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GC: HEM's Constitutional Proposal
#1

Constitution of The People's Coalition of The South Pacific

EXECUTIVE AUTHORITY

Establishment of a Cabinet

EA1: Executive authority shall be invested into a Cabinet that shall be elected by the citizenry of the South Pacific, by a majority vote, no less than every 60 days.

EA2: The Cabinet shall be composed of a Delegate, Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Domestic Affairs, and Minister of the Army.

Statement prohibiting collective Cabinet authority

EA3: Cabinet officers shall possess no extra-judicial powers, and may not authorize any actions outside their ordinary purview as officers of their respective portfolios.

EA4: “The Cabinet,” as an entity, shall not have, nor may any law lend it, any powers not directly provided to their respective portfolios.

ELECTIONS & PEOPLE'S CHALLENGE

Details regarding the General Election process

EPC1: Each Cabinet office shall be elected independently of each other in democratic elections that shall take place on The South Pacific forums.

EPC2: Candidates are required to receive a majority vote to assume the office of the Delegacy. Candidates for every other Cabinet office are required to receive a plurality vote to assume office.

EPC3: Elections shall be run by the administrative team, with oversight by the People’s Assembly.

Outlining the process of the People’s Challenge

EPC4: Once during a cabinet officer’s term, the nations of the South Pacific may initiate a “People’s Challenge” against an officer of the Cabinet. 

EPC5: A people’s challenge must be declared on the Regional Message Board, or forum, and declare specific grievances against a Cabinet officer. The Delegate shall administer the challenge process unless it is the Delegate himself being challenged, in which case a High Council member shall be deputized to administer the process.

EPC6: A vote of 80% + in an on-game poll is required to remove the Cabinet officer and terminate their tenure.

EPC7: If an affirmative People’s Challenge is achieved, elections shall be held if more than 30 days are left in a set term. If less than 30 days remain, the Delegate is permitted to appoint an interim official, with Assembly content, to finish out the term.

CABINET MANDATES

Outlining powers and responsibilities of the Delegate

CM1: The Delegate shall be the Head of State of the South Pacific.

CM2: The Delegate shall have authority to supervise the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of the Army

CM3: The Delegate shall recommend to the Assembly all Declarations of War and have a seat on the High Council.

CM4: The Delegate shall have the power to issue Executive Orders, which have the full force of legislation. The Delegate shall also have the power to veto Executive Orders from the Prime Minister.

CM5: The Delegate has the authority to eject a nation in accordance with prescribed law, or when the region is under eminent threat.

CM6: Improper ejection practices, as judged by the High Council or People’s Assembly are grounds for impeachment.

Outlining powers and responsibilities of the Prime Minister

CM7: The Prime Minister shall be the Head of Government of the South Pacific.

CM8: The Prime Minister shall have the authority to supervise the Minister of Domestic Affairs.

CM9: The Prime Minister shall serve as the President and presiding officer over the People’s Assembly, and have a seat on the High Council.

CM10: The Prime Minister shall have the power to issue Executive Orders, which have the full force of legislation. The Prime Minister shall also have the power to veto Executive Orders from the Delegate.

Outlining powers and responsibilities of other Cabinet Officers

CM11: The Minister of Foreign Affairs shall be tasked with embassy upkeep, communications with other regions, crafting relevant foreign policy, and holding the position of chief representative from the South Pacific to abroad.

CM12: The Minister of the Army shall be the Commander-in-Chief of the region, responsible for overseeing the region’s armed forces and providing for its defense. The Minister of the Army shall also be empowered to supervise the region’s intelligence network.

CM13: The Minister of Domestic Affairs shall be the region’s chief communicator to the in-game network. They shall be tasked with recruiting members to the forum and ensuring a healthy level of activity on-forum and in-game. They are also responsible for all state-owned media and communications to the forum and in-game population.

LEGISLATIVE AUTHORITY

Establishment of a People's Assembly

LA1: The primary legislative organ of the South Pacific shall be the People’s Assembly.

Membership

LA2: The People’s Assembly shall be open to all citizen’s of the South Pacific, all being guaranteed equal vote and voice without suppression or discrimination, unless in accordance with a ruling by the Supreme Court.

Leadership and administration

LA3: The People’s Assembly shall be chaired by the Prime Minister and any deputies they see fit to appoint.

Powers

LA4: The People’s Assembly shall be tasked with giving approval to all treaties, approving interim nominations, approving judicial appointments, and writing legislation for the region.

LA5: The People’s Assembly may revoke the commission of any officer of the region with a 60% majority vote.

LA6: The People’s Assembly shall have the power of subpoena, and may summon any officer to testify before a committee, or the whole, for any reason.

LA7: The People’s Assembly shall be the only entity authorized to approve a change of forum or change of government. No law or provision can delegate or transfer this power to any other office, branch, or individual regardless of circumstance.

Procedure

LA8: Business of the People’s Assembly, unless otherwise stated, may be conducted by majority votes of members present. 

JUDICIAL POWER & OVERSIGHT

Judicial supremacy statement

JPO1: All judicial power – being defined as the interpretation of legislation and the imposing of sanctions upon the citizens of The South Pacific -- is invested solely in a Supreme Court of the South Pacific, excepting only direct provisions made in this document.

JPO2: The Supreme Court shall be comprised of three citizens, acting as justices, who are appointed in consensus by the Delegate and Prime Minister.

Establishment of the office of Chief Justice

JPO3: The Supreme Court shall elect one amongst themselves to serve and be styled as Chief Justice. 

