(adopted on 25 November,2002)
Article 1 (Name)
The name of this academic organization shall be the: Asian Bioethics Association (ABA). Hereafter referred to as the Association.
Article 2 (Definitions)
In interpreting this Constitution the following definitions shall be used: Bioethics is the interdisciplinary study of philosophical, ethical, social, legal, economic, medical, therapeutic, ethnological, religious, environmental, and other related issues arising from biological sciences and technologies, and their applications in human society and the biosphere. Asia is the regions, peoples, and cultures which constitute the geographically largest continent of the world.
Article 3 (Objectives)
The basic objective of the Association is to promote scientific research in bioethics in Asia through open and international exchanges of ideas among those working in bioethics in various fields of study and different regions of the world. In order to achieve this end the Association will encourage the following work and projects: (1) to organize and support international conferences in bioethics in Asia; (2) to assist the development and linkage of regional organizations for bioethics; (3) to encourage other academic and educational work or projects to accomplish their goals consistent with the objectives of the Association.
Article 4 (Membership)
4.1 Membership of the Association shall be open to any individuals and institutions sharing the objectives of the Association.
4.2 A member of the Association shall be in good standing. There will be a voluntary payment of annual dues. The Board of Directors may tentatively set the suggested annual dues at a different rate for members with different income.
4.3 Membership shall be valid unless and until they are rejected by the Board of Directors and/or by the majority vote of members.
Article 5 (the Board of Directors)
5.1 The Board of Directors shall be nominated from among the members of the Association.
5.2 Institutional or regional members may nominate delegate(s) for the Board, but the nominee, if elected, shall hold office in his or her own right, and not as a representative of the institution or the region.
5.3 The Board of Directors shall consist of no more than 15 members and no more than 3 members from any one nation state. The nation state of each member should be defined by the member on the basis of residence or nationality at the time of nomination for election.
5.4 The Board of Directors may appoint, or authorize the President to appoint, additional officers, sub-committees, executive staffs to carry out specific tasks of the Association. In particular a list of regional representatives will be maintained for promotion of the ABA.
5.5 The board can co-opt, by consensus, associate non-voting members to increase the diversity and geographical representation of the board for the current term. (Adopted by acclamation at the ABA General Meeting on 5 November 2008)
Article 6 (the Officers)
6.1 Officers of the Association shall be the President, seven vice-presidents (one from each of China, India, Japan, Korea, South Asia (East of India), West Asia (West of India), and Asian Ethnic and Religious Minorities, and a General Secretary. They are nominated and/or elected by members of the Association. The President can serve a maximum of two years in office. The Other Officers should stand re-election every two years.
6.2 The Officers shall be responsible for the general management and the direction of business works of the Association.The President and/or Secretary shall have authority to execute, in the name of the Association, all authorized deeds, contracts, or other instruments.
6.3 The Vice-presidents shall provide secondary leadership for the Association, substituting for the President when needed.
6.4 A vice-president can be elected for a maximum of two successive terms as a vice president.
6.5 The General Secretary shall keep, or arrange to have kept, a true record of the minutes of all meetings.
6.6 The General Secretary shall have custody of the Association's funds, keep full and accurate accounts of the receipts and disbursements, and deposit all money in the name and to the credit of the Association in the depositories designated by the Board of Directors. The accounts shall be shared with all members of the Association every year.
Article 7 (Amendment of the Constitution)
This Constitution may not be amended, replaced, or annulled except by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members in secret ballot.
Supplemetary Note 1
The principles of this Constitution were initially adopted at the Inaugural Meeting of the East Asian Association for Bioethics held in Beijing on the 5th of November, 1995, when the Officers of this Association were also nominated.At the UNESCO Asian Bioethics Conference, 4 Nov, 1997, the Association was broadened to become the Asian Bioethics Association, and several further members were nominated.This initial Board of Directors was replaced by a new Board in November, 2002, at the Fourth Asian Bioethics Conference in Seoul, and when the Constitution was formally adopted. The 2004 election was held on 10 November 2004.
Supplementary Provision 2
The business
office of the Association was placed in the University Research Center, Nihon
University, Tokyo, Japan, from 1998 to February, 2002. From February, 2002 to February 2005 the secretariat and office was: Prof. Darryl Macer, Institute of Biological Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba Science City 305-8572, JAPAN. From February 2005 the secretary and office moved to Prof. Darryl Macer, RUSHSAP, UNESCO Bangkok, 920 Sukhumvit Rd, Prakanong, Bangkok 10110, Thailand [asianbioethics@yahoo.co.nz]. The website from 2005 is
To the Official
Journal of ABA, EJAIB
The Eubios Ethics Institute is on the world wide web of
Internet:
http://eubios.info/index.htm