CONSTITUTION OF THE ASIAN NETWORK FOR FREE ELECTIONS

DECLARATION OF PRINCIPLES

We, Asian individuals, organizations and institutions who are advocates of free, honest and clean elections, hereby affirm and commit ourselves to defend and uphold the universal and equal right of suffrage of all people.
We commit to work for the recognition and realization of the right of all people to take part in the government of his or her country, or through freely chosen representatives.
We shall promote and protect the right of all people to equal access to public service in his or her country.
We shall exert all efforts so that the will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will to be expressed in periodic and genuine elections, which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent voting procedures.
To these ends, we have resolved to unite together to form this organization.

Article I: NAME
The organization shall be known as the Asian Network for Free Elections, hereinafter referred to as ANFREL.

Article II: HEADQUARTERS
ANFREL shall hold office in Bangkok, Thailand. This however does not preclude ANFREL from establishing sub-offices in countries where its members are located.

Article III: NATURE
ANFREL shall be an international, multi-sectoral, independent and non-political alliance of organizations and institutions, which subscribe to the declaration of principles, objectives and mandate of ANFREL.

Article IV: OBJECTIVES

Section 1 - ANFREL shall support initiatives towards democratization in the Asian Region.

Section 2 - ANFREL shall support participating members’ initiatives on:
a) Election monitoring of the entire electoral cycle;
b) Training on election monitoring, voters’ education and other election-related processes;
c) Development of training manuals;
d) Research on election laws, electoral reforms and other election-related issues;
e) Information dissemination and publication of materials related to election and democratic processes;
f) Creation of an environment conducive to a democratic election in the spirit of international solidarity.

Article V: MEMBERSHIP

Section 1 - Qualifications - To be a member of ANFREL, an organization or institution must subscribe to the principles enshrined in this constitution and must be committed to responsibly participate in the activities of ANFREL

Section 2 - Procedure for application
a) An applicant must submit a written manifestation, stating therein its desire to apply for membership in ANFREL, to be accompanied by a resolution of its governing body.
b) The applicant organization or institution shall likewise submit a duly accomplished application form to the Executive Council endorsed by at lest two (2) ANFREL members.
c) The Executive Council shall review the application and take the appropriate action through a process of consensus.

Section 3 - Rights and Privileges - All member organizations or institutions of ANFREL shall have the following rights and privileges, to wit:
a) To be represented in all meetings of the General Assembly and the various committees of ANFREL.
b) To nominate, vote and be voted upon during elections.
c) To actively participate in ANFREL activities and deliberations and avail benefits and services ANFREL may have to offer.
d) To nominate and/or endorse candidates for membership in ANFREL.
e) To submit proposals, statements, appeals or complaints to any organ, committee or other appropriate body of ANFREL.
f) To be informed of the financial status of ANFREL, and to inspect, in such manner as the ANFREL Executive Council may prescribe, its books of accounts and records.
g) To be furnished copies of all reports, notices, statements and publications issued by ANFREL for circulation to its members and to the general public.
h) To advise and counsel the leading bodies of ANFREL and their officers.
i) To extend and be given assistance by other ANFREL members in projects and activities of their respective organizations and institutions.
j) To be heard and be given due process.

Section 4 - Responsibilities - All member organizations, institutions shall have the following responsibilities, to wit:
a). To attend all regular and special meetings of ANFREL.
b). To participate in the implementation of the ANFREL General Program of Action through involvement in any of the ANFREL Committees and through other forms of participation.
c). To inform ANFREL of their respective activities.
d). To pay their annual dues.

Section 5 - Resignation or Termination of Membership – A member organization or institution may lose its membership by,
a) Withdrawal through a formal letter addressed to the Secretary General.
b) ANFREL through the General Assembly may terminate a member for cause after due process.

Article VI: GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Section 1 - The General Assembly shall be the supreme authority of ANFREL. It shall perform the following functions:
a) To elect at large the members of the Executive Council.
b) To approve the General Program of Action of ANFREL.
c) To act on amendment/s to the Constitution proposed to it in accordance with the procedure provided herein.
d) To act upon any recommendation of the Executive Council on charges against an officer or member organization.
e) To receive and approve bequests, donations and contributions to ANFREL.
f) To create committees necessary to perform its work.
g) To accept and approve the Annual Report of the Executive Council.

Section 2 - The General Assembly shall consist of the nominated representatives of the member organizations.

