Following the current rules of procedure of the General Meeting since 14.12.2008
§ 1 FORMALITIES
1. The General Meeting is opened by the Secretary General or, if not able to attend, by a replacement person.
2. The Secretary General or his replacement person is responsible for the approval of the General Meeting according to the Articles of the Association, of the authorization of attendance and quorum.
2 AUTHORIZATION OF ATTENDANCE
1. The General Meeting does not meet in public.
2. Authorized for attendance are members insofar as they are not in arrears of payment and guests invited by the executive committee.
3. The right to vote follows § 10 (7) of the Articles of the Association. At the beginning of the meeting the Secretary General has to inform the General Meeting about guests invited by the executive committee.
4. The General Meeting decides about the attendence of further guests.
§ 3 CHIEF NAVIGATOR
1. After nomination by the executive committee the General Meeting elects a chief navigator and a replacement person (secretary for transcript of proceedings).
2. The chief navigator must ensure the undisturbed procedure of the General Meeting. He may call to order and expel participants from the meeting in case of repeated violations against the procedural rules.
§ 4 RIGHT TO DEBATE
At the meeting members are enabled to speak. Guests may rise to speak if the General Meeting approved after proposal of the executive committee or a member.
§ 5 RIGHT TO MAKE PROPOSALS
Every member has the right to make proposals.
§ 6 PROCEDURE OF CALLING SPEAKERS
1. The list of speakers is compiled in order of requests to speak; the speakers are called in accordance to the order of the list of speakers. The order of speakers may be changed by the chief navigator after approval of the following registered speakers.
2. A member of the executive committee may receive the right to speak out of the order as well as a person enabel to speak in order to issue a real amendment or to place a procedural motion.
§ 7 PROCEDURAL MOTIONS
1. Following procedural motions can be placed: Removing issues from the agenda, the displacement of an issue within the agenda, referring an issues to a committee, closing of the list of speakers, closing of the debate.
2. A procedual motion must be justified. The chief navigator must admit an opposed speaker and must let vote about the procedual motion immediately.
3. Procedual motions are just regarded as posed if they are formulated in accordance to the procedual rules and to the procedure of calling speakers. Requests to place a procedural motion before the closure of a prior voting are not valid.
§ 8 VOTING PROCEDURE
1. Every motion is to be given in written form to the chief navigator. They must be discussed in the same order as submitted to the chief navigator. In case of motions to the same issue the more related one is to be prefered. The text of the motions should be read before granting the next speech.
2. The vote on the motions should occur after closing of the debate in an open or secret ballot.
3. The proposed motions should be formulated in a way that an answer with yes or no is possible.
4. With beginning of the vote the floor concerning procedural votes can not be given anymore.
§ 9 MINUTES OF THE MEETING
1. The minutes-writer prepares a summary minutes for each General Meeting, that includes a list of attendance, the order of the agenda, motions and results of the vote. At the request of a member statements and occurences of the General Meeting must be noted in the minutes.
2. The minutes of the meeting must be signed by the chief navigator and is regarded as approved unless it was appealed in written form within the period of one month since sending. In case of an objection the minutes is approved by the following General Meeting.