It is a great thing to be a South Pacifican. You are part of a community that values freedom, justice and self-determination above all else; the old motto, friendship and cooperation, stands strong despite years of challenges and difficulties, and generations upon generations of leaders remain steadfast in their commitment to the ideals upon which the Coalition was founded.

We gather to celebrate the sixteenth anniversary of our independence; that is, of the chain of events that resulted in LadyRebels refusing to recruit for the foreign group known as the Atlantic Central Command from among South Pacificans, ultimately resigning her commission in said group, and therefore upholding the right of the South Pacific to making its own sovereign decisions and set its own course. As we celebrate this occasion, it is important to remember why our values are so important, and how the High Court fits into that structure.

We are a democracy: we elect our government, allow our citizens to express themselves however they wish and to get involved in the intricacies of regional life, be that law making, journalism, serving as diplomats, soldiers or even just through the basic exercise of the vote. Our community is vibrant because we allow it to grow and prosper, and because we rejoice when a newcomer takes the steps to contribute, to give back to the region.

We are fair and friendly. It is our way to welcome those who are new, to lend them a hand and help them find their place in the region. Some like to roleplay, others like to draft laws, and others like to participate in military gameplay. If you come in good faith, there is a place for you in the region. We need go no further than Southern Bellz, a raider who came to the region and was welcomed with open arms, to the point where he had the privilege of serving as our Delegate on two occasions.

With such a supposedly idyllic community, one might ask, why would there be a need for a judiciary? Despite the high values, which I believe we apply more successfully than other regions, we are still a community of people, and so the system is far from perfect: injustice may occur, there can be doubts on how the laws should be apply. Under those circumstances, there is a need for impartial eyes that can take a measured look at the law and decide what the outcome should be, not based on biases or personal preferences, but rather based on what the laws says and what is fair to both sides of a grievance.

When the High Court answers a legal question a certain way, or convicts someone, or overturns a government actions, it upholds the values that LadyRebels reclaimed when she resigned from the ACC and declared the South Pacific a free region. Freedom, as we understand it today, should apply not only to the region itself with respect to foreign entities, but also its own members within the regional community: we should each be free to operate within a clear and consistent legal system, we should be free to act without fear from arbitrary government actions, we should be free to obtain justice for crimes committed against us, or to defend ourselves and be treated fairly when accused of a crime.

When we talk about South Pacifican justice, we talk about one of the pillars on which our values system rests, one of the pillars that has supported our community for the past sixteen years. Our community prides itself on being open, fair, fun and vibrant. It is the privilege of the High Court, and its four sitting Justices, to uphold the values that make our region what it is today, and to continue with our part the mission entrusted to each one of us citizens, past, present and future, by LadyRebels: to ensure that the South Pacific remains a free region.