RULES OF THE FACTION FOR THE TROTSKYIST INTERNATIONAL
(For the Political Regeneration of the Fourth International)

Adopted by the First International Conference of the
Faction for the Trotskyist International
(For the Political Regeneration of the Fourth International)
5 January 1992

I. Character and Purpose

1. The Faction for the Trotskyist International (FTI) is dedicated to the political regeneration and organizational reconstruction of the Fourth International, World Party of Socialist Revolution, which is currently fragmented and dominated by revisioni! st positions.

2. The programmatic foundations of the FTI are based on revolutionary Marxism and Leninism and on their historical development. In particular, the FTI, in its struggle for the Fourth International, affirms the theses and resolutions of the Conference! s and Congresses of the Fourth International in 1936, 1938, 1940, 1946, and 1948, and the documents of the Founding Conference of the FTI, especially "The Programmatic Principles of the Faction for the Trotskyist International" and "The Crisis of the Fourth! International and the Tasks of Consistent Trotskyists." The FTI also affirms the "Appeal for the Formation of a Left Tendency in the Fourth International (USFI)."

3. According to the traditions of the Bolshevik and Trotskyist movements, which allowed factions based on clear political platforms to organize their internal lives on the basis of democratic centralism, the FTI organizes itself on the basis of the p! rinciples of democratic centralism. The purpose of these "Rules" is to determine the concrete application of these principles.

II. Membership and National Sections

4. All the supporters of the FTI in a single country shall group themselves in an organized body as a national section of the FTI. A national section may be recognized as part of the FTI by the International Conference of the FTI or, between Internation! al Conferences, by the International Executive Committee.

5. A member of the FTI who is living in another country for a period of time may become a member of the national section of the country in which he/she is living. In all cases, however, a member of the FTI may vote only as a member of one (1) nationa! l section.

III. The International Conference

6. The highest body of the FTI is the International Conference, which has the responsibility of determining the political line of the faction; its strategy and general tactics; and organizational, administrative, and statutory questions. The Internation! al Conference shall meet at least every two (2) years at the call of the International Executive Committee, with at least six (6) months notice.

An Extraordinary International Conference may be called by the International Executive Committee, by an absolute majority vote, with at least two (2) and no more than four (4) months notice. An Extraordinary International Conference must be called wh! en it is requested in writing by at least twenty (20) percent of the full members of the FTI.

7. Delegates elected by the preconferences of the national sections, in proportion to the different political positions, may participate in the International Conference with voting rights. In the case of sections existing under conditions of illegali! ty, the delegates may be chosen by the highest leading body of the section.

Members of the outgoing International Executive Committee who are not elected delegates may participate in the International Conference with consultative votes.

The ratio of delegates to members -- which must be equal for every section, except that each section has the right to at least one (1) delegate -- and the arrangements and location for the International Conference, shall be determined by the International E! xecutive Committee, by absolute majority vote.

In every case, the maximum ratio of delegates to members must not exceed one (1) delegate for every ten (10) members.

8. The International Conference, at the conclusion of its work, shall elect a new International Executive Committee.

IV. The International Executive Committee

9. The International Executive Committee (IEC), the highest leading body of the FTI between International Conferences, has the responsibility of directing the implementation of the decisions of the International Conferences; of adapting the policies of ! the FTI to concrete developments; and of generally overseeing and coordinating all the activity of the FTI and of any subordinate FTI bodies that may be created, such as commissions, editorial committees, etc.

10. The IEC shall be elected by the International Conference. The Conference shall establish the number of members of the IEC. The members of the IEC shall be elected by the following method:

a. At the end of the discussion in the International Conference, any delegate or group of delegates, full or consultative, who regard themselves as expressing a homogeneous political position, may put forward a resolution based on this position. If there is! more than one (1) resolution, places on the IEC shall be allocated to the supporters of each position strictly in proportion to the number of votes cast by full delegates that each resolution obtains.

b. The delegates supporting each resolution shall then elect by name the members of the IEC due to them.

c. Any full member of the FTI may nominate himself/herself or be nominated by any full or consultative delegate. The full delegates will then elect the members of the IEC. Each full delegate may vote for as many candidates as may be elected.

In the event of resignation or other termination of membership on the IEC, the vacancy shall be filled by the nonelected candidate from her/his group of delegates with the next highest number of votes.

