Democracy and Freedom Index (CLOSED)

by **Five Cities** » Tue Oct 15, 2019 7:51 pm

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? By leading the party that won the most seats in an election
How is the national legislature selected? By a collective vote. (D'hondt method)
Are elections considered free and fair? Yes
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? Mandatory voting because of small nation.

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? YEs and yes
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? 2/3 vote for constitution amendment, >1/2 for other.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? It must be done through vote.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 3
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 6
Is there an independent judiciary? Yes

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? YEs
Is there freedom of religion? Yes
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? Yes
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Yes
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Yes, no violent protests though
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? Yes
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Yes
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? Yes, domestic violence is being tackled.
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? Yes, property right protected

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? Someone who is born from a citizen or someone who has immigrated legally and has passed a citizenship test.
Who is able to vote in elections? All citizen, 18 or over
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? Yes
Are the above groups well represented in government? Mainly represented under Labor. Conservatives, in the cross bench, pushing for illegalisation and discrimination of LGBT

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? No.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index? No

by **Amecet** » Tue Oct 15, 2019 9:16 pm

ELECTIONS
How were the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? High Governors, of which there are two, are elected by the last day of the week of the National Election, where who is governor is already decided. By this time there would be 8 candidates (five provinces, three extraneous territories, one governor for each) and candidacy for High Governor is compulsory, and yes, there have been some cases where a governor who did not want to lead the nation became High Governor.
How is the national legislature selected? The Governate is determined by provincial single-transferable-vote, where each citizen of a province or extraneous territory submits a vote for their governor. The Parliament is determined by a county first-past-the-post system. Both occur in a National Election every two years.
Are elections considered free and fair? Yes
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? The most recent national election turnout was 88% of the citizen populace.
Is voting mandatory? Voting is optional.

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to successfully develop and implement new policies? Yes
Does government authority extend over the full national territory? Yes
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? Yes
What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? A general majority in Parliament is required to pass laws. The State can organize an emergency meeting to create constitutional amendments, but these require a supermajority (3/4ths of Parliament).
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? A High Governor can choose to end court or cut budgets, but that's about as far as they can get before other bureaucrats get in the way. However, all of these can be overridden by the other High Governor.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? About 2; some offers get through the cracks, but layers of bureaucracy often prevent it from occurring.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? 8; once again, a lot of bureaucracy happening. Parliament, governor, and council activity is often reported by a non-state press, however, the Consulate, composed of military personnel, is often under-the-rug.
Is there an independent judiciary? Yes (the Council, as mentioned before. They are selected by a Vote of Confidence following the National Elections.)

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Yes, multiple in fact. Examples can be "Amecet Now", "Pamyat Radio", "The Garlic" (a Thaecia news outlet), "TBCnews", etc.
Is there freedom of religion? Yes
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? Yes
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Yes
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Yes
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? Yes
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Yes
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms? Yes
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Yes
Are property rights adequately protected? Yes

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? Being born to a citizen family or passing a citizenship test after living in Amecet through one whole election cycle (2 years).
Who is able to vote in elections? Citizens 18 and over.
Are different segments of the population treated equally? Yes
Are the above groups well represented in government? Yes. Pamyeti and Pirknai minorities are represented well in the Parliament and the Governate. However, there has not been an LGBTQ+ member of government yet.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? No

EDIT: Been getting questions about the System, for more information please see the First Constitution.

by **Monsone** » Tue Oct 15, 2019 9:40 pm

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected?
By a free and fair election were if you get the majority of the vote, you win.

How is the national legislature selected?
Same as for the head of state except it is Parlamentary seats and by percentage.

Are elections considered free and fair?
Yes.

Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory?
100% Because voting is mandatory.

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory?
Yes it does.

Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments?
Well, all laws must be vetted by the Amendments Board. Then, they must pass Parlament.

Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)?
No.

From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated)
5/10. Mainly high up in government.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated)
6.5/10. Pretty transparent till it gets to certain issues.

Is there an independent judiciary?
Yes.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media?
Yes.

Is there freedom of religion?
Yes.

Is education free of political interference or indoctrination?
Yes.

Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution?
Yes.

Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice?
Yes.

Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice?
Yes.

Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment?
Yes.

Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)?
Yes. Violence of all types in rare.

Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected?
Yes. In fact, domestic businesses are preferred.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined?
If you are naturalized, born in Monsone or one or more of your parents had Monsonian citizenship.

Who is able to vote in elections?
All citizens 18 and older.

Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally?
Yes.

Are the above groups well represented in government?
Relatively so.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group?
No.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index?
No.

by **San Pere** » Wed Oct 16, 2019 4:21 am

ELECTIONS

How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? The President, who is the Head of State and Government, is appointed every time the Congress of Delegates is elected, usually every five years.

While voting, the voters must choose who is their preferred candidate for President. Elected delegates receive a non-binding report with the support each candidate have from their voters.

How is the national legislature selected? The Congress of Delegates, called the national legislature, is elected through elections by four-seat constituencies.

A voter can choose as ballots as he wants, and has to number the candidates (there are three per ballot) in order of preference.

The result is taken as following: first of all, it is counted the number of ballots that has got a candidate as the preferred. It is called 'ballot preference'. Ballot preference determines how may seats must be assigned to the party or coalition, and it is determined by D'Hondt formula. After that, for each party or coaltion a new count is performed: the candidate with absolute majority of first preferences is elected, if there are free seats and he has not been elected yet. If no candidate gets absolute majority, the candidate with most votes in last preferences is discarded for this round, repeating it until a candidate gets the absolute majority of first preferences. In case of tie, process begins again taking into account second preferences instead of first ones.

On its part, the Council of the Republic, which acts in a few procedures, including the reform of the Fundamental Chart, is formed by all people who has been Delegate for, at least, ten years.

Finally, the Council of the President is appointed by the President, but the Council of the Republic must approve every appointment.

Are elections considered free and fair? Not only they are free and fair. We have the most democratic system despite there are more than 2,500 political parties that freely run thorugh freely created coalitions.

Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? Voting is mandatory, but turnout was increasing dramatically, so now the Army is authorized to 'ring the bell' of abstainers' homes. Now turnout is less than 3%.

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT

In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? The Congress of Delegates can propose and vote new politices, which need the seal of approval of the President before it is definitely passed.

Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? The Congress of Delegates is not limited to exercise the legislative initiative and can propose any kind of Organic Decree excepting for those about the Budget. To ensure the quality of the Organic Decree, the Council of the President must qualify it before the debate.

Also, the President can veto almost every proposal for national interest reasons.

Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? The President can ask for the dissolution of the Congress of Delegates, but this needs the approval of the Council of the Republic and the Council of the President, gathered in join session for that purpose.

From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) If possible, it is 11. People suspects when any action is not accompanied by corrupt behaviors.

From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) If possible, it is 0. For example, every month each citizen receives a $20 check for the Casinos, but they don't know that money comes from the Social Security Funds.

Is there an independent judiciary? Yes. Judges shall access to their position through public examination. Judges of the Supreme Courtroom of the Court of San Pere are appointed by the President for life and can only be dismissed through a Popular Impeachment, which needs to fulfill an arduous procedure to be passed. In fact, Impeachment must be endorsed by at least the 10% of the population on each Island, and endorsers must be more than the 20% of the population of San Pere. Impeachment requires a majority of three fifth of the Council of the Republic

CIVIL LIBERTIES

Is there an independent media? Yes, as long as they don't claim the President with stupid arguments.

