Welcome Guest [Log In] [Register]
Discussion ongoing for Interregional Leftist Alliance..... Second Consul term begins..... More Justices needed for the Court....... Realms drafting Charters now...... Racao re-elected Prime Minister; second government being approved....... Regional map in process

Welcome to the Headquarters of the UDLS Fill out this form to have forum access

Regional Government


President Azerzia

Prime Minister and Minister of Internal Affairs Racao

Minister of Foreign Affairs Alantrillium

Minister of Immigration Lutumcrucis

Minister of Justice Quebecc



Regional Time

Regional Summary


Uploaded with ImageShack.us


A region of democratic leftists and left leaning states; debate is encouraged


Realmic Consuls

Consul of the Vineyard Quebecc

Consul of Libera Terras Ceolciarog

Consul of Mormont Etonia

Consul of Rabočie Ray Halda-Vatn


Useful Links

UDLS NS

Constitution of the UDLS

Assembly Discussion



Once you have a forum account you may become a member nation by signing the Register of Nations
Locked Topic
Constitution of the Union of Democratic Leftist States
Topic Started: Jul 21 2013, 01:55 AM (1,077 Views)
UDLS Founder
Member Avatar
Administrator
Constitution of the Union of Democratic Leftist States

We, the nations and people of the Union of Democratic Leftist States, understand that regions serve the purpose of uniting people of common interests and beliefs. We understand that a region is not sovereign, rather its nations are; however, we understand that our region requires good governance, and that governance requires the rule of law. Further, we understand that the rule of law requires sacrificing some freedoms in order to create a system where all people may be as free from interference, both from hostile groups and the powerful, as possible. We also understand that some interference is beneficial, as we must support those who cannot support themselves and all nations and people have the right to prosperity, not just those whom fate has favored. To create that perfect system of little interference in liberty but greatest support for the downtrodden, and to create that system so that all voices may be heard and involved, we put forward to time this Constitution.
Edited by UDLS Founder, Jul 21 2013, 01:58 AM.
Offline Profile Goto Top
 
UDLS Founder
Member Avatar
Administrator
Article 1. Rights and Obligations of Resident Nations

§1 States are the governing body of one or more nations. Nations are the entities recognized by the World Assembly as having sovereignty and separateness.

§2 All nations within the region must, by the observation of the World Assembly, have political freedoms and civil rights of Average or higher. They must espouse both some leftist or centrist economic philosophy and a liberal or democratic political philosophy. Slavery must be illegal and states must believe in equality of all peoples.

Non-member nations which do not meet the above will be given notice and a reasonable timeframe to make changes to qualify. To not make the needed changes within this timeframe will result in expulsion.

Member nations, as defined in section 3 of this Article, will have legal proceedings carried against them in accordance to Article 8 of this Constitution.

§3 To be considered member nations, states must publically bind themselves to this Constitution and all laws created by the region’s government by registering themselves to the Register of Nations. Only one nation controlled by a particular state may be represented; other nations of that state may legally reside within the region.

§4 Member nations may run for political office, provided that they meet other requirements for that office. Member nations make up the Regional Assembly, and thus are allowed to vote on legislation.

States acting as ambassadors or diplomats for a foreign power to this region cannot have a member nation hold office in the region or vote in the Regional Assembly. All ambassadors and diplomats of foreign powers must fulfill the requirements of this Article.

§5 States are legally responsible for actions carried out by any of their nations within the Union or its allies. All states who are reside within the region or perform actions while located within it are bound by its laws for the duration of their stay.

§6 All states may express any belief or set of beliefs, however unpopular or controversial, so long as those statements of belief do not directly encourage members to act illegally.

§7 Member nations may form or join organizations to better express their beliefs, including ones which are against regional interests so long as they do not advocate the destruction of democracy or leftism within the region or the forceful overthrow of the government of this region or an allied region. Those organizations must make clear that they do not represent the interests of the Union. Legislation may be passed by either the Regional Assembly or a Realm Council in order to regulate interactions with organizations, but that legislation cannot hinder the purpose of the organization.

§8 All states have the right to know any charges brought before it by the government of the region. They have the right to defend themselves in a fair trial, where their politics and beliefs do not impact the verdict.

§9 No state may be charged ex post facto or charged for the same offense twice. No state may be forced to self-incriminating testimony.

