Realm of Equilism Constitution

The Constitution of The Realm of Equilism'

I. Preamble

The Realm of Equilism hereby establishes this Constitution to set forth the structure of our governance. While this Constitution removes the power of its antecedents, it remains true in the same goal: to perfect the governance of the region in order to ensure the greatest freedom and longevity for The Realm. We hold it as our first principle to preserve the freedom, autonomy, and self-determination of our members. Equilism will always seek to advance the interests of peace, to ensure justice and freedom, and to expand prosperity for our members.

Our government and our Constitution have no greater aim than enabling honest and just governance under which the membership of the region will flourish. It is forever the intent of this document and all documents issued from its authority that the government exists to serve the people's interest above and before its own in all instances.

II. Membership

1. Membership in Equilism shall be afforded to all nations who publicly assent to our values, laws and regulations. All membership is voluntary, and may be renounced by the member nation at any time.

2. Dual-citizenship between Equilism and other NationStates regions shall be afforded to all nations who publicly declare their intentions to maintain dual-citizenship status.

a. Equilism does not recognize dual-citizenships with Invader regions.

III. The Government

Equilism is hereby established as a Constitutional Monarchy, with authority divided among three branches: The Monarchy, The Elected Members within the College of Equilism, and The Judiciary. Three permanent representatives, one from each branch, shall together form The Triumvirate of The Guardians of the Realm.

1. The Monarch is the Head of State of Equilism, and represents the interests and security of the region and its citizens.

2. The College of Equilism is the legislative and executive authority of Equilism, and as such constitutes the government of Equilism. The College of Equilism is lead by the Head of Government, the Lord Chancellor. The Governor General is the representative of the College in the Triumvirate.

3. The Judiciary of Equilism is the legal authority of Equilism, and represents the Constitution and Laws of the region. As the other branches pursue the goals of good governance, the Judiciary is charged with protecting the integrity and continuity of the laws of The Realm. The Judiciary is led by the Lord High Advocate.

4. The Triumvirate of The Guardians of the Realm consists of The Monarch, the Governor General, and The Lord High Advocate. The Guardians of the Realm are charged with acting in the event of a regional emergency and with preserving the spirit and philosophy of The Realm.

IV. The Monarchy

The individual holding primary control and responsiblity for the Founder nation, Equility, shall serve the region as The Monarch and Head of State of Equilism. The Monarch may hold the title of that individual's choice. While the Monarch serves for life, inactivity for a period of two months shall be grounds for the removal of the Monarch. In such a case, the designated Heir shall succeed to the Monarchy.

1. The Monarch shall be responsible for the duties of Foundership, which include the regional control functions of changing the World Factbook Entry, handling regional ejections and bans, and password protection in accordance with regional law.

2. The Monarch shall serve the region as Head of State, and cooperate closely with the Head of Government, the Lord Chancellor. This cooperation includes the selection of Chancellors for the approval of the College of Equilism.

3. The Monarch shall make the following appointments and grant such titles as may be deemed appropriate, both to recognize the abilities and accomplishments of regional members and to carry out the duties of the Monarchy.

a. The Monarch shall designate an Heir, in order to maintain chain of command should the reigning Monarch become unable to perform the duties of office.

b. The Monarch shall designate a Steward with the consent of the College of Equilism, who shall hold the title of Lord Protector. The Lord Protector shall serve to guard the Foundership and the UN Delegacy, and shall stand as a protection against abuse of power. The Lord Protector shall have clear and easy access to the Founder Nation to ensure that the use of such is always maintained within the laws and practices of the Realm.

c. The Monarch may grant and revoke additional titles of nobility as seen fit. Appointed nobles hold no special status within the government, the Guardians, or the Monarchy, but are rather recognized for outstanding service to the region. It is the privilege of such Nobles to serve as advisors-at-large.

d. The Monarch may grant awards and medals.

4. All instruments of treaty, alliance, or agreement must bear the signature of the Monarch, as well as the approval of the College of Equilism, in order to carry the force of law in Equilism.

5. The Monarch shall hold veto authority over the legislation and actions of the Government of Equilism. This authority shall be balanced by the override authority of the College of Equilism.

6. The Monarch as Head of State shall act as Commander-in-Chief of the Army, and shall be entrusted with the security of the region and her allies. Operational control of the Army shall remain with the Chancellor of the Military.

7. The Monarch may not serve as a member of the College of Equilism.

V. The College of Equilism

The College is entrusted with legislative oversight of the region, as well as the functional aspects of all departments of the region. It shall be the main governing body. As a matter of constitutional law, the power of the College and Lord Chancellor of the Realm shall be assumed to be the primary and regular form of governance. The exception of this law shall only occur in times of crisis declared according to the rules of this document by The Guardians of the Realm. In all cases outside of immediate crisis, the governance of the Realm by the College and the Lord Chancellor shall be the preferred authority for the operation of the Realm.

