Statuts

Statutes of the Kimusubi Dojos International

 

in short Kimusubi Dojos

 

 

• 1 Name, registered seat, activities and language

 

1. The Federation holds the name “Kimusubi Dojos International” and will in the following be referred to as Kimusubi Dojos.

 

2. Kimusubi Dojos is registered in Villach, Austria.

 

3. Kimusubi Dojos expand its activities globally. It understands itself as the parent organisation of any aikido group or individual that has joined it as a member.

 

4. The official language of the federation towards Austrian authorities is German. The working language of the federation is English.

 

 

 

 

• 2 Purpose

 

The Kimusubi Dojos is a cultural and sporting union for the Japanese martial art of Aikido, which was founded by Morihei Ueshiba as a way of finding physical and spiritual harmony and perfection. The idea of this martial art is to help society to live in harmony and prevent violence. There is no competition in Aikido.

 

The purpose of this federation is to respect and follow the spirit of Aikido established by the Founder of Aikido, Ueshiba Morihei, and the basic principles concerning the dissemination of Aikido as established by the Hombu Dojo in Japan, according to it´s International Regulations.

 

The federation works without political, religious, gender and ethnic discrimination.

 

The federation doesn’t support competition.

 

The federation is a non-profit organisation.

 

In order to reach these goals the federation:

• unifies, protects, develops and coordinates the Aikido related activities of it’s members
• represents it’s members internationally
• organizes courses, events, seminars and trips
• trains and educates Aikido instructors and Aikido trainees
• certifies and supports it’s members, for example via dojo awards or examinations
• maintains, publishes and/or sells Aikido related material and information
• may own and govern tangible and/or intangible assets in order to support it’s activities
• may perform other tasks that promote the purpose of the federation

 

 

 

 

 

• 3 Financial Resources

 

The financial means, necessary to fulfil the purpose of the federation shall be supplied by:

 

• membership and application fees
• proceeds from events, courses, seminars and trips
• fees from certifications and examinations
• donations, support payments, gifts or legacies
• sales of materials, publications or information
• interests, dividends, rental fees or sales profits of the federations capital

 

 

The financial means of the federation are used to serve the co-operative needs of its members. The same applies in case a member withdraws from the federation or when the federation dissolves. No person nor Member profits from expenses which do not serve the purposes of the federation or by exaggerated allowances or fees.

 

 

 

• 4 Membership Types

 

 

The members are:

 

• Full Members are legal persons ( i.e. registered organisations ).
• Supporting Members are either natural or legal persons. They have no voting rights.
• Honorary Members are natural or legal persons who have been awarded this status due to outstanding merits for Kimusubi Dojos. Their membership is requested by and may be terminated by the General Meeting. They have no rights and duties.

 

• 5 Application and Acquisition of Membership

 

The membership of Full and Supporting Members is decided by the Board.

 

A pre-requisite for Supporting and Full Members is to accept these Statutes.

 

The applicant delivers the Application and any additional information deemed necessary by the Board. Willingness to become a Member is shown by the payment of the joining fee and/or membership fee, which are decided by the General Meeting.

 

The Board accepts or refuses the admission.  The admission can be refused without giving reasons and by returning the joining and/or membership fee, if such fee has been paid.

 

Change of Membership type: If an organisation to which a Supporting Member belongs, becomes a Full Member, the Supporting Membership can be terminated by the Board. If the membership of a Full Member is terminated, the individual Member(s) of that organisation can be accepted as Supporting Members by the Board.

 

• 6 Termination of Membership

 

 

The membership is terminated by:

 

1) Self-termination by non-payment

The Members show their willingness to remain members by paying the membership fee. If the membership fee has not been paid by the time set by the Board, and if no payment has been received after ten (10) working days since a notification of missing payment has been sent to the Member, the Member is deemed to have terminated the membership. It is the responsibility of each Member to inform the Federation of the valid contact and address to facilitate payment notices.

2) Self-termination by notice

The member may terminate membership by informing the Board or its chairman in writing or informing the General Meeting about the termination, where the termination is written in the minutes of the meeting. The termination is valid from the time of the notice.