Is there freedom of religion? Yes. Nobody is persued for his religious ideas.

Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? At the beginning of each day, students must sing the National Anthem and shout hurrays to the President. Also, every classrom has a portrait of the President and murals about His life and miracles. But teachers aren't oblied to indoctrinate students.

Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Yes, as long as they aren't heard by the Secret Service.

Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Yes. Peaceful protests are allowed and respected, and riots are repelled by Police force or even the Army to protect the right to peaceful demonstrations.

Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? The Fundamental Chart does not forbid due process, so what is not forbidden is permitted.

Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Yes. Freedom of movement and derivatives are absolutely guaranteed. Even, sometimes it is boosted by the Government.

Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)?

Appearance is not ruled by the Government, so only moral doctrine may limit it personally.

Marriage is not recognized by the State, but by religious organizations. The State passed the Organic Decree on Common Law Partners, that have the same rights and duties.

Domestic violence is unknow because complaints are tagged as 'homicide', 'aggresion', 'physical violence' or 'verbal violence'.

Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected?

Yes and yes. The Republic of San Pere shall refuse the gathering of shares of companies whose commercial activity is not strictly strategic for interests of the Republic or the Sampereans.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY

How is citizenship determined? Sampereans are those who are born in the Republic of San Pere, and the sons of Sampereans, even if they are born in a foreign country.

Citizens of San Pere are those who are not Sampereans but have legal residence in the Republic of San Pere. An Organic Decree shall regulate the ways to obtain and lose the Samperean nationality and citizenship.

Who is able to vote in elections? Citizens above eighteen. Citizens from twenty to sixty-five years old are eligible as Delegates.

Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? We try to, of course.

Are the above groups well represented in government? Not at all, but because democracy has these kind of comsequences.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS

Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? Sometimes it is necessary to guarantee National Safery.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index? The survey seems to be very biased to benefit naive democracies.

by **Estrago** » Fri Nov 15, 2019 2:08 pm

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected?
The collective head of state and government (9 members of the Federal Council, representatives from all major parties) is elected by the National Assembly (lower and upper house sitting together) every four years when parliament assembles itself for the first time after a general election.
How is the national legislature selected?
General elections every four years. Every canton represents a constituency. Constituencies with more than one seat usualy use a proportional system to elect their representatives in order to allow for smaller parties to be able to gain seats as well.
Representatives to the upper house (1 per constituency) are elected by majority vote.
Are elections considered free and fair?
Yes.
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory?
45% for elections, 53% for referenda. Voting is not mandatory on federal level, but two cantons (out of 130) maintain a mandatory voting policy with small fines in case of non-compliance

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory?
Yes to both.
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments?
Yes it does. Laws have to be passed by both the upper and lower house separatly. All laws can be challenged by citizens, parties or other organisations by collecting enough signatures within a set time frame and force a binding referendum. Constitutional changes are automatically subject to referenda. Changes to the constitution can also be initiated by citizens, parties or other organisations by collection signatures for a popular vote on their proposals. Results of the vote are binding.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)?
No. Parliament cannot be dissolved. Parliament and governemt are two seperate institutions that operated parallel to each other. The government has no say in parliament's business and agenda anyway.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated)
2. Corruption in the traditional understanding is scarce. The most prelevant form of corruption is nepotism and favouritism, especially at local government levels or for executive government agency posts.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated)
7. At federal level all sessions of parliament and many committee meetings are live-streamed over the internet or can be witnessed live on site; and past sessions are available for re-watching. Government documents can be downloaded free of charge from its website. The more shady business however is totaly kept out of sight (secret service business, arms deals etc.). Transparency on cantonal and local level can also be somewhat less comprehensive, or harder to access, mainly due to the fact that these entities are often run by non-professional politians and staff.
Is there an independent judiciary?
Yes, but in comparison to other countries it has less powers, especially the federal courts. They can, for instance, not freely interpret law. They have to ask parliament for clarification of the law before they can pass judgement in individual cases.
The judiciary is the weakest of the three branches, on a constitutional level, the legislative is by far the most powerful. However, once the courts have ruled, their rule prevails.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media?
Yes. There is a large state-funded public broadcaster (a bit like the UK's BBC), and a number of private broadcasters as well. The newspaper and online news market is very diverse, both in terms of who owns the individual news outlets (big companies and small independents) as well as in their political affiliation. Most of the media follow guidelines that are ment to ensure their independence from politicians and other powerful entities.
Is there freedom of religion?
The constitution only recognises freedom from religion. However, de facto, there is freedom of religion with some limitations (e.g. no display of religious symbols (crosses, kippa, hijab) on state premises like schools and courts etc.). Most people aren't religious anyway.
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination?
Yes. High fines and even prison sentences apply in case of contravention.
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution?
Yes.
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice?
Yes. This matter is handled on cantonal level, so no federal rules apply. Usually larger protests and assemblies on public ground require approval by authorities. Some cantons apply these rules very strictly and will disolve unapproved protests with force, while others have a more permissive approach.
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice?
Yes.
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment?
Yes, all citizens enjoy freedom of movement within the country, there are restrictions in terms of residency for certain parts of the country (small island territories). International travel is free, for any purpose.
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)?
Yes social freedoms are guaranteed.
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected?
Yes they are. Property rights are well protected. Compulsory purchase is only allowed if its benefits for the greater society outweigh the harm of the individual. Compensation must always be adequate.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined?
Citizenship of Estrago is tied to citizenship of a municipality. It can be attained in two ways: By being born to at least on parent who holds an Estragoneese passport or by successfully completing the naturalisiation process, which requires extended residency in the same political municipality or canton, extensive tests and personal conversations with representatives of the responsible political body to determine if the candidate is sufficiently integrated into Estragoneese society.
Who is able to vote in elections?
All citizens above the age of 18 (16 in some cantons and municipalities in local elections) who currently reside in Estrago. Citizens who live abroad are not allowed to vote unless they have lived in Estrago for a minimum duration of 6 continuous months during the last five years, or their stay abroad is for a diplomatic or humanitarian mission.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally?
Yes.
Are the above groups well represented in government?
There are no official statistics, but generally speaking, representation in public bodies roughly reflects representation in the total population, however no data is available for these subsets (apart from male/female) because nobody cares, really.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group?
No.

by **Nuroblav** » Sun Nov 17, 2019 10:53 am

by **Confederate American SU** » Sun Nov 17, 2019 7:47 pm

(Use current RCAS for the results, and not the RCAS of the Risorigmento period.)

