Kurdistan National Congress

Kurdish Human Rights Committee

Constitution

1. Name: The name of the association shall be Kurdish Human Rights Committee – UK.

2. The Kurdish Human Rights Committee – UK is an organisation that will provide a foundation for Kurdish individuals and their friends residing in the United Kingdom and offer help and support to colleagues newly arriving to the UK

3. The objectives of the Kurdish Human Rights Committee are

a. keep an up to date registry of all Friends of Kurdistan, living in the UK

b. provide support to human rights bodies and universities in all parts of Kurdistan and establish links with Kurdish and international organisations

c. put in place a strategy to provide assistance in any part of Kurdistan when needed

d. co-operate and work with other organisations, universities, bodies and charities to promote issues of the Kurdish cause and public rights in all Kurdistan

e. raise the knowledge standards in all parts of Kurdistan

f. establish links with other Kurdish organisations in other countries

g. establish links with all identical organisations and bodies in the UK

4. The officials language of communication of Kurdish Human Rights Committee will be Kurdish and English.

5. Kurdish Human Rights Committee is not a political body and will not have any affiliation to any of the Kurdish political parties working in exile or in Kurdistan. Its main purpose is to serve the people of Kurdistan and bring together Kurdish people under one umbrella. However, Kurdish Human Rights Committee will liase to provide its legal services to any of the parties when needed.

Kurdish Human Rights Committee will operate under the auspices of Kurdistan National Congress (KNC). The Executive committee will undertake to obtain a charity status for the association

6. Membership

Kurdish Human Rights Committee shall admit to membership all Friends of Kurdistan. It also welcomes as honorary members non-Kurdish who sympathise with the Kurdish cause. The Executive committee may in exeptional circumstances consider requests who have shown dedication to the Kurdish cause and organised the provision of Kurdish Human Rights relief to the suffering Kurds in Kurdistan and abroad.

All applications for membership shall be considered by the Executive committee who shall decide whether to accept each application.

Memberships will be free for the first two years. Thereafter for those in paid posts a membership fee of 50 Mark per year will be charged.

7. Structure

Members shall meet once a year, date and place of which will be decided at least 3 months in advance by the Executive committee. The Annual General Meeting (AGM) shall

a. elect the officers

b. elect the executive committee every 2 years and appoint other committees as deemed necessary

c. determine the overall policy and direction of the association for the following year

The Executive committee, in the preliminary stage of the organisation of Kurdish Human Rights Committee will consist of a chairman, vice-chairman, secretary, liaison officer and two other members all of whom will be elected at the first AGM.

The Executive committee may in due caurse increase the number of its officers and appoint other members (eg accountant etc).

d. Term of office of the Executive committee will be two years in the first instance. Amendments to this may be made in the first AGM.

At the AGM and executive committee meetings

a. only members of Kurdish Human Rights Committee have the right to vote.

b. every member shall have one vote including the chairman and in case of equality of votes the chairman shall have a second casting vote.

8. Changes to the constitution

This constitution maybe altered, repealed or added to by a resolution passed by three fourth of the members of Kurdish Human Rights Committee who are present in person or by proxy at the special general meeting convened for that purpose after no less than 4 weeks notice had been given to all members of Kurdish Human Rights Committee.