Union and decides on all its issues, if not stated otherwise in this Statute.
  2. The members of the Secretariat who depart are substituted by the deputy members by order of election.
  3. The positions of President, Secretary and Treasurer may not be filled by the same person.
  4. The members of the Secretariat are jointly responsible for the Union’s progress of operations, unless they were present during the taking of a certain decision and dissented, and this dissent figures in the minutes.
  5. The members of the Secretariat are not allowed to be employed by the Union, nor to contract with it for an exchange, a fee or profit of any kind.
  6. Decisions are taken by a majority of the present members and in case of a tie the vote of the President prevails. Members of the Secretariat must have access to telephone and electronic communication means for discussions and decision making.
  7. Should an issue concerning a member of the Secretariat be discussed, the said member is invited to be present but does not participate in the meeting.
  8. The Secretariat meets when it considers it necessary or when three (3) of its members ask for it in writing. The meeting may take place by physical presence of the members or by any suitable means of electronic communication.
  9. The President, when absent or hindered, assigns a substitute. In case she or he does not assign anyone, he is substituted by the Secretary or the senior Counselor, by that order.

ARTICLE 12

Secretariat Responsibilities

The Secretariat:

  1. Administrates the Union in a responsible way according to law and applying the Statute.
  2. Conducts the disciplinary audit of the Union’s Members and in case it is inhibited, the audit is conducted by the General Assembly.
  3. Decides on Members’ inscription as well as their exclusion in the cases stated in the Statute.
  4. Summons the General Assembly meetings, via the President and the Secretary
  5. Executes the General Assembly decisions and submits issues for vote to the General Assembly.
  6. Supervises observance of the Statute provisions.
  7. Forms committees of the Union’s Members for dealing with Union issues, forms working groups and assigns tasks both to Union Members and to non-Members.
  8. Administrates the Union’s property.
  9. Examines and accepts donations.
  10. Decides on the disposition of expenses for the realization of the Union’s purposes.
  11. Determines the nature and priority of issues to be realized by the Union.
  12. Decides on the representation of the Union to third parties and to the state Authorities. The union is represented only by Secretariat members and by members authorized by the Secretariat for this purpose.
  13. Appoints a legal counselor for the Union and other scientific or technical counselors.
  14. Appoints a Director who by a special minute is authorized to execute administrative and managing acts, a secretary, a treasurer and other employees for Union offices and signs contracts with persons providing services to the Union.
  15. Establishes offices both in and out of Union headquarters.
  16. Undertakes all issues concerning the Union.

ARTICLE 13

President Responsibilities

The President:

  1. Summons, along with the Secretary, the regular or extraordinary meetings of the secretariat and of the Members’ General Assembly.
  2. Ensures the execution of the decisions of the Secretariat and of the Members’ General Assembly.
  3. Represents the Union to third parties or the state Authorities, unless for a particular situation the Secretariat or the General Assembly decide otherwise and assign a special representative ad idem.
  4. Enters into agreement and signs contracts and conventions, executing decisions of the Secretariat and/or the General Assembly.
  5. Takes care of the correspondence, along with the Secretary.
  6. Follows and inspects the Union’s finances.
  7. Summons the Audit Committee for inspection of the Union’s finances. Authorizes another member of the Secretariat or the legal counselor of the association to exert the functions of points 3 and 4.

ARTICLE 14

Secretary Responsibilities

The secretary:

  1. Is responsible for administrating the Union Secretariat.
  2. Takes care of the Union’s correspondence, signing documents by the President’s authorization.
  3. Keeps the minutes of Secretariat meetings.
  4. Keeps the Union seal and seals documents.
  5. Cooperates with Union bodies and provides them with every required datum.
  6. Keeps the minutes of the General Assembly, the Secretariat, the Audit Committee and the electoral committee.
  7. Is jointly responsible with the President for the precise keeping of the Union’s Books and Record.

ARTICLE 15

Treasurer Responsibilities

The Treasurer:

  1. Administers the Union finances.
  2. Places at the disposal of the Secretariat, the Audit Committee, the General Assembly or the President any datum concerning the Union’s financial situation.
  3. Keeps the Books determined by law and by the Statute and is jointly responsible, along with the President, for the Union’s financial situation.

