Society Regulations: 22-Article Version

English translation

AI-assisted English translation. The Japanese original remains authoritative.

Originally published: 11 January 2020.

This is the preamble and all twenty-two articles of the regulations published on the Japanese website. They are preserved separately from the nine-section version. The current applicability of the fees and arrangements, and the precedence, amendment, or replacement of these provisions in relation to other rules, have not been confirmed.

Regulations of Japan Romanticism Academia

The Academia is an independent society affiliated with no political, religious, or social activist organisation. Its three main fields of activity are the arts, research, and international exchange. It traces its beginnings to Academia International, the organisation that pioneered these activities. These principles also apply to the compilation of the Online Manyo-shu. The fundamental spirit of the regulations is to enable well-intentioned members to carry out activities smoothly, harmoniously, and in good spirits. We ask for your understanding and support for them as a means of protecting members' activities.

Article 1

The society shall be named 日本浪漫学会 (Japan Romanticism Academia). Its headquarters shall be at the street address individually communicated to members in Hayama-machi, Miura-gun, Kanagawa Prefecture.

Article 2

The principal activities of the Academia are as follows. Plans are not guarantees.

1. Undertake research into Romantic arts and activities contributing to their revival.
2. In addition to research, review and publish online tanka, essays, criticism, and creative work.
3. Work towards compiling the Online Manyo-shu in three volumes, with online publication planned.
4. Production of the three-volume collection shall depend on sufficient material and other cooperation from members.
5. The installation of a time capsule for the Online Manyo-shu is also planned.
6. Promote exchanges through works, both within Japan and overseas, and contribute to peace and friendship. Membership, however, shall take account of diplomatic relations and be for a specified period.
7. As personnel and membership-fee income become available, plan poetry gatherings, readings, social exchanges, and trips.

Article 3

Members may participate after transferring membership dues, admission fees, screening fees, and publication fees to the prescribed bank account. The membership year runs from 1 April to 31 March of the following year. No admission fee is required from the second year onwards, but a screening fee is required whenever work is submitted. Membership begins on payment of dues and remains valid until the end of that membership year.

Article 4

Ideally, the following positions shall be established to allow members to carry out administrative procedures smoothly, including collecting dues, publicising regular meetings, preparing gatherings, and keeping records. Part-time staff may be employed. All operating policies shall be decided by the chair of the board, who leads the board of directors.

1. President, chair of the board, and sosho (master): one person.
2. Vice-presidents: one or more people.
3. Branch heads: one for each branch.
4. Secretary-general: one person.
5. Records officers, including archiving and publicity: two people.
6. Accounts officers, including payment reminders and management of receipts and expenditure: two people.
7. Auditor: one person; venue operations committee members: several people.

Article 5

The Academia's principal activities depend on the cooperation of its members. Membership will normally continue on renewal at the change of year if there is no particular difficulty, but the president may exercise the authority not to renew it.

Article 6

All members' work accepted and published online by the Academia must be original and created by the member. Plagiarism shall incur a penalty of ¥100,000 and immediate loss of membership. This does not apply in the same way to cases of coincidence or misunderstanding by the person concerned.

Article 7

Members should engage in the Academia's activities in a spirit of harmony. Those who do not pay dues or charges will be billed; continued failure to pay may lead to automatic expulsion. Members of antisocial groups and people whose words or actions offend public order or morality are also subject to expulsion. Disruptive conduct, including the formation of factions, is prohibited. Activities should always be friendly and dignified. Do not forget the Manyo spirit expressed in “Harmony is to be valued.”

Article 8

Overseas contributors shall begin as special participants. In granting membership through international exchange, careful consideration must be given to diplomatic relations. The board shall deliberate and decide whether membership may be renewed.

Article 9

To avoid imbalance as far as possible in membership and the number of published works, the ideal is to bring together twenty members from each of Japan's forty-seven prefectures, forming an outstanding body of 940 members in total.

Article 10

Destruction of data, unauthorised use of stored data, acts of destruction, resale, disparagement or defamation, and other disruptive conduct shall be grounds for damages and expulsion. All rights shall be lost at that point.

Article 11

Members should make the Academia a firm part of their everyday routine, maintain contact with fellow members, and take part in poetry gatherings, tea gatherings, and poetry outings.

Article 12

Work that passes the prescribed review will be published online after screening and publication fees have been paid. This publication constitutes the Online Manyo-shu. Subsequent compilation into a three-volume book, or inclusion in a capsule to be opened five hundred years in the future, is a plan, not something that can be guaranteed to members when they join. Such projects shall be carried out with separate financial contributions.

Article 13

Members who make outstanding contributions to the Academia's activities as a whole shall be advanced to positions established by the president and master. Broadly, research positions include professor, associate professor, and assistant professor. Those who attain full mastery may receive titles such as okuden, kaiden, or shihan. The criteria shall either follow provisions established by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, or use traditional schools of tea ceremony and flower arrangement as precedents for standards. The Academia is not, however, a school with a large body of students or apprentices, and these qualifications shall not be reflected in an internal salary structure.

Article 14

The Academia may be unable to accept a membership application owing to its own circumstances.

Article 15

The regulations above may be amended, supplemented, or deleted at the initiative of the president or the standing board of directors.

Article 16

The accounts officers, together with the auditor, shall handle receipts and payments in accordance with the Civil Code.

Article 17

Membership fees shall be used for purposes appropriate to the operation of the Academia. Funds for publication activities and the time-capsule project shall be collected separately under those headings and set aside. Wasteful expenditure should be avoided as a matter of honour.

Article 18

Financial collapse deliberately caused by particular individuals shall be subject to compensation. Otherwise, a deficit does not create an obligation for directors or members to make it good. A budget must be prepared that provides for covering deficits from reserves. Board approval is required before any part of those reserves is allocated to constructing the time capsule.

Article 19

Works published in the Online Manyo-shu must include the member's number, home city and prefecture, contact email address, and similar information so that the individual can be found through a search.

Article 20

An appropriate budget must be prepared so that income can be accounted for against necessary expenditure, including travel, rent, part-time staffing, venue hire, meetings, and inspection visits.

Article 21

In the event of an unforeseen accident affecting online publication, the Academia will work in good faith with the service provider to restore it. Even if these efforts are unsuccessful, members are asked to cooperate in recovery and restoration rather than bringing legal proceedings against the Academia on that account.

Article 22

If the service provider closes its business or a similar situation arises, the Academia will continue its online activities through arrangements with another provider. Members are asked to cooperate in recovery and restoration in such circumstances as well.

Members shall join with an understanding of the foregoing at the time of admission.