Section 3 - Meetings – The regular meetings of the General Assembly shall be held every three years in a place to be designated by the immediately preceding Assembly; provided, however, that special meetings may be called by a simple majority of the General Assembly.

Section 4 - The General Assembly shall have the exclusive power to decide on the dissolution of ANFREL by three-fourths (3/4) votes in any regular or special meeting called for this purpose.

Section 5 - The Chairperson and the Secretary General shall serve as Presiding Officer and Secretary, respectively of the General Assembly.

Article VII: THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL
Section 1 - Executive Council – ANFREL shall have an Executive Council composed of eleven (11) members elected at large by the General assembly. They shall elect from among themselves the officers of ANFREL.

Section 2 - The Executive Council shall have general supervision and control of the activities of ANFREL and shall perform the following functions, to wit:
a) To draw up plans, guidelines and budgets in accordance with the objectives and thrusts set by the General Assembly.
b) To supervise the implementation of programs and activities of ANFREL.
c) To issue policy statements of ANFREL.
d) To appoint the officers and members of the various committees.
e) To organize the ANFREL Secretariat to be headed by an Executive Director.
f) To appoint, dismiss, suspend or take any action against any personnel of ANFREL.
g) To perform such other functions as the General Assembly may assign.

Section 3 - Meetings – The Executive Council shall meet once every six months.
a) The Secretary General shall serve notice of meeting at least three weeks ahead to all members of the Executive Council.
b) The Secretary General shall prepare the agenda for the meeting in consultation with the Chairperson.
c) The presence of the majority of the Executive Council members shall constitute a quorum and a majority vote shall constitute a valid act of the Executive Council unless otherwise provided herein.
d) Tenure – The members of the Executive Council shall hold office for a period of three years. In case of vacancy, the Executive Council may elect an interim replacement for the duration of the term.

Article VIII: OFFICERS
Section 1 - The Chairperson shall perform the following functions:
a) To preside over meetings of the General Assembly and the Executive Council.
b) To represent ANFREL in public functions.
c) To sit or take part in all meetings of any committee or body of ANFREL

Section 2 - The Vice-Chairperson shall perform the following functions:
a) To assist the Chairperson in his/her functions.
b) To perform such tasks as may be assigned to him/her by the Executive Council.
c) To act as the Acting Chairperson in case of resignation or incapacity of the Chairperson.

Section 3 - The Secretary General shall perform the following functions:
a) To coordinate the activities of the committees and bodies of ANFREL
b) To oversee the preparation of minutes and maintenance of records relating to the General Assembly and the Executive Council.
c) To oversee the external affairs and networking functions of ANFREL.
d) To be responsible for the generation of funds for ANFREL.
e) To submit a report on the implementation of the ANFREL General Program of Action to the General Assembly and to the Executive Council.
f) To serve as the official spokesperson of ANFREL.

Section 4 - The Treasurer shall perform the following functions:
a) To be responsible for the safekeeping of the funds of ANFREL.
b) To assist the Secretary General in raising funds for ANFREL.
c) To prepare financial reports for the information of the General Assembly and the Executive Council.

Article IX: THE SECRETARIAT
Section 1 - The Secretariat shall coordinate the day-to-day affairs of ANFREL.

Section 2 - An Executive Director appointed by the Executive Council shall head the Secretariat.

Section 3 - The Executive Director shall be an ex officio member of the Executive Council.

Article X: AMENDMENTS
Section 1 - This Constitution, or any provision thereof, may be amended or repealed by a majority vote of the members of the General Assembly at any regular or special meeting duly held for the purpose.

Section 2 - Any member who proposes any amendment/s to the Constitution and must do so in writing, stating therein the actual change/s and justification, and submit to the Secretary General prior to the holding of the meeting of the General Assembly. The Secretary General shall provide advanced copies of the proposed amendment/s to the general membership.

Article XI: EFFECTIVITY AND TRANSITION
Section 1 - This Constitution shall be effective from date of approval by the Securities and Exchange Commission of the Royal Kingdom of Thailand.

Section 2 - This Constitution shall not however affect qualifications, eligibility and tenure of the present elected and appointed officers of ANFREL who shall continue to serve the remainder of their term.

Certified true and correct:

Gen. Saiyud Kerdphol	Mr. Kingsley Rodrigo
Chairman ANFREL	Secretary General ANFREL