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? They are compromised of two committees elected yearly, one by state, another by syndicate.
How is the national legislature selected? Citizens vote on laws themselves, though as blocs instead of individuals except for local matters. However, delegates who can speak and negotiate on behalf of citizens are voted on an annual basis, but they lack voting power and can be recalled at anytime.
Are elections considered free and fair? Yes currently, though voting during and immediately after the Risorigmento was highly violent with blatant voter intimidation on part of local militias. However, the formalization of the citizen assembly process has eliminated much of the issue.
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? Voting is mandatory

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to successfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? Yes
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? Yes. Constitutional amendments need both a supermajority among the states and syndicates and a supermajority among the population as a whole.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? No
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? 1 after the ascension. It varied between 1-5 depending on the locality or union after the Risorigmento was completed. 3-7 during it.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? 9. 7 during the Risorigmento.
Is there an independent judiciary? Depends. The Confederate Tribunal is appointed by the Committees and the state courts, but members could be at any time recalled by a supermajority vote among the states and syndicates. Judicial review powers are limited and are pushed more towards a strict constructionist view of the 2nd Articles of Confederation and Bill of Rights.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Yes
Is there freedom of religion? Yes, but the RCAS used to persecute the state religions of its enemies during the Risorigmento.
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? Yes, though it wasn't during the Risorigmento. History is still seen from a pro-RCAS/Democrat view due to popular conceptions. It's not too different how the OTL USA views the Union, ironically.
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Yes
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Yes for citizens. During the Risorigmento era, protesters often clashed with pro-government mobs. Sometimes, the protesters were pro-government and fought against anti-government localities. The chaotic situation calmed after the Risorigmento, and the right to protest has became a sacred right.
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? Yes. Though, the Risorigmento era was a time of widespread lynching.
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Yes
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearance? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? Yes. (Seriously, just look at Pickett.)
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? Property ownership is mandatory to being a citizen. Absentee ownership is banned. Businesses are required to register within their respective guild/syndicate and be composed and managed by workers belonging to a craft union.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? By being white and either born in America or naturalized after 4 years of residence and a year of military service.
Who is able to vote in elections?For the citizen assemblies, all citizens. For the syndicates, only the workers of their respective industries who have passed their apprenticeship period.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? Nonwhite minorities are not treated equally. However, all white citizens are equal, regardless of gender, ethnic origin, or sexual orientation. Transgender people literally can create whatever body they want.
Are the above groups well represented in government? Well, Pickett is a crossdresser. But, he really isn't a member of government. Women have around 40% of government positions, and both women and gays have been elected within the ranks of the Confederate-Continental Armed Forces. Due to the direct-democratic nature of government, the influence of white women and LGBT members are roughly proportionate to their percentage in the population. However, blue-collar unions are overrepresented among the syndicates, and housewives (and househusbands) lack the vote in the syndicalist branch of government.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? Yes.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index? Account for direct democracies a bit more.

by **Ulvena** » Sun Nov 17, 2019 10:36 pm

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? High Chancellor (equivalent of President) selected by Senate. Chancellory Advisor (Prime Minister) selected amongst Senators by High Chancellor. Lady/Lord of Ulvena (another Prime Minister) is the spouse of the High Chancellor
How is the national legislature selected? Through elections in their respective provincial district.
Are elections considered free and fair? Yes
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? ~70-80%. Voting is not mandatory but highly encouraged socially

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? Senators can pass laws in their own province through majority vote (since multiple senators are chosen per province) or national law (which requires majority from the whole Senate). National law is all encompassing but limited by the Constitutions. Provincial law is less limited but only applies to business or residents in the province.
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? The Senate has legislative initiative but as does the Chancellory (executive branch). The Divine Compromise and the Treatise (the two Constitutions) along with religious law are the highest laws of the land and no law can supersede or contradict it.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? Outside of veto (which can be overridden by 2/3 majority of Senate), no.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 3. Some corruption exists on local level but as corruption on the national level is punishable by life in prison or death and extrajudicial inquisitions exist on all levels, corruption is very small.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 4. Many national secrets exist but they are inconsequential to the average person. Senate meetings are broadcast on television and livestreamed on the Internet. In addition, factions (unofficial political parties) tend to be secretive in their political agenda. But as no law can be passed outside of Senate meetings (provincial or national), it is of little consequence.
Is there an independent judiciary? The Clerical Assembly is chosen by the High Chancellor and by the religious communities of the province they represent. They interpret religious law, the Divine Compromise, and Treatise in that order.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Yes, anybody can establish a media outlet, especially with the Internet.
Is there freedom of religion? To a degree. Personal freedom of religion is recognized but only Islam, Judaism, and Christianity are recognized by the government.
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? There is a pro-Ulvena overtone of education but no facts are distorted or omitted.
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Yes, as long is it is not treasonous (criticism is fine, advocacy of the destruction of the nation is not)
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Yes, so long as it does not disrupt traffic, trade, or freedom of movement or receive a permit from the city beforehand (or done on private property)
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? Yes, all citizens are entitled to a fair trial by their peers or from a religious committee
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Total freedom of movement within the country. International travel is limited insofar as nations Ulvena is actively at war with are unavailable for travel.
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? Homosexuality is not recognized under Marriage Law but Civil Unions exist to facilitate some civil aspects of marriage (such as next of kin or emergency contact). Religious laws govern some aspects of life but for the most part, people are able to dress how they please (so long as it does not violate nudity or exposure laws), marry whom they choose, and domestic violence laws ensure safety within marriages.
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? Businesses can be set up at any time but must be registered within 1 year of opening with the local provincial or town/city Business Bureau for tax and regulation purposes. Property rights are protected via law enforcement and civil or religious courts. Certain business ventures are prohibited such as usury, gambling, or drugs.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? Immigration is strictly regulated and a demonstration of mastery of the Ulvenan language as well as positive testimony from at least three native born Ulvenan citizens is required for citizenship. Native born Ulvenans receive citizenship upon turning Age 5, at which their citizenship paperwork is processed alongside school paperwork (or homeschool paperwork). Immigrants who serve in the Ulvenan armed forces for a period of 4 years or more receive citizenship upon honorable discharge.
Who is able to vote in elections? All citizens over the age of 18.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? Men and women are seen as equal but different. Gender roles are socially enforced and legislated based on that assumption. Homosexuality is not seen as equal to heterosexual marriages but violence against homosexuals is prohibited. Ethnicities are seen as equal. Atheists are barred from holding public office.
Are the above groups well represented in government? The Senate is around 70% men, 30% women. The Chancellory is around 60% male, 40% female (in terms of the cabinet). The High Chancellor has been historically mostly male, although some females have become High Chancellor. The Clerical Assembly is largely male as well, 80% male, 20% female. Homosexuals are prohibited from holding office in the Clerical Assembly but could be elected as Senator. No such thing has happened, however.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? Foreign enclaves are prohibited so immigrants tend to disperse. Assimilation is seen as a matter of policy.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index? Perhaps some more specific questions as well since there's a lot to write on one question.

by **Germanic-Prussia** » Sat Nov 23, 2019 8:22 pm

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected?
Melchior took power after he killed his father

How is the national legislature selected?
The only member of government is the glorious leader Melchior

Are elections considered free and fair?
Elections are banned

Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory?
Elections are banned

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory?
Melchior is the only government.

Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments?
Melchior is the only legislative

Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)?
Melchior does what he wants

From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated)
10

From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated)
10

Is there an independent judiciary?
No. the judiciary does what Melchior tells them

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media?
No

Is there freedom of religion?
No

Is education free of political interference or indoctrination?
No

Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution?
No

Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice?
No

Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice?
No

Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education,
residence or employment?
No

Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose
marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)?
No

Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected?
No

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined?
You have to be born in Germanic-Prussia

Who is able to vote in elections?
Nobody

Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally?
Yes they are treated equally, they are all treated as slaves.

