Guidance for Sato Ha Karate National Organizations

Sanctioned Sato Ha member clubs are encouraged to set up and maintain national sub-organizations in their countries according to the following guidelines:

1. Registered and in good standing with Sato Ha Shito Ryu Kokusai Rengo.

2. Registered with the country government. (business, society etc.)

3. Member of a country karate organization.

4. Board of directors: Chairman, President, Treasurer, Membership, others.

5. Good financial records.

6. Good membership lists.

7. Good record of dan testing.

8. At least one general meeting a year – all meetings recorded in written meeting

minutes

• must have President report, Treasurer report, Membership report.

• other director reports, club reports, activity, and decision reports.

9. At least one Directors meeting a year. Discussions and decisions recorded in written

meeting minutes.

10. Must operate on high moral principle.

Constitution of ShitoRyu Sato-ha Rengo Association

Published      April  11 - 2021

A.     Sato-ha Rengo (the “Association”)

Members shall not discriminate based on race, nationality, gender, religion or socioeconomic status. Members shall strive for the advancement of the technique of karate-do and for the betterment of one’s own character. In collaboration with others, members shall promote and enhance international cultural exchange experiences to help foster a more peaceful and understanding global environment.

B.     Association Executive Committee Members Criteria:

The chosen Executive Committee members must retain a higher dan-degree, have more than 30 years of experience training in karate-do, and have contributed numerous years of dedicated work to the Rengo. Alternatively, such Executive Committee members who do not fulfill these stated criteria may, on occasion, be appointed directly either by the Soke (Founder) or by the Association Executive Committee if approved by more than half of the Executive Committee members. 

C.     International Branch Policy  

         i.        The official language of the Association will be English.  The International branch’s Chief Instructor shall appoint a club member with English language skills as a liaison and report the person’s name and contact information to the  Sato-ha Headquarters (located in Vancouver, BC).

         ii.        International Branch Membership fees must be paid to the Sato-ha Headquarters by December 31^st of each year (annually). Should an International Branch not  submit their fees by the due date, any Executive Committee or member of any other standing committees may forfeit their right of expression, their position, as well as their voting rights in the Association.      

         iii.       The price of the membership fee(s) will be determined at the time of registration by the Executive Committee in consultation with the Soke. Membership fees are meant to fund the administration of the International Sato-ha Rengo.

         iv.        Obtaining a Shihan license from the Soke is possible only for those who have obtained 7^th dan or higher within the Sato-ha Association, with a minimum of 30 years of  karate-do training and aged 50 years or older. The examinees also must have contributed numerous years of dedicated work to the Sato-ha Rengo and have undergone an examination from the Soke directly.

        v.         The very first selection for the Executive Committee and Association Standing Committee Members from the overseas branch clubs will be determined by the Soke.

        vi.        The term for each committee member is two years but it is permitted to consecutively serve a subsequent term, if selected again by the Executive Committee.

        vii.       Each international branch should design its own organizational structure with Canada Sato-kai as the model.

        viii.      The regulations and rules of assessment for grading examinations as well as its pricing shall be determined by the Soke.  Anyone who wishes to grade for a 4^th  degree or higher must first obtain prior permission from the Soke directly.

                     Written by:      Soke Akira Yoshiaki Sato                   Founder - ShitoRyu Sato-ha Rengo

Summary of Decisions and Announcements

Executive Meeting Minutes Sato Ha Rengo

April 17          May 8          June 6, 2021

Please note that this is an unofficial summary. Please refer to the Sato Ha Rengo Executive Members’ Meetings of April 17, May 8 and June 6, 2021.

April 17, 2021:

1. New webpage content
   1. The name of the association was debated.

The decision was concluded to leave it as is for now.

1. order of executive names listed on the website was discussed. Soke will personally review the list and adjust as necessary.
2. The members wanted to review the terms and conditions for the nomination of executive members. Everyone agreed that this will remain as is. There is, however, one additional clause: In order to be nominated, the nominee must be honest and understand the true spirit of karatedo with many years of training regardless of the type of school.
3. All 6 members agreed to accept Rick White to be a member of the

Executive Committee.

1. It was discussed whether to put the organizational chart on the website.
2. Soke hopes to hire a professional web designer to complete the current website and make it more professional looking.

The idea of hiring a professional administrator to record meeting minutes was also brought up for future consideration. 

2. Overseas Members
   1. Ron Mathews (AUS) is requesting a Shihan license from Soke.

Soke thinks it is okay to do so and his decision was supported by Watanabe sensei. 

