Radicaldemocratic party in Bulgaria

Article 1. Radicaldemocratic Party of Bulgaria is a political organization with headquarters in Sofia. It is a successor of the Radicaldemocratic Party and her successors: Radical Party, Radical Party (united) and Bulgarian Radical Party. It is a juristic person, legalized according to the laws of the country.

II. Purposes and Instruments

Article 2. The purpose of RDP is establishment of democratic state and liberal society.
Article 3. The achievement of purposes is possible through broad representation in both legislative and executive power and using all the other legal instruments.
RDP is collaborating with parties with similar purposes and programmes in the country and abroad.

Article 4. Body of the party includes:
Congress;
National Party Conference;
National Party Council;
Executive Committee of the National Party Council;
Control Council;
Regional Councils;
Municipal Councils;
Local Organizations.

Article 5. RDP unifies people regardless of their social position, origin, race, sex and religion, who accept purposes of the party and work for their realization.

Article 6. Each member of the party has the following rights:
a) To elect and to be elected;
b) To use all the information and material fund of the party;
c) To participate at the meetings and at discussion of his own activity;
d) To make suggestions and to present motion to all levels of body of the party which are obliged to answer in written form.

Article 7. The regulation of exercising right according article 6, letter “a” is accomplished by the common meeting of the local organization, by a procedure determined by the National Party Council.

Article 8. Members of the party are obliged:
a) To observe the Statute and to work for the accomplishment of the Programme;
b) To observe high ethics in their behaviour as members of the party;
c) To observe decisions of the body of the party listed in article 4 of the present statute;
d) To pay membership fees regularly.

Article 9. (1) Entrance in the party becomes through application, signed by both members of the party with at least one-year length of party membership. Accepting the Statute and the Programme of the Party should be declared in the application. The application should be discussed at a common meeting of the organization. The applicant is accepted if more than half of the available staff of the organization present at the meeting and if more than half of the present vote for the applicant.
(2) Founders sign the constitutive protocol only.

Article 10. (1) RDP membership is accomplished through local organization.
(2) Each member has a right to be a member of one local organization only.

Article 11.Each member may pass from one local organization to another but he must inform both the organizations in written form.

Article 12. Each member may leave the party but he should inform the local organization in written form and he should return his membership card.

Article 13. For gross violation of article 8, letter “a“, “b“ and “c“, members might be expelled from the party with decision of the meeting of the local organization in the presence of at least half of the available staff. The decision should be taken with majority of 2/3 of those present.

Article 14. (1) The decision for exclusion may be appealed against in the Municipal Council, in the Regional Council and in case of confirming it may be also appealed in the National Party Council. The decision of the National Party Council is final.
(2) Member excluded according to the former paragraph may apply for membership in RDP again in order of article 9 of the Statute, but not earlier than two years.

Article 15. Each member who has not paid membership fees more than six months and has not warn or has not represented an application with good reason, is considered left the party. He may recover his membership in order of article 9.

V. Local Organizations

Article 16. Local organization is fundamental independent unit of the structure of the party built according place of residence on a territorial principal.

Article 17. (1) Local organization should have at least ten members.
(2) The leadership of the local organization consists of the chairman and a secretary. In bigger organizations, after a decision of the common meeting may be elected vise-chairmen and members.
(3) Members of the leadership are elected with common majority of those present.

(4) Leadership of the local organization is elected for two years.

Article 18. The leadership calls common meeting at least once monthly. At the request of 1/3 of the members of the local organization, common meeting may be called at any time.

Article 19. The common meeting is legal if at least half of its members present. If the common meeting has not number available, meeting should be postponed with an hour with the same agenda and it is legal if more than 1/3 of the staff available present.

Article 20. In the common meeting each member has one vote. Voting with power of attorney is not permitted.

Article 21. The establishing of local organization should be confirmed by the relevant Regional Council in written form and by the Executive Committee, if Regional Council made a suggestion. In case of established Municipal Council, it confirms the local organization before the Regional Council.

