Difference between revisions of "Orion Confederacy Constitution"

Latest revision as of 20:24, 7 August 2011

The member worlds of the Orion Confederacy hereby agree that all sentient beings:

Have rights to free speech, and assembly,

Are entitled to the pursuit of happiness, no matter the circumstances of birth, species, or creed

Provide any government over them its just powers by their own consent and their own consent alone

Should, must, and will band together of their common defense and that of their principles, against all threats, foreign and domestic.

Are subject and entitled to justice in the eyes of their creator and their peers, pursuant to the laws of their government administered in the spirit of these principles.

We, the member worlds of the Orion Confederacy declare ourselves sovereign from all other governments or laws - acknowledge the integrity of interstellar common law as necessary to our principles - and declare ourselves open to friendly relations with any being or beings that respect our commitment to our principles and our right to live as we choose.

Resolved:

That the executive of the Orion Confederacy shall be a President chosen by an electoral college every two years. No being may serve as President for more than four terms. The electoral college shall be made up of representatives chosen by the member worlds. Each world shall have one representative for every amount of people determined by the Confederacy's legislature. The President shall be entrusted with the enforcement of laws crafted by the legislature. All law enforcement powers and military command shall be executed by the office of the President. No military action shall be taken outside Confederacy territory without an express declaration of war by the High Council, and no law enforcement action may infringe upon the civil rights of the citizenry as set forth in this document. The President shall be advised and assisted by a cabinet of five individuals: the Minister of State, the Minister of Defense, the Minister of Trade, the Attorney General, and the Treasurer. The Ministry of State shall be responsible for ambassadors and other officials who deal with foreign powers. The Ministry of Defense shall be responsible for overseeing the Confederacy Defense Fleet. The Trade Ministry shall be responsible for overseeing enforcement of trade embargoes, tariffs and inter-planetary commerce as proscribed by law. The Justice Ministry shall be responsible for the enforcement of domestic law through the apprehension and prosecution of criminal suspects, as well as the execution of court-ordered sentences. The Treasury shall be responsible for maintenance of the Confederate budget and the collection of such taxes as have been laid by the legislature, as well as the conducting of a numerical voluntary census of all Confederate territories every two years. This cabinet will be appointed by the President and confirmed by a two-thirds majority of the Senate.

The President will have the authority to convene either or both legislative houses in an emergency if they are out of session.

His shall be the duty of receiving ambassadors and other foreign representatives, as well as approving and signing treaties which have been ratified by the High Council.

The President may be impeached and removed from office for crimes including acting outside the province of his office as set down in this document. This will be the responsibility of the legislature.

Resolved:

That the legislature of the Orion Confederacy shall be made up of two bodies. The first of these shall be a Senate made up of a single representative for each thousand citizens. This amount can be changed by an act of legislature to account for population increases. These citizens will be divided into geographical districts by act of the legislature according to review of the biannual census.

The second body shall be a High Council, comprised of two members for each inhabited member world, and one member for each guild or autonomous region. The manner in which these representatives are to be chosen shall be left to the discretion of their respective governments. A guild or autonomous region can be created thusly: A petition bearing the confirmed signatures of Confederacy citizens in number no less than half the population of the least populous member world must be submitted to the Senate for review. A two-thirds majority is required to confirm the admission, and can be vetoed by a unanimous vote of the High Council. Any group or territory desiring such a position must ratify this document. If a autonomous region candidate lies within the proscribed territory of a member world, that world's government must grant independence to that region before it can be considered for a Council seat.

The legislative bodies of the Orion Confederacy shall have the power to: lay taxes, duties, imposts and excises, to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the Orion Confederacy; but all duties, imposts, taxes, and excises shall be uniform throughout the Orion Confederacy

To borrow money on the credit of the Orion Confederacy.

To estalblish a uniform rule of Naturalization and uniform laws on the subject of bankruptcy.

To create a currency and maintain its value.

To provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the securites and or current coin of the Orion Confederacy.

