The nations, resident in the region formerly called the Peoples' Republic of Lazarus, hereby solemnly and mutually agree with each other, to form themselves into a free, sovereign, and independent body politic, or state by the name of "The Humane Republic of Lazarus".
Article I - On Citizenship
(1) Any person may apply for citizenship on the Regional forum by providing their current nation in the region, their current World Assembly nation, and by swearing an oath of citizenship established by law.
(2) Any person who has held a World Assembly nation in Lazarus for more than a year consecutively, who is endorsing the Sovereign, and who has not been convicted of a crime shall be considered a citizen. They may exercise their voting rights either on the forum or through telegramming the Director of Ceremonies or another nation so designated.
(3) Any person who was a citizen of the People's Republic of Lazarus upon its dissolution shall be a citizen.
(4) The Sovereign shall have the power to approve or reject applications for citizenship on the forum unless the applicant has been declared a persona non grata by the Grand Assembly. The Sovereign must post an explanation for rejection immediately in the Grand Assembly of the Phoenix. The Grand Assembly may overturn such rejections with a two-thirds majority vote.
(A) If the applicant is a persona non grata at the time of their application, the decision goes to the Grand Assembly. A two-thirds majority vote is necessary to approve such applications.
(B) Should the Sovereign be unable to process citizenship applications, they may publicly designate a citizen with forum administrator privileges to do so. Approvals by an appointed individual may also be overturned by the Grand Assembly with a 2/3 majority vote.
(C) Should neither the Sovereign nor a designated individual approve a citizenship application within two weeks, the Grand Assembly may approve it with a simple majority.
(5) Citizens shall forfeit their citizenship if they voluntarily renounce it, their nation in Lazarus voluntarily leaves the region or ceases to exist, or the Grand Court finds them guilty of a criminal offense and revokes their citizenship as punishment. Citizens who applied for citizenship on the Regional Forum shall forfeit their citizenship if they do not log onto it for twenty-eight days.
(6) Citizens may not lose their citizenship for any reason not enumerated in this article.
Article II - On the Rights of the People
(1) All persons are entitled to equal protection under the law.
(2) All persons are guaranteed freedom of speech, petition, peaceful association and assembly so long as their exercise does not violate the rules of NationStates or the Regional Forum's terms of use.
(3) All persons are guaranteed access to the Regional Forum to the extent necessary to exercise their other rights. Access to the Regional Forum may not be infringed except for violations of its terms of service or the law.
(4) No person may be banned or ejected from the region without being publicly charged with a crime unless they have violated the rules of NationStates or the policies of the Regional Message Board.
(5) No person may be banned from the Regional Forum without being publicly charged with a crime unless they have violated its terms of use.
(6) All persons are guaranteed the right to fair representation in a criminal trial and may not be forced to incriminate themselves.
(7) All persons are guaranteed the freedom in their nations' domestic affairs, including World Assembly votes and endorsements.
(8) All nations shall be permitted to maintain the following endorsements counts.
(A) 80 WA endorsement count for residents.
(B) 90 WA endorsement count for nations endorsing the Sovereign.
(C) 10 WA endorsements or more below The Grandee Secretary for citizens by forum application or extended residency.
(D) The Grand Assembly may establish a higher cap or revert a cap to the following by simple majority vote.
(E) In periods of transfer of the office of Grandee Secretary, this cap shall be calculated from the Grand Advisor with the highest endorsement count.
(9) No person may be declared guilty of a crime by law or tried for a crime retroactively.
(10) No person shall be considered necessarily deprived of any rights not enumerated here.
Article III - On the Grand Assembly of the Phoenix
(1) The Grand Assembly of the Phoenix shall consist of all citizens and and shall be the supreme governing authority of Lazarus.
(2) The Grand Assembly may enact, amend, or repeal laws by a simple majority vote.
(3) The Grand Assembly may ratify or repeal treaties with foreign powers negotiated by the executive by a simple majority vote, unless the treaty specifies its method of termination.
(4) The Grand Assembly shall have the sole power to amend this Constitution with a two-thirds majority vote.
(5) The Grand Assembly shall have the power to recall any official of the government with a simple majority vote, or with a 2/3 majority vote for elected officials or those approved by the Grand Assembly.
(6) The Grand Assembly may adopt its own procedural rules, and may do so with a simple majority vote.
(7) The Grand Assembly shall elect a Director of Ceremonies to oversee its business.
(8) The Director of Ceremonies may appoint deputies to aid them in their duties.
(9) The Grand Assembly may establish a regional theme by a two-thirds majority vote. The theme may establish names for the offices and bodies prescribed by this Constitution, but such names shall not be construed as changing this Constitution's meaning.
(10) The result of any vote of the Grand Assembly shall be determined by counting only citizens who have voted, excluding any abstentions.
Article IV - On the Executive
(1) The Sovereign shall serve as the chief executive officer of the region.
(2) The Sovereign shall control the on-site delegacy of the region, and shall exercise its powers only as required or permitted by law.
(3) No person may serve more than two consecutive terms as Sovereign.
(4) The Sovereign shall have a Cabinet of ministers to aid them in their duties.
(5) The Sovereign shall nominate ministers and the Grand Assembly may confirm such nominees by a majority vote.
(6) The cabinet shall consist of the The Grand Commandant of the Army, the Minister Steward and the Minister Herald. Additional ministries may be established by law.
(7) The Grand Assembly may pass laws regulating the business of the ministries.
