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67th IFLA Conference Logo  

67th IFLA Council and General Conference

Libraries and Librarians: Making a Difference in the
Knowledge Age

August 16th - 25th 2001


INDEX

GENERAL INFORMATION

PROGRAM INFORMATION

REGISTRATION & HOTELS

IMPORTANT ADDRESSES


 

Minutes of the Council meeting

Held in Ballroom A/B, the Hynes Convention Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA on Sunday 19th August, 2001, commencing at 16:00.

  1. The President of IFLA, Christine Deschamps, presided.

  2. Opening

    The President opened the meeting by welcoming delegates to Boston and wished everyone a very successful conference.
  3. Minutes

    The minutes of the previous meeting of Council, held on 13th and 18th August, in the Ussishkin Hall, Jerusalem International Convention Center, Biyaney Ha'ooma, Jerusalem 910600, Israel, were approved.
  4. Welcome

    Gary Strong, Co-Chair of the Boston Organising Committee welcomed delegates to the 67th General Conference of IFLA.
  5. Appointment of Tellers

    The Secretary General explained the procedures required for voting on general resolutions. He proposed the following persons to act as tellers to count the votes: Susan Lazinger (Israel), Patricia Yocum (USA), Wanda Dole (USA), Rashida Begum (Malaysia) and John Day (USA), who would serve as Head Teller. The meeting approved the appointment of the tellers.
  6. Establishment of a Quorum

    The tellers counted the number of voting members present. The President announced that a quorum had been established.
  7. Formal Announcement of the Results of the Postal Ballot for the Election of the President, the President-elect and for places on the Governing Board

    The Secretary General announced the results of the elections, the first to have been held by postal ballot under the Statutes adopted by Council at Jerusalem in 2000.

    For the post of President 2001-2003, only one nomination had been received, for Christine Deschamps. She had therefore been returned unopposed.
    For the post of President-elect, to serve as such from 2001 to 2003 and then as President from 2003 to 2005, there had been three candidates. Nancy John (USA) had received 484 votes, Kay Raseroka (Botswana) 672 votes, and Børge Sørensen (Denmark) 258 votes. Kay Raseroka had therefore been elected.

    There had been eleven valid nominations for the seven places on the Governing Board. The number of votes received for each candidate had been: Derek Law (United Kingdom) 1,037, Sissel Nilsen (Norway) 880, Alex Byrne (Australia) 875, Ana María Peruchena Zimmermann (Argentina) 839, Jianzhong Wu (China) 829, Sally McCallum (USA) 701, Ellen Tise (South Africa) 675. These had all been elected. The following candidates had not been elected: Ekaterina Genieva (Russian Federation) 671, Gary Strong (USA) 535, Françoise Lemelle (France) 523, Moon-Hyu Choi (Korea) 377.
    626 valid ballot papers had been received, a return rate of 48.7%. 1,447 votes had been cast, representing 57.4% of the possible total.
    Three members of the staff of the Royal Library of the Netherlands, P.J.Moree, J.J.M.Bos, and G.M.van Trier, had acted as scrutineers. Council recorded its thanks to them.
  8. In Memoriam

    The President read out the names of IFLA members who had died since the last meeting Council. Council stood silently in their memory.

  9. Tribute to Birgitta Bergdahl

    Kay Raseroka delivered a tribute to Birgitta Bergdahl, former Director of the IFLA Advancement of Librarianship (ALP) programme.

  10. Tribute to Anne M. Galler

    John Day delivered a tribute to Anne Galler, Director of the Library Studies Program at Concordia University, Canada and member of IFLA's Professional Board 1989-1991. Her husband, Mark Galler, was present to hear the tribute.

  11. Presentation of the Annual Report by the Secretary General

    Ross Shimmon presented his annual report. He characterised it as a year of challenge and achievement in which the Federation had begun to implement radical change and had grown in strength. The conference last year had been a successful professional event, combined with a moving cultural experience for many. He reminded members of the tragic events, which had begun so soon after the conference had closed. Two senior IFLA figures had received major honours during the year, The President had become Chevalier de Legion d'Honneur and the Treasurer had been awarded Doctor Honoris Causa of the University of the Sorbonne, Paris. The new Statutes had been adopted by Council by an overwhelming majority and just before this meeting they had finally been approved by the authorities in the Netherlands and given the official seal. The Governing Board would now consider new Rules of Procedure, needed to implement the Statutes in full. As had already been announced, the first postal ballots in the history of IFLA had been carried out with a satisfactory participation rate. In addition, the new rules for nominations had encouraged more people to stand for the Section Standing Committee elections. Membership was buoyant and had reached the highest totals in the Federation's history with 1,790 members in 157countries. He remarked that in 1981, the membership total reached 1,000 for the first time. He urged members to try to recruit enough new members to reach 2,000 in 2002, the 75th anniversary year of IFLA. He paid tribute to the work of the small team of staff at IFLA HQ who had coped with a greatly increased workload. He announced that Carol Henry had had to take long-term sick leave. Sophie Felföldi had taken up a new post as IFLA Web Manager, partly as a result of changes to IFLANET. Magda Bouwens, formerly of FID had replaced her as Office Manager and Josche Neven had taken over the responsibilities for the conference. Stephen Parker, also formerly of FID, had become Editor of IFLA Journal on a free-lance basis. Susanne Seidelin had taken over as Director of the FAIFE office in Copenhagen from Jan Ristarp, who had retired.

