Founding the Main Society, according to Robert’s Rules of Order

Early this year the second stage of the workshop whit the same previous participants began again, but this time, the instructor was not the same: during a lot of workshops for teaching and practicing Robert’s Rules of Order he handled in the past seven years, the instructor had acquired necessary skills to preside deliberative assembly professionally. And thus, in the new workshop, instead of teaching the rules of order, the establishing of the Main Society began, but this time, the president of the meetings led the parliamentary processes according to Robert’s Rules of Order, and the result was really significant.

There are many remarkable and very important differences between two methods were applied in the new and previous workshops mentioned just now above. And all of those who want to instruct Robert’s Rules of Order in societies where the Rules are unknown must pay attention to them exactly.

In the first workshop, the instructor first attempted to explain the meaning of parliamentary terms, for example, parliamentary motions, and show their functions and describe their standard descriptive characteristics and then explain the parliamentary rules governing their functions. Frankly must be confessed that it was really very difficult for such aged and busy participants to learn those things which all were new for them.

Participants in the first workshop

It is worth saying that all participants in the first and inaugural Robert’s Rules of Order workshop were the famous and well-known political, cultural and social figures at the national level. For example, Mr. Mohammed Otaredian is the founding father and the president of the Iranian Confederation of Employers’ Associations (ICEA), and Mr. Mustafa Moeein was the Iranian Reformists presidential candidate in the previous presidential election and was minister in both late President Rafsanjani and President Khatami administrations. At present, he is the president of the High Council of The Medical Council of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Mr. Mohammad Behshti also was the founding father of the Farabi Cinematic Foundation and he is known as the main architect of the post-revolutionary Iranian cinema. Mr. Abdol Fattah Soltani and Mr. Arash Keykhosravi, both lawyers, are well-known as the human rights activists. Mr. Mehdi Jamali was a key manager in the Tehran municipality during the time when Mr. Karbsschi was Tehran mayor, and only one example of Mr. Jamali’s activities at that time of his career is the establishment of Hamshari daily newspaper. Mr. Mohammad Hossein Baniassadi is also a well-known Iranian political activist. He is Mr. Bazargan’s son-in-law and everyone knows Mr. Bazargan: the first post-revolutionary Prime Minster and the founding father of the Nehzat-e Azadi-e Iran (The Iranian Liberation Movement). And Mr. Mojtaba Amiry, also a social activist, is now the Dean of a group in the Tehran Management School in Tehran University. Mr. Golessorkhi, also an old political activist, between other things, is also the president of the board of trustees of an important research institute for the construction industry. Two other members of the workshop, Mr. Baram Shriyari and Mr. Mohssen Razmkhah, were prominent managers in auto parts manufacturing industry and members of the management board of the Iranian Auto Parts Manufactures Association. They were also members of the editorial panel of the Association magazine that published by then Robert’s Rules of Order’s translator into the Persian.

Because more than three decades activity as a writer and journalist and, also, as a publisher who published magazines and papers for non-governmental associations and private organizations, all participants in the first and inaugural Robert’s Rules of Order workshop knew somehow the instructor and trusted in him and, even before the beginning of the workshop, they had heard a lot about Robert’s Rules of Order and their importance and necessity for the nation by means of him. Indeed, they accepted to participate the workshop in order to help the localization of Robert’s Rules of Order in Iran for the first time.

The participants in the first workshop yet have helped the process more. For example, Mr. Otaredian sponsored the printing of the Persian translation of Robert’s Rules of Order and gifted them to the more than two hundred of professionals in various societies. Mr. Moein also sponsored the book and gifted another hundred number of the book to the professionals in the scientific and professional Iranian societies. Both of them in their preface to the Persian edition of the book explained why the rules of order are so necessary and significant for the societies.

In spite of all, it must be confessed that the first all workshops failed to achieve their goals. And, the instructor just did so, but it did not suffice. So, he asked them to participate in new workshop again and evaluate his new method for handling the workshop. And they accepted kindly and, thus, the second workshop began on Sunday, 10. March, 2019 (Esfand, 19. 1397). As mentioned before, the results this time are really significant and all of them will be described in the next records.