My concerns were primarily towards the lack of clarity, transparency and communications ( already shared by several others in this mailing list) from the part of the chapter. <div><br></div><div>The previous set of office bearers were mentioned as early as April 2010 in the chapter <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px; ">Memorandum of Association </span><a href="http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_India/MoA-ChapComVer">http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_India/MoA-ChapComVer</a> </div>
<div><br></div><div>In Jun 2010, the Foundation approved the chapter.</div><div>In Jan 2011, the chapter is registered as legal entity. Days after its announcement, the executive committee ( I would call it secretly, unless it had publicly announced on the agenda) decides to keep passing the chairs among them. </div>
<div><br></div><div>Almost a week after this meeting, there were strongly discussions on the lack of transparency on the chapter actions, I wonder why such an important change was not disclosed to us, then. </div><div><br>
</div><div>It may be argued that chapter MoA empowers the EC for "rotation" of the positions, please remember this committee is a technically a transitional committee till the chapter opens up the membership of the community , which it represents ( if at all) . We must not forget that the current executive team as founding members merely represented ( for legal purposes) the wider Wikimedia India community to form an organisation , It is not an NGO started by few philanthropists. I am not undermining and being unappreciative of the efforts of several of the exec com members in setting up the chapter through a really painful legal process, though. </div>
<div><br></div><div>But if I may ask , doesn't the committee and the chapter have any accountability to the community, considering that the current team is not a democratically elected committee as mandated by the MoA?</div>
<div><br></div><div>Come on, the committee has better things to do than keep rotating the chairs.. In spite of several requests earlier by the community, a proper transparency of actions from the chapter is still a distant dream. </div>
<div><br></div><div>Regards</div><div>Tinu Cherian </div><div><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Mon, Feb 7, 2011 at 12:11 AM, Theo10011 <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:de10011@gmail.com">de10011@gmail.com</a>></span> wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex;"><div><br></div>Ahh, wasn't the chapter registered less than a month ago Tinu? I don't know more than half the people from the chapter but I think you're being awfully presumptuous in claiming that "the executive members keep electing each other". I thought this was the founding group, the registered entity has been around for less than a month, right or did I miss something?<div>
<br></div><div><br></div><div>Regards</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Salmaan</div><div>User:Theo10011</div><div><div></div><div class="h5"><div><br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Mon, Feb 7, 2011 at 12:04 AM, jayanta nath <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:jayantanth@gmail.com" target="_blank">jayantanth@gmail.com</a>></span> wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex"><div><blockquote style="margin:0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204);padding-left:1ex" class="gmail_quote">
<blockquote style="margin:0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204);padding-left:1ex" class="gmail_quote">
<b> 7 executive members keep electing each other, each time !!!! </b><br></blockquote></blockquote><br></div>Nice observation from Tinu..... My observation and comment is same as below. <br><div><div></div><div>
<br><br><br><div class="gmail_quote">
On Sun, Feb 6, 2011 at 11:43 PM, CherianTinu Abraham <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:tinucherian@gmail.com" target="_blank">tinucherian@gmail.com</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204);padding-left:1ex">
Hearty congratulations to Arjuna Rao , Hari Prasad & Anirudh Bhati as the new office bearers of the Wikimedia India chapter. Well deserved & best wishes for the future.<div><br></div><div>Having said that, this unexpected announcement leaves me with several unanswered questions. This has to do nothing with any doubts on the calibre , integrity & abilities of new office bearers or the rest of the committee members. I still personally share a very close & cordial relations with all of the exec comn members, but that doesn't prevent me from asking lots of questions and concerns as an ordinary Wikimedian like me and it may be possibly shared by several others in this list. </div>
<div><br></div><div>a) If there was to be a change of the office bearers of the chapter ( decided) on the Jan 22 Exec Comm meeting, why wasn't it announced publicly? Was there an agenda of election of new office bearers for this meeting or just happened as a co-incidence ? What were the other decisions taken on that meeting ? Is there a publicly available minutes of meeting ?</div>
<div><br></div><div>b) How were the new office bearers elected ? Was there an election ? Did the previous office bearers voluntarily resign and called for a new election? Was there a vote ? If there was a vote, will it be publicly shared? What was the need of change of office bearers within few months of chapter approval or one month of chapter registration ? I thought the term of the executive committee members and the office bearers was for two years.</div>
