EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL ASSEMBLY IN AMSTERDAM

At an Extraordinary General Assembly on Sunday 26 April in Amsterdam the new LMHI Statutes and Procedures will be put to the vote.

The reasons to establish new Statutes were the following:

1. The International Council (= the gathering of all national representatives) in Oaxaca in 1996 decided on a new policy, e.g. to have as members of the LMHI as many national associations as possible in such a way as to provide the highest possible representativity of all homeopathic doctors in the world. Since the possibility of membership for associations would facilitate this process, it was decided to incorporate such a possibility into the Statutes.
2. In addition, the International Council then decided on the possibility for the International Council to form working committees (instead of the General Assembly). This was also to be incorporated into the Statutes.
3. Decision making within the LMHI has been strongly impeded by the old Statutes because decisions made by the International Council, such as the above but also decisions about all kinds of details, can only be implemented by a General Assembly, which takes place every three years.
4. The situation where the General Assembly –where all individual LMHI members may attend and are qualified to vote– is the highest authority in the LMHI is far from democratic, because 50 national members of the country where the congress takes place, can undo the decision of the attending representatives from all other countries.

The new Statutes have been established in close collaboration with a Swiss lawyer. They have two sections, as follows:

1. Statutes with only the most fundamental articles concerning name, purpose, membership categories and requirements, definition of the officers and definition of the official bodies of the LMHI.
2. Procedures comprising proceduring matters of the LMHI. This includes but is not limited to mechanisms for formation of committees, more specified job descriptions of the International Council members, establishment of subscription rates, etc.

In the new Statutes/Procedures the International Council (= the gathering of national representatives) is the highest authority in the LMHI; the General Assembly has ceased to exist. Besides, there is a possibility for the LMHI to have institutional members and for the International Council to form working committees.

At the International Council meeting in Seattle (USA) in May 1997 the new Statutes/Procedures were discussed. The national representatives conferred with their respective national homeopathic medical associations on this issue. Amendments have been incorporated. Therefore, the new Statutes/Procedures can be considered to have the support of all national homeopathic medical associations, which means the whole community of homeopathic doctors constituting the LMHI membership.

You will find a copy of the new Statutes/Procedures at the registration desk of the 53rd LMHI congress in Amsterdam. You are invited to the Extraordinary General Assembly on Sunday 26 April at 18.00 hours, where we hope you will vote in favour of the new Statutes/Procedures.