1. The College shall consist of those regional members that meet the requirements for membership in the College:

a. Regional UN nations that have maintained residency in the region and on the forum for a minimum of two weeks may join the College.

b. Regional non-UN nations that have maintained residency in the region and on the forum for a minimum of two weeks may request to join the College, provided they can give and confirm the location of their UN status. Exceptions may be made for those that hold no UN nation at all, upon review of the Chancellors.

c. Collegiate members are expected to be actively involved in the operations of the region. Membership in the College may be revoked at the discretion of the Lord Chancellor after a period of unannounced inactivity no less than two weeks.

d. The Monarch, The Lord High Advocate, and the Lord High Prosecutor may not become voting members of the College of Equilism, in order to preserve the separation of authorities. They may, however, give their opinion, or provide information to the College.

2. The College shall be led by the Lord Chancellor, who shall be elected from among the members of the College, and shall retain a vote in the College.

3. The Offices of Defense, Intelligence, Foreign Affairs, Interior and any other such office created by the College shall each be led by a Chancellor. Chancellors must be members of the College, and shall be selected in cooperation by the Lord Chancellor and the Monarch. Their selections shall be presented to the College for advice and consent.

4. The College shall retain override authority over the veto and decisions of the Monarch, the Governor General, and the Lord High Advocate. Override shall be approved by 3/4ths quorum vote of the College. In the event of an override vote concerning the Governor General, the Governor General shall abstain from voting.

5. Amending the Constitution requires a 2/3 majority of the College in favour of the proposal, and the approval of the Monarch. In the event that that Monarch disapproves the amendment, the College may override with 3/4 majority.

6. The Governor General shall serve as a close advisor to the Lord Chancellor and shall represent the interests of the College in the Triumvirate. It is the privilege of the Governor General, a position given only to those with a long record of legislative service, to act as the earnest advocate of the College and the Lord Chancellor. As a Guardian, the appointment of the Governor General is indefinite, and serves to preserve the continuity between the Elected Government and the Guardians of the Realm. In the case of a vacancy in the office of the Governor General, the position must be filled by a consensus between the Monarch and the Lord Chancellor and confirmed by the College.

VI. The Judiciary

The Judiciary of the Realm of Equilism, in the form of the Court of Equilism, shall be an independent body composed of the Lord High Advocate and two Advocates General whose role is to present opinions on the application of the laws of the Commonwealth and to oversee trials that are brought to the Judiciary through a Petition. The Judiciary is to interpret and apply the laws of Equilism without bias and with good faith to all the people governed by the law.

1. Independent Judiciary; In order to guarantee that the Advocates of the Court are not beholden to those who appointed them, the terms of the Advocates will not be subject to renewal or replacement at the start of each new electoral term. In this way, separation between the Legislative branch and the Judiciary will be protected. While Advocates hold an indefinite appointment, inactivity for a period of two months shall be grounds for the removal of an Advocate from office.

a. A vacancy will be filled by a collaborative appointment by the Lord Chancellor and the Monarch, which must then be confirmed by a vote of the College. To be confirmed, the Advocate must receive a 2/3 majority of the vote, or a percentage of the vote equal to or greater than 66.7%. The confirmation of an Advocate General will include a three-day period of questioning before the entire region and then a vote of four days by all members of the college.

b. There will be no fixed requirements for the position of Advocate General or Lord High Advocate. The College is tasked with finding and elevating the most qualified and best-tempered candidate to the post. It is not required to have been an Advocate General to become the Lord High Advocate. The Lord High Advocate may not hold elected office, but may serve in an appointed role at the pleasure of the Monarch and the Lord Chancellor. The Advocates General may hold elected office if granted a dispensation by the College, at the means and schedule of the College.

c. In the case of an absence of the Lord High Advocate, the position must be filled by a consensus between the Monarch, the Governor General and the Lord Chancellor. The Lord High Advocate may only be removed by a ¾ vote of the College and the agreement of the Monarch, the Governor General and the Lord Chancellor.

d. At the behest of the Lord Chancellor, an Advocate General may be impeached at any time if they are believed to be in dereliction of duty. Impeachment will require 3 days of debate, which is to include the Advocate in question, and will then be followed by a 4 day vote. If a 2/3 majority vote in favor of Impeachment the Advocate will be removed immediately.

e. Grounds for impeachment are left to the discretion of the members who might bring such actions to bear. Impeachment is not to be used as means to demonstrate disagreement with an Advocate or with a finding of the Court. Impeachment is to be used if it is believed that an Advocate was negligent in the performance of their assigned task.

f. If no motion to impeach is presented, the tenure of the Advocates will be carried without additional confirmation or debate.

g. If an Advocate is on trial for any reason at any time, they must recuse themselves and the Monarch and the Lord Chancellor must find a temporary replacement.

h. If an Advocate is not believed to be impartial in a trial, or may have bias or vested interest, the College may by a majority vote forcibly recuse him from that trial. Such removal requires direct evidence of bias to be determined as admissible by the remaining Advocates. A tie between two Advocates will be broken by the Governor General.

