Founding Resolution of the Iran Freedom Congress

The purpose of the Iran Freedom Congress (the “Congress”) is to create a platform for coordination, dialogue, and cooperation among Iranian pro-democracy and pluralist individuals, parties, institutions, and organizations, in order to help pave the way for Iran’s liberation from all forms of despotism and for the establishment of a government grounded in pluralist democracy, fundamental freedoms, and human rights.

By safeguarding the values of freedom, secular democracy, and pluralism, the Congress seeks to build a network based on trust and cooperation among democratic forces. It also seeks, through sustained engagement with activists inside the country, to assist in shaping a responsible path for transition from the Islamic Republic to a democratic order in Iran based on fundamental rights.

With emphasis on Iran’s territorial integrity and on the participation of stakeholders from all ethnicities, languages, cultures, and regions at every level of governance, the Congress is committed to developing and promoting practical solutions, consistent with international best practice, for reducing concentration of power and diminishing discrimination and monopoly.

The Iran Freedom Congress also seeks, through dialogue and engagement with a broad range of political and civic groups both inside and outside the Congress, to design acceptable mechanisms for facilitating the transition process—mechanisms that prevent political deadlock, domestic violence, and institutional collapse, while enabling the emergence of independent democratic institutions grounded in the agency of the people of Iran.

The Congress aims, through proposing and coordinating voluntary joint projects, structured dialogue, and efforts to frame and resolve fundamental disagreements, gradually to develop a mechanism for shared deliberation and decision-shaping on key governance issues—a mechanism with sufficient legitimacy and social capital that even minority members who disagree would regard themselves as bound to respect its decisions.

The Iran Freedom Congress does not regard itself as an exclusive body or as a substitute for the will of the people or for future elected institutions. Rather, it is a platform for dialogue, cooperation, trust-building, the practice of engagement and compromise, and the promotion of freedom-seeking and pluralism.

The Assembly of the Iran Freedom Congress (the “Assembly” or “Congress Assembly”) is the highest organ of the Iran Freedom Congress. The Assembly shall serve as a platform for dialogue, for proposing joint projects, and for decision-making on the principal issues of the Congress among political and civic activists. It shall also determine the Congress’s main lines of policy and general orientation.

The Assembly may have up to 100 members, determined as follows: The first term of the Assembly shall last three months and shall consist of those who accepted the Congress’s invitation to attend the first conference and who, in the survey presented by the Congress, were named more than once as suitable candidates for membership in the Assembly. The principal members of the Coordination Council (Founding) shall also be added to this composition. After this period, elections to the Assembly shall be held every six months, based on the following seven membership groups (“groups”) and the quota allocated to each group. Each individual may stand for Assembly membership through the quota of the group to which they belong. The quota of each group shall be determined in the relevant bylaw.

1. Political and party activists
2. Trade union and civic activists
3. Women and gender-equality activists
4. Jurists and human rights activists
5. Academics and the cultural community
6. Entrepreneurs and the economic community
7. Iranian politicians in the international sphere

At the beginning of each Assembly term, the Presidium of the Assembly shall be elected by the Assembly members. The Presidium shall have 5 members and shall be responsible for setting the agenda and managing Assembly sessions. The limits of the Presidium’s powers and duties, beyond what is set out in this document, shall be determined by the Assembly. The Presidium is responsible for the Assembly’s procedural order, not for leading the Congress or acting as its political spokesperson.

Any Assembly member may request that a matter be placed on the Assembly agenda by submitting it to the Presidium. The Presidium shall organize the agenda on the basis of priority. Likewise, 5% of Congress members may jointly notify the Presidium that a matter should be raised at an Assembly meeting. If 20% of Assembly members or 20% of all Congress members request the inclusion of a matter, the Presidium shall be obliged, upon receiving such a request in writing, to place it on the agenda of the next Assembly session. If 50% of Assembly members or Congress members request urgent consideration of a matter, the Presidium shall be obliged to convene the Assembly at the earliest possible time and examine that matter.

Inactive members of the Assembly shall be removed from the Assembly according to procedures approved by the Assembly itself, and replacement members shall be introduced by the relevant group.

At least 30 percent of Assembly members must be women, and this percentage shall rise to 50 percent under conditions determined by the Assembly.

The Assembly is committed to ensuring conditions in which stakeholders from all ethnic groups, languages, religions, regions, and political and civic orientations of the country may be present in the Congress, and consequently in the Assembly, without discrimination.

The Assembly shall ordinarily meet once every month and, in special circumstances, in accordance with procedures that the Assembly itself shall determine.

Assembly sessions shall be quorate with the presence of 40% of members. Decisions of the Assembly shall be approved by a majority vote of those present. Each seat, in each six-month term, may exercise one special negative vote on matters. If 30% of those present and 25% of all seats exercise this right, the resolution shall be rejected. If a matter that has once been met by a seat’s special negative vote is brought back to the Assembly for a vote without meaningful change, a second negative vote by that same seat shall not be counted against that seat’s tally of special negative votes. Whether the matter has returned “without meaningful change” shall be determined by the Assembly.

Assembly caucuses are groups of Assembly members that form voluntarily on the basis of shared political, analytical, or programmatic views, with the aim of coordinating positions and advancing joint initiatives within the Congress. Caucuses shape the political leadership of different tendencies of the Congress both internally and in the public sphere. The activity of caucuses and their members must not damage the cohesion of the Congress or its platform role. Caucuses may not take positions on behalf of the Congress as a whole.