To promote the progress of science and art by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their work.

To define piracies and felonies committed in interstellar space.

To declare war, grant letters of marque and reprisal, and make rules concerning captures made under the authority of such letters.

To provide for and maintain the Confederacy Defense Fleet.

To make rules for the government and regulation of the armed forces.

To make all laws which shall be necessary for the protection of the persons and property of all people within the jurisdiction of the Orion Confederacy.

Resolved:

That the judicial branch of the Orion Confederacy shall be made up of an Confederate Supreme Court, Confederate Appeals Courts, and District Courts. Senatorial Districts will placed in adjacent groups of three by act of the Senate to make up Court Districts and each member world and autonomous region will be under the jurisdiction of a Confederate Appeals Court. Each District Court will be presided over by five judges who will hear cases individually. Each appeals court will be presided over by fifteen judges who will hear cases in groups of three. The Confederate Supreme Court will be presided over by five Justices, the senior-most will be termed the Chief Justice of the Confederacy. The Justices will hear cases together and verdicts will be arrived at by a majority vote. The Confederate Supreme Court shall have the authority to review any law passed by either legislature and determine whether it be in agreement with this document, and whether it be within the powers of the government as defined by this document.

Justices and judges will be appointed by order of the President and confirmed by a two-thirds majority of the Senate, with veto power going to a unanimous vote of the High Council. Justices and judges can be impeached and removed from office in the same way that the President can.

Resolved:

That any established, independent settlement may become a protectorate of the Orion Confederacy if act of the legislature approves of their application which must show the approval of the popular majority of that independent settlement. Citizens of protectorates will be granted citizenship within the Confederacy, with the rights and responsibilities thereof, but will have no representation on the High Council unless they petition for membership or autonomous region status. Member world applicants must show a demonstrate that a popular majority desires membership. They must also ratify this document.

Resolved:

That the Legislature may make no law ordering the establishment of any religion, nor any law preventing the free exercise of religion except in cases damaging to the person or property of other citizens without their consent - that no law shall be ordered infringing on the right to free speech in any medium, except in cases of proven slander.or libel - that no law shall be ordered preventing peaceful assembly of Confederacy citizens.

Resolved:

That the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed upon by any act of the legislature.

Resolved:

No member of the armed forces or law enforcement establishment shall be quartered on private property without the consent of the owner.

Resolved:

Search and seizure of private property or persons shall not be conducted without a warrant of search or arrest issued by court order. No warrant shall be issued except probable cause be shown, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place or person to be searched, or the person or things to be seized.

The verdicts of all criminal and civil cases shall be determined by a jury unless both parties agree to arbitration by sitting judge. In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall not be deprived of a speedy and public trial within the district wherein the crime shall have been committed, to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation, to be confronted by the witnesses against him or her, to be allowed to compell witnesses for his or her defense to appear on his or her behalf, and to have the Assistance of Counsel in his or her defense. No person shall be subject to trial twice for the same offense, nor shall he or she be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against his or herself, nor to be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law. Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel or unusual punishments inflicted.

Resolved:

The enumeration in this Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

Resolved:

No private propertyh shall be taken for public use with out just compensation and the consent of the owner.

Resolved:

That the powers not delegated to the Orion Confederacy by this Constitution, nor prohibited by it to its members and regions are reserved to those members and regions respectively, or to the people.

Resolved:

That neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime, or with the consent of the serving person. The legislature shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

Resolved:

All persons born or naturalized in the Orion Confederacy and subject to the jurisdiction thereof are citizens of the Orion Confederacy. No government within the territory of the Orion Confederacy shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the priveleges or rights accorded to citizens of the Orion Confederacy by this document or by their Creator, nor deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law, nor deny any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the law.

Resolved:

No person shall hold any office in the Orion Confederacy without first swearing an oath to support, obey, and defend this Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

Resolve:

That the right of citizens of the Orion Confederacy to vote shall not be denied or abridged on account of species, creed, or gender and the legislature shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.