Are the above groups well represented in government?
Melchior is the only govenrment

by **Liberated Nordja** » Sun Nov 24, 2019 10:02 am

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? So, uh, It's kinda complicated to explain our political system, but let's go: Nordja is a confederation, composed by 54 republics, each with their own presidents, vice-presidents, congress, etc... , each republic has their elections (detail: all the republics are democratic), in which they choose their president by proportional representation. The elected president will stay for 4 years in power, thus restarting the process. After these local elections are done, all of the presidents elected compete in another election, in which all the republic's citizens may vote, the candidate chosen by proportional representation will then get the title of President of the Confederation. The President of the Confederation merely represents the confederation in diplomatic reunions (since it's impossible to put 54 presidents on a diplomatic reunion).

The local presidents are the heads of state and the heads of government of their own republics, whilst the President of the Confederation holds the position of a head of state for the entire confederation (but he cannot interfere with another republic's policy).

How is the national legislature selected? By proportional representation (in all republics).
Are elections considered free and fair? Yes.
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? 97,9%, no

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? Yes, yes (the President of the Confederation may, if the majority of the presidents vote for, exclude republics from the confederation for things like human rights violations) .
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? Yes, most laws can be passed with a simple referendum (in all republics)
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? No.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 1, corruption is a extremely rare crime in Nordja, since there are harsh punishments for it. Also, the culture itself is extremely honest.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 10, all files, spendings, government information and budgets are avaliable to the public.
Is there an independent judiciary? Yes (in all republics).

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Yes.
Is there freedom of religion? Yes.
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? Yes.
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Yes.
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Yes and yes.
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? Yes.
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Yes, although Nordja is composed of 54 diferente republics, the passport is the same for all of them, and travel isn't restricted, because there are no physical borders or checkpoints on them.
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? Yes, nordjans may wear any clothes, choose their partners and Family size. Domestic violence is extremely rare since the governments organize campaigns and encourage victims to speak up.
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? No for the first question, as Nordja is a socialist confederation. As for the second question, yes, individuals my own some kind of private property.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? Criteria varies according to the republic, but all of them have these:
1) If the individual is born on nordjan soil;
2) If the individual has a nordjan parent;
3) If the individual passed through the naturalization process;
Who is able to vote in elections? Any individual that is (legally) residing in Nordja and that is above 16.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? Yes.
Are the above groups well represented in government? Yes.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? No.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index? Nah.

by **A Cornstar** » Sun Nov 24, 2019 11:54 am

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? The king is succeeded by a male relative of his choosing.
How is the national legislature selected?Feudal lordships are inherited in like nature. King and lords bear the responsibilities of Commander in Chief and Commissioned Officers respectively.
Are elections considered free and fair? Yes. Commoners vote in referenda and for administrative positions according to proportional representation
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? The people have a political apathy of 13.39 according to NS stats. No

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? No and Yes
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? Yes. all proposed legislation is checked against the constitution before it is put to a vote.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? The king retains veto power. The constitution has a balanced budget clause.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 1 (military discipline is enforced throughout the entire population. Incompetence gets you smacked in the head, corruption means a beating etc.)
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 10 (All information is reported live online)
Is there an independent judiciary? The judiciary is a part of the executive (no supreme court as constitutionality is checked before legislative voting)

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Yes
Is there freedom of religion? Yes
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? No
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Yes
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Yes
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? Yes
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Yes
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? No. Abortion and body modification are outlawed.
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? Yes

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? One must be either born to Cornic parents or naturalized (allowance for immigration is restricted to certain ethnicities)
Who is able to vote in elections? Male commoners ages 24+
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? No. Besides the above, men are preferred in employment (women are given maternity leave to phase them out) and LGBT is technically illegal (no marriage equality, and no right to expression thereof and punishable in public).
Are the above groups well represented in government? No, see above

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? No

Any suggestions for future editions of the index?

by **Tamgu** » Sun Nov 24, 2019 12:20 pm

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? Elections.
How is the national legislature selected? Through the Parliament.
Are elections considered free and fair? Yes. ~~Except for salty opposition~~
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? %84. Voting is not mandatory, citizens may refrain if they don't see a capable candidate.

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to successfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? 1-Yes. 2-Partially.
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments?
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)?
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 1. No Corruption and Transparent Government are two of the main policies of the president.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 9. Almost everything except stuff that obviously is hidden is shared with the population.
Is there an independent judiciary? ~~yeeeeeeess??~~ Yes.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? A few government and opposition owned media channels here and there but mostly unbiased and free.
Is there freedom of religion? Yes.
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? Absolutely. The MoE is almost entirely separated from the government.
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Depends. Expect the police to interfere if your idea of "expressing dissent in practice" is throwing Molotov cocktails. If it's signs and slogans you're good.
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Yes.
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? Constitution guarantees.
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Yes.
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearance? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? Yes.
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? Yes. Yes.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? People who migrated can become citizens, ones that were born inside are considered citizens.
Who is able to vote in elections? Citizens.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? Yes. ~~Maybe with the teeny tiny exception of Raznetans.~~
Are the above groups well represented in government? There is no law to prevent them from getting into the government.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? No.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index? Maybe the addition of a question about curfews.

by **The Aziran Islands** » Sun Nov 24, 2019 8:50 pm

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? The President of Aziria is elected to a single seven-year term by the National Assembly. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President. Since 2010, the PM can serve no more than ten years while commanding the confidence of the National Assembly
How is the national legislature selected? The National Assembly of Aziria is elected to nationwide elections through single transferable vote. Elections must be held at least every five years, but can be called earlier on the request of the President, or National Assembly. Since 2010, no member of the National Assembly can serve more than ten years in office.
Are elections considered free and fair? Mostly, though terrorist attacks on polling places have occasionally forced local elections to be reheld. For example, during the 2014 general election, several polling stations in Suqar Province were bombed, forcing the election for most of the province’s National Assembly members to be re-held two weeks later.
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? Voter turnout has largely ranged between 70 and 75 percent. In some areas, voting is mandatory.

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? Overall, the National Assembly is able to control the direction of government policy, though this ability has been hampered in recent years due to a string of unstable coalition governments. The government controls nearly all national territory, though the Spurs remain disputed with and occupied by Martenyika, and militant groups maintain a foothold in the sparsely populated northern areas.
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? Although the President, Prime Minister, or Cabinet may propose legislation, all laws must be approved by a majority of the National Assembly. The President or Cabinet can veto a law approved by the National Assembly, though this can be overridden with a ⅔ majority of the National Assembly. In addition, vetoes almost never happen, as President is largely a ceremonial role in Aziria.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? The executive is largely unable to act without the consent of the National Assembly, as Presidents are expected to simply act on the advice of the legislature, and a President that didn’t would likely be removed from office.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 6. Corruption is rampant in Aziria. Many government officials have been accused of embezzling money, bribery, and conflicts of interest. Although anti-corruption laws were implemented in 2010 after a string of major scandals in the previous years, change has been slow to come, and corruption often goes unpunished.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 5. Despite the passing of a Freedom of Information Act in 2010, many government proceedings are still done behind closed doors, and FOIA requests are often rejected due to the law allowing the government to deny requests “to protect the security and well-being of the Aziran people.”
Is there an independent judiciary? Yes. All local and national judges are selected by nonpartisan committees,must be political independents, and are limited to ten years on the bench. Any nakedly partisan ruling by a judge would usually be grounds for removal