Article 22. The established organization should send in the Regional Council a copy from the constitutive protocol and list of the founder members, which have signed it. After that information for new recruits should be regularly sent.

Article 23. Regional Councils of RDP are established on the territory of regions, elected by regional conferences of the local organizations. Regional Councils coordinate the activity of the organizations in the regions.

Article 24. The chairman of the Regional Council is elected by common majority of the regional conferences and he is regional coordinator.

Article 25. Regional Council gives information in the Executive Committee for the established local organizations and for changes in their staff and through the chairman make a connection between local organizations and national leadership.

Article 26. In the towns with municipal separation is permitted an establishment of more than one local organization on territorial principal which create a Municipal Council. The election of Municipal Council is submitted on the principal of the election of the Regional Council.

Article 27. The Supreme body of the party is the Congress, which is called regularly once each two years from the Executive Committee. If there is a decision of the National Party Council or at the request of a tenth part of the members of the party or of one third of the local organizations, presented at the last congress, Congress may be called extraordinarily.

Article 28. (1) Place, time and agenda of the Congress should be fixed at least a month before its implementation.
(2) The request for an extraordinary congress should be accompanied of a suggestion for agenda.
(3) When calling an extraordinary congress is by decision of the National Party Council the order by paragraph 1 should be followed. When calling an extraordinary congress is by request of a tenth part of the members or by request of a third part of the organizations, presented at the last congress, it should be announced of the Executive Committee at least two weeks later after the entrance of the request. The Executive Committee should fix place, time and agenda of the Congress in that case.
Congress should be carried out at least a month later after the announcement.

Article 29. Congress is a common meeting of all the members of the party in the country, which nominate delegates. Each local organization should be represented by one delegate at least. National Party Council determines a proportional presentation.

Article 30. Members of the National Party Council, members of the Control Council, the regional coordinators and the representatives of RDP in the Parliament and in the government take part in the congress by rights.

Article 31. Congress is considered regularly carried out if at least half of the delegates have presented. If there is not number available, National Party Council should fix new date for implementation Congress within a month. If again there is not number available, Congress is considered regularly carried out no matter how many delegates present.

Article 32. Decisions of the Congress should be taken by ordinary majority exceptionally the decisions concerning changes of the Statute and of the Programme and decisions for putting an end of the existence of the party when is necessary a majority of 2/3 of those present.

Article 33. Each delegate of the Congress has one vote. Voting with power of attorney is not permitted.

Article 34. Issues that have not been included in advance in the agenda but are duly announced may be included in the agenda by decision of the Congress.

Article 35. Neither a member may vote in decision of problems concerning himself, his husband (wife), his relatives in a descending line and relatives by direct ascending line, also the lateral branch of a family, relatives by marriage till second rate. This restriction does not concern secretly voting by names.

Article 36. Congress elects in secret voting of its quota members of the National Party Council, members of the Control Council and the chairman of the party. Those candidates who have taken the most votes should be considered elected.

VII. National Party Conference

Article 37. For discussion of important problems, which have emerged extraordinarily, National Party Council by its own initiation or by suggestion of at least a tenth of the common number of the local organizations calls National Party Conference. The Executive Committee announces agenda at least 20 days in advance and organizes its implementation.

VIII. National Party Council

Article 38. (1) National Party Council is a supreme collective body of the party, which works between the sessions of the Congress. National Party Council consists of members elected by the Congress. Congress fixes total number of the members of the National Party Council.
(2) Congress elects reserve members for completing National Party Council which number is a third part of the fixed number in paragraph 1.

Article 39. National Party Council should meet at sessions at least four times per year, called by the Executive Committee. It may be called extraordinarily at the request of a third part of its members. Sessions of the National Party Council are legal if more than half of its members present.

Article 40. Together with the National Party Council works a commission for ethics consisting of five members of the National Party Council and its chairman is member of the Executive Committee. National Party Council elects the commission. The commission discusses and decides the controversial and conflicting points, within the framework of the structures of RDP, except the questions connected with article 13. Commission gives an account of the National Party Council and Congress.