3) Expulsion. The Board can expel the Member due to

1. a) harming or disrespecting the federation, it’s rules, purpose, these Statutes, the partners ( specifically Aikido Hombu Dojo and the IAF ), the members of the Board or officials working for the federation, other Members, potential new members or the general public.
2. b) not fulfilling the obligations as a member
3. c) acting against the rules or the purpose of the Kimusubi Dojos
4. d) not fulfilling the conditions for membership
5. e) loss of legal status

 

The expelled member may appeal the expulsion by written appeal to the General Meeting, but until this appeal is decided the membership rights of this member are suspended.

 

Any membership or other payments of the expelled/terminated Member are not returned, however, the Board may decide to return them in full or partly.

 

• 7 Rights and Obligations of the Members ( This clause is not applicable to Honorary Members )

 

 

The Members are entitled to the services provided by and to participate in the events hosted by Kimusubi Dojos.

 

Note: Some events, services and facilities are intended for special target groups, for example children’s courses, black-belt courses, beginner’s courses, women’s seminars, geographically centered events, the participation in which not all Members may be entitled to.

 

The authorised representatives of the Members have a right to participate in the General Meeting. Due to practical reasons, the Board may set a limit to the maximum number of representatives, which is the same for all Full Members ( i.e. 1 or more ) and the same for all legal Supporting Members ( i.e. 0 or more ) and natural Supporting Members ( i.e. 0 or 1 ). The representatives must be at least 15 years old.

 

Only the representatives of the Full Members have the right to vote.

 

Obligations: The Members are obliged to support the aims of the Kimusubi Dojos  by all means and refrain from anything that could harm the reputation and goals of the Kimusubi Dojos, it’s Members, and institutions and organisations connected to it as well as aikido in general.  They have to follow the regulations of the Kimusubi Dojos as well as the resolutions and rules set by its organs.

 

The Members are obliged to an on-time payment of the fees.

 

The Members are obliged to report information as requested by the Board and needed for Kimusubi Dojos’ operations planning, development and reporting, such as to Hombu Dojo/IAF reports or to authorities. The Members are obliged to inform Kimusubi Dojos of essential changes in it’s operations, contact addresses and persons.

 

 

• 8 Fees, Votes and the Ways of representation

 

 

Fees:

 

The Board proposes the fees to the General Meeting, which decides them. These can be, for example a joining fee, a yearly or a monthly fee. The General Meeting also decides the possible reductions to these fees (for example, reduction for a organisation working with children or the elderly). The Board can only approve temporary reductions of fees for a time less than one year.

 

Other, project/course/seminar/examination specific fees may be approved by the General meeting as ongoing business in the general budget.

 

The fees may be dependent, for example, of the Member-type, size, function ( such as organisation covering many countries or organisation focusing on children ), age ( such as a start-up organisation )  and the service level that is possible to be provided to the Member.

 

Votes:

 

The amount of votes in the General Meeting is the following:

 

1. every Full Member has 1 vote.
2. A Full Member has additional votes based on the amount of it’s members ( as reported in conjunction with the latest payment of yearly/monthly fee ) accordingly:

• More than 100 members 1 vote
• more than 200 members, 2 votes
• more than 300 members, 3 votes

1. A Full Member has additional votes based on the dan-grade ( registered in Hombu Dojo, Japan ) of the highest representative ( i.e. present or represented with a proxy ) of a Member in the meeting, accordingly:

• 4 dan or above, 1 vote

 

In the Board, every person has 1 vote.

 

In General Meetings and Board Meetings, the decisions are approved with a simple majority of the votes, and if they are even, the chairman’s vote decides.

 

In any committee or temporary organisation set-up to serve the Board, the rules of voting or making decisions is set up by the Board, however, they must not conflict with recommendations of Hombu Dojo.

 

 

Ways of representation in General Meeting:

 

Full Member may participate in the General Meeting via Skype, videoconference or similar, only if such participation is possible for every Full Member.

 

A Full Member may give a proxy to another Full Member in writing, to represent, speak and vote on their behalf. Such a proxy needs to be received by the Board 1 week before the meeting so that it’s validity can be verified. A proxy can be posted or sent electronically to the Board, and must contain the validity time, the authorisations, the name, authority and contact information of the Proxy giver and to whom this proxy is given to. Failing to fulfil this information or if the validity cannot be verified from the proxy-giver, the proxy is invalid.