All Iranian individuals and organizations who, together with the figures under their control, are attested by two Congress members to be committed to pluralism and to the fundamental rights of others may, under Assembly regulations, become members of the Congress and of one of the membership groups. Membership groups are responsible for promoting and advancing the Congress’s values, recruiting new members, expanding the network, and maintaining solidarity among members. In elections for Assembly members, each group shall introduce representatives to the Assembly in accordance with the quota set out in Clause 7.

Working procedures and internal elections within the groups shall be regulated through proposals from the groups themselves and by approval and codification in a bylaw to be adopted by the Central Council. If four groups jointly submit a bill, the Central Council shall be obliged to present that bill, together with its own view, to the Assembly for consideration and approval.

The Political Activists Group, in addition to the other functions and activities described in this document, shall establish a Commission of Political Organizations composed of representatives of political parties and organizations, along with 5 facilitators with successful mediation experience. The criteria for inviting a political organization shall be drafted within the Political Activists Group and approved by the Central Council. The Commission of Political Organizations, while coordinating the activities of political organizations and parties and proposing and implementing joint projects aligned with the Congress’s goals and mission, may submit bills through the Central Council for approval by the Assembly. Bills sent by the Commission of Political Organizations must be considered by the Assembly with appropriate urgency and with the Central Council’s opinion attached. The Assembly may establish other commissions to examine different issues.

The activities of the membership groups must be conducted in such a way that the entry and participation of new individuals and organizations are encouraged, and the pathway for new people to reach and play a role at all levels of the Congress, on the basis of merit, remains readily available.

Claims relating to violations of rights connected to the Congress, and to the subject matter and activities associated with it, whether brought by Congress members or by individuals outside the Congress, may be examined by a Legal Commission to be formed by the Jurists Group. The composition and working methods of this commission shall be approved by the Assembly, and its rulings shall be binding upon the Congress.

The Assembly shall vote only on bills submitted by the Central Council and on proposals that have been drafted in writing and approved by 20% of Assembly members or Congress members. In all other cases, agenda items shall be for discussion, examination of issues, and presentation of reports only.

In all formal decisions of the Assembly, if at least 30% of Assembly members hold a dissenting view, they shall have the right to submit their minority opinion in writing to the Presidium within one day after the voting result is announced, and the Presidium shall be obliged to record that view as an annex to the principal decision. Minority opinions form part of the Congress’s official records and shall, where appropriate, be published together with the resolution.

Detailed minutes of Assembly deliberations, final consultation reports, and its resolutions shall be recorded in the Congress secretariat and published publicly. In sensitive cases, and in accordance with bylaws adopted by the Assembly, the Presidium may hold sessions in private.

The Central Council shall have 11 members, elected by the Congress Assembly from among Assembly members. On the recommendation of the Political Activists Group, and with attention to diversity and inclusive representation of political parties and organizations, up to 4 members of the Central Council shall be elected from among candidates (at least 7 persons) introduced by the Commission of Political Organizations and chosen by vote in the Assembly. The remaining members shall be elected from among those recommended for the position by 10 other Assembly members.

The Central Council is responsible for decision-making regarding the political and executive activities of the Congress for the advancement of its objectives, within the framework of the line and goals declared by the Assembly. The Central Council may issue statements on behalf of the Congress and must remain accountable to the Assembly for all of its positions and activities.

The Central Council shall provide, through technological solutions, conditions for verifying the identity of applicants for membership as well as for secure participation by applicants seeking non-public membership, especially from داخل ایران, in a way that prevents disruption and fraud while enabling the secure expansion of the membership network.

The Assembly may, in accordance with bylaws adopted by the Assembly, impeach and remove members of the Central Council or the Council as a whole.

Determining political strategies and setting policy on current issues and political developments, in accordance with the goals and policies determined by the Assembly, lies with this Council. The Central Council is also responsible for approving working bylaws, coordinating the activities of all groups and commissions, and ensuring that their work conforms with the goals and mission of the Congress.

Members of the Central Council shall determine their own management system and define the scope of authority and responsibilities of members. Minutes of the Central Council shall be recorded in the Congress secretariat.

The Central Council shall meet once each week. In urgent circumstances, a Council session shall be convened by decision of its chair or at the request of one-third of its members.

The Central Council shall appoint one person as Executive Director to manage the executive organization of the Congress.

The Council shall present a transparent report of its activities to the Assembly at the beginning of each Assembly session.

The Executive Director is responsible for establishing and managing the executive organization, mobilizing resources, and implementing the resolutions of the Assembly and the Central Council.

The scope of authority and responsibilities of the Executive Director shall be determined by the Central Council.

The Executive Director must periodically present reports of his or her activities to the Central Council and the Assembly.

The executive organization, while monitoring the Congress’s activities and feedback on those activities, shall formulate operational and strategic proposals within its executive working groups and submit them to the Central Council for approval.

The Supervisory Board shall have 5 members, elected by the Assembly.

Members of the Central Council, managers, and officials of the Congress are obliged, every three months, to answer the questions of the Supervisory Board and provide the documents it requests. The task of the Supervisory Board is to examine whether activities conform to Assembly resolutions and does not include intervention in executive matters.

The Supervisory Board is obliged to provide the Assembly with a report of its oversight every three months.

The structure and mission of the Congress shall develop gradually, in proportion to its success and trust-building in the early stages. The Congress seeks to remain flexible and to avoid rigid and static structures. The design of proposals for revising and updating the structure and bylaws shall be undertaken through a specialized working group.

This document was approved on 28 Farvardin 1405 by the Coordination Council of the Iran Freedom Congress (Founding). It is understood that, after the first session of the first Assembly term is formed, the Coordination Council shall be dissolved, and the Congress’s assemblies may revise and improve this document.