Oct 21, 2013 -
[+] Spoiler
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Constitution of the People's Republic of Lazarus
Preamble
The People's Republic of Lazarus (PRL) exists with three primary purposes:
To protect the sovereignty and residents of the Lazarene region,
To enhance the gaming experiences of our Lazarene comrades,
To work towards building a harmonious society in our region.
This charter shall serve as a guiding document for the PRL, and is the supreme document of the region. The PRL shall harmoniously cooperate with our society, which strives to build the best Lazarus possible for all who call it home, and to hold the government accountable for serving the people.
In this day and age many game-created regions are governed by entities that are increasingly remote from the in-game population. The People's Republic, through the words and actions of the people, strives to bridge that gap in Lazarus and develop a government that directly interacts and serves the will of the people, and that provides equality to all Lazarenes. This can and must be done through displaying participation, interest, loyalty, and attachment to our class, and by marching towards our ideal Lazarus while also fighting against ideas and entities that would hinder our progress towards achieving the three goals.
Furthermore, the People's Republic accepts the belief that, in a sinker such as our, a powerful executive leader is desirable, but only if the leader's power exists at the consent of the People. Thus, the Chairman is granted great power, but is expected to represent the will of the People and may be removed by the people if needed. In the past, Lazarus has operated with a semi-democratic system that had to push every little action through votes that slowed down regional affairs and promoted stagnation, and the PRL wishes to avoid that and produce the opposite effects through endorsing a powerful leader.
Section 1. Citizenship & Party Membership
• The People's Republic of Lazarus shall recognize citizenship and party membership as two valid forms of participation in the collective.
• One may become a citizen without becoming part of the Lazarene People's Party, that is, the refusal to participate in any of the provinces.
• The Chairman shall decide upon application forms that all prospective citizen members and party members must fill. Applications will be approved or denied by the Chairman and those who he or she grants that authority to. The specific applications processes for party membership is flexible and may be determined at the Chairman's discretion.
• Citizens, party members, and government officials must have a presence in the region to maintain their status. Failure to do so shall result in the removal of one's status.
Section 2. Rights and Lazarene Justice
• The People's Republic of Lazarus expects all in-game residents and forum members to adhere to its laws, which exist to serve the goals outlined above, and all Lazarenes maintain the following rights:
-- Lazarenes may be removed at the Chairman's discretion if the Chairman can reasonably justify it legally. However, all purged Lazarenes must be immediately informed of the reason for his or her removal and have the right to appeal a decision before the People's Court.
-- Lazarenes have the right to a fair trial.
-- Lazarenes may protest and say as they desire so as long as they are not violating the law. However, this is not to say that the People's Republic will tolerate foreign plants exploiting our freedoms for the sake of undermining the People.
-- Lazarenes may not have be told how to run their nations by the government; thusly, the People's Republic may not discriminate nations for how they answer issues and customize their fields. However, Fascism, Nazism, and hate speech will not be tolerated within Lazarus.
-- All Lazarenes shall be guaranteed the right to participate in the People's Republic of Lazarus insofar as they are not deemed threats to regional security, insofar as they are compliant with regional law, insofar as they are above the age of thirteen (RL), and insofar as they are not an enemy of the state.
• The protocols for trials and the code for civilian justice shall be outlined in a separate document, "The Codex of Lazarene Laws and Legal Protocols", which must state the region's laws and court procedures.
Section 3. The Chairman of the Party
• The Chairman of the Party is both the Head of State and of the Party, assisted by his or her chosen Vice-Chairman. The Chairman is always permitted to surpass his or her endorsement cap, whereas the Vice-Chairman may be granted that ability by the Chairman.
• The Chairman of the Party is appointed by his predecessor. If the Chairman does not appoint a successor before CTEing due to inactivity or becoming delete-on-sight, the most senior (in terms of citizenship) official endorsee who is willing will take over the delegacy if the Chairman does not return after a week. If the Chairman is deleted but permitted by NationStates moderators to return as a new nation, he or she shall be permitted to retake the delegacy.
• A party member should have a strong record of achievement working for the party in order to qualify.
• The Chairman of the Party holds sole power regarding regional affairs but is accountable to the People's Congress. This is to say that the Congress, through the means outlined below, has the power to remove the Chairman from his office.
• The Chairman of the Party is the in-game sovereign of the region, and is the delegate. The Chairman is responsible for maintaining and enforcing justice in-game, and for keeping the region secure. The Chairman manages all in-game aspects of Lazarus.
• The Chairman may determine the region's "endorsement cap", which sets a limit on how many endorsements a nation can have in the region. This is done to ensure that the region is secured from invaders, who could purge the region if they gained the most endorsements in the region.