§10 All states have the right to accuse another state of some crime. That state may report with confidence of anonymity from the general public but will be known to the appropriate portions of the regional government.

§11 States are sovereign entities and all legitimacy of the region, its government and the Realms within this region are derived from them. They have independence in addressing issues which arise within their boundaries, but must meet the framework set forth by this Constitution and their Realm.
Edited by UDLS Founder, Jul 21 2013, 01:58 AM.
Offline Profile Goto Top
 
UDLS Founder
Member Avatar
Administrator
Article 2. Powers of the Realms

§1 There are multiple Realms within the region. They are independent, integral entities which may pass laws on their own and have their own structure.

§2 All member nations will be placed into a Realm in the region based upon the nation in question and the Realm. Nations may be reassigned to a new Realm but this is regulated by regional law.

§3 All of the member nations of a Realm, except those who are part of the Senate, the Court of Justice or the President, make up the voting members that realm’s Realmic Council. Each Realmic Council may create its own legislation which affects only the members of that Realm. All members of a Realm may propose legislation to it. Those laws may only act as a framework for the states in that Realm and cannot infringe on the state’s sovereignty to choose how to address particular issues within their boundaries.

§4 The central law in a Realm is its charter or principal law. No act by the Regional Assembly may modify such a law. Certain portions of such a law may be declared unconstitutional and forced to be changed by the Court of Justice.

§5 Each Realm has an executive, called the Consul, who is elected by the members of that Realm. The Consul must sign all bills created by that Council which solely effect that Realm for them to come into effect. If the Consul refuses to do so, the Council may vote again and bring it into effect anyway if two-thirds of those voting vote in favor of the legislation. Realmic law may restrict the freedom of the Consul to reject legislation.

§6 Consuls serve for three months. Consuls cannot also serve as President or as a Justice of the Court. Exact electoral methods and qualifications for each Consul are determined by the legislation passed by the Council for that Realm. The qualifications must be reasonable and not place restrictions for the purpose of excluding a portion of the region from involvement.

§7 Voting for Consuls begins at midnight universal coordinated time on 1 February, 1 May, 1 August and 1 November. Voting goes for one week and is preceded by one week of public campaigning.

§8 The election is overseen by the laws of the Realm, or, if not specified, the members of the Court of Justice or their official designee.
Edited by UDLS Founder, Jul 21 2013, 01:59 AM.
Offline Profile Goto Top
 
UDLS Founder
Member Avatar
Administrator
Article 3. Powers of the Regional Assembly

§1 The Regional Assembly is the legislature of the region. It is made up of all members of the region, except the President and the Justices and members controlled by a state acting as ambassadors or diplomats of foreign powers.

§2 There are five houses within the legislature: the Senate and each of the Realmic Councils. Legislation which affects the entire region must be first voted upon by the Senate and then sent to the Realmic Councils, whether or not the legislation passed. All member nations of the region may propose legislation to the Senate. Legislation passed by one of the Realmic Councils and then adopted by the Senate needs to be voted upon by that Realmic Council again.

§3 The Senate is made up of the Consuls and the Ministers.Consuls may serve as a Minister but receive only one vote.

§4 There are multiple types of legislation. Acts and amendments to acts are regular laws outside of the structure of government and protections of liberty and are voted upon for one week. Treaties are agreements between the region and the another region or organization and are voted upon for two weeks. These are passed by a simple majority in three houses. Constitutional Amendments require a simple majority vote in four houses and are voted upon for three weeks.

§5 All legislation must be discussed publicly for at least a full week in the Senate before it can come to a vote. The sponsor of a piece of legislation is the one who begins the voting time and should be the nation who proposed it. If the legislation was proposed by a member outside the Senate, one member of the Senate acts as sponsor. All legislation proposed to the Senate must be voted upon, even if its original sponsor has withdrawn their support. All voting for a piece of legislation in the Senate is private. Voting procedure in the Councils is determined by them.

§6 All legislation that has been passed must be signed by the President before coming into effect. If the President refuses to sign it, a three-fifths majority must vote in favor in three houses for legislation not amending this Constitution is need to override that decision. For Constitutional amendments, a three-fifths majority in four houses is needed.

§7 In the event of conflict and the President asks for a declaration of war, all members of the Regional Assembly vote as one body. This combined vote of in favor or against determines whether or not the region will be at war or if troops will need to stand down. Voting lasts for three days.