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Aziria is known for its diverse media landscape and robust press freedom laws. Azirans have access to a wide range of news organizations of varying viewpoints from around the world. However, journalists investigating government practices are often stonewalled due to the previously mentioned issues with government transparency.
Is there freedom of religion? Aziria’s constitution allows for absolute religious freedom, though descrimination against minor religions such as Christianity and Mundhum has been a problem.
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? Mostly, as most work with the education system is carried out by the civil service, who are usually dismissed for making decisions with partisan or political undertones
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Yes. The only time speech is restricted is when somebody deliberately spreads false information, or if they advocate genocide or the overthrow of the Aziran government.
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? The right to freedom of assembly is strongly protected in Aziria, with the general opinion of judges and legal scholars being that all protests are protected under the law, so long as the demonstrations are not violent.
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? The Aziran Constitution guarantees the right to a fair trial for all people in the country. This is largely upheld, though issues with the bribing of judges have remained an issue.
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? There are no restrictions on travel within Aziria, though militant attacks in the northwest can restrict travel in that part of the country. Azirans are allowed to travel or emigrate freely to all nations that accept Aziran passports, with the exception of a small number of countries deemed to be too dangerous to travel to.
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? There are no legal restrictions on citizens’ appearance, choice of marriage partner, or size of family. Domestic violence is relatively uncommon, and is strictly punished, with the assailant usually serving a week to several years in prison depending on the severity, and is prohibited from owning firearms or going within 25 meters of the person they attacked for a minimum of five years.
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? Aziria’s business laws are relatively light-touch, though regulations are far stricter for large corporations

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? Any person born in Aziran territory is automatically given citizenship. Foreigners who have not committed a felony and lived in Aziria for five years are eligible to apply to take the citizenship exam. The exam has fifteen questions about Aziran law and government. The person must get at least nine of the questions correct to become a citizen.
Who is able to vote in elections? All Aziran citizens aged 16 or older are allowed to vote
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? The Aziran constitution prohibits any form of discrimination based on a person’s gender, race, or nationality, and was amended in 2010 to protect the LGBT community. This is mostly upheld in practice, though discrimination against people based on race remains a problem, as does discrimination based on caste, despite the Aziran caste system having long been banned.
Are the above groups well represented in government? Of the 470 members of the National Assembly, 197 are women, 134 are racial minorities, and 5 are LGBT. In 2019, Zahra Tasihri made history as Aziria’s first female Prime Minister.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? Ethnic violence and massacres remain a problem in Aziria, especially in the northern and western regions. The government has deployed the military in these regions in an attempt to stop the killings, but this has done little to curb the problem

Any suggestions for future editions of the index? Nope

by **United Mexica** » Sun Nov 24, 2019 9:11 pm

Answers:

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected?

Head of state by secret ballot vote and universal suffrage. Head of government nominated by the leading workers party.

How is the national legislature selected?

By secret ballot vote that all citizens may participate in.

Are elections considered free and fair?

Yes.

Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory?

75-80%. No.

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory?

Yes.

Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments?

Laws must abide by the socialist foundation of the country and are subject to democratic due process by which they can be recalled by a citizens vote.

Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)?

No but the reverse is somewhat true in that the legislature can limit the power of the president.

From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated)

4. Some corruption. Actively being combatted by the state.

From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated)

8. The state makes no attempts to conceal its activities but also doesn't necessarily make sure every possible thing it does is broadcast to the world.

Is there an independent judiciary?

No, it is subordinate to the workers state. It is an elected body though, contrary to the norm in most countries.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media?

No media exists not under the jurisdiction of the proletarian state, no.

Is there freedom of religion?

Yes, but the activities of reactionary religious institutions are controlled. People's private religious beliefs are of no interest to the state.

Is education free of political interference or indoctrination?

Education instills proletarian, anti-imperialist, anti-racist, progressive values, so no. Such a thing (truly unbiased education) is seen impossible, and undesirable if it were.

Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution?

Yes.

Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice?

Yes, yes, and yes.

Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice?

Yes.

Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment?

Yes.

Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)?

People are free to chose their appearance, their marriage partners (including in any LGBT configuration), have a family of any size etc.

Vast services for women and feminist and anti-patriarchial education and ideology make anti-woman violence rarer than in most countries.

Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected?

No. Exploiting the labor of others is not a right in United Mexica. The eventual full abolition of private property is the goal of the proletarian movement.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined?

Those born in the country or who have parents from the country, or have gone through the process to apply for citizenship.

Who is able to vote in elections?

Everybody above the age of 18 who is a citizen.

Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally?

Yes, and the liberation of oppressed people and the eventual complete abolition of oppression itself is the goal of United Mexica.

Are the above groups well represented in government?

Yes, and they must be by law.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group?

No.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index?

Workplace democracy, neighborhood democracy, forms of democracy beyond the standard bourgeoise model, of which exist in vast and vibrant forms in United Mexica.

by **Ergoslatic** » Wed Nov 27, 2019 6:13 pm

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? It is by law the heads of the Federal Socialist Ergoslatic Party.
How is the national legislature selected? Appointed by the head of state/government. A few members from other parties are selected to give the public the (false) illusion that the party cares about its people.
~~Are elections considered free and fair?~~ No elections.
~~Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory?~~

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? They are not freely elected. New policies can be "successfully" developed and implemented. Government authority extends over the full national territory, although smaller provinces have some degree of autonomy (although they cannot "undermine the socialist cause").
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? They do, but they are unable to pass laws that "undermine the socialist cause" (aka go against the head of government). The head of government can veto any proposed law for any reason, and vetoes cannot be overridden.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? Yes. In fact, outlawed political parties have called the legislature a mere puppet for the Federal Socialist Ergoslatic Party to manipulate.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 7. How else would you think that the Ergoslatic Communist Party (which is somewhat anarchist) or the Social Democratic Worker's Party (which is fine with markets) get seats in the government, or that the somewhat liberal parties aren't brutally suppressed, or that the army is willing to immediately execute dissenters - even those who genuinely want to improve the living conditions of the nation?
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 3. The government tells the people which nations they are at war, who the "traitors" are, and if/when they have been punished. However, the corruption listed above is kept confidential, whistleblowers are severely punished, and no context is given for the so-called "traitors".
Is there an independent judiciary? No.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Yes, but it is either heavily regulated by the government (basically making the "independent" part futile) or outlawed (which shows the government's adverse view on free speech/thought).
Is there freedom of religion? No. Religion is forbidden. Only atheism is permitted.
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? No. Education is nationalized, and all of them have a pro-socialist curriculum.
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? No. While the government permits some opposing political parties to exist, they are heavily regulated, and the only three parties that actually want to notably change the system (Ergoslatics for Laissez-faire Party, Conservative Party of Ergoslatic, and National Imperialist Ergoslatic Aristocracy Party) are strictly outlawed.
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? See above. Protests are heavily regulated by the government, and any that have a chance of challenging the government may be broken up by the army.
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? No. The government says that it's to ensure security and prevent traitors/terrorists from going scott-free, but in reality it's just to punish potentially effective dissenters.
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? No. Central planning dictates how the people live.
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? The people have control over personal appearance if such does not challenge the government or its doctrine. They can choose any marriage partners as long as neither challenge the government and neither are from America or the League of Strahconian Nations. The size of family cannot exceed one child per couple; any others mandate an abortion.
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? No. Private property is illegal. All property is nationalized.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? They must be registered by the government, serve a year in the military (if 16 or older), complete a period of political education (if 12 or older), and subsequently pass a test testing their commitment to the socialist cause. They may not have ever been citizens of America or any nation within the League of Strahconian Nations. Neither can any legal residents, unless if they have committed any crime that isn't considered a crime here (e.g. abortion, destruction/theft of private property). Citizens of any other nation within the AntiStrahcoin League do not have to serve in the Ergoslatic military or complete a period of political education, but must still pass the socialist test.
Who is able to vote in elections? None, because no elections.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? No.
Are the above groups well represented in government? No.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? Yes. Liberals and regulatory capitalists are being overseen (to make sure they don't effectively convince the public); conservatives, laissez-faire capitalists, monarchists, and "Western imperialists" are being persecuted (to prevent a counter-revolution). Citizens of America or any nation within the League of Strahconian Nations are similarly persecuted.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index? Maybe include the right to bear arms (or lack thereof) or the right to express what some may consider "hate speech" (or lack thereof). Perhaps general level of taxation, economic regulations, and government spending.

