New Constitution (& Approval Vote), on Primary Constitutional Proposal | Email this topic | Print this topic

Please vote FOR or AGAINST.

This Approval Vote thread will remain open for 72 hours.

The Primary Constitutional Proposal is:

QUOTE

Preamble: We, the Players of Nations within The West Pacific, acknowledging, with grateful hearts, the goodness of the Great Creator of NationStates, and the Community of Friends who share themselves with us in affording us an opportunity to be relieved of the mundane features of Real Life now join together in forming a new Constitution of Civil Government, for ourselves and those who follow; and devoutly imploring the Delegate’s benevolence in so interesting a design, DO agree upon, ordain and establish, the following Declaration of Rights, and Frame of Government, as the Constitution of The West Pacific. Bill of Rights 1. All West Pacific Nations are sovereign and have the right of self-determination in domestic policies, including Nation States Issues. 2. Rights to free speech, free press, free expression of religion, and free association will not be infringed as long as the expressed freedoms do not [a] violate the same rights of others or {b} violate the ToS of this Forum. The Delegate, the Speaker, and/or the Forum Owner or his designees shall be the ultimate judges of propriety. 3. Participation in the West Pacific Regional Government, Regional Forum, and Regional Military shall be voluntary. 4. No nation of The West Pacific holding WA member status shall be obligated to endorse any government official of the West Pacific. The right to add an endorsement or withdraw an endorsement will remain a sovereign right of the WA member nation. 5. All West Pacific Nations have the right to be protected against the abuse of powers by any government official. 6. No Nation shall be ejected from the region, or banned from any forum, without a public explanation. Should a government official declare the ejection or banning to be a matter of immediate regional security, the ejected or banned Nation shall have an avenue of redress in the Forum as a Member with Limited Membership. 7. When charged with criminal activity, Nations of The West Pacific shall enjoy fair and impartial Court Tribunals. Such Tribunals may occur and/or deliberate in a locked forum. 8. Any nation of the West Pacific may question the Constitutionality of any law passed by the Regional Assembly and ask for a Court Tribunal for a determination of Constitutionality, and may petition the Court for redress of grievances with other nations as well as with the government itself or any government official. 9. These Rights listed are not exhaustive. Other Rights may be defined and existing Rights may be expanded through [non-amendment] legislation in the RA. The Government of The West Pacific shall be comprised of … Article I: The Delegate Article II The Regional Assembly and its Speaker Article III The Court Tribunal Article I: The Delegate A. The WA nation of the Delegate must be in residency in The West Pacific. B. The Delegate is expected to serve at his/her leisure and pleasure for a maximum of 12 months/366 days.  Choosing to serve beyond the expected time limit will constitute justification for Rebellion by the Region. 1. The Delegate may choose the Delegate’s successor. 2. The Delegate may decide to abdicate at any time during the Delegate term in favor of a successor. 3. Should the Delegate Cease-to-Exist or abdicate and no successor is selected, the Regional Assembly will elect a new Delegate. 4. An elected Delegate will have all the powers of the Delegate. C. The Delegate may set an endorsement cap over the region at any time. Any pronouncement of an endorsement cap must be located in the Region’s World Factbook Entry (WFE) and also in an easily accessible and public area of the West Pacific Forum.  D. The Delegate shall only vote on WA Resolutions in accordance with the will of the majority of WA nations residing in the region, which shall be made evident via Delegate-maintained public opinion polls, located in an easily accessible and public area of the Forum. E. In the Forum, the Delegate shall serve the Region in the role of General of World Affairs (GWA). 1. The GWA will maintain the WA Resolution Thread in the Forum. 2. The GWA shall represent the Region and the Government of the West Pacific to the NationStates world. 3. The GWA shall be responsible for appointing and overseeing a vigorous diplomatic corps, to seek treaties and alliances with foreign regions that may be beneficial to the Region and shall oversee the creation and regular update of reports on the political and diplomatic state of affairs of Regions throughout NS. 4. The GWA alone will have the power to enter into treaties and/or alliances. All treaties and/or alliances will be subject to ratification by a simple majority of the Regional Assembly. 5. If the Delegate declines the role of GWA, the Delegate may appoint another player to the position or request that the Speaker of the Regional Assembly hold an election to fill the position. 6 Any player other than the Delegate accepting the position of GWA may resign from the position at any time but may not be removed from the position for a term of three months. Article II: The Regional Assembly and its Speaker A. The Regional Assembly 1. There shall be a Regional Assembly of The West Pacific and the Regional Assembly will sit in continuous session. 2.The Regional Assembly may not limit the Powers of the Delegate. 3. The Regional Assembly membership shall be open to all forum members and ownership of a nation within the Game and/or the Region shall not limit membership. 4. The Regional Assembly may establish criteria and procedures for terminating or suspending membership due to inactivity, provided such terms and methods are prudent, clear, and not unduly burdensome or unreasonable. 5. The Regional Assembly shall elect one of its members to the office of Speaker of the Regional Assembly (SRA) who shall oversee the functions of the Regional Assembly. 6. The Regional Assembly shall create [non-amendment] legislation defining its functions, rights, and powers – so long as these functions do not limit the Powers of the Delegate. 7. The Regional Assembly will maintain a Ministry of Communication, a Ministry of Culture, and a Ministry of Archives for the region and the Forum. Ministers for these shall be elected from among the members of the Regional Assembly. These Ministries shall not limit the Powers of the Delegate. 8. The Regional Assembly may create/dismantle any other Ministries it considers of benefit to the region and to the Forum - so long as these Ministries do not limit the Powers of the Delegate. Any such creation will require a description of duties and responsibilities. 9. The Regional Assembly shall elect a Chief Justice and Jurors to oversee the Court Tribunal. 10. The Regional Assembly may question the Delegate about the intentions and performance of his/her duties. 