ARTICLE 16

Elections for Elective Bodies of the Union 

  1. The elections take place either by a decision of the Secretariat or two (2) years after the preceding elections.
  2. Those desiring to be elected members of the Secretariat or the Audit Committee submit a relevant petition to the secretariat within a time term determined by the latter, provided they have fulfilled their financial obligations towards the Union.
  3. Candidate names are made known to Members in sufficient time and are listed in the same or a different ballot paper according to the Secretariat’s judgment, by alphabetical order and separately for the Secretariat and for the Audit Committee.
  4. By a secret vote, Union Members elect the elective body members by marking a cross to the left of the names of the persons they prefer, five (5) for the Secretariat and three (3) for the Audit Committee at most. Votes may also be sent by regular mail by a procedure determined and announced at least twenty (20) days before by the secretariat. Thos who have obtained most votes by order are considered to be elected.
  5. In case of a tie the election is resolved by drawing lots among those who have received an equal number of votes.
  6. The members of the Secretariat decide for the distribution of the functions among them. This distribution is not permanent for all the term of office of the secretariat, but it may change by an agreement between them.
  7. In case during the Secretariat term of office there is a lack of deputy, Extraordinary Elections are organized for filling of the vacant positions. The procedure is the same, the sole difference being that the crosses of preference are reduced to two (2). The procedure of extraordinary elections does not alter the overall duration of the elected Secretariat.
  8. In case no Audit Committee can be formed due to lack of candidates, the elections for the Audit Committee are repeated within six (6) months. If the formation of an Audit Committee is not possible, the operations of the Union continue normally and the audit is omitted.

ARTICLE 17

Audit Committee

  1. The Audit Committee is elected by the Members’ General Assembly and consists of three (3) members.
  2. The Audit Committee inspects the Union’s financial situation at the end of the financial year and draws a report submitted to the General Assembly at most two months after the end of the financial year and simultaneously notifies the Secretariat.
  3. The audit takes place by the Audit Committee’s own motion at any time or after bidding of the General Assembly.
  4. The Audit Committee in case of managing irregularities asks the Secretariat to present its conclusions to the General Assembly.

ARTICLE 18

Administrative Members’ Remuneration

  1. Members of the Secretariat or the Audit Committee are not allowed to provide services to the Union by employment or by contracting assignment or to sign an onerous contract with the Union, except in extraordinary cases as determined in the present Article of the Statute.
  2. In extraordinary cases and by decision of the General Assembly the Union may sign a contract with a member of the Secretariat. The interested member may not be present during the discussion and for the taking of the decision hers or his vote is counted as in favor.

ARTICLE 19

Statute Modification

  1. Modification of the Statute takes place by decision of the General Assembly, according to the Plurality determined by law.
  2. Any modification is valid starting on the day next to its inscription in the relevant First Instance Court Books.

ARTICLE 20

Bylaws

  1. Issues concerning the Unions internal functioning may be regulated by Bylaws.
  2. These bylaws are presented to the General Assembly for approval, by decision of the Secretariat.

ARTICLE 21

Union Dissolution

  1. The dissolution of the Union is to be decided by the Members’ General Assembly by the plurality determined by law.
  2. By court decision the Union may be dissolved for breach of law or of the Statute according to Article 105 of the Civil Code.

ARTICLE 22

Seal – Logo

  1. The Union has a seal bearing the Union’s denomination.
  2. The Union may, by decision of the Secretariat, determine a special logo, as well as modify it.

ARTICLE 23

Union Books

The books kept by the Union are:

  1. Members Registry. All Members’ data that concern the Union are recorded here.
  2. Secretariat Minutes.
  3. Audit Committee minutes.
  4. General Assembly Minutes.
  5. Revenues and Payments Book.

The Union may keep other books according to its necessities. All books may be kept in an electronic form, if this is possible, by a special decision of the Secretariat.

ARTICLE 24

Special Provisions

The association established by the present Statute is a continuation of the existing body of persons called “Ένωση Άθεων [Atheist Union]” which was established on 22-5-2010 and has been functioning ever since. The association “Ένωση Αθέων [Atheist Union]” is committed to carry on the work of the body of persons “Ένωση Άθεων [Atheist Union]”, undertakes responsibility for all actions taken and accepts as valid all decisions taken by it up to the day of the associations’ establishment.

ARTICLE 25

Temporary Provisions

  1. The financial contribution of the Union’s Members, until a different decision is taken, shall be the following:
  1. Inscription fee: ten (10) euros, to be paid once.
  2. Regular Member contribution: thirty (30) euros annually.
  3. From the time the Union is established and till the first regular elections, the administrative bodies of the Union shall be the General Assembly and an Executive Committee of five members which shall be elected on the day this Statute is signed. The Executive Committee will have full powers as stated in Article 16 and shall be responsible for summoning the first General Assembly and the conducting the first elections, as well as for completing the procedures for the Union’s establishment.

ARTICLE 26

Final Provision

This Statute, consisting of twenty six (26) articles and ten (10) pages, is approved today, on Saturday November twenty (20) of the year two thousand and ten (2010) by the founding Members in the municipality of Athens and is signed as follows: