https://nslazarus.com/old_forum/ Mon, 20 Apr 2026 18:08:37 +0000 MyBB https://nslazarus.com/old_forum/showthread.php?tid=1359 Sun, 19 Apr 2020 19:22:04 +0000 Domais]]> https://nslazarus.com/old_forum/showthread.php?tid=1359 Posted Dec 18, 2013

Confidence Vote
To ensure that the Chairman continues to hold the three primary goals of the People's Republic of Lazarus, a confidence vote may be held.

1. A confidence vote can only be held in quarterly (within a year) intervals.
   
2. A confidence vote can only be started by a congressman.
   
3. The first part of the confidence vote will be the People's Congress vote.
   
4. If more than 60% of the Congressman are unhappy with the Chairman, then this leads to the next point:
   
5. The People's Confidence vote. As dictatorship of the proletariat all citizens of Lazarus can participate and shall participate this vote. If more than 50% are unhappy with the Chairman and thinking that his guiding is not leading Lazarus into a brighter and more harmonious future, the Chairman is required to appoint a successor within a week.
   
6. If the People's Confidence vote shows the people are confident with the Chairman, the People's Congress is forced to disband and re-elections for the People's Congress must be scheduled within a week.
   
7. % shall only be taken from people participating vote and not the overall numbers.
   

]]> Posted Dec 18, 2013

Confidence Vote
To ensure that the Chairman continues to hold the three primary goals of the People's Republic of Lazarus, a confidence vote may be held.

1. A confidence vote can only be held in quarterly (within a year) intervals.
   
2. A confidence vote can only be started by a congressman.
   
3. The first part of the confidence vote will be the People's Congress vote.
   
4. If more than 60% of the Congressman are unhappy with the Chairman, then this leads to the next point:
   
5. The People's Confidence vote. As dictatorship of the proletariat all citizens of Lazarus can participate and shall participate this vote. If more than 50% are unhappy with the Chairman and thinking that his guiding is not leading Lazarus into a brighter and more harmonious future, the Chairman is required to appoint a successor within a week.
   
6. If the People's Confidence vote shows the people are confident with the Chairman, the People's Congress is forced to disband and re-elections for the People's Congress must be scheduled within a week.
   
7. % shall only be taken from people participating vote and not the overall numbers.
   

]]> https://nslazarus.com/old_forum/showthread.php?tid=1355 Sun, 19 Apr 2020 18:59:32 +0000 Domais]]> https://nslazarus.com/old_forum/showthread.php?tid=1355 Posted Nov 25, 2013

Non-Aggression Pact Between The South Pacific and Lazarus

The regions of The South Pacific and Lazarus,

Recognising that both have had positive relations in the past and even had a treaty of non-aggression, military support and mutual recognition,

Acknowledging that communication between both regions has been in recent times inadequate, and that this has lead to tense and regretful situations,

Believing however that neither region should be an enemy of the other, and that friendship and cooperation between Game Created Regions is beneficial to all involved parties,

Hereby agree to:

• Refrain from engaging in any decisive and purposeful action that will undermine the regional security of either party
  
• Respect as legitimate the current system of government of both parties or their duly selected and constitutional successors
  
• Refrain from conspiring themselves or through third parties to destabilise or overthrow the legitimate government of either party
  
• Report in good faith any known threat or security concern on their counterpart's legitimate government to the latter's security officials
  
• Hold discussions from time to time with each other on the state of their relations and address issues or improvements regarding the implementation of this pact
  
• Upon the passage of this pact the Treaty Between The South Pacific and Lazarus shall be considered repealed
  

]]> Posted Nov 25, 2013

Non-Aggression Pact Between The South Pacific and Lazarus

The regions of The South Pacific and Lazarus,

Recognising that both have had positive relations in the past and even had a treaty of non-aggression, military support and mutual recognition,

Acknowledging that communication between both regions has been in recent times inadequate, and that this has lead to tense and regretful situations,

Believing however that neither region should be an enemy of the other, and that friendship and cooperation between Game Created Regions is beneficial to all involved parties,

Hereby agree to:

• Refrain from engaging in any decisive and purposeful action that will undermine the regional security of either party
  
• Respect as legitimate the current system of government of both parties or their duly selected and constitutional successors
  
• Refrain from conspiring themselves or through third parties to destabilise or overthrow the legitimate government of either party
  
• Report in good faith any known threat or security concern on their counterpart's legitimate government to the latter's security officials
  
• Hold discussions from time to time with each other on the state of their relations and address issues or improvements regarding the implementation of this pact
  
• Upon the passage of this pact the Treaty Between The South Pacific and Lazarus shall be considered repealed
  

]]> https://nslazarus.com/old_forum/showthread.php?tid=1354 Sun, 19 Apr 2020 18:57:25 +0000 Domais]]> https://nslazarus.com/old_forum/showthread.php?tid=1354 Posted Dec 10, 2013

Treaty Between Wintreath and the People's Republic of Lazarus

Preamble

This treaty is created with the intent of promoting increased and close relations between the People's Republic of Lazarus, which is the legal government of Lazarus per its constitution, and the legitimate government of Wintreath. The signatories acknowledge their ideological unity, and their capacity to achieve great things during cooperative efforts, and have thus enacted this treaty. It is also the belief of the signatories that formalized friendship between defender regions is beneficial to all involved parties.

