Statutes of the FAI

The Iberian Anarchist Federation has been the most important specific organization of Spanish anarchism. Since its foundation in 1927, it has withstood the attacks of all the enemies of anarchism who, adhering to an imaginary conspiracy theory, have tried to blame it for the hegemony of the anarchists in the Spanish workers’ movement and, later, to hold it responsible for all the excesses that occurred in the Civil War. Meanwhile, the FAI, faithful to its libertarian ideology, has rejected official legalization and the blessing of political or economic institutions. Only on one occasion, during the crisis of the Social Revolution, did it legalize its Statutes and resort to legal, albeit revolutionary, means. We now offer these Statutes, as interesting as they are little known.

CHAPTER I: OF THE ORGANIZATION AND ITS PURPOSE

ART. 1. For legal purposes, an Organization called the IBERIAN ANARCHIST FEDERATION is established in the Iberian Peninsula, with headquarters in Valencia. It will be made up of all individuals who accept the ideology and programs reflected in these Statutes and the rules of conduct established in the Plenary Sessions and Congresses held.

ART. 2. The fundamental objectives that the FAI intends to achieve are:

1. Elimination of the exploitation of man by man, socializing all means of production and distribution.

2. Making impossible any caste or party dictatorship that attempts to impose political and totalitarian forms on the Iberian Peninsula and establishing, instead, the cordial collaboration of all political-social sectors that agree on the fundamentals for the creation of a society without classes and without privileges.

3. The free federation of all the peoples of Iberia, respecting the maximum autonomy of the Municipality, District or Region, as long as it does not compromise the full development of the whole.

4. Banish the prejudices of Race and Patriotism that tend to differences between similar beings, in order to establish true brotherhood between the Peoples of the world.

5. Promote the free development of science and the arts, so that human thought can reach its highest concretions; for which the school must be, from the first grades to the higher level, totally free, oriented against all dogma that harms the formation of children within the frameworks recognized as the rights of the child.

6. Maintain cordial relations with the organizations that tend to the total or partial achievement of this goal and especially with the CNT and FIJL.

CHAPTER II: ABOUT AFFILIATES

ART. 3. All manual and intellectual workers of both sexes who fully meet the aspirations outlined in the previous chapter and are willing to cooperate in their achievement, abiding by the agreements made for this purpose by the Organization, may become members of the FAI.

ART. 4. In order to join the Federation, the applicant must send his application to the Local or neighborhood Group where he resides, endorsed by two effective members. Admission will be granted if the result of the information that is previously opened is satisfactory.

ART. 5. The following will be effective members with full rights:

1. Those who were members of the anarchist movement before July 1937.

2. Those who, upon request, provide documentary evidence of having acted as militants of trade union, cultural, etc. organizations related to anarchism, prior to January 1, 1936.

ART. 6. Once admitted, members who do not meet the conditions indicated in the previous article may not hold positions or representation until six months have elapsed since their admission. If it were considered necessary to make an exception, it would be necessary to consult the Regional Federation of Groups in order to obtain it, and for it to give its consent.

ART. 7. In order for the Federation to be able to meet the economic needs that its support poses, members must punctually pay the established monthly fee.

ART. 8. Every member must be provided, through the corresponding Local Group, with the identity card issued by the Peninsular Committee. This card, in addition to the affiliation and social history of each member, will contain the contribution sheet, where the coupons justifying having paid the corresponding fee must be placed.

ART. 9. No member may belong to two Groups at the same time; neither from the town nor from a different town. Nor may he belong to the Anarchist Group of another place other than the one where he has been residing for three months at most.

ART. 10. When a member has to move from one town to another, he will be obliged to have the Committee of the Group to which he belongs record on the card the conduct observed by its holder. Without this requirement he will not be able to join the Group of the new town he takes up residence.

ART. 11. Every member of the FAI shall be obliged to respond to the call of their respective Committees to carry out the functions entrusted to them by them and in accordance with the general line of conduct that the Federation has established.

CHAPTER III: STRUCTURING OF THE FEDERATION

ART. 12. The Iberian Anarchist Federation, in its new structure, will be articulated in the following organisms:

1. District Group, subdivision of the Local Group in the towns of more than 60,000 inhabitants whose organic development allows it.

2. Local Group, genuine representation of the members in each town.

3. Regional Federations, formed by all the Local Groups existing in the Region.

4. Regional Federations if it is considered convenient, but without diminishing the powers of the Local Groups. The Regional Federations will be subdivided into Regional Federations.

