Constitution of the Independent Order
WHEREAS the members of the Independent Order have, after due time and consideration, determined that there shall exist a single Constitution with supreme authority over all laws,
BE IT ENACTED by Her Excellency the Grand Chancellor, by and with the advice and consent of the Regional Assembly, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
Article One: The Chancellery
(1) The Grand Chancellor shall be the Head of Government and Head of State of the Order, and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of The Independent Order.
(2) The Grand Chancellor shall be responsible for:
- Ensuring the safety and stability of The Independent Order;
- Making any such enactments required for the peace, order and good government in the region;
- Appointing Ministers, the Lord Chief Justice and the Roleplay Magistrate, and any other formal positions, where required;
- Organising referenda, as defined by law;
- Inducting and expelling, by means of Writ, members of the region into the Regional Nobility;
- Administering the forum, the official chatroom of the region, the NationStates region, and any other official off-forum locations;
- Advising members of the executive, judiciary and legislature, where requested;
- Exercising authority arising from Order legislation, including this Constitution, where required;
- Delegating their authority, where required or defined by law.
(3) The Grand Chancellor may be recalled following a referendum of 3/4th of all eligible members of the Independent Order voting in favour, as defined by law. Should a Grand Chancellor be recalled, then a Constitutional Convention shall be required to appoint a replacement.
Article Two: Legislation
(4) The Grand Chancellor may enact any legislation, including amendments to the Constitution, Criminal Code and Roleplay Rules.
(5) Any enactment made shall be known as Acts of the Chancellery.
(6) The Grand Chancellor must, when seeking to make such legislative changes, publicly post, and announce on Discord, the regional message board and any other relevant areas, the proposed Act in the Conference Hall.
(7) The Act must remain in the Conference Hall, open for public debate or opposition, for a minimum of 72 hours, unless such an Act would amend the Constitution, Criminal Code, Emergency Procedures or Roleplay Rules, where it must be open for at least 96 hours.
(8) No Act amending the Roleplay Rules proposed initially by the Grand Chancellor may be enacted without the advice and consent of the Roleplay Magistrate, except where the enactment is approved by a referendum of eligible members.
(9) Any eligible member may petition in the Conference Hall thread to block an Act. Should the petition receive two further signatures from eligible members while the Act is in the Conference Hall, then the Act shall be subject to referendum of all eligible members.
(10) Any eligible member may bring forward their own legislation and, with the support of four further eligible members, require the Bill to be brought to a referendum of all eligible members.
(11) The Grand Chancellor may, where authorised or required by law to do so, issue a statutory instrument known as an Order of the Chancellory (herein ‘Order’). No Order shall need prior approval, however, any eligible member may bring forward, to the Conference Hall, a petition to repeal the Order. Should the petition receive four further signatures from eligible members, then the Order must be withdrawn.”
Article Four: The Roleplay Magistrate
(12) There shall be a Roleplay Magistrate responsible for the enforcement of roleplay rules.
(13) The Roleplay Magistrate shall be appointed by the Grand Chancellor for an indefinite term. The Roleplay Magistrate may be dismissed by the Grand Chancellor, or may be recalled following a referendum of all eligible members of the Independent Order, as defined by law.
(14) The Roleplay Magistrate shall:
- Appoint a Deputy Magistrate;
- Enforce the Roleplay Rules;
- Advise the Grand Chancellor on matters regarding the Roleplay Rules;
- Fulfil any responsibilities arising from legislation;
- Recommend awards to be issued by the Grand Chancellor to members of the Independent Order who have produced outstanding pieces of work; and
- Limit the rights of offending members by means of an Order of the Roleplay Magistrate (a ‘Roleplay Order’).
(15) When enforcing the Roleplay Rules, the Roleplay Magistrate must:
- Act objectively and impartially, and at no point may seek to advantage their own roleplay position;
- Seek to take all reasonable steps to resolve a conflict both privately and publicly;
- Publish records of any formal rulings they make in the appropriate forum, detailing the nature of the issue, the rule broken, the steps taken to resolve it and the resolution of the issue; and
- Only issue a Roleplay Order against a member after all other reasonable steps have been taken to resolve the matter.
Article Five: The Judiciary
(16) The Judiciary shall be headed by the Lord Chief Justice.
(17) The Lord Chief Justice shall be appointed by the Grand Chancellor for an indefinite term. The Lord Chief Justice may be dismissed by the Grand Chancellor, or may be recalled following a referendum of all eligible members of the Independent Order, as defined by law.
(18) The Lord Chief Justice shall be responsible for:
- Training Judges and Advocates;
- Advising the Chancellery and Roleplay Magistrate on points of law;
- Ensuring all Acts and Orders of the Chancellory are made in compliance, and are themselves compliant, with the Constitution, Criminal Code and Roleplay Rules;
- Investigating complaints originating outside the Regional Roleplay and determining a reasonable action;
- Fulfilling any responsibilities arising from legislation;
- Conducting judicial reviews where it is suspected that any member or institution of the government has acted ultra vires, as defined by law;
- Hearing appeals from the Roleplay Magistrate on matters regarding Regional Roleplay, as determined by law;
- Monitoring all elections to ensure that they are free and fair; and
- Ensuring that all areas of the government comply with all legislation.
