Constitution of ILPS-Canada Chapter

Constitution of ILPS-Canada Chapter

Guiding Principle

The ILPS-Canada Chapter adheres to and abides by the ILPS Charter.

The ILPS-Canada Chapter is a democratic, anti-imperialist coalition of organizations for peoples’ struggle.

It supports the struggles of workers, youth, children, women, indigenous peoples, small farmers, professionals and other exploited and oppressed sectors of society against the economic, political, military, social and cultural domination and attacks of imperialism and reaction.

ILPS-Canada will operate in French and English as well as other languages such as Spanish, and will supply translators and interpreters according to its capacities.

Aims

The ILPS-Canada Chapter aims to promote, support and develop the anti-imperialist and democratic struggles of the people of Canada and the people of the world, particularly throughout the Americas, who are engaged in sharpening struggles on key issues:

• Defending workers’ right to organize and unionize, with special attention to struggling for full rights for all migrant workers, including temporary “foreign” workers, seasonal agricultural workers, live-in caregivers, workers who are victims of trafficking and undocumented workers.
• Defending civil rights and democratic liberties, including freedom from police harassment, profiling and brutality which targets particularly racialized communities, indigenous people and working class youth
• Defending the natural environment against multinational destruction and pollution
• Building the peace with justice movement and closing down all US foreign military bases
• Ending Canada’s participation in all imperialist wars, removing Canadian military and police personnel from all zones of foreign occupation (particularly Haiti and Afghanistan) and withdrawing Canada from all imperialist military alliances, including NATO and NORAD
• Opposing the Canadian state’s active support for the Israeli state’s aggression, expansion and furthering of imperialist objectives while supporting the Palestinian peoples’ struggle for their homeland, liberty and justice. This includes support for the Palestinian-initiated Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign aimed at the Israeli state
• Opposing the dismantling of Canada’s industrial base through corporate globalization policies
• Stopping development of the nuclear power and nuclear waste industries and supporting total nuclear disarmament through the scrapping of all nuclear weapons starting with the U.S. and other imperialist powers
• Putting an end to development of the tar sands and other such environmentally destructive, solely profit-oriented operations and supporting the development of alternative environmentally responsible energy sources
• Opposing the role of Canadian mining companies in stalking the globe in search of profits by trampling on the rights of the peoples and particularly the indigenous populations while engaging in massive environmental destruction
• Opposing Canada’s use of so-called “Free Trade Agreements” and bilateral agreements used to open the door to other countries for plunder by Canadian monopolies
• Rejecting Canada’s use of tied aid and support for the World Bank and International Monetary Fund and other such global entities to promote and support its imperialist interests
• Opposing Canada’s role as a global supplier of military equipment and material
• For equality of women and their liberation from exploitation, domination and oppression by capitalism and imperialism
• Against the national oppression, dispossession, and impoverishment of indigenous peoples and supporting their right to self-determination
• Struggling for vastly improved public services including health, education, housing, childcare, welfare and transport and opposing the privatization of public utilities and services
• Against racism, xenophobia, homophobia and fascism
• Opposing the “War on Terror” at home with its racial profiling, unjust deportations and criminalization of resistance and struggle, particularly against people of colour, migrants, new immigrants and indigenous communities
• Against the marginalization, persecution and criminalization of refugees and asylum seekers fleeing state terror, imperialist aggression and Country oppression, with particular attention to Tamils, Palestinians and others escaping Canadian-backed regimes
• Support for the International Migrants Alliance, the International Women’s Alliance, RESIST! (International people’s campaign to confront crisis and war) and other such ILPS-sponsored or related anti-imperialist initiatives

Activities

The Canadian Chapter of the ILPS initiates and conducts political activities and organizes to:

Promote and popularise the struggles of people’s organizations around these key issues;

Participate in mass mobilisations on these key issues;

Build cooperation, understanding and solidarity between people’s organizations in Canada and across the Americas and beyond;

Assist people’s struggles with research, publicity, seminars and other practical measures.

RULES

1. The public name of the Country Organization shall be “ILPS-Canada”.

2. ILPS-Canada is based on delegates from participating Organizations who agree with the Guiding Principles as set out in this Constitution and the Charter of the ILPS and are engaged in struggle around any of the Aims and Activities listed.

3.      Member Organizations

Participating Organizations shall be called “Member Organizations”.

All Member Organizations shall maintain their independence and initiative and shall accordingly have equal basic rights and responsibilities.

Member Organizations are entitled to two delegates to any ILPS-Canada conference or meeting.

Each Member Organization shall be responsible for the personnel in its delegation.