§8 When approving the nominees for the appointed Justice positions or the Ministries, voting to elect the non-appointed Justice or voting to confirm confidence in each of the Justices, all members of the Regional Assembly vote as one body. This combined vote of in favor or against determines whether the state in question will take the seat. Voting lasts for one week.
Edited by UDLS Founder, Jul 21 2013, 01:59 AM.
Offline Profile Goto Top
 
UDLS Founder
Member Avatar
Administrator
Article 4. Separation of powers between the Realmic Councils and the Regional Assembly

§1 The Realmic Councils and the Regional Assembly both have legislative power, and the Realmic Councils are a part of the Regional Assembly.

§2 Each has its own purview of topics which it can create or start legislation.

§3 All treaties, amendments to this Constitution, laws affecting the majority of Realms, actions for the creation of Realms and laws affecting the regions military must be started in the Senate of the Regional Assembly.

§4 All laws relating to the framework for membership in a Realm, expectations of members within that Realm, voting procedures for laws in the Realm and for the Consul and laws affecting a minority of Realms are passed solely by the Realmic Councils.

§5 Penal codes, regulating of political parties and other internal organization and agreements between a majority of Realms without affecting the Region’s government are shared between the Regional Assembly and the Realmic Councils. Areas not expressly defined are assumed to be shared. The laws of the Regional Assembly override the laws of the Realmic Councils on such matters.
Edited by UDLS Founder, Jul 21 2013, 02:00 AM.
Offline Profile Goto Top
 
UDLS Founder
Member Avatar
Administrator
Article 5. Powers of the President

§1 The President is the head of the region. They lead the region’s military forces, are responsible for its fair governance and are responsible for ensuring balance. As such, the President’s state is given control over the Founder nation during their tenure in office. In this capacity, the President must act on the legal directives of the Ministers so that the Ministers may carry out their duties.

§2 The President signs all legislation passed by the Regional Assembly before it comes into force. If the President refuses, that veto may be overturned by the Regional Assembly.

§3 The President appoints a Prime Minister to Act as the head of government. The President cannot act a Minister or as the Prime Minister.

§4 The President, with advice from the Ministers, selects the states who will be part of the Court of Justice. While the President must hear the advice of the Ministers, he is free to make the decision without their direct approval. The President cannot be a Justice.

§5 The President may give orders to the troops in the region in order to help defend it or its allies from hostile outside forces or to help liberate weaker regions. The President may not draft troops and all troops are volunteers. In the case of extended conflict of over one week between this region and another, where the stability of the region itself is at risk, the President must have troops stand down or ask the Regional Assembly for a declaration of war.

§6 The President and Consuls may together create an Executive Order. Executive Orders only last for two weeks and have the power of any law. Executive Orders immediately enter debate in the Senate, if the Order is regional law, or a Realmic Council, if the Order is directed as Realmic law, and are voted upon at the end of the week. Executive Orders cannot modify the Constitution, the principal law or charter of a Realm or reduce any privileges. They cannot implement a law which has already been declared unconstitutional.

§7 Any member nation who has been a member of the region since its founding or who has resided in the region for three months may run for the position of President. In fulfilling their duties, the President has access to the founder nation.

§8 The President is elected at large by all members of the region and serve for six months. There is a one week period of public campaigning and one week of voting. Voting is done by instant run-off voting. Voting begins at midnight universal coordinated time on 1 February and 1 August.

§9 The election is overseen by the members of the Court of Justice, or their official designee.
Edited by UDLS Founder, Jul 21 2013, 02:00 AM.
Offline Profile Goto Top
 
UDLS Founder
Member Avatar
Administrator
Article 6. Powers of the Ministers

§1 The Prime Minister is the head of the region’s government and is appointed by the President, but approved by the Regional Assembly. They and the other ministers are selected by appointment and party list voting.

§2 Upon appointment, they select from the member nations of the region who are not acting as President or as Justice to serve as Ministers. Each Minister is given a purview and the Prime Minister selects one for themselves. The number of Ministries is agreed to by the President and Consuls every three months at the start of the Consul terms. There must always be at least three Ministers.

The new government must be approved as a group by the Regional Assembly, as laid out in Article 3. Should they be rejected, a new Prime Minister will be appointed and a new government created which must also be approved.