(19) Should the Lord Chief Justice determine that a body has acted ultra vires, or that elections were not free and fair, they may issue an Order of the Judiciary (‘Judicial Order’) to remedy the matter, as defined by law.
Article Six: Miscellaneous Provisions
(20) The Constitution and the Criminal Code (2013) shall extend fully to all parts Independent Order, including the forum, NationStates region, official chatroom and any official off-forum locations. Additionally:- The Forum Terms of Service shall be considered part of this constitution, as defined by law;
- Where reference is made in law to a previous Charter or Constitution of the Independent Order, it shall be deemed to be referring to this Constitution; and
- The Grand Chancellor shall, where a matter arising in this constitution requires a definition in law, enact such legislation if necessary for the stable operation the constitution.
(22) If any individual in a position established by this Constitution fails to log in to the forum for a period of fourteen days without posting a Leave of Absence they shall be deemed as having vacated their position. Vacancies, including those arising from resignation, shall be filled:
- Where a deputy or vice exists, by said deputy or vice; or
- Where no such deputy or vice exists, or if the deputy or vice has also gone inactive, by the usual procedures specified in this Constitution and otherwise by law.
(22) An eligible member is one who has been a member of the forum for a period of at least 45 days, has made more than 20 non-spam posts on the forum, and is not serving any form of sentence under the Criminal Code (2013) or the Forum Terms of Service Act (2015).
Explanatory note (not part of Constitution)
This constitution replaces the existing Constitution of the Independent Order. It sets out that the Grand Chancellor will be the head of state, government and commander-in-chief, and will have certain functions + forum administrative powers. The Regional Assembly maintains its current powers, but adds to it all the powers of the Roleplay Council. It includes a section on the Roleplay Magistrate, who is responsible for enforcing the RP rules. Finally, it includes the Lord Chief Justice, who is responsible for enforcing general law, appeals and judicial review. The constitution applies everywhere the light touches.
As promised, a Constitution proposal which reflects the current state of the Independent Order. The changes aren't many actually, and allow for things to continue as-is while maintaining a path toward future greater interest from the Order in regional governance.
My proposal, minimalist and streamlined, with room for oversight to be added in as needed. I'll write up a Constitution in the coming days to reflect what is represented here, an option that allows for RP players to RP and for those who wish to engage in Government to do so:
(https://i.postimg.cc/9QjdvfvM/Chancellor.png)
Fellow Orderians,
For the past few weeks I've been working on an effort to reforge our Regional Government into a form which will allow for our spheres of role-play and gameplay to co-exist, imposing no pressure upon those who simply wish to RP to participate in regional government and gameplay affairs whilst allowing those who do desire more in the gameplay and governance aspects to take part in them. In the pursuit of this process I also endeavored to streamline the Government of the Independent Order, allowing for an efficient Government which will best represent us at home and abroad. Tonight, I present this plan to you, so that we may discuss it and move towards its adoption.
Orderian Revitalization Program
An Outline For A Reorganized Orderian Government
Section I: Organization And Powers of the Orderian Government
The Government of the Independent Order will be reorganized as follows:
The Chancellery:
The Chancellery will continue to be comprised of the Grand Chancellor and the Vice Chancellor.
The Grand Chancellor will work with the advice and guidance of the Privy Council to direct the policies of the Order, to promote both activity and growth of the Order, and to preserve the assets and cultural treasures of the Order. The Grand Chancellor will serve as the Head of Government and Head of State, and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.
The Chancellery will represent the 'executive' branch of the Order's Government and will be empowered to act in the best interests of the region. The Grand Chancellor shall act, in their duties as Head of State, as the Order's chief diplomatic agent.
The Privy Council:
The Privy Council shall serve to advise the Grand Chancellor on policy and to operate the office under their purview. The Vice Chancellor shall head the Privy Council, which will be composed of the following Officers of the Order:
Lord Chief Justice
Roleplay Moderator
World Assembly Delegate
Regional Affairs Liaison
The Body Politic:
The Body Politic of the Independent Order will be an assembly comprised of all Orderians for the discussion and debate of the Order's policies, as well as a forum from which the concerns and ideas of Orderians may be presented for the consideration of the regional government.
Section II: Domestic and Foreign Policies of the Order
Foreign:
The Order will maintain a foreign policy of engaging with regions we may cooperate with. With this being said, the Order will not engage with diplomacy or relations with regions who exhibit extremist policies, nor will it entertain relations with regions who disrupt the peace and tranquility of other regions. It will also support the right of all regions to self-determination, while acting (when it is capable of doing so) to dissuade the attempts of other regions to disrupt the domestic tranquility of regions abroad.
Domestic:
Recognizing our population of players who seek only to RP, no burdens or expectations will be imposed upon them to participate in the Regional Government. Those who wish solely to RP may do so, while those who wish to take part in the governance of the region shall be able to do so.
Section III: Repeal Of Obsolete Acts and Amendments To Standing Laws
I will be conducting a review of Orderian Acts and, with the consultation of our regional officers, will determine those which are obsolete and of no further use to the Independent Order. This section will be updated once that process has been completed.
This topic is open for the consideration of any ideas which Orderians may wish to put forward for inclusion in this process. Together, I am confident we will see a year of expanding opportunities for our region as we grow in numbers, and expand our reach into other spheres of regional gameplay.