Constitution

  • Passed in the first General Conference at Colombo, Sri Lanka on May 16, 1966.
  • First revision in the third General Conference at Taipei, Taiwan, ROC on Dec. 14, 1981.
  • Second revision in the fourth General Conference at Bangkok, Thailand on Jan. 10, 1986.
  • Third revision in the fifth General Conference at Taipei, Taiwan, ROC on Oct. 31, 1989.
  • Fourth revision in the extra-ordinary General Conference at Singapore on Nov. 25, 2002.
  • Fifth revision in the ninth General Conference at Medan, Indonesia on Dec. 4, 2012.

Chapter I
Denomination and Headquarters of the Council


Article 1: This Council shall be named the World Buddhist Sangha Council(Hereinafter WBSC).

Article 2: The secretariat of the WBSC headquarters shall be situated in any country approved by the general conference. Liaison offices, when necessary, may be established in any country.

 

Chapter II
Aims and Objectives


Article 3: The objectives of the WBSC are:

  1. Developing the organizations and exchanges of sanhga worldwide.
  2. Helping sangha carry out dhammaduta activities throughout the world.
  3. Enhancing harmony and relationship among different Buddhist traditions.
  4. Propagating Buddha¡¦s teaching of compassion to promote world peace.

 

Chapter III
Flag and Emblem

Article 4: The official flag of the WBSC shall be the six-colored Buddhist flag adopted by the world Buddhist community.


Article 5: The official emblem of the WBSC shall be the globe with Buddhist flag and dhamma chakra of 8 spokes mounted on it.

 

Chapter IV
Membership

Article 6:

  1. A Buddhist organization or monastery headed by sangha which accepts the rules and regulations of this Constitution shall be eligible for the Organization Membership.
  2. A bhikkhu or bhikkhuni who accepts the rules and regulations of this Constitution shall be eligible for Individual Membership.

Article 7:

  1. Organization Membership fees:
      Registration Fee US$200 (including the current annual fee)
      Annual Fee US$100
  2. Individual Membership fees:
      Registration Fee US$100 (including the current annual fee)
      Annual Fee US$30
  3. Those which/who don't pay the annual fee for five years will lose the membership automatically.

Article 8: Certificate of Membership will be issued and distributed exclusively by the secretariat of Headquarters.

Chapter V
Organization


Article 9: The WBSC shall comprise of:

  1. A President, to be elected by the General Conference, shall have the authority to represent the WBSC.
  2. Two or more Vice-Presidents, to be nominated by the President and approved by the General Conference, shall be responsible for the smooth function of all matters in membership countries.
  3. A Secretary General each for English and Chinese Sections, to be nominated by the President and approved by the General Conference, shall be responsible for handling affairs related to the secretariat of the headquarters.
  4. One or two Assistant Secretary Generals each for English and Chinese sections, to be nominated by the Secretary Generals and appointed by the President, shall help the Secretary Generals handle the secretarial work of the headquarters.
  5. A Treasurer General, to be nominated by the President and approved by the General Conference, shall be responsible for the treasury operation of the headquarters.

Article 10:

  1. The WBSC shall comprise of thirteen Executive Committees:
      (1)Dhamma Propagation Committee
      (2)Education Committee
      (3)Social Welfare Committee
      (4)Youth Committee
      (5)Culture Committee
      (6)Rituals Committee
      (7)Liaison Committee
      (8)Finance Committee
      (9)Research and Development Committee
      (10)Bhikkhuni Committee
      (11)Compiling and Translation Committee
      (12)Counselling Committee
      (13) Purification Committee
  2. Each Committee shall have a Director who is to be appointed by the President and to be in charge of convening meetings and executing related work.
  3. Each Committee shall have several members jointly appointed by the President and its Director.

Article 11: The WBSC may appoint its former President or leading Maha Theras to be the Life Long Honorary Presidents, and its former Vice-Presidents as well as the senior and dedicated Vice-Presidents to be the Life Long Honorary Vice-Presidents in recognition of their contributions.

Article 12: The WBSC shall appoint senior Maha Theras from different countries as members of the Board of Elders to give guidance and advice.

 

Chapter VI
Conference and Meeting

Article 13:

  1. The WBSC shall hold a General Conference every four to five years and an Extraordinary General Conference, when necessary in case of urgency, subject to the resolution of the Executive Committee.
  2. Each Organization Member can dispatch two delegates, with one additional delegate out of its every five more Individual Members, to attend the General Conference.

Article 14: The Executive Committees shall hold a meeting every one to two years with the President as the convener, and the Vice Presidents from different countries and the directors, deputy directors, and members of the Committees as the attendance.

Article 15: The General Conference and the Executive Committees Meeting shall invite the Honorary President, the Honorary Vice Presidents, and the elders to attend to give guidance.

Chapter VII
Sources of Funds

Article 16: The sources of funds for the activities of the WBSC are:

  1. Membership fees
  2. Donations from Buddhist organizations and philanthropists
  3. Collections from fund-raising activities and programs during the General Conference and Executive Committee Meeting.

Chapter VIII
Implementation and Amendment

Article 17: All the activities of the WBSC shall accord with the rules and regulations of this Constitution in order to achieve its aim and objectives.

Article 18: This Constitution and its amendments shall come into effect only after the approval of more than half attendance of a General Conference.