11. The Regional Assembly will from time to time adopt [non-Amendment] resolutions by simple majority vote to communicate approval, diffidence, or disapproval of the current or prospective Delegate, to suggest endorsement or un-endorsement or other action up to and including a Declaration of Open Rebellion to the various nations of the region, and to cite the causes and articulate the reasoning of such positions and suggestions. a. A Declaration of Open Rebellion must include an enumerated List of Grievances against the Delegate and will require a majority vote by the Regional Assembly.  The terms of majority will be determined in the Regional Assembly prior to the vote and stated in the Declaration of Open Rebellion. b. In the event the Regional Assembly declares a Declaration of Open Rebellion, the Speaker shall petition ADMIN to revoke all of the Delegate’s extra-member privileges and the Regional Assembly shall appoint an Interim General of World Affairs.  The Interim General of World Affairs would serve until either a new Delegate is placed in office or until mutually agreeable terms are made between the Delegate and the Regional Assembly. B. Speaker of the Regional Assembly (SRA) 1. The SRA's main responsibility is to preside over meetings of the Regional Assembly, keeping order and enforcing rules of conduct. 2. The SRA or his/her designee, shall determine whether nations applying for membership in the Regional Assembly meet the appropriate requirements as set by the Regional Assembly. 3. The SRA shall be elected from among the members of the Regional Assembly and shall serve a three-month term. 4. The Office of Speaker of the Regional Assembly will have a term limit; no Speaker shall serve for more than three consecutive terms. C. Ministries of the Regional Assembly 1. Minister of Communications (MiniComm) a. The Minister, or any assistants the Minister shall appoint, shall work to increase the profile of the government and the Region on the regional message board [RMB]. b. The Minister, or any assistants the Minister shall appoint, shall work to increase activity among the less active Nations in the Region. c. The Minister, conjointly with the Minister of Culture, shall oversee the creation and dissemination of a Newcomer's Guide, and shall see that such a guide is located in an easily accessible and public area of the Forum and is updated regularly. d. The Minister shall define the requirements for the appointment of any Ministry assistants. e. The Minister shall oversee the creation and maintenance of a Ministry Assistants Guide. f. The Minister shall be elected from the members of the Regional Assembly and shall serve a three-month term. 2. Minister of Culture (MiniCult) a. The Minister, or any assistants the Minister shall appoint, shall work to increase the profile of the government and the Region in the Forum. b. The Minister, or any assistants the Minister shall appoint, shall work to increase activity among the less active Nations in the Forum. c. The Minister, conjointly with the Minister of Communications, shall oversee the creation and dissemination of a Newcomer's Guide, and shall see that such a guide is located in an easily accessible and public area of the Forum and is updated regularly.  d. The Minister shall define the requirements for the appointment of any Ministry assistants. e. The Minister shall oversee the creation and maintenance of a Ministry Assistants Guide. f. The Minister shall be elected from the members of the Regional Assembly and shall serve a three-month term. 3. Minister of Archives (MiniArch) a. The Minister, in conjunction with the SRA, shall oversee the creation and maintenance of the Archives of the Regional Assembly and shall see that such Archives are separate and located in an easily accessible and public area of the Forum and are updated regularly. b. The Minister shall be elected from the members of the Regional Assembly and shall serve a two-month term. D. Removal of Government Officials 1. Any government official of The West Pacific, other than the Delegate, shall be removed from office upon impeachment and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors. If a Speaker, a Minister, or a Chief Justice is removed, a new official shall be elected within two weeks 2. Any member nation may make a motion in The Regional Assembly asking for the removal any official, other than the Delegate. If a simple majority of the Regional Assembly agrees with the motion, a Court Tribunal will conduct a hearing. Article III: The Court Tribunal A. The Court will consist of a 3 Judge Court Tribunal – a Chief Justice and two Associate Justices. B. The Court Tribunal will be responsible for [1] determining the constitutionality of challenged laws and [2] determining the validity of charges against member nations. C. The Chief Justice will be elected by the Regional Assembly and shall preside for a three-month term. D. Jurors will be elected by the Regional Assembly as follows: Every three months following the election of the Chief Justice, each member of the Regional Assembly will cast six votes among all members, and the six members with the greatest percentage of votes will serve as Jurors for three months. Jurors will be assigned as Associate Justices as needed for any Court matter that arises by lot.  The Associate Justices will continue to preside over the issue until a resolution or decision has been reached. E. If two or more issues are presented to the Court concurrently, three Jurors will be selected by lot: the first two as Associate Justices and the third as Alternate for each issue. F. The Chief Justice may dismiss any Associate Justice (but not both) from a case for cause; an Associate Justice may step down in recusal; in either case, the opening is filled by the designated Alternate or by selection of another Juror by lot. G. The Court Tribunal shall have authority to make punishments or to establish the criteria for corrective action or for making amends or restitution whenever deemed necessary. H. The decisions of a Court Tribunal will be final unless either the Speaker or the Delegate grants a motion for appeal, such motion to be requested promptly.  If an appeal is granted the RA will hear arguments and vote to either return the case to a Court Tribunal for reconsideration or to deny the appeal and sustain the decision of the Court. I. Once a decision is made on a case, all nations of the region must be told of the result. There are to be no secret cases or verdicts, but case discussions and deliberations of a Court Tribunal may be made in private.

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TAO is FOR

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I approve.

For

A little over 24 hours left to vote, folks. There won't be another vote on this.

Can I vote?
If so... FOR.

FOR

FOR!

Approval vote CLOSED.

WE HAVE A NEW CONSTITUTION.