{news} 2008 National Platform Amendment Proposals

[David Bedell]

The National GP Platform Amendment Proposals have been posted for comment.  These proposals have been accepted, but corrections may be submitted two months prior to the July national convention.  Delegates at the July convention will vote on the platform.

Here are the topics of the amendments.  Follow the link to download individual proposal documents:
http://www.gp.org/committees/platform/draft/work

2008 Platform Amendment Proposals

Multiple sections
Multiple sections
Preamble
Democracy (I.A-C)
Opposition to Draft (I.C. Community)
Foreign Policy (I.D.[New Plank])
Foreign Policy (I.D.1.)
Foreign Policy - Peace in the Middle East (I.D.2.)
Foreign Policy - Space (I.F.)
Foreign Policy - Trade (I.D.3.)
Social Justice (II.A-C)
Women's Rights (II.A.1.)
Youth Rights (II.A.8.)
Education (II.E.)
Health Care (II.F.)
Labor (II.G.)
Criminal Justice (II.H.)
Criminal Justice (II.H.) - Drugs
Population (II.I.)
Population (II.I.)
Housing and Homelessness (II.L.)
Immigration / Emigration (II.K.)
Ecological Sustainability (III.A-F.)
Animal Rights issues in multiple sections (mostly III.J.)
Animal Rights (III.H-L.)
Nuclear (III.B.)
Water (III.G.)
Agriculture, Forestry, Animal Rights, Ocean Protection, Biological Diversity (III.H-L.)
Economic Sustainability (IV.A-H.)
Citizen Control Over Corporations (IV.C.)
National Debt (IV.M.)

Note the following rules:

http://gp.org/committees/platform/pdf/format.pdf

4. Corrections to website amendments must come from your [State] Steering Committee or Caucus, not
from one person. We will use a simple rating system to evaluate support or opposition for a
proposed amendment. (SEE RATING FORMULA BELOW.)

5. Final draft by two months prior to 2008 convention. There should only be a few, if any,
unresolved issues at this point. Unresolved amendments will be circulated back to
states/caucuses at least two months prior to the convention for last-minute feedback, informing
them that they could be voting on these at the final platform hearings, to be scheduled as close as
possible to the day preceding the presidential nominating convention. Any items and language
that remain to be determined at the final hearings, if such are needed, will be made available to
all convention delegates as part of the convention packets (as well as available online).

http://gp.org/committees/platform/pdf/schedule.pdf

1 April to 10 May - Grace Period so the Platform Committee can compile the Amendments –
The website 'closed' but still ‘up’ and visible so as not to cause alarm to Party members.
Contents will change as complete, negotiated and compromised amendments are put up on it.
Materials which are not considered at this point to have a reasonable estimation by the Platform
Committee and its interlocutors will be excluded from the Draft Platform.

11 May to July Assembly Date -- Final Draft Reading Period
This is the beginning of the two month period in which the complete Platform as Amended is
available on the National Green Party website and can be viewed and read by all interested
parties.

July – Nominating Convention in Chicago
This will include one plenary and voting period for the National Party to approve its Platform. In
the event of major disagreement or failure of vote to approve, the points of contention are to be
resolved in a final session between the conflicting factions, mediated by the Platform Committee,
with the outcome to be approved by the Steering Committee. While in a difficult situation, one
or two planks might be decided, the Platform as a whole will be adopted by an up or down vote.


All the above information is from the Green Party Platform Committee, http://gp.org/committees/platform
Committee Co-Chairs are:
John Ely - johnbethany at earthlink.net
Jenefer Ellingston - jellingston at greens.org 

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