Collaborative Proposal Creation
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- Proposal text
- Replace Bylaw 7 Ombuds and Appeals Committee with the following: Bylaw 7 Governance Appeal Committee The Governance Appeal Committee: 7.1 Shall have between five (5) and seven (7) members at all times. 7.2 Shall be elected by members for a term of two (2) years or until their successor is elected, and it may fill its vacancies between elections. 7.3 Shall be chaired by two co-Chairs, of different genders, that are selected by the committee. 7.4 Shall have Terms of Reference, processes and procedures, ethics and conduct guidelines (i.e. conflicts of interest) and investigation standards. 7.5 Is accountable between General Meetings to Federal Council regarding implementing 7.4 and if any legal or ethical concerns are brought up about its work. 7.6 Reports to members at annual General Meetings. 7.7 The Governance Appeal Committee shall: 7.7.1 Receive complaints from members and Units of the Party regarding adherence to the Constitution and Bylaws, including but not limited to procedural rules for conducting Federal Council meetings (bylaw 2.4.6). 7.7.2 Decide whether or not to accept and deal with each complaint, and inform the complainant of the decision. 7.7.3 For accepted cases, issue evidence-based reports with the committee's recommendations sent to all the parties involved. 7.7.4 Act as an appeal body in other instances when requested to do so by Federal Council.
- Type of Proposal
- A constitutional amendment to change the constitution or bylaws
- Objective / Benefit
- Given Article 13, adopted in 2022, regarding creating a Conduct Committee, the Ombuds and Appeals Committee would be renamed Governance Appeal Committee (GAC) to reflect its new role centered on governance complaints. This proposal also makes the GAC more representative by being elected by all members, more rigorous in its operation and work, and accountable to both members and Federal Council.
- If your proposal replaces an existing policy or policies, which one does it replace?
- It would replace the following bylaw. Bylaw 7 Ombuds and Appeals Committee 7.1 The Ombuds and Appeals Committee shall be selected at a General Meeting of Members, and such selection shall have due regard and respect for gender and regional balance. 7.2 The Ombuds and Appeals Committee may fill its vacancies between General Meetings of Members. 7.3 The Ombuds and Appeals Committee shall be chaired by two co-Chairs, of different genders, that are selected by the committee. 7.4 The Ombuds and Appeals Committee is a committee of the Party membership, responsible to the membership at General Meetings. 7.5 The Ombuds and Appeals Committee shall: 7.5.1 Receive complaints from Members of the Party regarding decisions made by organized Units or Functionaries of the Party that affect their rights as members, or concerns regarding Party governance. 7.5.2 Decide whether or not to accept and deal with each complaint, and inform the complainant of the decision. 7.5.3 For accepted cases, issue reports with the committee's recommendations to all the parties involved. 7.5.4 Inform Federal Council regularly of its activities. 7.5.5 Maintain guidelines for conduct and operation of the Ombuds and Appeals Committee.
- List any supporting evidence for your proposal
- N/A
- Does this proposal affect any particular group and what efforts have been made to consult with the group or groups?
- N/A
- Jurisdiction: Is this proposal under federal jurisdiction?
- Unsure or Not applicable (e.g. directives and constitutional changes)
- Please indicate the language the proposal is being submitted in.
- English
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Reference: PVC-PROP-2023-08-4209
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Conversation with Sarah Gabrielle Baron
Well, there are two people who are currently on the OAC who are being sued for defamation. Actively serving. Personally, I can't think of any other professional organization that would tolerate having acting Ombudspersons who are being sued for defamation for work they allegedly did, (as per an ongoing court case) whilst on said OAC. It's kind of preposterous. But has been going on since 2021. I've tried to complain about it to Federal Council and that went nowhere. I guess we can assume everyone on the current OAC supports this ongoing situation, but I know of several Greens who left OAC in 2022-2023 because their concerns weren't getting anywhere (and hence the creation of this motion). I believe deeply in our judicial branch having independence from our governance and political branches, "separation of powers", but having zero transparency and conflict of interest guidelines around this particular aspect has highlighted the need for this motion.
Thanks for this Sarah...I am sure I am not alone in only having snippets of knowledge on what you are referring to. Hopefully others will see your note and recognize, like I do, that this ties the snippets together and clarifies the value of this proposal.
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