First Session of the General Assembly

The General Assembly acts as the 'parliament' of the IUCr, with power to ratify or annul decisions of the Executive Committee, to appoint Officers of the Union, to receive and question financial and other reports, and to provide a forum for presentation of issues of importance to the crystallographic community through the delegates representing the Adhering Bodies that constitute the Union's official membership.

The General Assembly meets once every three years in synchrony with the IUCr's Congresses (extraordinary General Assemblies can be called in the intervening period if such a need is perceived by its members). The business of the General Assembly is conducted through an extensive Agenda, which generally takes the same form, and is usually handled over three sessions during the period of the Congress.

The first session always begins with business matters relating to the adherence of member bodies, and on this occasion the General Assembly learned of the withdrawal of Venezuela (through long-standing non-payment of dues), but this was countered by the application of two groups of smaller countries (Algeria, Latvia, Morocco, Tunisia, Turkey and Ukraine; Bangladesh, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam) to join as Adhering Bodies in the form of regional committees. This new arrangement was introduced by the previous General Assembly to help extend membership of the Union into smaller countries that could not support individual adherence.

Under the next major section of the Agenda, which allows for amendments to the Constitution and By-Laws, proposals were considered from the US National Committee, designed to enhance the representation of Regional Associates, and to clarify (and perhaps encourage) the democratic processes of the Union's governance. The details of the proposed changes appear in the latest IUCr Newsletter. After open discussion from the floor, the proposals were not accepted by the General Assembly.

The other main business of the First Session comprises reports on the activities of the Executive Committee, the finances of the Union, the award of the Ewald Prize, the performance of the publishing activities of the Union (which play an essential role in its financial stability), reports from Sub-Committees, and reports from the non-publishing Commissions. With the exception of the financial report, these are generally considered as 'presented' through their publication in the agenda papers, and Chairs or other representatives answer any questions arising. On this occasion, there were very few verbal comments, suggesting that nothing in the activities of the Union or its components gave the General Assembly any major cause for concern. The verbal report from the General Secretary and Treasurer on the Union's finances indicated that there were also no immediate financial worries, in spite of the general difficulties in world economies.

The General Assembly also learned of the proposal for a new Commission on Crystallography in Art and Cultural Heritage.