JPO4: The Chief Justice shall have the authority to manage the administrative business of the court and serve as its representative to the government, and hold a seat on the High Council.

THE HIGH COUNCIL

Establishment and Purpose of the High Council

HC1: The High Council shall be an extra-governmental body responsible for the security and safety of the South Pacific.

Powers and privileges

HC2: The High Council shall have the authority to authorize the ejection of a citizen nation or impose a ban not lasting longer than 48 hours.

HC3: Members of the High Council are authorized to supersede the endorsement cap and enforce the endorsement cap among other nations.

HC4: Should the Delegate resign or be removed, the High Council shall determine which among them shall act as Delegate until elections can be arranged. 

FORUM ADMINISTRATION

Statement of administrative team authority

AT1: The administrative team shall not the authority to engage in any judicial action unless required by the board Terms of Service.

AT2: The administrative team is subject to all terms of removal as any other office in the South Pacific.

INHERENT RIGHTS

IR1: All citizens that reside in The South Pacific shall be afforded all rights contemplated in this article unless otherwise noted.

(1) The freedom of speech, including the freedom of expression and the press.
(2) The freedom of thought, including the freedom of belief, opinion and conscience.
(3) The freedom of association, including the freedom of peaceful assembly.
(4) The right to equality and the freedom from the denial of participation based on arbitrary or discriminative criteria.
(5) The right to contact the government on all matters of their interest and receive a prompt and adequate response from the relevant officials.
(6) The right to defend themselves in the judicial system of the Coalition of The South Pacific with all the guarantees of a speedy hearing and due process of law and to be protected against the application of any law ex post facto.
(7) The right to apply for citizenship and have such an application promptly accepted, subject to requirements of citizenship, or otherwise denied under reasonable causes, with the right to an appeal to the appropriate officials.
(8) The freedom to reside in the region of The South Pacific, and the right to not be ejected or banned without reasonable cause and due process of law.
(9) The freedom to determine to whom their endorsements are given, subject to the duties and restrictions established in the Charter and the Code of Laws.
(10) Voting and being elected to an office under the Coalition of The South Pacific shall be rights afforded only to citizens except for the Local Council. For the Local Council only, voting and being elected to an office shall be open to all residents of The South Pacific.

IR2: Furthermore, no citizen shall have their citizenship removed, forum access restricted, or in any fashion otherwise suppressed by any institution but the Supreme Court except in temporary measures specifically prescribed in this document.

AMMENDING FORMULA

AF1: The amending formula of this document shall require a 60% +1 vote of the People's Assembly.
Formerly Relevant, Currently Former.
#2

I...really don't like the "People's" part. It's too SPSR-ish. I'd vastly prefer, for any proposal, that we kept the Coalition name, regardless of how the actual government ends up being structured. :/
Former Delegate of the South Pacific
Posts outside High Court venues should be taken as those of any other legislator.
I do not participate in the regional server, but I am happy to talk through instant messaging or on the forum.

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#3

Sparknotes version:

- Establishes elected Cabinet with a separate Head of Government (Prime Minister) to handle domestic affairs and Head of State (Delegate) to handle external affairs
- Scraps the Local Council, but inserts the "people's challenge" which allows game-side to remove regional officers.
- Severely curtails the collective power of the Cabinet and hands those powers off to the Head of Government / Head of State or Assembly.
- Reforms the CSS into a collection of the highest government officials (all accountable to the citizenry) called the High Council.
- Create an appointed court, with justices approved by the Assembly.

Possible changes:

- Move to an appointed Cabinet system
- Retain the CSS as it is presently
- ??
Formerly Relevant, Currently Former.
#4

I don't want to grand stand and posted my larger argument of this in another thread.

But, what do we think about having either an appointed delegate or making a delegate's term significantly longer than the rest of the Cabinet and, ultimately, being a more ceremonial role?
-tsunamy
[forum admin]
#5

This is awfully Europiean.
Europeian Ambassador to The South Pacific
Former Local Council Member
Former Minister of Regional Affairs
Former High Court Justice
#6

... Can we please wait until the GC actually starts?
#7

(02-08-2016, 12:47 PM)sandaoguo Wrote: ... Can we please wait until the GC actually starts?

Yes, all we're doing with this is effectively starting the GC weeks early.
#8

I think this Great Council will be larger, longer, and more complex since the one in 2009 when we eliminated the Prime Minister position and established the Delegate as Head of Government. I agree with Tsunamy that the more time, the better.

There are lots of different visions for how this region could work, and unlike Tsunamy, I believe some debate will come easier when a specific proposal exists to work off of. Even if my proposal is not ultimately chosen, I hope it gives us a frame in which to discuss key issues.
Formerly Relevant, Currently Former.
#9

(02-08-2016, 05:39 PM)HEM Wrote: I think this Great Council will be larger, longer, and more complex since the one in 2009 when we eliminated the Prime Minister position and established the Delegate as Head of Government. I agree with Tsunamy that the more time, the better.

There are lots of different visions for how this region could work, and unlike Tsunamy, I believe some debate will come easier when a specific proposal exists to work off of. Even if my proposal is not ultimately chosen, I hope it gives us a frame in which to discuss key issues.

I think we all agree this will be a larger Council than normal, and that's why we want to wait on this so we can create these proposals in preparation for the Council. A lack of sufficient preparation is actually what's gone wrong with the last Great Councils.
#10

(02-08-2016, 12:11 PM)Punchwood Wrote: This is awfully Europiean.

What, in formatting? Because otherwise it literally doesn't resemble our system at all.  :-/
Formerly Relevant, Currently Former.




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