• The Chairman may permit nations to exceed the endorsement cap, and may also appoint trusted nations to serve as official endorsees. Endorsees are nations who may garner more endorsements than the typical nation for security purposes. Despite this, they are still only allowed to garner as many endorsements as the Chairman allows.
• The Chairman may create positions with powers that do not contradict or overrule those outlined in this document, and may create a strong bureaucracy.
• The Chairman may remove the Vice-Chairman, Governors, and any other government or military officials from their offices.
• The Chairman may not surrender the sovereignty of Lazarus to a foreign power.
Section 4. Provinces and Governors
• The various provinces of Lazarus shall be decided upon by the Chairman. He or she may dissolve or create provinces with the approval of the People's Congress as he or she sees fit.
• The ultimate aim of the provinces shall be to work harmoniously with each other in order to achieve prosperity within the region.
• Each province will be assigned its designated responsibility by the People's Congress and shall by headed by a Governor.
• Each province's Governor shall be appointed by the Chairman of the Party.
• No governor can simultaneously hold a position in the People's Congress.
Section 5. People's Congress
• The People's Congress is the highest legislative body of the State and is elected by all citizens once every six (6) months with no term-limits.
• If a Congressman loses citizenship, tenders his or her resignation from Congress, loses party membership, or is deemed inactive, the Chairman may remove them from the Congress. The citizens will then elect a new congressman amongst themselves.
• The number of seats in the People's Congress shall be decided upon by the Chairman, with a minimum of five (5). The number must always be odd, not including the Vice-Chairman's seat on the Congress.
• The People's Congress' legislation is permitted to state and/or expand upon procedures, laws, and proposals for regional prosperity so as long as they do not contradict the ideas or rules of this document and the The Codex of Lazarene Laws and Legal Protocols.
• The People's Congress reserves the power to recall or remove from office the Chairman of the Party. This action requires at least 80% of the Council's vote. If that amount is achieved, the People's Congress shall elect a new Chairman, and the previous Chairman shall respectfully step down.
• The People's Congress is responsible for drafting, passing, and amending regional laws. All "traditional laws" and "traditional repeals", or legislation that does not deal with the Constitution or the Legal Code, shall require 50% approval from the assembly and the Chairman's approval after the vote. All "high legislation" changes pertinent to this document or The Codex of Lazarene Laws and Legal Protocols require at least 65% approval and the Chairman's approval after the vote.
• The Deputy of the Chairman, also known as the "Vice-Chairman", shall serve as the Speaker of the People's Congress and will count as an equal member of the Congress.
• The following describes the voting procedure of the People's Congress:
1. Any congressional representative and/or the Vice-Chairman may propose legislation. Each proposal must be appropriately classified as being one of the categories described in the constitution if its category is called into question.
2. Congressmen may debate proposals until two congressional representatives propose to bring them to vote, at which point the Vice-Chairman will approve or deny the motion. The Vice-Chairman for any of the following reasons may deny a proposal:
Presentation: The proposal is formatted or presented in an unusual way and needs revision.
Conventions: Its grammar and/or words are not appropriate for a legal document.
Legality: The proposal contradicts the law, the constitution, or the intended ideas of the constitution. It is the belief that the People's Government should function practically, rather than by a literal interpretation of the law, and therefore proposals that don't.
If the Congress disagrees about the necessity or appropriateness of a denial to vote, its members may overrule the denial if 70% of the Congress states their desire to see the Vice-Chairman's decision disregarded.
3. Votes for legislation last for 96 hours. Votes may be declared in a thread or through a private message to the Vice-Chairman: "aye," nay", and "abstain" are the voting options. Only the parties present at a vote shall be counted in the percentage tallies described in the constitution, and abstentions shall not be counted as votes.
4. The Vice-Chairman responds to motions, opens and closes votes, tallies votes, and announces their success or failure based on constitutional standards.
The following describes the election procedure for replacing a recalled Chairman:
1. The most senior member (in terms of continuous citizenship) of the State Councilshall serve as the Election Commissioner(s) (EC), unless he or she delegates the duty to another nation, in which case the appointed nation(s) shall serve as the Election Commissioner(s). The EC is tasked with beginning the nominations period, closing the nominations period, organizing the ballot, opening the vote, closing the vote, and tallying the vote.
2. The election schedule is as follows:
Nomination Period: The nomination period lasts for 3 Days.
Voting Period: The voting period lasts for 4 Days.