This treaty shall concern Lazarus and Wintreath in all of its clauses.

Article One: Recognition and Defense
1.The signatories agree to recognize the legitimate governments of their respective counterparts as outlined in the preamble of this document.
2.The signatories agree to come to the defense of their respective counterparts if requested to do so by the legitimate, authorized leadership of the asking party.
3. Defense can entail sending nations who are involved in the army of the respective regions to supply in-game endorsements on requested nations and/or verbal declarations of support by the Heads of State (or Foreign Affairs Official equivalent) of the two regions in question -- this only applies if the regions in question are undoubtedly sovereign territories. The legal Heads of State of the signatories shall be the only ones authorized to request such defensive support.

Article Two: Intelligence
1.The signatories agree to inform their counterpart's Head of State of threats to the counterpart's in-game or off-site security immediately upon learning of it.
2.The signatories agree that shared intelligence will not be passed on to external parties, with external being defined as parties who are not members of the signatory governments, or parties who have conflicting interests with this treaty's intentions via non-signatory regions.
3.The signatories are compelled to exchange informtion pertaining intelligence and counterintelligence with each other.
4.The signatories agree not to promote, encourage, authorize, or engage in espionage against their counterpart signatory.

Article Three: Military Cooperation
1.The signatories agree to seek increased military cooperation and shall maintain "Military Liaison" maskings for their counterpart's military officers on their forums. These maskings shall enable officers to see their counterpart region's low-level military forums (defined as forums that non-officers can see).
2.The signatories agree to respect the private nature of their counterpart's military intelligence and to respect the responsibility that comes with close cooperation. The signatories shall not share private information about their counterpart's militaries missions, agenda, or classified affairs to any parties, save for their superiors within their respective signatory region, without the permission of the relevant officers in the counterpart's military. The signatories agree that such information will not be shared externally under any circumstances without permission from their counterpart's military officers.
3.The signatories agree not to sabotage their counterpart's military operations.
4.The signatories agree to promote the strengthening of each other's militaries through sharing guides, techniques, and training advice.
5.The signatories agree to offer their counterpart's use of their late-updating jump points that are owned by members of either signatory's military officer corps. It is the expectation of both signatories that jump points used by a signatory's military shall be available to both militaries so as long as the missions are defenses, warzone missions or liberations.

Article Four: Culture
1.The signatories shall share in-game and off-site embassies. If an illegal delegate of a signatory region closes the in-game embassy with the signatory region's counterpart, embassies shall be restored immediately following the restoration of the legitimate delegate.
2.The signatories shall pursue closer friendship by engaging each other's members on their counterpart signatory's forums, chatrooms, and regional message boards.
3. The signatories agree to hold at least two cultural events with each other on their counterpart's forum per year; one must be hosted on Lazarus' forum, and one must be hosted on Wintreath's board.

Article Five: Protocol for Abolishment
1.The parties that ratified this document shall reserve the authority to render it null and void through the means authorized under their regional laws and/or protocols.]]> Posted Dec 10, 2013

Treaty Between Wintreath and the People's Republic of Lazarus

Preamble

This treaty is created with the intent of promoting increased and close relations between the People's Republic of Lazarus, which is the legal government of Lazarus per its constitution, and the legitimate government of Wintreath. The signatories acknowledge their ideological unity, and their capacity to achieve great things during cooperative efforts, and have thus enacted this treaty. It is also the belief of the signatories that formalized friendship between defender regions is beneficial to all involved parties.

This treaty shall concern Lazarus and Wintreath in all of its clauses.

Article One: Recognition and Defense
1.The signatories agree to recognize the legitimate governments of their respective counterparts as outlined in the preamble of this document.
2.The signatories agree to come to the defense of their respective counterparts if requested to do so by the legitimate, authorized leadership of the asking party.
3. Defense can entail sending nations who are involved in the army of the respective regions to supply in-game endorsements on requested nations and/or verbal declarations of support by the Heads of State (or Foreign Affairs Official equivalent) of the two regions in question -- this only applies if the regions in question are undoubtedly sovereign territories. The legal Heads of State of the signatories shall be the only ones authorized to request such defensive support.

Article Two: Intelligence
1.The signatories agree to inform their counterpart's Head of State of threats to the counterpart's in-game or off-site security immediately upon learning of it.
2.The signatories agree that shared intelligence will not be passed on to external parties, with external being defined as parties who are not members of the signatory governments, or parties who have conflicting interests with this treaty's intentions via non-signatory regions.
3.The signatories are compelled to exchange informtion pertaining intelligence and counterintelligence with each other.
4.The signatories agree not to promote, encourage, authorize, or engage in espionage against their counterpart signatory.