    He also referred to the sad demise of FID, the work currently taking place to find a new host for IFLANET and the ongoing task of trying to find secure finances for the Core Activities. The publications programme was thriving with three new publications, including the IFLA/UNESCO revised guidelines for public libraries, being launched during the conference. In conclusion, he thanked all those who had contributed so much to ensure that he could report that IFLA was in good shape in 2001 as its 75th birthday approached.

    The Secretary General's report was approved.

  12. Presentation of the Annual Accounts by the Treasurer

    Derek Law presented the annual accounts. He reminded members that the total annual expenditure by IFLA amounted to little more than USD 800,000. Total income in 2000 had been USD 838,000, an increase on 1999 by USD 60,000. The surplus for 2000 had been USD 25,000, a significant decrease on the figure for 1999, because for a large part of that year, the post of Secretary General had been vacant, resulting in a decrease in staffing and associated costs. As usual, the surplus would be added to the reserves. His aim was to build up the reserves so that they amounted to approximately one year's running costs. But there was still some way to go before that was achieved. Pleasing features of the results for 2000 were an increase in membership fees, sales of publications and share of conference registration. However, income from sponsors was slightly down and interest on investments was static. He had reported that, on advice from the Federation's accountants, PricewaterhouseCoopers, the possibilities for increasing investment income were being investigated.

    The Treasurer's report was approved.

  13. Proposals for new categories of membership

    The Treasurer, Derek Law, proposed three new categories of membership:
    Institutional Sub-units: He said this category was intended initially for libraries in departments or faculties of university libraries. The university, normally through its main library, would have to be an Institutional Member of IFLA to enable other campus libraries to join as a Sub-unit Institutional Member. They would be able to vote in Section elections for those Sections for which they are registered. They could register for one Section without further charge and they would receive the IFLA Journal and any discounts on publications and services applicable to Institutional Members. The initial memberships fees would be: band 1 EUR 195, band 2: EUR 170 and band 3: EUR 90.
    The proposal was approved nem con.
    One Person Library and Information Centres: The Treasurer explained that this category would be limited to units with no more than one full-time equivalent staff member. Applicants would have to provide a signed statement that this was the case in their unit. The benefits and fees would the same as for the previous category.
    The proposal was approved nem con.
    School Libraries: The Treasurer explained that this category would apply to libraries and resource centres in primary and secondary schools or their equivalents. There would be no limit to the number of staff employed. The benefits and fees would the same as for the previous category.
    The proposal was approved nem con.
  14. Report on the work of the Advisory Group on the Division of Regional Activities (Division VIII)

    Adolfo Rodriguez presented his report on the work of the Advisory Group on the Division of Regional Activities.

  15. Campaign for the World's Libraries

    John W.Berry, President of the American Library Association (ALA) and William J. Gordon, Executive Director of ALA, presented a film on the Campaign for America's Libraries. Mr. Berry said that he had proposed to the IFLA Executive Board that the campaign be extended to a global one, under IFLA's auspices. The Board had accepted the offer. He presented a plaque to the President.

  16. Adjournment

    At 17:30 the President announced the adjournment of the meeting until Friday 24th August 2001 at 15:00 in the same location.

  17. Opening

    The President opened the second session of Council at 15:00 on Friday 24th August. She said that this had been a memorable conference in many ways, including the large attendance, the smoothness of the organisation and the quality of the professional experience.

  18. Closing report on behalf of the National Organising Committee

    Duane Webster presented his report on behalf of the Boston Organising Committee.
  19. Resolutions and Motions

    The President asked the Secretary General to ensure that correct procedures were followed in dealing with the resolutions. Alex Byrne, Chair of the IFLA Free Access to Information and Freedom of Information and Freedom of Expression (FAIFE) Committee, had proposed a resolution on Cuba which had been published in IFLA Express number 7 as Resolution 1. Glenys Willars, Chair, School Libraries and Resource Centres Section, had seconded the motion. John W. Berry, President of the American Library Association, had proposed a second resolution on Cuba, which had also been published in IFLA Express 7 as motion 2. Eliades Acosta, Director of the Biblioteca Nacional José Martí, Havana, had seconded the motion.

    Alex Byrne proposed that, in order to save the time of Council, resolution 2 should be taken first. Bernard Margolis seconded the proposal. This procedural motion was put to the vote. 334 votes were cast for the motion, with 254 against. The proposal was carried. There were no recorded abstentions.