The IEC may coopt full members only in case of great necessity and taking account of the proportions of any tendencies that may exist within the IEC, except in the case of the cooptation of members to represent, on a proportional basis, international or nat! ional organizations or groups, previously outside the FTI, which are joining the FTI.

11. The IEC shall meet at least every six (6) months at a time determined by the previous meeting. Emergency meetings of the IEC must be called on the request of at least thirty (30) percent of the members of the IEC.

12. The IEC, by absolute majority vote, shall elect a Secretary from among its members. The Secretary shall have the responsibility of the organizational coordination of the FTI. In the event of the resignation or other termination of office of the S! ecretary, he/she shall be replaced by the IEC, which always maintains the right to replace the Secretary.

V. Democratic Centralism

13. The basis of the activity of the FTI is democratic centralism, which implies a maximum of freedom in internal discussion and a maximum of unity in external action. The decisions made by a majority in the various bodies of the FTI are binding on all ! the national sections, on all FTI members, and on all subordinate FTI bodies, executive bodies being regarded as subordinate to the bodies that elect them.

14. FTI members who put forward particular positions have the right to struggle and to organize themselves within the FTI to try to win the majority to their positions. In all meetings of the FTI, members who put forward different positions have the ! right to have equal speaking time. Members who put forward different positions have the right to utilize the structures of the organization to argue for their positions, to put out documents, etc.

In particular, in the preconference period tendencies that are composed of at least five (5) members or the majority of the members of at least one (1) section have the right to send representatives to participate in the preconferences of the national secti! ons in which they do not have supporters, with financial help from the organization, if such help is possible and necessary.

15. The International Internal Bulletin (IIB), published under the editorship of the IEC, is the organ of internal discussion for the FTI. It has as its purpose not only the development of debate between different positions, but also to bring ! to members' attention theoretical material, material concerning the interventions of the FTI and its national sections, drafts of national and international documents, etc. Generally speaking, making the free development of internal discussion possible is o! ne of the essential purposes of the IIB.

In particular, any document not exceeding fifty (50) normally typed pages which is put forward by a member of the FTI must be published in the IIB as soon as possible.

16. The FTI recognizes the right of its members to organize themselves in tendencies for the purpose of winning the majority of the faction to their positions. A tendency may constitute itself only on the basis of a written political text.

VI. Disciplinary Measures

17. The FTI may adopt disciplinary measures against members who violate the obligations of members, democratic centralism, or communist morality.

The disciplinary measures are:

a. Written censure. This constitutes a warning and pressure on a member to persuade him/her to rectify unacceptable behavior.

b. Suspension from the faction. Suspension means termination of any executive positions held at any level of the FTI or of its national sections. A suspended member also loses the right to vote, while other questions concerning the relationship of a ! suspended member to the faction during the period of the suspension will be decided at the time of the decision to suspend.

c. Exclusion. An excluded member may be readmitted only by the IEC or the International Conference.

The disciplinary measures indicated above may be adopted by an absolute majority vote of the IEC or the International Conference. Decisions of the IEC may be appealed to the International Conference.

In all cases, any member against whom disciplinary measures are proposed has the right fully to reply to the charges and to defend himself/herself.

The IEC and the International Conference also constitute bodies of appeal from decisions in disciplinary matters by the leading bodies of the national sections.

VII. Clarifications and Miscellaneous Points

18. Meetings of all FTI bodies shall be considered to have deliberative power when they have been properly called and have a majority of their members present. Giving a written proxy to another member is equivalent to being present. This proxy may not b! e imperative, is valid only for one (1) meeting, and is valid only in the event of the justified absence of the member who gives the proxy.

The term "majority" without any specification in the present text always implies the concept of "relative majority," that is, a majority of those voting yes or no. The term "absolute majority," without other specification, always refers to the majority of t! hose present and voting, including abstentions.

19. The leading bodies of the FTI have the right to appoint, by absolute majority vote, analogous reserve bodies without any current function, whose purpose is to substitute for the current bodies if they cannot function.

20. The rules of each national section of the FTI must be consistent with the principles of the FTI "Rules." Each section's rules and subsequent amendments to them must be submitted to the IEC for approval, with the right of appeal to the Internation! al Conference.

VIII. Amendment

21. The amendment of all or any part of these "Rules" may be decided only by an absolute majority vote of the elected delegates at an International Conference.