Article Three: Military Cooperation
1.The signatories agree to seek increased military cooperation and shall maintain "Military Liaison" maskings for their counterpart's military officers on their forums. These maskings shall enable officers to see their counterpart region's low-level military forums (defined as forums that non-officers can see).
2.The signatories agree to respect the private nature of their counterpart's military intelligence and to respect the responsibility that comes with close cooperation. The signatories shall not share private information about their counterpart's militaries missions, agenda, or classified affairs to any parties, save for their superiors within their respective signatory region, without the permission of the relevant officers in the counterpart's military. The signatories agree that such information will not be shared externally under any circumstances without permission from their counterpart's military officers.
3.The signatories agree not to sabotage their counterpart's military operations.
4.The signatories agree to promote the strengthening of each other's militaries through sharing guides, techniques, and training advice.
5.The signatories agree to offer their counterpart's use of their late-updating jump points that are owned by members of either signatory's military officer corps. It is the expectation of both signatories that jump points used by a signatory's military shall be available to both militaries so as long as the missions are defenses, warzone missions or liberations.

Article Four: Culture
1.The signatories shall share in-game and off-site embassies. If an illegal delegate of a signatory region closes the in-game embassy with the signatory region's counterpart, embassies shall be restored immediately following the restoration of the legitimate delegate.
2.The signatories shall pursue closer friendship by engaging each other's members on their counterpart signatory's forums, chatrooms, and regional message boards.
3. The signatories agree to hold at least two cultural events with each other on their counterpart's forum per year; one must be hosted on Lazarus' forum, and one must be hosted on Wintreath's board.

Article Five: Protocol for Abolishment
1.The parties that ratified this document shall reserve the authority to render it null and void through the means authorized under their regional laws and/or protocols.]]> https://nslazarus.com/old_forum/showthread.php?tid=1353 Sun, 19 Apr 2020 18:55:29 +0000 Domais]]> https://nslazarus.com/old_forum/showthread.php?tid=1353 Posted Dec 07, 2013

The Charter of the Founderless Regions Alliance

Preamble

The Founderless Regions Alliance is an organization founded upon the principles of sovereignty and freedom of all regions in NationStates. We endeavour to protect regions from the menace of aggression and imperialism and we pledge to work tirelessly to that end. The Founderless Regions Alliance was founded by the regions Jethnea, Global Right Alliance and North Pacific.

The Founderless Regions Alliance from this point onward shall be referred to as the “FRA”.

Article 1 - Membership

i) The FRA is an organization of regions and interest groups dedicated to the cause of “defending.”

ii) Any region in NationStates, or a special interest group therein, may be eligible for membership in the FRA provided they meet out the criteria in this article. Membership may be granted in the form of ‘Full Member’ status or ‘Protectorate’ status to former Full Members. (See SubArticle 1)

iii) Any region may apply to join the FRA. If a region is accepted into the Alliance they are automatically obliged to uphold the Charter of the FRA, and are hence onward to be referred to as signatories. By applying for membership in the FRA, the applicant region assumes understanding of their obligation to uphold the Charter.

iv) If a region wishes to join the FRA they must first submit an application to the serving Regional Liason Officer. They are then required to send no less than two (2) representatives to enter into discussions with the Regional Assembly that last no less than four (4) and no longer than seven (7) days regarding their application. The Regional Assembly are then required to vote on said application in the manner described in Article 5.

v) All signatories are obliged to defend member regions of the FRA via all available military means possible, should a member region become victim to unprovoked aggression.

vi) All signatories, in an act of solidarity, renounce their right to declare a state of war or take aggression against another member region or a region that the FRA is assisting through redevelopment or military assistance.

vii) Signatories can leave the FRA if one of their official Regional Assembly representatives announces their resignation from the FRA directly to the Regional Assembly. A signatory body may also be forced to leave the FRA if they are expelled by the Regional Assembly through majority agreement of Regional Assembly Representatives.

Sub Article 1- Protectorate Status

i) Previous Member Regions who no longer have the ability to fulfil the Charter, yet still wish to be members of the FRA, may apply for Protectorate status.

ii) A region may be granted protectorate status by both their two Regional Representatives declaring such intention in the Regional Assembly.

iii) A region may also be graded to Protectorate Status by passing legislation of such intent, via regulations expressed in Article 2.

iv) Protectorate regions are granted the same rights as Full Members. Protectorate Regions are also expected to follow all aspects of the Charter as if they were Full Members.

v) Protectorate Regions have the right to have 1 (one) representative on the Regional Assembly.

vi) Protectorate Regions may either leave the FRA fully or push for full membership status by their recognised representative announcing their intentions in the Regional Assembly; triggering the traditional protocol for a full regional application.