2. Opinions; When a matter of law is brought before the College, or is of general concern, it may be opted that the Court be asked to render an opinion on the matter prior to a vote. The Opinion may be issued to clarify a concern or to relate the matter to earlier precedent. The Opinion is not binding, but will allow for the inclusion of all three departments of the government and may help the College and the Lord Chancellor to decide a matter more efficiently. Any member of Equilism may petition the Court for an Opinion. Requests for Opinions shall be made to the Lord High Advocate and considered by the full Court.

3. Trials; The Advocates of the Court are responsible to sit in judgment of all trials, judicial hearings and other matters brought to them by the means of an Application. The Application can be for Trial, Hearing or for any other type of opinion which the Lord Chancellor, the College or any of the other Guardians might require.

a. Only offenses recorded in written law may be tried, but the Realm recognizes the growth of new law. Any UN citizen or member of government may appeal to the Court to render an opinion on the legality of any action. If the opinion indicates that an action violates precedent or an unenumerated principle, a trial may proceed.

b. Closed trials may be held at the request of either the Chancellor for Defense or the Chancellor of Intelligence. In all other cases, trials will be open to the public. If one of the eligible Chancellors requests a closed trial, the burden of proof for closing the trial lies entirely with that Chancellor. By default, all trials within the Realm of Equilism are to be public. To reverse this, the Chancellor must show that a by not closing the trial, the Judiciary would cause sensitive material to be released. In any event, the Chancellor challenging the default must demonstrate a harm that a closed trial would avoid. The decision to close the trial requires a 2/3 majority of the Court.

c. The Judiciary may, if it wishes, name Defenders General for use by defendants if the defendants so desire. Every defendant shall have the right to request a Defender General.

d. The verdict of a trial and the sentence of a trial may be overturned by a 3/4th vote of the College. In this case, neither the defendant, nor either counsel may vote. If any of the Advocates have access to the College, they will be barred from casting a ballot in such a matter as well.

e. A verdict returned by the College shall be resubmitted to the Court for deliberation in light of the objections of the College. If the deliberation results in no new findings, the existing verdict will be discarded.

f. The specific methods for executing a trial will not be constitutionally enforced. The Lord High Advocate will be responsible for maintaining the Practices and Procedures of the Court

4. Precedent; Once a trial has been completed, it is the responsibility of the Lord High Advocate to enter the finding of the Court into a record of Precedent and Findings. This record will be a guide to keep the laws of Equilism consistent. Precedent is not binding and the record of precedent and findings is meant to be a tool to aid in decisions.

5. Authority; While independent, it is the mandate of the Court to assist the College and the Monarchy in governing with consistency and clarity. The Court shall operate at the discretion and request of the other branches of government and shall not initiate an action, finding or appeal on its own. The Judiciary is a complimentary body of government and is not mandated to undertake actions of oversight unless requested to do so in a specific instance by the Lord Chancellor, the College or any of the other Guardians.

6. Prosecution of Charges shall be led by the Lord High Prosecutor.

a. The Lord High Prosecutor will be selected by appointment of the Monarch, with the consent of the College. While the Lord High Prosecutor serves an indefinite term, inactivity for a period of two months shall be grounds for his removal from office. The Lord High Prosecutor will have broad authority to engage in investigation and prosecution with the assistance of the Chancellor for Intelligence and the approval of the Court.

b. The Lord High Prosecutor may receive help from and name as a Prosecutor General any member of the region except for an Advocate.

7. The Prosecutor shall be responsible for presenting charges and evidence to the Advocates.

a. If any member of the Court found to have falsified any evidence, all charges against the defendant shall be dismissed and the offending member will be subject to censure by the Lord High Advocate.

b. As a principle of practice and law, the defendant in any trial shall have the presumed right to all evidence gathered against them. Should the Prosecutor General wish to contest the presumption, they must make a motion before the full Court.

VII. Chancellor of the Realm

1. The Chancellor of the Realm is the regional UN-Delegate.

a. The Chancellor shall vote on each UN Resolution in accordance with the results of a poll on the forum. This poll shall be open to all United Nations member nations of Equilism.

b. The Chancellor may support UN Resolution Proposals without consulting the region. The Chancellor may also advocate the region's position on the NationStates UN forum and participate in the debate there under the title of "UN Ambassador" in the service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

VIII. Emergency Powers

1. The Triumvirate of The Guardians of the Realm

Broad emergency powers are vested in the Triumvirate of The Guardians of Realm, which consists of The Monarch, The Governor General, and The Lord High Advocate. No single Guardian may take emergency action without the concurrence of another; thus a majority of the Triumvirate is required in order to take any emergency action.