by **Israeli Free Nations** » Wed Nov 27, 2019 8:24 pm

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? The constitution was written and isnt really changed. Parliament Is elected in a series of elections. The president is elected by a combination of the popular vote and parliamentary vote.
How is the national legislature selected? Series of elections combining a popular vote and an electoral college.
Are elections considered free and fair? Absolutely.
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? 80%. No, freedom is not forced.

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to successfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? Generally yes, but the constitution restricts some ideas such as gun rights and freedom of speech. Government authority technically extends over all Israeli territory but in the desert and overseas islands that aren't really watched.
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? The constitution restricts a lot of ability to pass laws, and the constitution is hard to change.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? Yes, the Queen and President can override any action by congress once. If congress passes same law again it cannot be vetoed.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 3, corruption is in some cases executable. Also with extreme nationalism no one would dare go against the state.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 9, all government actions are logged in an online transcript unless it is something the government would disown if surfaced (spies, secret projects, etc.)
Is there an independent judiciary? Yes, in order to be a judge you must renounce all political beliefs.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Yes.
Is there freedom of religion? Not always. For example, at times Islam is banned for the idea that Israel is the Jewish homeland.
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? No. Children are taught how amazing Israel is and must pledge allegiance to her every day. History has a slight bias in support of Israel.
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Absolutely. As long as no physical harm is done and you are not obstructing work then dissent is 100% legal.
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Same as above.
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? Yes, in fact, it is argued that there is too much protection as too much taxes go into the judicial system.
Do individuals enjoy the freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Inside the Israeli Commonwealth yes. International travel is a bit harder, but only a tad bit. You are not documented when traveling between the Commonwealth unless you are a former felon but leaving the country is tracked.
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearance? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? Citizens may dress however they want but transgenderism is banned and homosexuality is frowned upon. Marriage is not legal for homosexuals. Mothers may have as many children as they want, as long as they can be supported, and domestic violence is rare.
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? Yes, and business is encouraged a lot by the government. Property rights are protected with personal firearms.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? Birth in-country, or vigorous testing.
Who is able to vote in elections? All non-felon citizens.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? Nope. Not at all.
Are the above groups well represented in government? Somewhat. Men, women, and ethnic minorities are. But the LGBT community never gets elected.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? Slightly. Homosexuals are encouraged to leave and Muslims are deported.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index?

by **Antityranicals** » Wed Nov 27, 2019 9:12 pm

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? The head of state, the head of government, and the executive is the Archduke Patricius Regulus, who inherited the title of Archduke from his father after his death, and proceeded to found the Free Land three-and-a-half years ago.
How is the national legislature selected? Twenty members of the twenty-four person Senate are appointed by the legislatures of the twenty regions of which the Free Land is made up of, one each. Three of the other four are appointed by the Archduke, and can be fired whenever he wants, for whatever reason. The fourth is the President of the Senate, who has three votes and the power of a tiebreak, and is elected by an Electoral College system. The house is elected by each of the four hundred and eighty counties in the Free Land, one representative each.
Are elections considered free and fair? For those positions which are up for election, yes, we do not tolerate anything less.
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? Turnout in the last election was a remarkable 82% of citizens, even though voting is not mandatory.

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? The federal government's job is mostly just to ensure that the regional governments and private companies who enforce the law do so justly, and to unite the nation against potential external aggression. As such, national representatives don't really develop or implement new policy, they just act somewhat similarly to how the Security Council does.
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? The legislature does have the legislative initiative, though it is restricted by the veto of the executive, which requires a two-thirds majority in both the House and the Senate to override, and the Antityranical Bill of Rights, which greatly limits the power of all government. Constitutional amendments require seventeen votes in the senate and three hundred votes in the house to pass with executive approval, and twenty one votes in the senate and four hundred votes in the house to override the executive, after which they must be ratified by sixteen of the twenty regions.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? His three chosen senators and veto power does make it quite difficult to get past him legislatively. Fifteen of the senators and the president of the senate, or eighteen of the senators without the president, are required to override a veto in the senate, while three hundred and twenty are required to do so in the house.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) It rather depends on what is meant by corruption. One might consider the corruption a 1, as the federal government hasn't enough power to do anything wrong, but to the extent that the government does have power, corruption over how this very small amount of power is handled might reach an eight or nine.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 10. Everything the government does can be accessed by the public, nothing except military plans can be classified, and these may only remain classified for a few days.
Is there an independent judiciary? Yes. Most of the judiciary is not only independent, but private.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Yes
Is there freedom of religion? Yes!!!
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? Yes
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Yes!!!
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Yes!!!
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? Yes
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Yes
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? Yes, (Except maybe on that "size of family" bit. Abortion is strictly banned and prosecuted with no exceptions, contraception is de jure banned and not allowed to be imported, though we definitely won't arrest people for using it, and most regions don't even bother those who sell or produce it, except in fines. Antityranicals can simply not have sex if they don't want more children, or they can put children up for adoption in our very well funded system, but some might consider that inadequate, so I'm pointing this out...) Domestic violence is practically non-existent, because of how ingrained in our culture chivalry is.
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? YES!!! Property rights are considered so essential that we are rendering taxes optional within one year of today.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? One must have lived in the country for twelve years (Or since its founding) and pass a citizenship test, even if one is native-born.
Who is able to vote in elections? All citizens.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? Legally, yes, but there's nothing to stop private citizens and companies from doing otherwise so long as they do not violate their rights, except the threat of a boycott.
Are the above groups well represented in government? There currently aren't any LGBT members of the legislature, but there's nothing barring them. There are members of both genders and multiple ethnicities, though.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? No.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index? Maybe more questions about the judiciary?

by **Victores** » Thu Nov 28, 2019 11:39 am

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected?