(8) The Sovereign may veto a proposals of the Grand Assembly to enact, amend or repeal a law within a week of its passage. The Grand Assembly may overturn such a veto by a two-thirds majority vote.
(9) The Sovereign may dismiss ministers at their discretion.
Article V - On the Grand Court
(1) The Grand Court shall be composed of at least three Court Officials, though a greater number may be established by law.
(2) Court Officials may not hold an elected office or serve as ministers of the Cabinet.
(3) The Sovereign shall nominate Court Officials and the Grand Assembly may confirm such nominees by a two-thirds majority vote.
(4) Once confirmed Court Officials shall serve an unlimited term of office, until such time as they resign or are recalled..
(5) The Grand Court shall hear all civil and criminal cases and determine the constitutionality of laws, treaties, and government policies.
(6) The Grand Court shall make its rulings by a majority vote of its membership.
(7) The procedural rules of the Grand Court shall be established by law
(8) The Grand Court shall elect a Grand Judge to oversee its business from amongst its membership by majority vote.
Article VI - On Security
(1) The Grandee Secretary shall seek to hold the second most endorsements in the region.
(2) Any citizen who meets the influence and endorsement requirements established by law may apply to be a Grand Advisor. The Grand Assembly may approve an applicant by a two-thirds majority vote.
(3) Grand Advisors shall maintain endorsement counts below that of the Grandee Secretary, but may exceed any endorsement cap established by law.
(4) A line of succession beyond the Vice Delegate among the Grand Advisors may be established by law.
(5) Once confirmed Grand Advisors shall serve an unlimited term, unless recalled by a simple majority vote.
(6) If the Sovereign is absent, the Grandee Secretary -- or, if the Grandee Secretary is unavailable, the Grand Advisor next in the line of succession who is available -- shall assume the duties of Sovereign until the Sovereign returns.
(7) If the office of Sovereign is vacant, the Grandee Secretary may take office as Sovereign for the remainder of the term.
(8) If the Grandee Secretary takes office as Sovereign, or the office of Grandee Secretary is otherwise vacated, a special election shall be conducted to elect a new Grandee Secretary for the remainder of the term.
(9) If the Grandee Secretary is unavailable to take office as Sovereign when needed, the following procedure shall be observed until a special election can be conducted to elect a new Sovereign for the remainder of the term:
(A) If the outgoing Sovereign resigns rather than being recalled, the outgoing Sovereign may serve as Acting Sovereign if available.
(B) If the outgoing Sovereign is unavailable to serve, the Grandee Secretary may serve as Acting Sovereign if available.
(C) If neither the outgoing Sovereign nor the Grandee Secretary are available to serve, the Grand Advisor next in the line of succession who is available shall serve as Acting Sovereign.
Article VII - On War and Military Affairs
(1) The Lazarene Liberation Army shall be the sole military organization based in Lazarus.
(2) Citizens of Lazarus are permitted to serve in foreign militaries provided they are not currently in a state of war against the region. The Lazarene Liberation Army may decide to exclude further foreign military organizations from its ranks.
(3) The Grand Commandant of the Army shall be the operational commander of the Lazarene Liberation Army and shall serve on the Sovereign's cabinet.
(4) The Grand Commandant must be an active duty officer in the Lazarene Liberation Army, unless no officers are willing to serve or have passed confirmation by the Grand Assembly.
(5) The Lazarene Liberation Army shall have two classes of ranks. These shall be Commandants of Guards and enlisted personnel (Army Guards).
(A) Active officers of the People's Republic of Lazarus' Lazarene Liberation Army shall, upon the adoption of this Constitution, become officers of the Lazarene Liberation Army.
(B) Commandants may establish further ranks within either class by simple majority vote and determine the method of reaching each rank and of promotion to officer status.
(6) The Grand Commandant may dismiss any member of the Lazarene Liberation Army. This may be overridden by a two/thirds majority vote of existing officers at the time of dismissal.
(A) Loss of citizenship shall result in dismissal from the Lazarene Liberation Army and forfeiture of an officer commission.
(7) Votes among officers shall be tallied based on the number of officers voting.
(8) The Grand Commandant may accept applications to join the Lazarene Liberation Army as an enlisted member.
(9) Lazarus shall enter a state of war with a foreign region or organization following a simply majority vote in the Grand Assembly or a declaration of war being received by the Sovereign.
(10) The Lazarene Liberation Army may not raid outside of Warzone regions or regions involved in an ongoing war with Lazarus.
Article VIII - On Elected Offices
(1) The Director of Ceremonies, Sovereign, and Grandee Secretary shall be considered elected offices.
(2) Elections for elected offices shall be held every three months.
(3) Any person who is a citizen at the beginning of nominations for an election may vote in it. Any citizen who is has registered on the Regional Forums at the beginning of nominations for an election may stand as a candidate in it.
(4) Voters shall cast their ballots for a single candidate. If a candidate has a majority of votes, they shall be elected to the office. If no candidate has a majority of votes, a run-off shall be held between the two candidates with the most votes. The candidate with the most votes in the run-off shall be elected to the office.
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Article IX - On the Forum and Lazarene Symbols
http://s15.zetaboards.com/NSLazarus/index/http://i.imgur.com/buKsmOqm.pn. It may be changed for a period of up to a week at a time for cultural events.
(4) The symbol of Lazarus shall be the phoenix.
https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=649635