ANNEX 10 – RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE NATIONAL AGENCY FOR THE PREVENTION OF TORTURE Adopted at the joint meeting of the Federal Agency for the Prevention of Torture and the Joint Commission for the Prevention of Torture held on 2 September 2013 Part 1 Structure Section 1 Bodies (1) Pursuant to section 2 of the Administrative Agreement on the National Agency for the Prevention of Torture, the Federal Agency for the Prevention of Torture (Federal Agency) and the Joint Commission for the Prevention of Torture (Joint Commission) shall together form the National Agency for the Prevention of Torture (National Agency). They shall cooperate under this name. (2) The members of the Federal Agency and of the Joint Commission are members of the National Agency. Section 2 Representation The Director of the Federal Agency and the Chair of the Joint Commission shall together represent the National Agency externally. Part 2 Modus operandi of the National Agency Section 3 Basic principles (1) The members of the National Agency shall coordinate their modus operandi with each other, they shall draw up guiding principles and an annual programme. (2) The Director of the Federal Agency and the Chair of the Joint Commission shall coordinate the use of staff in the Secretariat. Section 4 Meetings (1) As a rule at least two meetings of the members of the National Agency shall be held each year. (2) As a rule the Secretariat shall be involved in these meetings. (3) The Director of the Federal Agency and the Chair of the Joint Commission shall reach agreement on who chairs these meetings. (4) Minutes shall be kept of each of these meetings. (5) The minutes shall be presented to members for approval as soon as possible after the end of the meeting. The minutes shall be regarded as approved if no objections are raised within two weeks after their being forwarded. Section 5 Voting (1) Motions are carried if they receive the majority of the votes cast. (2) Motions pertaining to the National Agency are only carried if the Director of the National Agency has not voted “no”. Joint decisions of both bodies shall be reached by consensus. Section 6 Circular procedure (1) Decisions may also be taken by circular procedure. (2) The result of the vote shall be determined two weeks after the motion has been forwarded to members. Section 7 Secretariat (1) The Secretariat supports the Federal Agency and the Joint Commission in fulfilling their tasks. (2) The work of the Secretariat shall be regulated on the basis of a distribution of business plan. Part 3 The Federal Agency Section 8 Competence and structure (1) The competence and structure of the Federal Agency are set out in the Organisational Decree of the Federal Ministry of Justice of 20 November 2008. (2) The Director of the Federal Agency and his or her deputy shall coordinate their activities with each other and with the Secretariat. They shall inform the National Agency about key results as soon as possible via the Secretariat. 117