 

 

 

 

• 9 Organs of the Kimusubi Dojos

 

The organs of Kimusubi Dojos are the General Meeting and the Board.

 

In addition, there may be Committees, project organisations etc., as established and needed by the Board, for example to satisfy requirements of Hombu Dojo.

 

• 10 The General Meeting

 

The General Meeting represents the members of Kimusubi Dojo and is the highest decision making organ of the Federation.  It meets once a year before June 30^th.  The Operational Year of the Federation is approximately 12 months, starting and ending from the end of consecutive General Meetings.

 

The meeting is summoned by the Board by e-mailing the representatives of each Member ( possibly excluding Honorary Members ) and by placing the invitation, time, place and agenda to the home page of Kimusubi Dojos no less than 6 weeks before the meeting. If the agenda contains extra-ordinary issues as defined by the law and outside the Agenda in this Clause ( e.g. changing these Statutes, selling or placing notable parts of property under guarantee ) , it has to be highlighted in the e-mails and invitation.

 

The Members may ask the Board to include topics to the agenda two (2) months before the meeting. The Board decides if the topics are relevant.

 

The General Meeting has the authority to decide regardless of the number of Full Members present or represented in the meeting. Decisions concerning changing the Statutes, terminating Kimusubi Dojos, selling or placing significant amounts of assets under guarantee require 2/3 or more of the votes present in the meeting.

 

The Chairman and the Secretary of the meeting are decided in the meeting.

 

 

• 11 The Agenda and the Decisions of the General Meeting

 

The tasks and decisions of the General Meeting are the following.

 

1. To select the Chairman and Secretary for the meeting as well as a person, who checks the minutes of the meeting.
2. To note the legality of the meeting according to the Statutes
3. To note the Members and votes that are present
4. To approve/disapprove the Operational Year Report and accounts
5. To release/not release/release conditionally the previous Board from responsibility.
6. To approve/disapprove/modify the plan for next Operational Year and the budget, including the membership fees
7. To elect the Board for the next Operational Year: the Chairman, the Secretary, the Treasurer as well as 0-5 other members to their specified roles. These roles may be, according to proposal of the Board, such as Communication/information/web manager, Seminar Manager and so on.

 

The Board is selected so that it has the best available capability to fulfill the plan for the next Operational Year – as indivuals as well as a well-operating Board

1. The chairman is selected from Founding Members ( see the end of this document ), if candidates are available
2. as a quideline, other members should be selected in proportion of the Full Members in each country ( note: capability overrides this quideline )

 

8. To re-confirm the Person in Charge ( as defined in the International Regulations of Hombu Dojo and later referred as PiC ) or to elect a new PiC, but only if the new PiC satisfies the qualifications for such a position. The new nomination is valid when it is approved by Hombu Dojo. The PiC is a member of the Board, if he/she is available to be a Board Member. He/she can simultaneously be in another role in the Board, for example chairman or secretary. The membership in the Board of current and new PiC is suspended while approval from Hombu Dojo is unclear, and their any other role in the Board is treated as in their absence.

 

9. To decide 1 Auditor or 2 Auditors If possible, the Auditor is either independent or represents other Members than those in the Board.

 

10. To decide any support payments to Kimusubi Dojos’ members or donations to any 3^rd party

 

11. To decide the entry or exit of Kimusubi Dojos’ membership to/from other organisations.

 

12. To recognize any new Honorary Members, including de-recognizing any previous Honorary members.

 

13.To handle Any Other Business approved by the Board and brought to the agenda by the Members

 

14. To end the meeting, after which the decisions of the General Meeting are valid.

 

• 12 The Extraordinary General Meeting

 

The Board may call an extraordinary General Meeting.

 

It must be held if requested by

1) the General Meeting

2) the auditor

3) by 1/10 or more of the Full Members with a written petition to the Board stating the reason for it.

 

The meeting must be held within 6 weeks from the request.