Article 2 - The Regional Assembly

i) The Regional Assembly is the supreme source of authority over issues concerning the FRA.

ii) All signatories are to select, in a manner of their own choosing, two eligible representatives. Protectorate Regions must chose one. These Representatives are the signatories' official liaisons to the organisation and can vote on issues brought up in the Regional Assembly.

iii) The Regional Assembly shall hold elections to select the government of the FRA, whereas defined as the Cabinet of the FRA and the Speaker of the Assembly. Only the Representatives may vote in the elections.

iv) The Regional Assembly shall decide whether to accept applications to the FRA or expel members from the FRA. Should the Regional Assembly choose to expel a member of the FRA, the Member Region must be informed at least five (5) days in advance before an expulsion vote may begin.

v) Any regional member may suggest a new bill or an amendment to the Charter; however it is the Speaker of the Assembly that is responsible for moderating the debate and bringing the matter in front of the Regional Assembly Representatives for vote. A proposal must go through a minimum of two (2) days of debate with the Regional Assembly before being brought forth to a vote. The Speaker is obliged to take any proposal which has the support of two Representatives or Cabinet members, or a combination thereof, to a vote, once the debate period has concluded. This does not include any proposals brought under Article 6, Clause iii.

vi. Representatives may only represent one region at a time.

Article 3 - The Cabinet

i) The FRA shall be led by an executive government collectively referred to as the Cabinet.

ii) There shall be 6 positions in the Cabinet; the Arch-Chancellor, the Vice Chancellor, the Chief of Defence, the Minister of Intelligence, the Regional Liason Officer, and the Speaker of the Assembly. No Cabinet member shall hold more than one (1) elected Cabinet position each term.

iii) If a Cabinet member is to be away from his or her duties for more than 3 weeks at any given time, he or she is obliged to step down and be replaced.

iv) Each Cabinet position has sole discretion over the staffing of its department.

v) Should a Cabinet member's activities be deemed dishonourable or unacceptable by an official Regional Assembly Representative, the Representative may bring an impeachment motion against the offending individual(s).

vi) The elected Cabinet members have the option of appointing one or more ministerial deputies if they deem that necessary for carrying out the duties of the Ministry concerned. They are entitled to delegate as many or as little of their powers to their deputy or deputies as they wish. Deputy Cabinet members must be members of an FRA member region. The Arch Chancellor is obliged to appoint a deputy. Should he/she fail to appoint one, then the Regional Assembly shall elect one for him.

vii) The role and responsibilities of the Cabinet are as follows:

(1) - The Arch-Chancellor
a ) The Arch Chancellor shall have oversight on the various departments and ensure the elected Cabinet are executing their duties with panache and responsibility.
b ) The Arch-Chancellor acts as the figurehead to outside regions and organizations.
c ) The Arch Chancellor shall be responsible for overseeing the elections procedures as outlined in Section 4.
d ) The Arch Chancellor has the power to remove members of the cabinet or an Official Regional Representative from their position with the majority approval of the other Official Regional Representatives.
e ) The Arch Chancellor has the power to appoint interim Cabinet members if a Cabinet member is unable to do his duties for a short amount of time.
f ) The Arch Chancellor has the power to request that a member's access to private areas of the forums be suspended or removed, if they are suspected of leaking private information. This suspension of access lasts until the relevant Cabinet minister makes a decision on their case.
g ) The Arch Chancellor has the power to call for a member to be banned from the forums, for either a set period of time, or indefinitely. This ban must be approved by a majority vote of the Official Representatives
h ) The Arch-Chancellor and Vice Chancellor(s) are collectively responsible for creating an organization update to be distributed to the members of the FRA, at least once a month.

(2) - The Vice Chancellor
a ) The Arch-Chancellor, within one week of taking office, shall appoint at least one, but no more than two Vice Chancellors.
b ) The primary duties of the Vice Chancellor(s) is to assist the Arch-Chancellor in his or her daily affairs. The Arch-Chancellor shall dictate upon their appointment which Vice Chancellor will take over temporarily as Arch-Chancellor should the Arch-Chancellor be away for a period longer than a week.
c ) The Vice Chancellor is responsible for acting as the main representative to the signatories of the FRA.
d ) The Vice Chancellor(s) are responsible for approving forum embassy requests with non-member regions on the FRA forum. Only one VC need approve this decision, and the decision may be overridden by the AC.
e ) The Arch-Chancellor and Vice Chancellor(s) are collectively responsible for creating an organization update to be distributed to the members of the FRA, at least once a month.

(3) - The Chief of Defence
a ) The Chief of Defence Force shall be in command of the FRA Rangers.
b ) The CDF shall be approving authority for all applications to join the FRA Rangers.
c ) The CDF has no power to send FRA Rangers into a region whose natives have specifically stated they do not wish to be defended.

(4) - The Minister of Intelligence
a ) The Minister of Intelligence shall work closely with the CDF to plan missions for the FRA Rangers.
b ) The Minister of Intelligence shall endeavour to collect information on any threats towards the FRA or its members.

(5) - The Regional Liason Officer
a ) The Regional Liason Officer shall be in charge of approaching regions who might be interested in joining the FRA as member regions, as well as serving as a point of contact between the FRA and her member regions to ensure a union between all members.
b ) Should the Regional Assembly not elect a Regional Liason Officer, the duties are transferred to the Vice Chancellor.