CHAPTER IV: LOCAL ORGANISATIONS

ART. 13. The Local Anarchist Group will be made up of all members residing in the same municipal area. They will be governed by their own statutes based on these and in which the absolute acceptance of the General Statutes of the FAI is clearly stated.

ART. 14. The Local Group will be administered and governed by a Committee composed of the following members: Secretary, Treasurer, Accountant, Vice-secretary and five members. All of them will be appointed in the general assembly of the Group.

ART. 15. When the population where the Local Group is established has more than sixty thousand inhabitants and the organic possibilities allow it, District Groups will be created among which the Local Group will be formed, being the absolute competence of the latter the representation of them in the administrative order, of relation and for the general effects in the Federation.

ART. 16. In each Group, a Commission named Admissions will be created, appointed in a general assembly, which, in contact with the Committee, but answerable to the assembly that elected it, will take care of:

1. receiving the adhesions of the aspiring members;

2. opening the information that each one requires; and

3. granting admission to whoever is worthy of it.

ART. 17. The Local Committee will be in charge of appointing special technical Commissions to facilitate the development and good functioning of the Organization. These commissions will be limited to being efficient assistants of the Committee, which is the body that bears direct responsibility to the members.

ART. 18. The Local Committee must meet compulsorily in plenary session once a week and extraordinarily when necessary.

ART. 19. When the Local Group is made up of district groups, the appointment and composition of the Committee will be carried out in the following manner: Secretary, Vice-secretary, Accountant and Treasurer will be appointed by the Plenary of the District Groups to which they will bring the opinion of their members and a direct representative of each District Group will act as Members.

ART. 20. The District Group will be made up of members domiciled in the area of the urban division where it is formed. When, in the opinion of the Local Committee, there are insufficient members of the FAI domiciled in a district to form a Group, they will belong to the nearest Group of those existing in the town.

ART. 21. The District Group will be obliged to replace the delegate that it sent to the Local Committee, if this delegate is considered incompatible with the majority of the members of the aforementioned Committee.

CHAPTER V: OF REGIONAL AND PENINSULAR ORGANISATIONS

ART. 22. The Regional Federations formed by the Local Groups existing in the geographic region that each of them covers, will be as many as there are regions in the current configuration of Spain, including Portugal, which will be considered as one more region.

ART. 23. Each Regional Federation will be represented by a Committee made up of: Secretary, Accountant and Treasurer, appointed in Plenary Sessions or Regional Congresses of Local Groups and by five Members appointed in the Local Group where the Regional Committee has its residence.

ART. 24. It will appoint from within itself or with affiliates on the sidelines, if it deems it necessary, but closely controlled, technical-advisory Commissions to study and issue opinions on the fundamental problems that arise: of a political, economic, etc. nature. As auxiliary bodies created in local Groups, they are solely responsible to the Committee that appoints them, the Regional Committee in this case, which is the one that assumes responsibility for the part of the Organization that it represents and for the Peninsular Committee.

ART. 25. The total representation of the Iberian Anarchist Federation will be in charge of its Peninsular Committee; which will maintain constant and direct relations with the regional organizations and, through these, with the Local ones.

ART. 26. The Peninsular Committee will be made up of the following positions: Secretary, Treasurer and Accountant, appointed in Peninsular Congresses or Plenary Sessions, whose agenda includes the election of positions. They will assist in the work of the Committee, forming part of it, as many Members as the members of the secretariat deemed pertinent, elected within or outside the town of residence, with the consent of the Organization.

ART. 27. The residence of the Peninsular Committee will be determined by each ordinary Congress of the Federation, or if special circumstances so require, by a Peninsular Plenary of Regional Congresses convened for this purpose.

CHAPTER VI: OF THE CHARGES

ART. 28. The duration of the positions of the various Committees of the Federation will be one year, being renewed periodically and by half of the members of each Committee, under the conditions that the Assemblies and Plenary Sessions determine.

Those members who, in the opinion of the Assembly or Plenary Session that is to make the appointments, are considered worthy of it may be re-elected to continue performing their positions.

ART. 29. All members who hold positions within the Federation will be personally responsible for their performance and conduct, in addition to the collective responsibility that falls to them as an integral part of the organization in which they work.

ART. 30. The delegates that the FAI may have in public positions are obliged to render accounts of their mission and their performance to the Committees by which they were appointed, maintaining close contact with them in order to follow at all times the inspirations that they give in each specific case.

ART. 31. Any member of the FAI who holds any public office, whatever the nature of the office, may, if his conduct is bad, be disqualified and cease to hold office as soon as the appropriate bodies of the Federation determine.

