Statutes

§1 Name, seat, court of jurisdication, financial year

(1)
Name of the Association: Association of European Shipping Journalists
(herein after to be referred to as the Association and abbriviated VEUS).

(2)
Seat of the Association: Duisburg, Germany

(3)
The Association is registered in the official register of societies and associations at the County Court in Duisburg

(4)
The financial year is the calendar year

(5)
The inaugural lingua franca is German.
On further languages will be decided at the first full general meeting after inaugural meeting.

§2 Tasks and objectives of the Association

(1)
a) Promotion of the European idea and the European integration.
b) Getting acquainted with the European institutions and bodies of the Council of Europe, the European Union and the European Commission.
c) Journalistic promotion of the inland-, coastal-, maritime- and leisure navigation and of the harbours, ports and marinas.
d) Promotion of professional cooperation and promotion of personal relationships amongst its members,
e) specialized and further training for its members and for young shipping journalists.
f) The Association publishes a half-yearly magazine with information on professional and shipping-related subjects.

(2) The Association is no economic business and is politically and religiously independent.

§3 The Membership

(1)
The Association has
a) regular members
b) supporting members
c) corresponding members
d) honorary members

(2)
Regular members can be editors, freelance journalists, writers and the staff of press offices who write about shipping matters mainly for daily papers, trade journals, agencies or special news agencies. The regular membership lasts until after reaching the retirement age or until after giving up the occupation for health reasons.

(3)
Supporting members can be natural and legal persons of civil and public law who have direct or indirect connections with shipping journalism or who for other reasons support the objectives and tasks of the Association.

(4)
a) The admission of corresponding members whose occupation is connected with the activities of the regular members will be decided on by the Board.
b) Corresponding members can furthermore be persons who no longer meet the conditions of paragraph 3, 2. (5) A member who has especially contributed to the Association or to shipping matters and to their development or to shipping journalism can become honorary member voted for by the General Meeting.

§4 Acquisition of membership

(1)
The request for admission to the Association has to be put forward in writing.

(2)
The admission will be decided on by the Board bya simple majority.

(3)
The rejection of the request for admission has not to be justified.

§5 Rights and duties of the members

(1)
Members are entitled to support and to advice on professional matters.

(2)
Only regular and honorary members
(a) have the right to vote in the general meeting,
(b) can make an application to the General Meeting
(c) obtain a membership card (does not equal the official press card!)

§6 Admission fee and membership fee

(1)
The payment of admission fees and of the annual membership fee is binding for regular and corresponding members.

(2)
The admission fee and the membership fee is fixed by the General Meeting.

(3)
The fee is payable by the 31st March for the current financial year.

(4)
The Board can give a member time to pay the membership fee, can reduce or waive the payment.

(5)
Honorary members are exempt from membership fee payment.

§7 Ending of membership

(1)
The membership ends through
a) withdrawal
b) expulsion
c) death.

(2)
The declaration of withdrawal can be carried out at any time. The membership fee is payable for the current calendar year. The declaration of withdrawal is to be sent to the Board by registered post. Other written declarations of withdrawal can be legally accepted by a Board's resolution.

(3)
A member can be expelled from the Association by a Board's resolution if
a) the member was validly sentenced for defamatory actions,
b) the member has not payed the contribution according to paragraph 6,1
c) the in paragraph 3,2 fixed conditions are no longer fulfilled unless they can no longer be met because the occupation has been given up for health reasons or retirement age has been reached. The Board sets a time for the expulsion by a simple majority.

(4)
The member can file an objection to the Board against the resolution, see paragraph 7,3. The period is two months after delivery. The objection has to be filed to the Board by registered post. The objection will be decided on by the General Meeting.

§8 Bodies

The bodies of the Association are

(1)
the Board

(2)
the General Meeting

§9 The Board

(1)
The Board consists of seven members.

(2)
The chairman/chairwoman, the deputy, the treasurer and the secretary form the Executive Board.

(3)
The Board shall be multinational. The lingua franca depends on paragraph 1,5.

(4)
The chairman/chairwoman, unless he/she is unable to come, the deputy represents together with another member of the Board the Association before court and out of court in accordance with paragraphe 26 BGB (German Civil Law).