(6) - Speaker of the Assembly
a ) The Speaker of the Assembly shall be responsible for the moderation of discussion in the Regional Assembly
b ) The Speaker of the Assembly shall be responsible for bringing amendments to the Charter and other matters worth the attention of the Assembly to debate and vote in front of the Official Representatives.
c ) The Speaker of the Assembly shall be responsible for overseeing the acceptance and expulsion of regions into/from the FRA.
d ) The Speaker of the Assembly shall be responsible for maintaining activity within the Regional Assembly and recommending dismissal of inactive Official Representatives to the Arch Chancellor.
e) Only Official Representatives are eligible to run for this position.

Article 4 - Cabinet Elections

i) The Cabinet, with the exception of the Vice Chancellor(s), shall be elected by the Official Representatives of the Regional Assembly. Those elected to the Cabinet must serve a term of no longer than two (2) months before another election must be held.

ii) The Regional Assembly Official Representatives shall be directed under the supervision of the incumbent Arch-Chancellor to elect a Cabinet on the first days of every January, March, May, July, September and November.

iii) Nominations shall open on the first day of these months and remain open for a period of three (3) days. During this time, any member person(s) of a signatory of the FRA may nominate another member person(s) for a Cabinet position, as described in Article 3. This shall be followed by a 3 day period for campaigning via the posting of manifestos. To be on the ballot, nominations must be accepted during either the nomination or manifesto period.

iv) Two candidates confirmed for a single Cabinet Post may opt to form a Joint Ticket by declaring such publicly. A Joint Candidacy may NOT be nominated as such.

a.) An individual may only be part of one Joint Ticket each set of Cabinet Elections.

b.) A Joint Ticket can only be formed during either nomination or manifesto stage of the election process. Both candidates must agree, and either candidate can dissolve said Joint-Ticket at any time prior to voting stage.

c.) Forming a Joint Ticket removes the individual candidates as individual voting options.

d.) For all other purposes of the FRA, a Joint Ticket shall be treated as an individual.

v) Elections shall follow for a period of also three (3) days; ballots must be cast publicly in the appropriate area, although if they choose, a member of the Regional Assembly may submit his ballot privately to the incumbent Arch-Chancellor. At the end of this period, the incumbent Arch-Chancellor shall announce the newly elected Cabinet and step down from his or her position.

vi) In the event of a resignation or impeachment, the Arch-Chancellor will organise a snap election immediately in the same manner as a normal election.

vii)
a.) In these elections the terms "Abstain" and "Present" are equivalent.

b.) In an election where there are multiple candidates running, The only voting options that will count are one of the names of candidate. Voters can not submit "Abstain" or "Present" as a viable voting option.

c.) In an election where there is only one candidate running, voters can submit either the candidate's name or "Abstain" or "Present" as a viable voting option. In this case, the candidate must obtain a simple majority of votes in order to be declared the winner of said election.

viii) In the event of a tie, the candidates with equal number of votes shall first determine whether they shall serve as joint ministers in the office they were seeking, or if one of them shall concede the election. Should they choose not to do either of these, there will be a run-off election held three (3) days after the election results are in. The run-off election will be between only the candidates who received the equal number of votes in the original election. A simple majority will determine the winner of said cabinet position. Until the victor is named, the incumbent member will remain in power. Should one of the tied candidates be involved in a Joint Ticket during the preceding election for any position, regardless of the success of that candidacy, they may not choose to form a Joint Ticket in the tied election.

ix) In the event of a candidate being elected to multiple positions, the candidate shall resign his election to all but one position. The candidate with the second-most votes in each election shall assume the yielded position. Should no candidate assume the yielded position, the election process pursuant to procedures as described in Article 4 shall begin. Until a candidate is elected, the incumbent member shall remain in power.

x) Should the Arch-Chancellor resign, be impeached, or otherwise rendered incapable of carrying out these duties, the incumbent Vice Chancellor shall carry out his or her duties instead. Likewise, should the incumbent Vice Chancellor(s) be unable to carry out these duties, the incumbent Speaker of the Assembly shall carry out these duties instead.


Article 5 - Voting Requirements

i) All motions, not pertaining to those covered under Article 5 (ii) and (iii) that are up for vote in front of the Regional Assembly Official Representatives must achieve a simple majority to pass. Any tie shall be considered a failed motion. Exceptions may be made for certain decisions that require a higher degree of signatory consent. These votes shall be open for a period of three (3) days.

ii) Impeachment votes must have at least 60% of all votes cast and a quorum of at least one third of the total number of seated representatives votes in order to pass.

iii) All charter amendments must have at least two thirds of all votes cast and a quorum of at least one third of the total number of seated representatives votes in order to pass.

iv) In all cases other than unopposed Cabinet races, a vote of either "Present" or "Abstain" shall count towards the fulfilment of quorum, but shall NOT be counted mathematically for the purpose of determining passage or failure of a motion.