2. The Lord Chancellor

a. The Lord Chancellor may, under highly unusual circumstances, immediately pass into law a Legislative Order. A Legislative Order upon the Lord Chancellor's signature shall carry with it the full force of law for a period of 48 hours. The Monarch must approve all Legislative Orders ex post facto within 48 hours or the Order shall be considered rescinded. Upon the absence of the Monarch, another member of the Triumvirate may approve the Order within the 48 hour window.

b. All Legislative Orders are subject to the review of the Judiciary at the discretion of the Lord High Advocate. Should the Judiciary find the Legislative Order to be in violation of the Constitution, the Lord High Advocate may rescind the Legislative Order in question and evaluate the conduct of the Lord Chancellor in the matter.

IX. Elections

1. The Lord Chancellor shall be elected by The College of Equilism to a 3 month term of office. Candidates for the position must be members of The College of Equilism, and must receive a nomination from another College member to be a confirmed candidate.

a. Campaigning and questioning of candidates shall be open throughout the entire process.

b. Three days shall be provided for nominations, followed by two days for voting by the entire College. The new Lord Chancellor shall be elected by a plurality of votes cast.

2. The Chancellor of the Realm shall be elected by the UN Nations in the region to a 3 month term of office through an endorsement swap campaign. Candidates for the position must be members of the College of Equilism.

a. The Lord Chancellor shall open elections ten days before the current Chancellor of the Realm's end of term, at which time candidates may post their intent to run.

b. Five days before the end of the current Chancellor of the Realm's term, all candidates shall leave the region for the duration of one update. No new candidacies shall be accepted after this time. Update surfing in order to retain previous endorsements is not allowed. After returning to the region, all candidates may begin their campaigns, both on the forum and on the Region page by posting on the Message Board and through Telegrams.

c. When the current Chancellor of the Realm's term ends, the Chancellor shall leave the region for the duration of one update so the new delegate may take office. Should the current Chancellor of the Realm be surpassed in endorsement count before the official end of term, the election shall continue until the original end of term.

d. When the election ends, candidates not elected shall be given one week to drop their endorsement count to the accepted level.

X. Bill of Obligations

In keeping with the NationStates rules of etiquette, the following behaviours will constitute grounds for immediate ejection from the region:

1. Posting of any content considering spamming, content that is considered obscene, illegal, threatening, malicious or defamatory. This applies to a nation's name, motto and other customizable fields, any messages written, images posted, or any other content uploaded or linked to NationStates. Ejections for these violations will require public notice.

2. Also prohibited is the practice of "griefing." Griefing is playing with the primary aim of annoying or upsetting other people. If you do this, the game moderators may take action against you, and the Monarch/Founder and/or Delegate (if regional controls are on) may eject and ban you from the region. Ejections for griefing will require a public notice.

3. Attempting to steal another nation's identity is fraudulent behaviour and breaches the NationStates terms & conditions. The same applies to any attempt to impersonate another player, including attempting to hack nation,region, or forum passwords.

4. Known member nations of invader regions and groups may be ejected at the discretion of the Founder. The Founder reserves the right to eject spammers and others acting in an inappropriate manner, as well as the right to inform the game moderators of such activity as may be appropriate. Such actions will be answerable to the College of Equilism.

XI. Bill of Rights

The following are recognized as the inalienable rights of the member nations of the Equilism region.

1. Self-determination. The general government of Equilism shall make no law or regulation governing the internal operation of any nation state within the region. Each nation state will maintain the right to govern itself in accordance with its own customs and desires.

2. Freedom of speech. The general government shall make no law restricting the freedom of speech within Equilism beyond those rules governing all participation and etiquette in NationStates, and forum guidelines.

3. Freedom of the Press. The government shall make no law or take any action that restricts, censors, or punishes a free press, except in those cases when it might threaten regional security or go against forum guidelines. Censorship of the press by the government must be approved by the full Judiciary in closed session.

4. All nations will have the right to participate and vote in accordance to the Equilism Constitution and laws.

5. All nations will have the right to a fair trial in accordance to the Equilism Constitution and laws, with the presumption that said parties are innocent until proven guilty

6. Reservation of Powers; Powers not enumerated in this Constitution shall be reserved to the member Nations by default. The Judiciary shall rule on matters where the reservation of powers is disputed. The onus must always be on the government to prove that a disputed right is not present.

Ratification

Ratified by unanimous consent of The College of Equilism, 2nd day of February, 2007

Signed by His Benevolent Majesty, Westwind, Monarch of The Realm of Equilism, 3rd day of February, 2007