Article no. 11:A member of the Association shall possess the following conditions:
a) Should not be less than 18 years of age .b) Should be a resident of Bahrain. c) Should be of good conduct with no criminal history, with the exception of false allegations. d) Should be recommended by an existing member. e) Should possess a college degree in Public Relations or its equivalence in professional Public Relations experience.
Article no. 12:There are three categories of membership in the Association:
a) Active Member: all conditions of Article no. 11 of this By-Law are applicable. b) Affiliated Member: the conditions of age and practice are excluded here. However, an affiliated member is not allowed running for a position or voting. c) Honorary Member: Granted by the board to those who have contributed to the Association.
Article no. 13:
Anyone who wishes to join the Association shall apply to the board secretary, in conformity with the membership application. The secretary shall present the membership application to the board at its earliest meeting to decide whether to accept or reject the application, within a month from the date applied.
Article no. 14:
The applicant is informed in writing about the board decision, whether accepted or rejected, within two weeks from the decision's date, mentioning the reasons in case of rejecting. Rejected applications are to be reconsidered by the board in no less than three months from the date of rejection.
Article no. 15:
Members who wish to withdraw from the Association shall apply in writing to the board secretary, mentioning reasons for withdrawal. The secretary shall present the withdrawal application to the board within a month from its date, to review the reasons behind member withdrawal and attempting to convince him/her not to withdraw in a month time from the application date. In case the member did not change his/her mind during this period, the resignation is considered accepted. The withdrawn member is committed to pay all subscriptions dues and any other financial commitments towards the Association.
Article no. 16:The board can dismiss a member from the Association, after listening to his/her viewpoints, in the following cases: a) Violation of the principal system or the internal regulations of the Association. b) Dissentient of the legal decisions of the general assembly or the board. c) Embezzlement of the Association's money or waste of its property or obligations or forgery of its stamps, correspondence, or official papers. d) Defamation or slander of the Association, its board, or its mechanisms, without any justified right. e) Failure to pay subscriptions without reasonable cause, despite informing the member in writing of due payments. f) Declaration of a criminal sentence against the member in a crime related to honor or honesty, unless allegations were proven to be false.
The dismissal is not valid unless approved by two thirds of the board. The dismissed member is informed by the board decision within two weeks from the decision's date.
Article no. 17:
The dismissed member may complain against his/her dismissal decision before the common or non common General Assembly in its earliest meeting after decision taking, after which the General Assembly's decision becomes final. The Board Secretary shall inform the member about the decision of the General Assembly within two weeks from the decision's date.
Article no. 18:The membership is invalid in the following conditions:
a) Death. b) Withdrawal from the Association. c) Loss of the Association's membership conditions, mentioned in article 11 of this By-Law. d) Dismissal from the Association.
Article no. 19:The Association's member shall perform the following:
a) Commitment to the principal system of the Association and its regulations and the decisions of the General Assembly and the board. b) Payment of all joining and membership fees according to the financial regulations. c) Pursuance to achieve the objectives of the Association through participating in its events and activities.d) Commitment to attendance of the General Assembly meetings. e) Abidance to the profession's morals in compliance to the Association's objectives.
Article no. 20:The Association's member has the following rights:
a) Attending General Assembly meetings, and discussing points on its agendas and vote on them. b) Getting the membership card of the Association, showing name, occupation, address, age, date of joining, membership number, CPR number, and any other information. c) Obtaining a copy of the By-Law and regulations of the Association.d) Benefiting from the privileges provided by the Association to its members on professional and social levels.e) Receiving bulletins and printed material issued by the Association.f) Reviewing archives, documents, and correspondence of the Association during the time specified by the board. These can be reviewed at the premises of the Association in the presence of the person responsible for the above-mentioned. g) Running for the board of the Association or any of its functional committees in compliance with the Association's approved, internal regulations.