Basic Law & Internal Regulation

APA Basic Law

Definitions 

Article 1: the Following definitions for expressions wherever mentioned in this Law.

Association: Arab Publishers Association

Law: Basic Law for Arab Publishers Association

Member: Every natural or legal person associated for the Association, who's applied on them, mentioned membership conditions.

General Assembly: General Assembly for Arab Publishers Association.

Board Members: Board Members for Arab Publishers Association.

Book: Intellectual work of all scientific, literary or artistic author or translator, whether paper or electronic. 

Publisher:  The one who is responsible of Book and non-periodical newsletters publication, distribution and marketing.   

Article 2: APA

Arab Publishers Association: is an Arabic, non-profitable professional association with financial and administrative autonomy.

Article 3: Association Premises:

1- The association has two permanent headquarters:

The headquarters of the Presidency: Cairo.            

The headquarters of the Secretariat: Beirut.                    

2- The National Association for each of them (Egyptian and Lebanese), has to commitment to provide the association with a independent and full equipment headquarters, and the freedom of entry and exit of the members of the association to their country, in the case of the inability of either of them to fulfill its obligations . The board members should meet to take appropriate decision by the power given to them.

Objectives of the association

Article 4:  The objectives of the APA

1 - Work to upgrade the profession of publishing, and to set a charter of honour to be adhered by Arab Publishers, includes all the rules and regulations to ensure the consolidation of concepts, increase the respect of it, support its mission of cultural, scientific and economic development.

2 - To expand areas of cooperation and joint action, and consolidate relations between the Arab publishers and their associations for the good of the Arab culture and profession of publishing. Facilitate the opportunities and possibilities that lead to the promotion of the book and the development of cultural awareness at the region and abroad.  Held all the necessary conferences, seminars and training courses.

3 - Consolidate links between regional, international organizations and associations which related to the field of book publishing industry and intellectual property.

4 - Ensure the core values of the Arab culture and civilization, in addition to protect it against all attempts to foisting penetration and deception.

5 - Protect the literary rights of publishers, their interests and freedom of publication right, take all the moral and legal procedures to do so, and respond vigorously to combat the attack on property rights and intellectual. Work to increase awareness in the conscience of the Arab societies the importance of respect for property rights and the criminalization of domestic assault.

6 - Work with the Arab League, and official institutions to consolidate the relevant laws and regulations relating to copyright, the publishing and book trade in all the Arab countries.

 7 – Promote book industry, raise necessary specifications level for the optimal use of the book in terms of content and methods of indexing on one hand, directing, design, printing and binding, on the other, and offering prizes to the creators.

8 - Overcome the difficulties which struggle Arabic books and reduce its trading between the Arab countries. Work on the exemption of books from the export controls, customs duties, etc., reduce mail and fright taken fees.

9 - Encourage people to read, promote the spirit of reading and demand for the book, as the cultural necessary need.

10 – Programs to intensify the book definition through print media, audio-visual. The strengthening of the definition of patrols and encouragement of books, and the issuance of follow-up magazine publishing activities and rationalize

11 – Establish specialized department for the registration of Books (Bibliography) to provide the book necessary information, date of issuance, ownership of copyright and the number of copies in circulation, as an important step in observing creativity, to prevent the abuse of intellectual property rights.

12 - Work on a deterrent law to protect intellectual property rights and the rights of creators, authors and publishers, urged Arab countries to join the Arab and international conventions of the protection of these rights, and providing legal advice to the APA members.

13 - Communication with all industry parties in all stages in order to solve the problems facing the process of publishing and the publishers.

14 - Work on better cooperation and to set legal model contracts between the author and the publisher to ensure the rights of the parties, preserve and support the necessary confidence between the authors and publishers.

15 – Coordinate Arab book fairs, time organizing, improve participation conditions, facilitate required service and respect for publishers, so they can perform their essential role in fair success. Seize publishers gathering opportunity to establish specialized seminars on the sidelines to solve publishing problems, in cooperation with organizers.

16 - Provide opportunities for the Arab collective participation in international book fairs, and represent Arab Publishers at all international events concerning publishing, to confirm the existence of the Arab book and publisher on the international level.

17 - Laying the foundations to ensure that the revitalization and to facilitate the distribution of Arab book

18 – Provide database about titles, distributors, libraries and book fairs, to make them available to APA members, as for the acts of aggression on the rights of intellectual property and human creativity, after verifying the validity of the data and documentation. 

Membership conditions

Article 5: APA General Assembly consists of Delegates who have accepted by the board members of APA who meet the membership requirements set forth in this law.

Article 6: APA membership Conditions:

1 - The local association is required to apply to join the APA, to be founded by the acknowledged system in his country, and has no contrary objectives with APA, pursue the collection and payment of the fees of its members for the APA, and pledge with APA system and decisions.

2 – The publisher must be a member in their country local association, to be accepted in APA, sign the charter of honour and obligate it, and be of good character and to have a good professional reputation among his colleagues locally and regionally.

3- To accept the membership of a publisher of a country where no local association was consist, he must be recommended by two board members, in addition to the requirements of paragraph / 2 / above.