CHAPTER VII: ON ASSEMBLIES, PLENARY MEETINGS AND CONGRESSES

ART. 32. The most authoritative expression of the organized anarchist movement in each locality resides in the General Assemblies of the Local Anarchist Groups. All members may freely express themselves in them, but only the active members will have the right to vote.

ART. 33. General assemblies will be held periodically and regularly, as often as determined in the Statutes of the Group and when, advised by circumstances or at the request of a part of the members, the Committees call an extraordinary meeting.

ART. 34. The feeling of the Federation will be expressed regionally through the Regional Congresses of Anarchist Groups, which will be attended by these with direct representatives and firm agreements on the various problems raised by the Agenda.

ART. 35. The ordinary Regional Congresses will take place once every six months and must be called directly by the Regional Committee at least one month in advance of the date of the meeting.

ART. 36. An Extraordinary Regional Congress may be held when, in the opinion of the Regional Committee, circumstances so advise and when determined by agreements of the Regional Plenary.

ART. 37. In order to guide the progress of the movement in accordance with the general feeling of the Organization, even in those matters of procedure or general issues that do not require a Congress to be dealt with, or that can wait until the next ordinary one is held, the representatives of the Committees of Local Groups will meet regularly every two months in a Regional Plenary.

ART. 38. The Peninsular Committee must be invited to all these regional elections, Plenary Sessions and Congresses with a direct delegation. Its attendance is discretionary in the Plenary Sessions, but obligatory in the Congresses.

ART. 39. The Iberian Anarchist Federation will meet in a Peninsular Congress once a year. The Local Groups of the Peninsula will attend this election, the highest manifestation of the sovereignty of the Federation, with direct representation. The Regional Committees must be present, but their delegation will only be informative.

ART. 40. At each Congress mentioned in the previous article, the following must be included in the Agenda: Accountability and presentation of the various aspects of its management by the Peninsular Committee. Appointment of the positions that are legally terminated and those vacant due to resignation or other causes. Determining the residence of the Peninsular Committee and establishing the position on all fundamental problems that interest the movement in order to establish the rules for future conduct.

ART. 41. The Congress must normally be convened, sending to the Groups, so that they have them in their possession a month and a half in advance, the Agenda and the corresponding Opinions and Reports, which must be prepared by the Peninsular Committee.

ART. 42. An Extraordinary Peninsular Congress may be held at the request of more than two regional groups and by agreement of a Peninsular Plenary Session of the same. At these meetings, only the issues that have been determined by the call will be discussed.

ART. 43. Every calendar quarter, a Peninsular Plenary of Regionals must be held, which serves to collaborate with the Peninsular Committee in the orientation of the Organization, to resolve those procedural problems that do not have the importance required by those that must be dealt with at Congresses, and to solve any urgent and important problems that may arise. In addition to these quarterly Plenary Meetings, any other meetings that the Peninsular Committee deems pertinent to call will be held.

ART. 44. Representatives of the Regional Committees or of the Regional Plenary Meetings that are designated by them will attend the aforementioned Plenary Meetings as delegates.

CHAPTER VIII: OF RESPONSIBILITIES

ART. 45. The conduct of the members in that order that affects the moral and material interests of the Federation, may and must be examined by the Anarchist Groups. In cases of irregularity in the conduct, the Committee of the Group will propose the appropriate sanction to the General Assembly, which will make the final determination.

ART. 46. When the aforementioned member does not agree with the sanction imposed on him, because he considers it unjust, he may appeal for review to the Body immediately superior to the one that applied the sanction; and while the final decision is being made — the ruling will be final — he will abide by the mandate of the Assembly that condemned him.

ART. 47. Any member who makes accusations against another member of the organization, whether or not he or she holds a position, and does not prove the truth of these accusations when he or she is required to do so within the Organization, will be punished inexorably in proportion to the seriousness of the slander launched, and may even lead to expulsion for reasons of this nature.

ART. 48. The Committees of the various Organizations that make up the Federation may ask for an account of the management of public office by those members they have appointed and apply the appropriate sanction to them, and the interested party may appeal against the agreement before the Peninsular Committee.

CHAPTER IX: OF THE DISSOLUTION OF THE FEDERATION

ART. 49. The Iberian Anarchist Federation may not be dissolved as long as there is any Group that wishes to continue belonging to it.

ART. 50. In the event of dissolution, the assets, movable and immovable securities, securities in current accounts or cash in cash, will pass into the possession of the Cultural and Social Assistance entities that exist in the country and have as their basis of existence and standard of conduct the principles most closely related to anarchism.

The Iberian Anarchist Federation is based in Valencia at Calle de la Paz, 25, 1°.