The State-Consul, which is the Head of State, is elected through a national vote. The Head of Government is the Presidium of the Council of Democracy, it is elected by the Council of Democracy. The Presidium then selects a Chairman, who is the de facto Head of Government. (Note that in practice the State-Consul also holds many powers since Victores is a semi-presidential system)
How is the national legislature selected? The National Legislature is selected by the people electing candidates through STV multi-seat districts that are identical to the Prefectures.
Are elections considered free and fair? The elections are considered free, but there are concerns over the incumbent officials using state media to give themselves positive coverage
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? 87%, No

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? The representatives are able to develop and implement new policies, however these are balanced with powers devolved to the Republic, Prefecture, and Council levels. The government authority extends over the entire country.
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? In the tricameral legislature, most of the power is shared between the National Council, Peoples' Council, and Workers' Council. The National Council handles matters related to international affairs, the constitution, and balancing power between the devolved entities. The Workers' Council handles matters relating to the socialist economy, workers' rights, and certain ideological issues. The Peoples' Council, the most powerful, can originate any type of legislation, but the legislation must pass through their respective Councils if another of the Councils also holds prerogative. The whole process can also be annulled by a citizens referendum which may veto or pass any law.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? The executive has often weakened the legislature by repeatedly using public referendum to pass laws that the legislature did not approve of.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 4, the government's anti-corruption organ is mainly used as a political weapon, and is under the de facto control of the ruling party. There is a lot of corruption within the state-owned economic sector.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 7, the government is highly transparent on a local level, but at higher levels, the government becomes more and more opaque due to increasingly authoritarian state secrecy laws.
Is there an independent judiciary? The judiciary is semi-independent, the People's Court system is elected by the masses through appointees vetted by the legislature. Elections are non-partisan, and campaigning is forbidden.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Yes
Is there freedom of religion? No, many religions are banned or suppressed by the Victoresian State. This is usually because the religion is seen as imperialist sedition. Catholicism has been suppressed countless times. Protestant Christianity, especially Jehovah's Witnesses, are heavily suppressed. The small Jewish population have been persecuted intermittently. Islamic sects seen as too Islamists or inadequately progressive are often banned in a semi-random manner. Foreign religions in general are viewed with suspicion and regularly denounced by politicians.
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? Education is heavily politicized from the lowest grade levels, Marxist philosophical, economic, and political theory are all taught early.
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Yes
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Yes
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? Yes
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Yes
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? Yes, domestic violence is rare
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? Workers' self-management is mandatory, individuals are technically forbidden from setting up their own business. All businesses are founded as cooperatives of workers(even if there is only one worker). There is a constant fight over expropriation in Victoresian politics, and how the economy should actually be organized. The status of property rights is extremely unstable.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? Citizenship is issued for all people born in Victores, or any foreigner who fills in an application. Victores is a member of the Aridian Co-Prosperity Union which includes an open-border zone.
Who is able to vote in elections? Anyone above aged 16 or above on the day of the election.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? Gender Equality is enshrined into the Victoresian Constitution, racial equality is as well. Technically no ethnicity forms a majority in Victores, so every ethnicity in Victores is a minority. There is full equality for the native ethnic groups, however some of the minorities from outside Victores are treated with suspicion. Until 1999, it was illegal to even be homosexual, however now more and more LGBT rights are being implemented, and Victores is up to par with most westernized countries.
Are the above groups well represented in government? No, the government is dominated by ethnic Selwestian Victoresians and Decians, most other ethnic groups are under-represented.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? No

Any suggestions for future editions of the index?

by **Californiae** » Thu Nov 28, 2019 2:50 pm

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? Via popular vote, as it should be.
How is the national legislature selected? Via popular vote, as it should be.
Are elections considered free and fair? Closed secret ballots with no repercussions for voting (or indeed, not voting).
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? The latest election in 2016 saw a voter turnout of 67%, a historic low, voting is voluntary.

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to successfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? Congress are the sole executors of government policy, their power is second only to the power of the people who elect them. The Federal government maintains authoritative control over the expanse of the F.S.C.'s territory.
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? Congress are the sole executors of government policy, their power is second only to the electorate, who appoint them to the legislature in their name. Ineffectual, corrupt and legitimately stupid congresspersons are voted out with alarming speed and consistency.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? The Executive, held in the Office of the President, has explicit, written powers imbued by the Constitution of the Federated States. They do not have the power to dissolve the legislature, they do not control the budget, they do not have the ability to strongly limit the legislature.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 1.5, corruption exists, where found it is weeded out and persecuted ruthlessly.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) The Federated States Government remains as open and transparent to the average Californian as is reasonably possible, nonsensitive information is readily available to the citizenry and sensitive information which is at least twenty years old is likewise made available upon request. Congress is bound by law to release, in clear and small language, yearly explanations for everything done by Congress during the legislative session. All laws passed by Congress (or by the State governments) must be made readily available for reference by the citizenry.
Is there an independent judiciary? The Supreme Court of the Federated States of California is the independent judiciary of the F.S.C.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Freedom of speech, assembly, etc. of which media is traditionally considered to be a part of, is a Constitutionally Protected and Affirmed Natural Right.
Is there freedom of religion? A Constitutionally Protected and Affirmed Natural Right.
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? Each State of the Federated States may set their own educational guidelines. While there is a federal department dedicated to education it is small and primarily dedicated to providing funding to smaller programs such as state education.
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Freedom of speech, assembly, etc. is a Constitutionally Protected and Affirmed Natural Right.
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Freedom of speech, assembly, etc. is a Constitutionally Protected and Affirmed Natural Right.
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? It is a Constitutionally Protected and Affirmed Natural Right of the Californian Citizenry to be tried in a through but expedient matter in regards to violations of the law, criminal or civil.
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? The F.S.C. Passport is recognized by every nation in the world as the identifier for our Citizens. Within California no such papers are needed for movement between any of the States, nor are there restrictions in place to limit access to education, residence or employment and any such laws would be struck down as unconstitutional and those who passed it in the first place would be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law for deliberately violating the rights of the citizenry of the F.S.C.
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? It is not the government's place to even attempt to regulate what a person wears, or who they marry, or how many children they do or do not have. Domestic violence occurs, it is prosecuted ruthlessly and its victims provided with a substantial network of resources to pull from should they need it.
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? It is generally considered to be a cornerstone of traditional Californian culture to one of these days own a business. Property rights are protected within reason, imminent domain does exist, and those who would establish monopolies find themselves broken up ruthlessly on a regular basis.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? Birthright Citizenship has been recognized by Congress since 1810, in addition one may become a Californian Citizen by either serving in the F.S.C. Armed Forces or by completing a battery of civil examinations.
Who is able to vote in elections? All Citizens of the Age of Majority (18) are able and encouraged to partake in elections.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? All Citizens of the Federated States of California are equal before the law, without exception, we are a society of pluralities, with no clear ethnic majority, as such ethnic minorities in the traditional sense do not exist in that connotation.
Are the above groups well represented in government? As well as the electorate desires them to be so. There are Governors, Representatives, Senators and even Presidents who have been from all flavors of the tribes of humanity.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? If the government of the Federated States of California attempted this, or suffered it to be attempted, it would find itself overthrown.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index?

by **Trastamara Islands** » Wed Dec 04, 2019 11:03 am

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? The head of state is chosen by the parliament.
How is the national legislature selected? The parliament chooses 4 candidates and then the voting occurs
Are elections considered free and fair? There are No elections
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory?See above

