Theos-Talk Archives (September 2008 Message tt00158)

The amendment proposal was attached in the e-mail Pedro sent. The argument supporting the changes of the rule 10 is the following:
?REASON: Popular election by the full membership of a worldwide, multilingual body is fraught with complications. Not least among
those complications is the fact that most of the voting membership will have
little or no knowledge of the candidates they are voting upon, and hence their
vote cannot be well-informed. The persons most likely to have direct knowledge
of and the most opportunity to become well-informed about the candidates are
members of the General Council. They are likely also to be among the most
experienced members of the Society and to have had extensive experience with
its administration and thus to be highly qualified to serve as electors for the
office. Information copies of the voting list and of candidates' data are
to be distributed widely so that the process will be an open one, with all members
informed about it and able to express an opinion to the electors.?

If ?election by the full membership of a worldwide, multilingual body is fraught with complications? why only now to
propose such changes? The responsibles for the present draft, have
witnessed many international elections. Why to propose a change only now? 

"most of the voting membership will have little or no knowledge of the candidates they are voting upon, and hence their vote
cannot be well-informed. The persons most likely to have direct knowledge of
and the most opportunity to become well-informed about the candidates are
members of the General Council. They are likely also to be among the most
experienced members of the Society and to have had extensive experience with
its administration and thus to be highly qualified to serve as electors for the
office? 

The General Secretaries and the local council of every Section, is elected
to represent their members. It is their duty to keep their members well
informed. Being more experienced in administrative matters does not means one
is more qualified to make the right choice when voting.  We are talking about a
Theosophical Society, not a bank. If the leaders are not able to
inspire and lit the spiritual flame, their administrative skills will be used
in a dead body.

"Information copies of the voting list and of candidates' data are to be distributed
widely so that the process will be an open one, with all members informed about it and
able to express an opinion to the electors.?

It was already stated the members are not in position to express their opinion through vote because of their ?little
knowledge?.  So it?s obvious that even keeping the members informed about the process and allowing them to give their opinions
would mean absolutely nothing. With exception if the members? opinions are in
harmony with the more experienced General Secretary. 

I do hope that a ?dictatorship? won?t be established in some Sections. What I mean by that? It?s simple. The general
Secretary with the support of their respective local council, who will vote in
favor of such a change (to remove the right of the members of the Theosophical
Society to vote for International President), without at least making a pool
with the members of their respective Section, will be acting as a
dictator. Some Sections maybe for some unexplained reasons get support
of their members to vote in favour of such a change. But I believe the
massive majority of members in the T.S. would be against such a change.

Erica 




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