<div><br></div><div> I am sorry but I have to say this , IMHO it is not an ethical and transparent process if the 7 executive members keep electing each other, each time !!!! </div><div><br></div><div>c) There were several discussions on this mailing list on the chapter on Jan 30 th , 2011 [1] [2] ( after the so called meeting) and had mentions of the current office bearers and none of the executive com members even bothered to clarify. I remember at least two of the exec members replying to those threads then. </div>
<div><br></div><div>d) So the new office bearers' elections happened on Jan 22 , 2011 ? And I wonder what took the chapter several weeks to announce , such a important change publicly ? Remember this "new election" happened even without a publicly announced agenda, before the meeting. How many such elections can we expect during the current term of the committee? </div>
<div><br></div><div>We already had lots of concerns shared by the community for the lack of transparency by the chapter and these kinds of things will only underline them. </div><div><br></div><div>If this is the way the chapter intends to operate, I am deeply concerned and worried about its future.</div>
<div><br></div><div>Regards</div><div>Tinu Cherian</div><div><br></div><div>N.B. </div><div>a) To clarify, I don't intend to run for any office positions for the chapter. But I may have to even think twice to be part of a body which clearly intends to work without any proper transparency and works disconnected from the community, which it supposedly represents. </div>
<div> </div><div>b) I have always supported the chapter previously in the several discussions earlier, but this announcement put me really worried and hence this mail. Anyways, my best wishes again for the new office bearers and the chapter. Hoping the see more transparent and candid efforts from the chapter in future. </div>
<div><br></div><div>[1] <a href="http://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/wikimediaindia-l/2011-January/001891.html" target="_blank">http://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/wikimediaindia-l/2011-January/001891.html</a> </div><div>
[2] <a href="http://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/wikimediaindia-l/2011-February/001935.html" target="_blank">http://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/wikimediaindia-l/2011-February/001935.html</a> </div>
<div><br><div class="gmail_quote"><div><div></div><div>On Sun, Feb 6, 2011 at 7:23 PM, BalaSundaraRaman <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:sundarbecse@yahoo.com" target="_blank">sundarbecse@yahoo.com</a>></span> wrote:<br>
</div></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204);padding-left:1ex"><div><div></div><div>
<div><div style="font-family:times new roman,new york,times,serif;font-size:12pt"><p>Dear all, <br></p><p><br></p><p>Following the registration of the Wikimedia Chapter, the first
meeting of the Executive Committee (EC) was held on the 22nd January
2011 at 2 PM at 194, 2nd C Cross, Domlur 2nd Phase, Bangalore 560071.
</p><p>As mandated by the MoA, the office bearers were elected. The executive committee now constitutes of:
</p>
<ul><li> Arjuna Rao Chavala, <b>President</b>
</li><li> Hari Prasad HS, <b>Secretary</b>
</li><li> Anirudh Singh Bhati, <b>Treasurer</b>
</li><li> Arun Ramarathnam, Member
</li><li> BalaSundaraRaman Lakshmanan, Member
</li><li> Gautam K John, Member
</li><li> Srinivas Gunta, Member
</li></ul>
<p>We would like to take the opportunity to thank the Centre for
Internet and Society, Bangalore for allowing generous use of their
office facility for the conduct of chapter meetings and helping with
registration formalities with services of a Consultant.
</p><p>We take this opportunity to thank the following people: (in
alphabetical order) Achal Prabhala, Barry Newstead, Bence Damokos,
Bishakha Datta, Delphine Meynard, M Narasimha Rao, Ray Saintonge, Sunil
Abraham, and Ting Chen.
</p><p>We thank the Wikimedia Community for their help and encouragement and patience with the registration process.
</p><p>For brief biographies and photos of the EC members, please see:<a href="http://wikimedia.in/wiki/Wikimedia_India_Chapter_Executive_Committee_Members" title="Wikimedia India Chapter Executive Committee Members" target="_blank">Wikimedia India Chapter Executive Committee Members</a>
</p><p><br>
On behalf of Wikimedia Chapter
</p><p>BalaSundaraRaman Lakshmanan,
</p><p>Member, Wikimedia Chapter
</p><div> </div>"That language is an instrument of human reason, and not merely a medium for the expression of thought, is a truth generally admitted."<br>- George Boole, quoted in Iverson's Turing Award Lecture<div>
<br></div>
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<br></blockquote></div><br><br clear="all"><br></div></div>-- <br><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;border-collapse:collapse;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">With Warm Regards,</span><br><b style="font-family:comic sans ms,sans-serif">Jayanta Nath</b><br>
Calcutta,West Bengal<br>+91 9836294438<br>Facebook :<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jayantanth" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/jayantanth</a><br>Wikipedia :<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Jayantanth" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Jayantanth</a><br>
আসুন পাইরেসি মুক্ত ভারত <img height="15" width="22"> গড়ি,সবাই মুক্ত সফ্টওয়ার ব্যবহার করি <img alt="O:-)" title="নিষ্পাপ বান্দা">,অন্যকে ব্যবহারে উৎসাহিত করি।<br>
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