§3 The topics which may be combined or used independently to create Ministries are as follows.

Recruiting, which is the process by which new members are invited to join the region.

Naturalization, which is the process by which new nations are made into active member nations processes and given a Realm.

Activities, which is the managing of events on the forum such as the interactions between member nations in terms of diplomacy and friendship building events.

Censorship, which is the monitoring of information and ensuring proper etiquette and language is used, in line with laws and freedom of expression. They also ensure all legislation is grammatically correct and properly formatted.

Communications, which is the posting of information about regional goings on to keep members informed

Infrastructure, which is the maintenance of the regional headquarters. They serve as the administrator of the forum, along with the President, and in order to maintain the proper organization of legislation, discussions and forum appearance.

Military affairs, which is the maintaining of military readiness of the region through training, recruitment and espionage

Judicial affairs, which is the regulating of investigations and of policies for attorneys for the state and for defense.

World Assembly relations, which is relating the goings on in the World Assembly to the region at large. The Minister for this is also the World Assembly Delegate.

Foreign relations, which is the presenting of the region to other regions and organizations outside of the region.

§4 Ministers can create agencies which are placed underneath of their respective ministry. The members of such agencies work in a particular area delegated to them by the Minister. Should Ministries be reshuffled, those agencies move along to the appropriate new Ministry.

§5 Ministers have complete control over their Ministry, but must answer to both the Prime Minister and the President. If they do not act in a way which both the Prime Minister and President want, they will be dismissed. The Prime Minister must answer to the President, or be dismissed.

§6 Elections for ministers are done democratically among all member nations of the region. Exact methods for selection will be specified by the Regional Assembly and go by tradition until such laws are passed. Care must be taken to ensure that, with whatever system used, the proportions of party affiliation in the Senate must be as close to the way member nations voted as possible in the minister election.

§7 Voting occurs for one week with one week of public campaigning prior to that by political parties. Voting begins at midnight universal coordinated time on 15 March, 15 June, 15 September and 15 December.

§8 During the period between the end of voting and the approval of the new government, the previous government continues to remain in office.

§9 The election is overseen by the members of the Court of Justice, or their official designee.
Edited by UDLS Founder, Jul 21 2013, 02:04 AM.
Offline Profile Goto Top
 
UDLS Founder
Member Avatar
Administrator
Article 7. Powers of the Court of Justice

§1 The Court of Justice shall serve as the judiciary of the region, and will make rulings on the guilt of parties. It is also the protector of the Constitution.

§2 It is made up of three Justices. The Justice who has served the longest as Justice is the Chief Justice. If there is an equal length of service, one is either selected by the other Justices or, if no agreement can be made, by the President to act as Chief Justice.

§3 The Court of Justice preside over all trials on illegal activities brought before it by the minister responsible for judicial affairs. They determine rulings on guilt or innocence and sentencing. Rulings must be unanimous for guilt or innocence to be declared.

§4 The Court of Justice presides over all hearings on Constitutionality of legislation passed by the Regional assembly or a Realmic Council. Hearings may be started by any member nation. After hearing arguments presented by both sides, the Court makes a ruling on Constitutionality. A simple majority is needed for one side or the other to make such a ruling.
If a Realm does not have its own method of determining if laws meet the demands of their principal law or charter, the validity of such laws can be checked by the method in this charter. Such a law may be Constitutional, but does not meet the standards of that Realm’s charter.

§5 Two members of the Court of Justice are nominated by the President, with the third elected at large by the Regional Assembly. Those that are nominated must be approved by the Regional Assembly. The election for the non-appointed Justice lasts for one week, with a week of campaigning prior. The election is by instant run-off voting.

§6 At the start of each new Presidential term, the Justices must pass a vote of confidence with the Regional Assembly. They are shown to have confidence by a simple majority. If they fail, a new state must be nominated or an election held, depending on the seat in question.

§7 The election and approval process is overseen by the Prime Minister and President.
Edited by UDLS Founder, Jul 21 2013, 02:01 AM.
Offline Profile Goto Top
 
UDLS Founder
Member Avatar
Administrator
Article 8. Legal Proceedings

§1 All beliefs in criminal activity by a resident nation should be reported to the Minister responsible for judicial affairs.