3. The next Sato Ha Shito Ryu International Tournament date has yet to be confirmed but at least one year notice will be provided.

May 8, 2021:

1. Appointment of assessors and secretariats for Sato Ha Rengo was discussed.
   • For the assessors, Jutta from Germany and Vasco from Portugal plus one more were nominated.
   • For the secretariats, Bojan Petrovic (Canada) was nominated for Executive Secretary and Koto Anderson for Communication Director.

2. Organizational Chart & List of Association Officers
   • The list of association officers will be posted on the Sato Ha website, the organizational chart to be discussed.

3. Sato Ha Shito-Ryu International Tournament discussed, as well as possible host. Athula (Germany) expressed his interest The Executive members agreed to assess the situation later (using the Tokyo Olympics as a model). The earliest tournament will be in 2023.

4. India branch- Contact persons in India discussed.

5. High-Ranking Grading Test

• There will be a high-ranking grading test on May 15^th after the Friendship Seminar. Two members are expected to take the 8^th degree test: Mert Horita and Denis Deziel.
• Requirements for higher dan tests:

- One kata is required for 8^th dan.

- For up to 7^th dan, the examinees must complete the whole set of movements.

• If the two examinees pass the test, this will be the first time in Canada to grant 8^th degree and issue an official instructor’s certificate.
• Format and price of certificate discussed: The certificate shows the country of origin and is numbered.
• The price for the certificate is not yet determined

6. Aurora Fundraising Event

• Soke once again expressed his gratitude to the Japan members for the support of Aurora’s fundraising event.

7. Overseas Grading Examinations

• During the pandemic crisis, dan grading tests for examinees will be conducted by Soke via Zoom. However, post COVID the dan grading test will be conducted in each country by the head instructor.
• For grading tests up to 3^rd dan in international branch clubs, there should be a judging committee formed by examiners (over 6^th or higher- to be determined). Official certificates should be issued by Soke in HQ.
• For examinations for 4^th dan and above, only Soke and qualified instructors will be allowed to examine the examinees overseas via Zoom.

8. International Friendship Seminar

• May 15 (Sat)　
• Soke should establish a set of common selected katas that all the international Sato Ha Shito-ryu students are able to practice.

9. Other Related Business

• Refunds for the Japan trip that was scheduled for 2020 will be processed by Sakamoto and given to Rosella. The service fees will be absorbed by the Sato Ha HQ.
• An annual general meeting was suggested for the near future.

June 5, 2021:

1. 2^nd International Friendship Seminar
   • June 26 (Sat) - 10:30AM～12:30PM　（Vancouver time）

（June 27 (Sun) - 2:30 AM~ 4:30AM  Japan time）

2. 3^rd International Friendship Seminar

• Date is still undetermined (most likely a month after the 2^nd seminar and after July 10^th）

3. Shitei Katas for Sato Ha Rengo
   1. Currently there are 13 katas that are selected for consideration of the Sato Ha Rengo Shitei Katas.

• Heian Shodan ~ Heian Godan
• Jitte, Jiin, Jion (all starts with the Sanchin Dachi)
• Bassai-Dai, Seienchin
• Sochin, Kururunfa, Shiho Kosoukun

　              　         ＋Others?

• Rohai （Matsumora, Itosu）
• Suggestion from Kanno Sensei：All the Shitei Katas should be videotaped and kept in archives and also on Youtube,
  1. Sometime in the near future, Soke should host a kata seminar with all the Executive members and go through two katas, Sochin and Kururunfa,

4. Ron Matthew

• He passed the 7^th degree test and successfully obtained the instructor’s degree. Currently there are 7 members in Japan with the instructor’s degree, 2 in Canada and 1 in Australia.

5. New Position

• Jutta in Germany、Vasco in Portugal and Sydney in South Africa were appointed to be an Assessor and they have agreed to accept that position.
• Within Director At Large, Bojan was appointed as the Communication Director and Koto was appointed as the Assistant Communication Director. They both have agree to accept the responsibility.
• On the Sato Ha Rengo homepage, the members name will be posted in alphabetical order of their first name.
• Rizalito from Switzerland requested to be nominated to be one of the Executive members.

6. Gathering of All Committee Member

• Soke is going to request all the international Committee members to attend the first social gathering on July 10^th (Sat) at 6:00 AM Vancouver time through Zoom.

7. Kobudo

• Watanabe Sensei is the head of Sato Ha Rengo Kobudo globally and Roy Tippenhauer is responsible for Canada.

8. A report from Kanno Sensei

At the recent Tokushima prefecture high school tournament, Kanno Sensei’s student won the gold medal in the individual kata event.