Article 6 - Forum Administration

i) The FRA Forum shall serve to coordinate efforts within the FRA and a place to foster camaraderie between members.

ii) The Forum Administrators shall act in an honest, upright, rational manner and to the ends of the FRA, failing which may result in the administrative powers being revoked and remonstrations deemed appropriate.

iii) The current forum Administrators are Big Killer Babys, The Merlion, Cocodian, Wopruthien, and Frattastan.

Additional administrators shall be nominated by the current team of administrators and approved by the Regional Assembly with two thirds of all votes cast in favour and a quorum of at least one third of the total number of seated representatives votes in order to pass.

Article 7 - Clarifications

i ) In all cases, a Cabinet Minister may delegate duties to his deputy at his discretion. They may also, at their discretion, assume or perform the duties assigned to their deputies in the Charter or other law.]]> Posted Dec 07, 2013

The Charter of the Founderless Regions Alliance

Preamble

The Founderless Regions Alliance is an organization founded upon the principles of sovereignty and freedom of all regions in NationStates. We endeavour to protect regions from the menace of aggression and imperialism and we pledge to work tirelessly to that end. The Founderless Regions Alliance was founded by the regions Jethnea, Global Right Alliance and North Pacific.

The Founderless Regions Alliance from this point onward shall be referred to as the “FRA”.

Article 1 - Membership

i) The FRA is an organization of regions and interest groups dedicated to the cause of “defending.”

ii) Any region in NationStates, or a special interest group therein, may be eligible for membership in the FRA provided they meet out the criteria in this article. Membership may be granted in the form of ‘Full Member’ status or ‘Protectorate’ status to former Full Members. (See SubArticle 1)

iii) Any region may apply to join the FRA. If a region is accepted into the Alliance they are automatically obliged to uphold the Charter of the FRA, and are hence onward to be referred to as signatories. By applying for membership in the FRA, the applicant region assumes understanding of their obligation to uphold the Charter.

iv) If a region wishes to join the FRA they must first submit an application to the serving Regional Liason Officer. They are then required to send no less than two (2) representatives to enter into discussions with the Regional Assembly that last no less than four (4) and no longer than seven (7) days regarding their application. The Regional Assembly are then required to vote on said application in the manner described in Article 5.

v) All signatories are obliged to defend member regions of the FRA via all available military means possible, should a member region become victim to unprovoked aggression.

vi) All signatories, in an act of solidarity, renounce their right to declare a state of war or take aggression against another member region or a region that the FRA is assisting through redevelopment or military assistance.

vii) Signatories can leave the FRA if one of their official Regional Assembly representatives announces their resignation from the FRA directly to the Regional Assembly. A signatory body may also be forced to leave the FRA if they are expelled by the Regional Assembly through majority agreement of Regional Assembly Representatives.

Sub Article 1- Protectorate Status

i) Previous Member Regions who no longer have the ability to fulfil the Charter, yet still wish to be members of the FRA, may apply for Protectorate status.

ii) A region may be granted protectorate status by both their two Regional Representatives declaring such intention in the Regional Assembly.

iii) A region may also be graded to Protectorate Status by passing legislation of such intent, via regulations expressed in Article 2.

iv) Protectorate regions are granted the same rights as Full Members. Protectorate Regions are also expected to follow all aspects of the Charter as if they were Full Members.

v) Protectorate Regions have the right to have 1 (one) representative on the Regional Assembly.

vi) Protectorate Regions may either leave the FRA fully or push for full membership status by their recognised representative announcing their intentions in the Regional Assembly; triggering the traditional protocol for a full regional application.

Article 2 - The Regional Assembly

i) The Regional Assembly is the supreme source of authority over issues concerning the FRA.

ii) All signatories are to select, in a manner of their own choosing, two eligible representatives. Protectorate Regions must chose one. These Representatives are the signatories' official liaisons to the organisation and can vote on issues brought up in the Regional Assembly.

iii) The Regional Assembly shall hold elections to select the government of the FRA, whereas defined as the Cabinet of the FRA and the Speaker of the Assembly. Only the Representatives may vote in the elections.

iv) The Regional Assembly shall decide whether to accept applications to the FRA or expel members from the FRA. Should the Regional Assembly choose to expel a member of the FRA, the Member Region must be informed at least five (5) days in advance before an expulsion vote may begin.

v) Any regional member may suggest a new bill or an amendment to the Charter; however it is the Speaker of the Assembly that is responsible for moderating the debate and bringing the matter in front of the Regional Assembly Representatives for vote. A proposal must go through a minimum of two (2) days of debate with the Regional Assembly before being brought forth to a vote. The Speaker is obliged to take any proposal which has the support of two Representatives or Cabinet members, or a combination thereof, to a vote, once the debate period has concluded. This does not include any proposals brought under Article 6, Clause iii.

vi. Representatives may only represent one region at a time.