§2 The minister, upon receiving such a report or observing such activity, must send the state in question a warning that such activity has been reported and a week is given to correct the activity if a minor offense or a violation of Article 1, Section 2 of this Constitution. If evidence points to such an activity is still occurring, or if the offense of sever, an investigation into the charges begins immediately.

§3 If investigation points to a crime being committed, the evidence is presented to the Court of Justice. The Court will then begin judicial proceedings and the accused state is informed of the commencing trial.

§4 The minister responsible for judicial affairs, or a state working for them, presents the charges and all evidence. The accused state must then place a defense of their actions or a rebuttal of the charges within a day. If that accused state does not do so, a state who has sworn to act in the best interests of the accused will place such an argument or rebuttal for them. Witnesses may be called and the trial may go on for as long as there is evidence or witnesses to call or debate.

§5 All evidence and witnesses must be truthful. Witnesses must present information to the best of their knowledge. All evidence must be used in its proper context.

§6 Once the discussions have ended, or have reached the point of simple repetition, the Court of Justices adjourns to make a ruling on guilt and sentencing. The Chief Justice determines if the debate has reached simple repetition, but may be overruled by the other Justices unanimously. The Chief Justice announces the ruling of the Court.

§7 If members of the Senate, the President, a member of a government agency or a Justice of the Court is accused of a crime and it proceeds to trial, the state temporarily steps down from their position. They are replaced for the short term by the methods listed in Article 10, Section 1. If the minister responsible for judicial affairs is the state believed to have performed an illegal action, it should be reported to the Prime Minister, or if that state is the Prime Minister, to the President. The Prime Minister or President will perform the duties of the minister for that case before the trial. If a trial commences, a replacement is selected in accordance with the first clauses of this section.

§8 The exact sentences for each offense will be listed with those offenses and be determined by the Regional Assembly. Sentences must be fair and appropriate to the type of crime committed.
Edited by UDLS Founder, Jul 21 2013, 02:02 AM.
Offline Profile Goto Top
 
UDLS Founder
Member Avatar
Administrator
Article 9. Relationship with foreign powers

§1 All regions which wish to hold embassies with this region must believe in both regional democracy or republicanism and national democracy or republicanism. The majority of member states must have a preference for some level of state involvement in the economy and believe in some sort of social safety net.

§2 All regions must be recognized as being of medium size or larger by the World Assembly. They must be willing to both accept and send ambassadors. Regions must also be willing to have both a public embassies and an embassies in the headquarters of the regions. They must have active members in all government positions.

§3 Organizations which wish to have formal relations with this region must respect regional independence and not attempt to gain control of the region. They must have a vested interest in democracy or in strengthening this region.

§4 Organizations and regions which do not meet the above requirements, but have short term importance to the region, may open a diplomatic mission in the headquarters of the region. Missions can be opened during negotiations on the terms of the treaty by regions and organizations which meet the requirements of this article.

§5 Treaties establish embassies with both organizations and other regions. These are voted upon by the Regional Assembly, as described in Article 3. Missions can be agreed to by the minister responsible for foreign relations, but cannot last longer than a month before a formal treaty needs to be presented to the Regional Assembly. That treaty and the signatories must meet the standards of this Article.

§6 This region may join organizations with other regions and groups for its own benefit. That organization must be supportive of the values within this region. If this region is creating the organization, it is agreed to by the creation of an appropriate treaty which is then passed by the Regional Assembly. If the organization is pre-existing, admittance to that organization must be passed within this region as if it were a treaty.

§6 The region supports the right to regional independence, even for regions whose principles are repulsive to the common sensibilities of those in the region. The President may use the military in order to protect that right among regions in desperate need of assistance or else they may have their independence removed permanently.

§7 The region supports the right to its own independence and its ability to protect itself from hostile threats by any means necessary.

§8 All military intelligence gathered in regards to hostile threats is classified and is known only to the operatives who collected it, the minister responsible for military affairs and the President. It can only be released to other regions or organizations, or to the Regional Assembly as a whole, by agreement of the minister responsible for military affairs and the President. It may be released to members of the Senate and the Court of Justice at the discretion of either the minister for military affairs or the President. Those states cannot release that information to anyone else.
Edited by UDLS Founder, Jul 21 2013, 02:02 AM.
Offline Profile Goto Top
 
1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous)
Go to Next Page
« Previous Topic · Active Assembly Legislation · Next Topic »
Locked Topic