 

 

• 13 The Chairman of the Board

 

The tasks of the Chairman of the Board are:

• to ensure that Kimusubi Dojos operate according to its rules and purpose.
• to fulfil the decisions of the General Meeting
• to develop the Kimusubi Dojos
• to chair the meetings of the Board
• to represent Kimusubi Dojos, especially to the authorities and to other organisations where it is a member or aspires to become a member of, unless otherwise required by the Hombu Dojo International Regulations.

 

In case of emergencies, the Chairman may take extraordinary actions on behalf of the General Meeting, to save and minimise damages to the property, assets and reputation of Kimusubi Dojos. These actions, however, have to be approved later by the General Meeting.

 

• 14 The Board

 

The Board consists of the Chairman, the Secretary, the Treasurer and 0-5 other members as nominated by the General Meeting. The Board selects a Vice-chairman amongst its members, who is responsible for the tasks of the Chairman in his/her absence.

 

All Board members have to have at least 1. dan registered in Hombu Dojo, Japan.

 

The Chairman summons the meetings. The Board is authorised to make decisions, if all Board members have been invited and at least half of them are present including the Chairman or the Vice-chairman.

 

If a Board member retires, the Board has the right to select any suitable and capable person within the Members, by-passing the 1.dan requirement, to continue the duties. Subsequent permission has to be obtained in the next General Meeting.

 

In the absence of the Secretary, one of the Board members keeps the Minutes of Meeting of the Board. Minutes of the Meetings are approved by the Chairman ( or Vice Chairman ) and the Secretary ( or replacement ).

 

The duties of the Board are:

• to prepare and summon the General Meetings and the material to be decided in the agenda, including the proposals for payments and fees.
• To admit, expulse and keep record/database of the members
• To fulfil the decisions of the General Meeting
• To govern the capital of Kimusubi Dojos and it’s finances according to the decisions of the General Meeting
• To create, manage policies, rules, regulations and guidelines for Kimusubi Dojos and keep record of the valid rules and regulations.
• To select, nominate, dismiss and manage employees, committees and project organisations
• To take care of all other issues that do not according to law or these Statutes belong to other organs.
• To provide stipends or support which do not endanger the finances of Kimusubi Dojos in the short or long term.

 

The Board decides the buying, selling or taking up or giving up governance of assets and/or debts of Kimusubi Dojos, only if such decision has been approved by the General Meeting or in a plan approved by the General Meeting.

 

Any committee or temporary organisation set-up to serve the Board may employ people that are not Members of the Federation, nor directly associated with the Federation.

 

 

 

• 15 The signatures and signees

 

The Chairman has the authority to sign on behalf of Kimusubi Dojos.

 

The Secretary has the authority to sign for matters concerning daily business of Kimusubi Dojos.

 

The Treasurer has the authority to sign for daily matters concerning the financial transactions of Kimusubi Dojos.

 

Documents which create an obligation to Kimusubi Dojos in any way are to be signed by the Chairman and the Secretary. If these documents concern financial matters, they are to be signed by the Chairman and the Treasurer. In case of their disability, the Vice President or the respective deputies take their place.

 

Any 3^rd person may sign for Kimusubi Dojos, but only for a specific purpose as authorised by the Board. For example, the chairman of a committee may be authorised to sign on behalf of that committee, or a person responsible for a seminar may be authorised to sign documents related to that seminar.

 

 

• 16 Dissolution of the Kimusubi Dojos

 

 

The dissolution of the federation can only be decided in a General Meeting. This meeting has to decide upon liquidation if capital exists. It also has to appoint a liquidator and decide on what he is to do with the remaining surplus money, after all liabilities have been settled.  The capital, which may remain after the dissolution of the Kimusubi Dojos and/or the loss of its beneficiary purpose, has to be given – if possible – to an organisation or organisations which serve the same or similar purposes as Kimusubi Dojos and which are acknowledged as non-profit organisation(s) by the revenue office of the country ( or countries ) of the organisation’s registration.

 

In Villach 14. April 2010 on behalf of the Founding Members

 

Kimusubi Dojo Klagenfurt, Austria

Kimusubi Dojo Villach, Austria

Forum Kishintai, Cologne, Germany

Aikido Schüpfheim, Luzern, Switzerland