(5)
The Board is elected by the General Meeting for a period of two years. Re-election is permitted.

(6)
The period of office ends with the general meeting in which re-elections are on the agenda.

(7)
The Board in office designates a temporary deputy for any member who retires before the period of office ends. The by-election takes place at the next full or extraordinary general meeting.

(8)
The Board has a quorum when all members are summoned and at least half of the members of the Board are present including either the chairman/chairwoman or his/her deputy. In case of non-quorum the chairman/chairwoman can summon a new meeting. Its members automatically have a quorum.

(9)
The Board decides by a simple majority. In case of a tie vote the vote of the chairman/chairwoman decides. In his/her absence the leader of the meeting's vote decides.

(10)
The Board is responsible for the execution of resolutions agreed on by the General Meeting.

(11)
The Board is authorized to appoint a representative for the leisure navigation.

§10 The General Meeting

(1)
The General Meeting is the supreme body of the Association.

(2)
The General Meeting shall be held yearly. The assembly has to be summoned one month prior to the date of the meeting. The invitation including the agenda has to be in writing.

(3)
The regular and honorary members who are present at the general meeting have voting rights for themselves as well as for four further members who have delegated their voices to them in writing and nominally. The passing-on of a delegated voice without the approval of the owner of the voting rights is illicit.

(4)
Supporting and corresponding members only have an advisory voice in the general meeting.

(5)
The General Meeting passes resolutions by a simple majority if the statutes do not determine anything else.

(6)
Nominations and the recall of holders of honorary offices are voted on individually, secretly and in writing.

(7)
The General Meeting is chaired by the chairman/chairwoman or by another member of the Board. Minutes of the procedure of a meeting will be taken down by the secretary. The minutes is to be signed by either the chairman/chairwoman or the leader of the meeting.

(8)
Extraordinary general meetings can be summoned by the Board two weeks prior to the date of the meeting. The Board has to summon an extraordinary general meeting if requested by at least a third of the persons entitled to vote. If the Board does not comply with the demand within a month the claiming members can carry out the invitation.

(9)
Any member can put forward proposals to the agenda. The proposals need to be in writing, they have to be with the chairman/chairwoman three weeks prior to the date of the meeting and all members have to be informed about them immediately.

(10)
Proposals which are not on the agenda or have not been with the chairman/chairwoman within the period stipulated can be dealt with in the general meeting if consent of inclusion to the agenda is given to by simple majority. This does neither apply to alterations to the statutes nor to the disbanding of the Association.

§11 Audit

(1)
The annual accounts of the Association has to be audited annually by two auditors. The audit report has to be forwarded to the Board within four months after the end of the financial year. The result of the audit is to be conveyed to the General Meeting.

(2)
The auditors and their deputies may not be in office with the Board. They are elected by the General Meeting for two years.

§12 Alterations of statutes

Alterations can only be decided on by the full or extraordinary General Meeting by a threequarters majority. They have to be announced to the agenda in advance. At least one third of all persons entitled to vote have to be present or be represented through delegated voices.
The Board is authorized to make alterations to the statutes on the basis of stipulated legal regulations.

§13 Disbanding of the Association

(1)
A disbanding of the Association can only be decided on if put on the agenda prior to a general meeting. The decision is made by the General Meeting by a threequarters majority of all members entitled to vote or members entitled to vote through delegated voices in writing.
The General Meeting only has a quorum if at least half of all members entitled to vote or members entitled to vote through delegated voices are present.
If that is not the case the disbanding of the Association will be decided on at the earliest four weeks later at a general meeting by a threequarters majority of members entitled to vote or members entitled to vote through delegated voices.

(2)
After the disbanding of the Association its property will be given to charitable organisations.
The General Meeting decides on the payees. Those in favour cannot use the property before a year after the Association's disbanding.

§14 Coming into effect

(1)
These statutes have been decided on as statutes at the inaugural meeting on 16 September 1999 in Duisburg-Ruhrort.

(2)
These statutes come into effect after entry into the official register of societies and associations at the County Court Duisburg.