    After some debate, a number of amendments to resolution 2 were proposed by Bernard Margolis. They were seconded by James Neal.

    The amendments were put to the vote. 381 votes were cast for the amendments, with 138 against. There were 64 abstentions. The amendments were carried.

    Resolution 2, as amended, was then put to the vote. 553 votes were cast for the motion as amended, with 54 against and 12 abstentions. The resolution as amended was carried. The consequent deletions from Resolution 2 were adopted without dissent. The text of the resolution adopted is:

  20. "Be it resolved that IFLA:

    1. State its strongly felt concerns about the effects of the US embargo that include
      • Obstacles to the export of information materials to Cuba despite their formal exclusion from the embargo
      • A severe reduction in the capacity of Cuban libraries and citizens to purchase information materials and related technologies due to the economic effects of the embargo
      • Indirect disruption of access to information by Cubans and Cuban libraries caused by the effects on power supply, telecommunications and other aspects of life in Cuba
      • Inhibitions to professional interaction and exchange caused by the restrictions on travel to the US by Cuban nationals and to Cuba by US nationals.
    2. Urge the US Government to eliminate obstacles to access to information and professional interaction imposed by its embargo and any other US Government policies.
    3. Urge the Cuban Government to eliminate obstacles to access to information imposed by its policies.
    4. Support and continue to monitor initiatives by the Cuban library community to safeguard free access to print and electronic information, including via the Internet, and in particular:
      • Support and assist the ASCUBI [Associación Cubana de Bibibiotecarios] initiative to develop a code of ethics for the standards and principles of library services in Cuba.
      • Urge the Cuban library community to adopt fully the IFLA Public Library Guidelines [The Public Library Service: IFLA/UNESCO Guidelines for Development. Saur: 2001]
    5. Encourage IFLA colleagues to attend the international conference on information in Havana 22-26 April 2002 hosted by IDICT [Instituto de Información Cientifica y Tecnológica] to help further professional relations with Cuba.
    6. Urge the US Government to put policies in place to make sharing of books and other materials on all subjects as well as information technology with Cuba's libraries easier for all who wish to improve access to information in Cuba through strengthening library collections.
    7. Urge the US Government to share information materials widely in Cuba, especially with Cuba's libraries, and not just with "individuals and independent non-governmental organizations" that represent US political interests."

  21. Members scheduled for deletion for non-payment of membership fees

    The list of members scheduled for deletion had been made available in the IFLA Secretariat offices during the conference. The list was adopted without dissent.

  22. Report on the work of the Copyright and other Legal Matters (CLM) Committee

    Marianne Scott, Chair of the Committee, presented a report on the work of the CLM Committee.

  23. Report on the work of the Freedom of Access to Information and Freedom of Expression (FAIFE) Committee

    Alex Byrne, Chair of the Committee, presented a report on the work of the FAIFE Committee

  24. Evaluation of the professional programme of the conference

    Ralph Manning, Chair of the Professional Board, presented an evaluation of the professional programme of the conference.

  25. Report on the work of the Professional Board

    Ralph Manning, outgoing Chair of the Professional Board, presented a report on the work of the Board.

  26. Announcement of the results of the elections to the Professional Committee

    The results were announced by Ralph Manning, outgoing Chair of the Board. The following were elected:

    Cristóbal Pasadas Ureña (Spain), representing Division I, John Meriton (UK), Division II, John Day (USA), Division III, Ia McIlwaine (UK), Division IV, Mary Jackson (USA), Division V,Wanda Dole (USA), Division VI, Marian Koren (Netherlands), Division VII, and Rashidah Begum (Malaysia), Division VIII.
  27. Newsletter of the Year Award

    Ralph Manning announced that the winner of the Newsletter of the Year Award was the Newsletter of the Section of Libraries for the Blind. This was the second year in succession that this Section had won the award. He presented the award to the editor.
  28. Vote of Thanks

    Derek Law, Treasurer, proposed a vote of thanks to all those involved in the organisation of a successful conference. The President presented the IFLA Medal to the Co-Chairs of the Boston Organising Committee, Gary Strong and Duane Webster.

  29. IFLA General Conference 2007

    Ingrid Parent, Chair of the Conference Planning Committee, announced the invitation for expressions of interest to host the IFLA General Conference in 2007.

  30. IFLA General Conference 2003

    Barbara Schleihagen, Secretary General of the Berlin Organising Committee, invited delegates to attend the IFLA General Conference to be held in Berlin, Germany in 2003.
  31. IFLA General Conference 2002

    The Lord Provost of Glasgow, Alex Mosson, invited delegates to attend the next IFLA General Conference to be held in Glasgow, Scotland in August 2002. Delegates were led out of the room by a Scottish piper.

  32. Closure

    The President closed the Council meeting and conference at 17:45.


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