Each delegate may only represent only one Member Organization at a time, and have only one vote.

Applications for Member Organization status should be accompanied by a statement of aims and a brief history of activities.

Applications can be made through Regional Committees, but must be approved by the ILPS-Canada Conference or the ILPS-Canada Coordinating Committee.

Member Organizations may recommend individuals who are not members of their Organization to assist ILPS-Canada with certain tasks and duties. These individuals will be encouraged to join a Member Organization or to form their own mass organization which can join ILPS-Canada within a reasonable delay.

4.      Observers

Non-affiliated Organizations and individuals may also participate in discussion and debate as “Observers,” however they shall not have voting rights.

Political parties and alliances may be allowed Observer status subject to approval by the ILPS-Canada Conference or ILPS-Canada Coordinating Committee.

5.     Country-wide Conference

A country-wide ILPS-Canada Conference of delegates from all Member Organizations in good standing shall be called prior to any International Assembly, or each 18 months, whichever is sooner.

The ILPS-Canada Conference is the highest authority in ILPS-Canada, and can amend the Constitution by majority vote of delegates in attendance.

The ILPS country Conference will form and make decisions on the plan of action

The ILPS-Canada Conference shall elect an ILPS-Canada Coordinating Committee, reflecting the mass base and regional and multi-national character of the Chapter.

Candidates to the Coordinating Committee shall be proposed by ILPS-Canada Member Organizations, and must be seconded by an ILPS Member Organization. Elections will be by secret ballot. An independent 3-member Election Committee not standing for election will be proposed and seconded by the Conference.

Those 7 (seven) candidates receiving the most number of votes will form the ILPS-Canada Chapter Coordinating Committee. The Coordinating Committee will elect a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary General and Treasurer to act as an Executive Committee (EC).

The ILPS-Canada Conference can revise the number of delegates to the ILPS-Canada Coordinating Committee.

The ILPS-Canada Conference can set tasks and responsibilities for the ILPS-Canada Coordinating Committee and the EC.

6.     Chairperson, Vice Chairperson and Secretary General

The Chairperson is the sole authorised spokesperson and signatory to statements issued in the name of ILPS-Canada.

The Chairperson leads delegates from ILPS-Canada to any international meetings, such as the ILPS International Assembly or International Coordinating Committee.

The Vice-Chairperson assists the Chairperson and replaces the Chairperson when necessary.

The Secretary General is in charge of the day to day functioning of ILPS-Canada and selects and organizes the ILPS-Canada secretariat to assure the needs of the organization and its members.

7.     Country Coordinating Committee

The ILPS-Canada Coordinating Committee shall form such sub-committees as required to carry out the work agreed.

Coordinating committee of ILPS shall implement the agreed direction decided by the ILPS Canada country conference

It shall meet as often as agreed to deal with on-going responsibilities, to issue statements and to coordinate activities where necessary.

It shall circulate information to Member Organizations and Observers, by newsletter, website or email as determined appropriate.

The ILPS-Canada Coordinating Committee shall be responsible for calling ILPS-Canada Conferences with the minimum notice of one month.

8.     Treasurer

The Treasurer is responsible for the collection of Affiliation Fees and monies owed, for maintaining bank accounts and records, for the preparation of Financial Reports and submission to the ILPS-Canada Coordinating Committee, and annual audit, and for payments to cover authorised operating costs incurred in meeting the Aims of ILPS-Canada.

The Chairperson and Treasurer are joint signatories for cheques and payments issued by ILPS-Canada.

9.     Regional Committees

Regional Committees may be established in major cities and other locations through the ILPS-Canada Conference or ILPS-Canada Coordinating Committee.

Regional Committees shall meet as often as necessary (at least 6 times a year) and provide reports to the ILPS-Canada Coordinating Committee.

 10.  Standing Orders for the conduct of meetings

Minutes are to be recorded by a designated person.

Motions or Amendments require a Mover and Seconder.

Decisions will be made by consensus wherever possible, where consensus is not reached, Decisions are carried by a simple majority vote.

The Chairperson has Casting Vote.

11.   Affiliation Fees

Affiliation Fees are set by ILPS-Canada Conference and are due everyMay 1.

Between meetings of the ILPS-Canada Conference, Affiliation Fees can be amended by majority decision of the ILPS-Canada Coordinating Committee.

Affiliation Fees are to be forwarded to the Treasurer, and are held at the discretion of the ILPS-Canada Coordinating Committee.

12.    ILPS International Charter

These rules uphold and adhere to the ILPS International Charter.  The latter prevails in case of any conflict with the former.

(Revised on December 12, 2011 by MG)