Article 41. National Party Council takes decisions with an ordinary majority about all the questions considering party, except the questions pointed in article 32 of the Statute which are within the exclusive competence of the Congress.

Article 42. (1) The membership of the National Party Council complements in case of leaving the party, retirement, exclusion, death or non-participation in 3 consecutive sessions or totally 5 sessions of the National Party Council.
(2) The membership of the National Party Council is complemented with reserve members by the range of vote of the Congress.
(3) When the membership of the National Party Council is not complemented with reserve members, an extraordinary Congress should be called.

Article 43. Members of the Control Council, regional coordinators and members of the Parliament and the Government from the Radicaldemocratic Party participate in sessions of the National Party Council by rights with a deliberative vote.

IX. Executive Committee and Chairman

Article 44. (1) National Party Council elects Executive Committee, vice-chairmen and organizing secretary at his session not later than a month after the Congress.
(2) The election of the Executive Committee is accomplished according to the determined procedure in article 36. National Party Council fixes the number of the members of the Executive Committee.
(3) Vice-chairmen and organizing secretary are elected by secret vote and ordinary majority.

Article 45. Executive Committee is constantly working body that manages the affairs of the party of current character and coordinates its activity. Executive Committee elects a treasurer of the party among its members.

Article 46. Chairman or a person who is proxy for the Executive Committee presents RDP before all physical and judicial persons in the country and abroad. The chairman or the Executive Committee may authorize explicitly another member of RDP for each concrete example.

Article 47. The Executive Committee is elected for a period of two years. The Executive Committee gives an account to the Congress and National Party Council.

Article 48. (1) By suggestion of the chairman or of 1/3 of the members of the Executive Committee, National Party Council may eliminate members of the Executive Committee by secret voting and majority of at least 2/3 of the members of the National Party Council.
(2) Membership of the Executive Committee is complemented from the National Party Council in case of leaving party, retirement, exclusion, elimination or death.

Article 49. Control Council gives an account of its work to the Congress. Control Council consists of five members who elect chairman and secretary.

Article 50. Control Council supervises financial affairs and secretary work of the organizations of the party and central body.

Article 51. Central Body and local organizations are obliged to give all documents connected with the above-mentioned activity at the request of Control Council.

XI. Obligations of the Elective Body

Article 52. The Elective Body (National Party Council, Executive Committee, Control Council) are obliged to inform local organizations about their activities regularly and in written form.

XII. Property and Accounts

Article 53. Property of the party proceeds from incomes of real estate, from membership fees and other activities and receipts, permitted by the law.

Article 54. The amount of the membership fees and the additional payments from the members of the Parliament, the Government and the mayors and the system of discharges and spending of means as well is determined by a regulation suggested by the Executive Committee and approved by the National Party Council.

XIII. Editions and Symbols

Article 55. Central printed editions of the party are daily paper “Radicaldemocracy”, newspaper “Vek 21” and magazine “Demokraticheski Pregled”. The National Party Council confirms the editors-in-chief of the editions of the party.

Article 56. Radicaldemocratic Party accepts for her holiday the 11th of May – the day of the Saint Cyril and Saint Methodius.

Article 57. Radicaldemocratic Party accepts blue color as color of the party. RDP has her banner and badge.

XIV. Transfer and Conclusive Orders

1. In pursuance of the order of article 5, members of RDP who are members of other parties at the very time of acceptance of this statute, should arrange their membership for a year after the statute comes into force.

2. Active fighters against fascism and capitalism and State security collaborators or servants should not be members of the RDP.

3. Following persons should not be elected in the elective governing body of the party:
- Former members of Bulgarian Communist Party and Bulgarian Socialist Party;
- Former members of other parties who have less than two year membership in RDP;
- Persons who have occupied paid or leading elective positions in DKMS, OF, BZNS, BPS at regional level and above it.

4. Body of RDP according to article 4 elaborate rules for regulation of their activity where the problems that are not decided with this Statute are reflected and developed.