2. Any citizen or party member may vote in an election provided that they have posted on the official forum within 28 days of the date when the nominations period begins. Any citizen or party member may be nominated for an election provided that they have posted on the official forum within 28 days of the date when the nominations period begins.
3. During the nominations period, nations that fit the above stated criteria may nominate nations for the Chairman election. If the nominated nation is eligible and approves of their nomination before the end of the nominations period, they shall be listed as a voting option in the voting thread. Once the nominations period ends, no new nations may be nominated and the voting period will immediately begin.
4. During the voting period, votes may be declared in a voting thread that will be opened by the EC: an eligible voter may vote in favor of his or her preferred candidate by posting the candidate's name. Only the parties present at a vote shall be counted in the percentage tallies described in the constitution, and abstentions shall not be counted as votes.
5. Once the voting period ends, the EC will tally the votes and declare who acquired the most votes. The nation that acquired the most votes shall be the new Chairman.
6. If a single candidate is on the ballot during an election, the vote shall be an approval vote: "aye," nay", and "abstain" shall be the voting options. Only the parties present at a vote shall be counted in the percentage tallies described in the constitution, and abstentions shall not be counted as votes. If the candidate fails to acquire >50% approval, then the Vice-Chairman shall appoint the new Chairman.
The following describes the election procedure for Congressmen:
1. The Chairman and/or Vice-Chairman shall serve as the Election Commissioner(s) (EC), unless the Chairman delegates the duty to another nation, in which case the appointed nation(s) shall serve as the Election Commissioner(s). The EC is tasked with beginning the nominations period, closing the nominations period, organizing the ballot, opening the vote, closing the vote, and tallying the vote.
2. The election schedule is as follows:
Nomination Period: The nomination period lasts for 3 Days.
Voting Period: The voting period lasts for 4 Days.
2. Any citizen or party member may vote in an election provided that they have posted on the official forum within 28 days of the date when the nominations period begins. Any citizen or party member may be nominated for an election provided that they have posted on the official forum within 28 days of the date when the nominations period begins.
3. During the nominations period, nations that fit the above stated criteria may nominate nations for the Congressional election. If the nominated nation is eligible and approves of their nomination before the end of the nominations period, they shall be listed as a voting option in the voting thread. Once the nominations period ends, no new nations may be nominated and the voting period will immediately begin.
4. During the voting period, votes may be declared in a voting thread that will be opened by the EC: an eligible voter may vote in favor of his or her preferred candidate by posting the candidate's name. Only the parties present at a vote shall be counted in the percentage tallies described in the constitution, and abstentions shall not be counted as votes.
5. Once the voting period ends, the EC will tally the votes and declare who acquired the most votes. The new Congressmen shall be the nations who acquired the most votes; if there is one vacancy on the congress, the candidate nation with the most votes shall be become the Congressman. If there are multiple vacancies, the vacancies will be filled by the nations with the most votes, in order of greatest to least, in a number that is equal to the number of vacancies (the top # candidates become congressmen when there are # vacancies).
6. If, at the conclusion of an election, there are not enough candidates to complete the Congress' roster, the Chairman may appoint Congressmen to fulfill the vacancies at his or her discretion.
7. If a single candidate is on the ballot during an election, the vote shall be an approval vote: "aye," nay", and "abstain" shall be the voting options. Only the parties present at a vote shall be counted in the percentage tallies described in the constitution, and abstentions shall not be counted as votes. If the candidate fails to acquire >50% approval, then the Chairman may appoint Congressmen to fulfill the vacancies at his or her discretion.
Section 6. State Council
• The State Council is composed of the Governors of the provinces of the State.
• The State Council works to achieve the goals of the People's Congress and makes sure that Party policy gets implemented.
• The State Council is responsible for drafting and managing regional plans of action.
• The State Council oversees law and order, and as such, maintains the right to expel members by a 75% vote.
• The State Council shall be responsible for the approval of treaties proposed by the Chairman. It may also vote to ratify the PRL's entrance into an alliance. Both 50% approval and the Chairman's approval for a treaty to be signed and for an alliance to be ratified. The Chairman may dissolve treaties and withdraw Lazarus from alliances.
Section 7. Regarding Constitutional Amendments and Repeals
• Section 2 of this document may only be added to. The rights of the people are inalienable and therefore they cannot be taken away or altered legally in the People's Republic. Section 7 of this document may not be edited or revised.
• This document may not be repealed.
Section 8. Forum
• The Lazarene off-site forum is
http://w11.zetaboards.com/ns_lazarus/index/.
• Forum administration is separate from government matters. Violations of the ToS will be handled by the forum administration, and such affairs will not be handled by the government's justice arm.