4 - For the continuity of publisher membership. He is required to continue practicing the profession, by issuing at least one title per year, and pay the required annual fee.

5- APA board member have the ability by the majority of  two-thirds of the members present a reasoned decision to write off any membership of any member, or freeze it for any period that the board deems appropriate, according to the regulation of the interior in the following cases:

a- If the member refused to pay its financial obligations owed to APA for a period of three years or more, and after writing  notification sent to his address at least three months before the date of the decision to freeze its membership.

B – In case of an absolute Condemnation of violating intellectual property rights or a felony or misdemeanor crime or an improper or immoral or against the issue of   honour crime.

C – If the member violated the association law or act against its objectives or deviate from its goals or abused to the detriment of its reputation, caused financial or moral damages and doesn’t commit charter of honour, after conviction by the Disciplinary Committee formed by the APA board member specifically for this purpose, which have all necessary guarantees for the member defense in respect of charges brought to him.

6 –APA member Affected by the decision of the write-off or freezing has the right to make grievance within three months from the date of notification of the decision by General Secretariat, to the Grievance Committee which formed by Board Members -who are not members of the Disciplinary Committee- for a reconsideration in the decision to write-off or freezing according to the regulation of the interior.

7 - The decision to end the freeze decision of the Disciplinary Committee ends after   endorsement by the Board of the APA.

APA structure

Article 7: APA structures:

APA consists of the following:

1. General Assembly.
2. Board members.

General Assembly

Article 8: General Assembly:

1 - General Assembly is the supreme body of the Association, and it is considered any member with membership has applied conditions.

2 – Member who would like to attend and participate in General Assembly meeting and its events must have a valid membership and the pay all financial obligations at least two months before the date of the Assembly.

every local association  is committed to send to the General Secretariat a list of its members who joined APA and paid their financial obligations of the APA, accompanied by the financial value of these commitments, up to a month before the General Assembly, The General Secretariat  make the final list of General Assembly members.

Article 9: General Assembly is responsible for the following matters:

1 – Identification of APA general policy.

2 – Adoption or modify APA Action Plan.

3 – Adoption of the budget, discharge of Board Members and endorsement of estimated budget project.

4 - The amendment of Basic Law should be approved by two thirds of the members present.

5 – Adoption of the regulation of the interior and financial systems of the Association.

6 – Discuss and approve the report of Board members on their work, and accountable for their performance.

7 - Election of a similar number of members of the board appointed by the local unions, each three years.

Article 10: The General Assembly is held periodically every three years in any Arab country in the place and time specified by the board of the APA.

the board of the APA can invite the General Assembly to a special meeting if necessary.

 

Article 11: Meetings of the General Assembly:

 

1 - General Assembly is headed by the president of the APA and the functions of the Secretariat are done by the General Secretary. 

2 - General Assembly shall meet in the presence of a legal majority of its members.

In case of no quorum, the meeting should be postponed for a period not exceeding forty-eight hours, and the second meeting would be legal, no matter how many attend.

3 - The decisions of the General Assembly are taken by an absolute majority of votes of the present members, but decisions relating to the amendment of the Basic Law or the rules of procedure and financial rules that should have the votes of a majority of two thirds of the present members.

The board of directors of the APA

Article 12 – the board of the APA:

The Board of the APA is responsible and authorized for the following matters: 

1 – The Implementation of the decisions of the General Assembly.

2 - The Election of the President of the APA on and the tow Vice-Presidents and the General-Secretary and Assistant General-Secretary

and the Treasurer every three years.

The President and the General-Secretary cannot remain his post for more than two consecutive terms.

3 - Managing the APA, the board can select of the members of the APA a committees delegated to certain exercise.

4 -The Establishment of the committees.

5 – The Preparation of the agenda of the General Assembly.

6 – The Proposal to amend the Basic law of the APA, and the internal regulations.

7 - The Consideration and the adoption of the budget and final financial-statement of the APA.

8 - Making the decisions on the admission of new members of the Union.

9 - To accept contributions and donations, and the adoption of means to develop

Funds, and to invest it.

10 – Implementing a system and conditions for the participation of publishers in the Arab and international book-fairs.

11 - Identifying the membership fees and annual subscription of members, both for the publishers and the associations.

12 – The appointment of an Auditor and a legal counsel.

Article 13:

1 – The board of the APA is composed of one representative from each local association, and an equal number elected by the General Assembly by secret ballot. Taking into account that no Arab country can have more than three representatives in the board, the board can add observers from a non-representative country.

2 - The membership of the observer for a non-representative of the APA determines automatically by the formation of a local association in this country and naming a representative in the board of directors.

To be compared with the election of a board member at the next round.

3 – Every local association should announce to the general Secretariat the name of its representative a month before the date of the General Assembly,

The Secretariat announces the names and the number of the representatives of the local associations before the start of the elections of the other half in the General Assembly.

4 - The local association has the right to replace its representative in the Board.

The seat being vacated by a former member is not an acquired right for the new member.

Article 14: the board held its first meeting immediately after the elections in the General Assembly, elects of the President of the APA and the tow Vice-Presidents and the General-Secretary and Assistant General-Secretary and the Treasurer in its first meeting.