Article 3 - The Cabinet

i) The FRA shall be led by an executive government collectively referred to as the Cabinet.

ii) There shall be 6 positions in the Cabinet; the Arch-Chancellor, the Vice Chancellor, the Chief of Defence, the Minister of Intelligence, the Regional Liason Officer, and the Speaker of the Assembly. No Cabinet member shall hold more than one (1) elected Cabinet position each term.

iii) If a Cabinet member is to be away from his or her duties for more than 3 weeks at any given time, he or she is obliged to step down and be replaced.

iv) Each Cabinet position has sole discretion over the staffing of its department.

v) Should a Cabinet member's activities be deemed dishonourable or unacceptable by an official Regional Assembly Representative, the Representative may bring an impeachment motion against the offending individual(s).

vi) The elected Cabinet members have the option of appointing one or more ministerial deputies if they deem that necessary for carrying out the duties of the Ministry concerned. They are entitled to delegate as many or as little of their powers to their deputy or deputies as they wish. Deputy Cabinet members must be members of an FRA member region. The Arch Chancellor is obliged to appoint a deputy. Should he/she fail to appoint one, then the Regional Assembly shall elect one for him.

vii) The role and responsibilities of the Cabinet are as follows:

(1) - The Arch-Chancellor
a ) The Arch Chancellor shall have oversight on the various departments and ensure the elected Cabinet are executing their duties with panache and responsibility.
b ) The Arch-Chancellor acts as the figurehead to outside regions and organizations.
c ) The Arch Chancellor shall be responsible for overseeing the elections procedures as outlined in Section 4.
d ) The Arch Chancellor has the power to remove members of the cabinet or an Official Regional Representative from their position with the majority approval of the other Official Regional Representatives.
e ) The Arch Chancellor has the power to appoint interim Cabinet members if a Cabinet member is unable to do his duties for a short amount of time.
f ) The Arch Chancellor has the power to request that a member's access to private areas of the forums be suspended or removed, if they are suspected of leaking private information. This suspension of access lasts until the relevant Cabinet minister makes a decision on their case.
g ) The Arch Chancellor has the power to call for a member to be banned from the forums, for either a set period of time, or indefinitely. This ban must be approved by a majority vote of the Official Representatives
h ) The Arch-Chancellor and Vice Chancellor(s) are collectively responsible for creating an organization update to be distributed to the members of the FRA, at least once a month.

(2) - The Vice Chancellor
a ) The Arch-Chancellor, within one week of taking office, shall appoint at least one, but no more than two Vice Chancellors.
b ) The primary duties of the Vice Chancellor(s) is to assist the Arch-Chancellor in his or her daily affairs. The Arch-Chancellor shall dictate upon their appointment which Vice Chancellor will take over temporarily as Arch-Chancellor should the Arch-Chancellor be away for a period longer than a week.
c ) The Vice Chancellor is responsible for acting as the main representative to the signatories of the FRA.
d ) The Vice Chancellor(s) are responsible for approving forum embassy requests with non-member regions on the FRA forum. Only one VC need approve this decision, and the decision may be overridden by the AC.
e ) The Arch-Chancellor and Vice Chancellor(s) are collectively responsible for creating an organization update to be distributed to the members of the FRA, at least once a month.

(3) - The Chief of Defence
a ) The Chief of Defence Force shall be in command of the FRA Rangers.
b ) The CDF shall be approving authority for all applications to join the FRA Rangers.
c ) The CDF has no power to send FRA Rangers into a region whose natives have specifically stated they do not wish to be defended.

(4) - The Minister of Intelligence
a ) The Minister of Intelligence shall work closely with the CDF to plan missions for the FRA Rangers.
b ) The Minister of Intelligence shall endeavour to collect information on any threats towards the FRA or its members.

(5) - The Regional Liason Officer
a ) The Regional Liason Officer shall be in charge of approaching regions who might be interested in joining the FRA as member regions, as well as serving as a point of contact between the FRA and her member regions to ensure a union between all members.
b ) Should the Regional Assembly not elect a Regional Liason Officer, the duties are transferred to the Vice Chancellor.

(6) - Speaker of the Assembly
a ) The Speaker of the Assembly shall be responsible for the moderation of discussion in the Regional Assembly
b ) The Speaker of the Assembly shall be responsible for bringing amendments to the Charter and other matters worth the attention of the Assembly to debate and vote in front of the Official Representatives.
c ) The Speaker of the Assembly shall be responsible for overseeing the acceptance and expulsion of regions into/from the FRA.
d ) The Speaker of the Assembly shall be responsible for maintaining activity within the Regional Assembly and recommending dismissal of inactive Official Representatives to the Arch Chancellor.
e) Only Official Representatives are eligible to run for this position.

Article 4 - Cabinet Elections

i) The Cabinet, with the exception of the Vice Chancellor(s), shall be elected by the Official Representatives of the Regional Assembly. Those elected to the Cabinet must serve a term of no longer than two (2) months before another election must be held.

ii) The Regional Assembly Official Representatives shall be directed under the supervision of the incumbent Arch-Chancellor to elect a Cabinet on the first days of every January, March, May, July, September and November.

iii) Nominations shall open on the first day of these months and remain open for a period of three (3) days. During this time, any member person(s) of a signatory of the FRA may nominate another member person(s) for a Cabinet position, as described in Article 3. This shall be followed by a 3 day period for campaigning via the posting of manifestos. To be on the ballot, nominations must be accepted during either the nomination or manifesto period.

iv) Two candidates confirmed for a single Cabinet Post may opt to form a Joint Ticket by declaring such publicly. A Joint Candidacy may NOT be nominated as such.

a.) An individual may only be part of one Joint Ticket each set of Cabinet Elections.

b.) A Joint Ticket can only be formed during either nomination or manifesto stage of the election process. Both candidates must agree, and either candidate can dissolve said Joint-Ticket at any time prior to voting stage.

c.) Forming a Joint Ticket removes the individual candidates as individual voting options.

d.) For all other purposes of the FRA, a Joint Ticket shall be treated as an individual.

v) Elections shall follow for a period of also three (3) days; ballots must be cast publicly in the appropriate area, although if they choose, a member of the Regional Assembly may submit his ballot privately to the incumbent Arch-Chancellor. At the end of this period, the incumbent Arch-Chancellor shall announce the newly elected Cabinet and step down from his or her position.

vi) In the event of a resignation or impeachment, the Arch-Chancellor will organise a snap election immediately in the same manner as a normal election.

vii)
a.) In these elections the terms "Abstain" and "Present" are equivalent.

b.) In an election where there are multiple candidates running, The only voting options that will count are one of the names of candidate. Voters can not submit "Abstain" or "Present" as a viable voting option.

c.) In an election where there is only one candidate running, voters can submit either the candidate's name or "Abstain" or "Present" as a viable voting option. In this case, the candidate must obtain a simple majority of votes in order to be declared the winner of said election.

viii) In the event of a tie, the candidates with equal number of votes shall first determine whether they shall serve as joint ministers in the office they were seeking, or if one of them shall concede the election. Should they choose not to do either of these, there will be a run-off election held three (3) days after the election results are in. The run-off election will be between only the candidates who received the equal number of votes in the original election. A simple majority will determine the winner of said cabinet position. Until the victor is named, the incumbent member will remain in power. Should one of the tied candidates be involved in a Joint Ticket during the preceding election for any position, regardless of the success of that candidacy, they may not choose to form a Joint Ticket in the tied election.

ix) In the event of a candidate being elected to multiple positions, the candidate shall resign his election to all but one position. The candidate with the second-most votes in each election shall assume the yielded position. Should no candidate assume the yielded position, the election process pursuant to procedures as described in Article 4 shall begin. Until a candidate is elected, the incumbent member shall remain in power.

x) Should the Arch-Chancellor resign, be impeached, or otherwise rendered incapable of carrying out these duties, the incumbent Vice Chancellor shall carry out his or her duties instead. Likewise, should the incumbent Vice Chancellor(s) be unable to carry out these duties, the incumbent Speaker of the Assembly shall carry out these duties instead.


Article 5 - Voting Requirements

i) All motions, not pertaining to those covered under Article 5 (ii) and (iii) that are up for vote in front of the Regional Assembly Official Representatives must achieve a simple majority to pass. Any tie shall be considered a failed motion. Exceptions may be made for certain decisions that require a higher degree of signatory consent. These votes shall be open for a period of three (3) days.

ii) Impeachment votes must have at least 60% of all votes cast and a quorum of at least one third of the total number of seated representatives votes in order to pass.

iii) All charter amendments must have at least two thirds of all votes cast and a quorum of at least one third of the total number of seated representatives votes in order to pass.

iv) In all cases other than unopposed Cabinet races, a vote of either "Present" or "Abstain" shall count towards the fulfilment of quorum, but shall NOT be counted mathematically for the purpose of determining passage or failure of a motion.


Article 6 - Forum Administration

i) The FRA Forum shall serve to coordinate efforts within the FRA and a place to foster camaraderie between members.

ii) The Forum Administrators shall act in an honest, upright, rational manner and to the ends of the FRA, failing which may result in the administrative powers being revoked and remonstrations deemed appropriate.

iii) The current forum Administrators are Big Killer Babys, The Merlion, Cocodian, Wopruthien, and Frattastan.

Additional administrators shall be nominated by the current team of administrators and approved by the Regional Assembly with two thirds of all votes cast in favour and a quorum of at least one third of the total number of seated representatives votes in order to pass.

Article 7 - Clarifications

i ) In all cases, a Cabinet Minister may delegate duties to his deputy at his discretion. They may also, at their discretion, assume or perform the duties assigned to their deputies in the Charter or other law.]]> https://nslazarus.com/old_forum/showthread.php?tid=1351 Sun, 19 Apr 2020 17:00:41 +0000 Domais]]> https://nslazarus.com/old_forum/showthread.php?tid=1351 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.
https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=649635]]> 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.
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