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to successfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory?The country is fully centralized, and yes, they are able to develop and implement new policies.
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? There are No restrictions, the head of state is able to pass any law.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? Yes.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 1. Any politician who is proven to be corrupt is publicly executed
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 1, The government does not allow any information about it's activity to be revealed to the public
Is there an independent judiciary?No.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Yes, But it is heavily censored
Is there freedom of religion? No. Only Christianity is allowed
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? No.
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? No.
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? No.
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? No.
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Yes, They are allowed to travel freely
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? Yes, But domestic violence is very common
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? Yes, but the business will be heavily regulated.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? By being born in the country or By having lived in the country for 5 or more years
Who is able to vote in elections? Only the parliament.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? Anyone in the LGBT community is heavily discriminated, minorities are treated equally and women are not allowed to do certain jobs.
Are the above groups well represented in government? No.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? No.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index? None.

by **New Eurasian Empire** » Wed Dec 04, 2019 10:24 pm

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? Selected by the Executive Council
How is the national legislature selected? Executive Council: Inherited or selected at random from groups of rich individuals
Provincial Council: Elected by province legislatures
Representative Council: Elected by voters to represent districts
Are elections considered free and fair? The few, yes.
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? 68.76%. Voting is not mandatory.

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? Yes, though policies can be denied by the Executive council.
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? Yes. The legislature must conduct referendums on larger bills.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? The 2 lower councils, yes. The Executive Council, no.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? 4. Lower government ranks have some corruption.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? 4. Elections are not very often and the legislature does not broadcast its meetings often.
Is there an independent judiciary? Yes.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Yes.
Is there freedom of religion? Yes.
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? Yes.
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Outside of protests/assemblies, yes.
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? No.
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? Yes.
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Yes.
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? Yes.
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? Yes.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? Being born in Eurasia or naturalization or Eurasian parents
Who is able to vote in elections? All citizens.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? Yes.
Are the above groups well represented in government? No.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? No.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index? No.

by **Shventailanka** » Thu Dec 05, 2019 1:09 am

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? The head of state - the Queen or the King - is an inherited position. The head of government - the Prime Minister - is the leader of a party that gained the most votes in the parliamentary elections.
How is the national legislature selected? Proportional elections (each party gets the number of seats proportional to their share of vote), secret ballot.
Are elections considered free and fair? Yes.
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? Voting is not mandatory, but widely encouraged by government, which results in an average turnout of about 75%.

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? Yes and yes.
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? It does; ordinary laws have to be written in compliance with the Constitution and are passed if 2/3 of members of parliament agree with it; the constitutional amendments need to be, in addition to the previous requirements, reviewed and agreed for by the current monarch, or get 4/5 of votes in the parliament.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? No, the monarch has no right to dissolve the parliament, is required to provide an adequate budget, and their veto power can be nullified by a repeated vote of the parliament.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 1, the activity of the government officials is highly monitored, and those who have been found guilty in terms of corruption are immediately expelled from the government and imprisoned for up to ten years (depending on severity).
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 9.5; the government is required to actively use social media and its website, accessible by anyone in the world, to publish its actions and newly-passed laws, leaving out only things other governments would say are top-secret, such as military movements; however, such things will usually be sent privately to the parties that have a direct interest in it (such as relatives of soldiers).
Is there an independent judiciary? Yes.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Yes.
Is there freedom of religion? Yes.
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? It is.
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Yes.
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Freedom of assembly and the right to peaceful protests are actively protected by the government.
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? There are guarantees, and they are upheld.
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Yes.
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? The individuals absolutely do enjoy basic social freedoms; they have absolute control over their appearance, are able to freely choose marriage partners (of any gender and any number of them (with consent from all sides)) and size of family. Domestic violence is explicitly outlawed and is nearly non-existent.
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? The citizens are able to freely set up their business and the property rights are protected.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? Any people born in Shventailanka or to citizen of Shventailanka are considered citizens by birthright; additionally, any foreigner can apply for citizenship after living in the country for 2.5 years and passing a quick and fairly easy “Test of Cultural Familiarity”.
Who is able to vote in elections? All citizens above the age of 17.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? Yes.
Are the above groups well represented in government? Yes, fairly well.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? Absolutely not.

by **Extreme Delusional Grahnol** » Thu Dec 05, 2019 6:20 am

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? By a bunch of drunken fools aiming to increase their own gains through their regime. The leader is chosen based on various corrupt and really weird factors but it's common for a leader to get in through intrigue, calling their whole legitimacy in jeopardy.
How is the national legislature selected? They just select the people who further their own gains and are actively doing corrupt schemes for the state.
Are elections considered free and fair? Not at all. All elections that rarely do happen are all rigged and manipulated by the media which itself is corrupt and run by G-men or the G-men are controlled by the media or some other non-government body.
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? Unknown. Because they're too goddamn lazy when the elections are fake anyways.

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to succesfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? National representatives actually have varying power depending on how much they can subvert the elements within and how many shady political deals and alliances they can tie themselves into whilst punching a bunch of people. So truthfully, only the most politically connected can really suggest anything.
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? Nope. Laws are just decided upon if it sounds like it's enough to screw up as many people as possible. As for the latter, there are no defined restrictions on passing new laws but the people above who basically have absolute power can repeal and put back laws however they feel.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? They can do literally anything to the legislature and don't really have to listen to them. The legislature's greatest role is to at least find people who could up with creative ways of oppression. The executive could just block anything the legislative says, especially on drunken nights.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 10. State-mandated corruption is exceedingly and frighteningly omnipresent in Extreme Delusional Grahnolian society. The government actively makes an effort to guzzle up the earnings and profits of its people and doesn't care about profits outside of ones within the government.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 1. 0 if that's even permissible There is really no telling to what the government might be doing. The government makes an active duty to keep its population ignorant and apathetic to politics, too.
Is there an independent judiciary? Nope. Not even close. And it's often rigged by the top people within the government in order to try and strike oppressive laws that don't even de facto exist but are enforced anyways because the judges need some fun. Some people are disproportionately given power whilst in court, in order to pick them into joining the government.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Independent media exists but is usually probed by shady government officials trying to strike deals in indoctrinating the media. They can make them report something completely outlandish or completely false even, as long as it helps them. If not, the media might have successfully infiltrated the insides of the government and is actively subverting it and its governance.
Is there freedom of religion? Yes, but people are arrested for religious activities with seemingly no consistency. Being punished for religious activities they do is often a cover-up for the real reason they do it, which is usually because of the personalistic gains possible from arresting such person.
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? From the beginning of education to the end, there is a strong political element in education. In history especially, Extreme Delusional Grahnol is always depicted as godly and the education often tries to make its people ignorant slaves to the state or other approved bodies.
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? If even such thing happens they will be brought to some important leader and slapped personally. Before worse punishment happens, of course.
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Protests, violent or not, can be violently suppressed. The state makes an effort to give the impression that the people have the power to change the state when in reality, their protests will usually be violently pushed out and when it isn't, they make an effort to suppress the ideals of the protest and depict the protestors as less than human.
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? The state-backed judiciary gives the impression that everyone is entitled to equal rights in order to bait them into taking the first step and striking blatant and heavy abuses of power at them when they get into legal trouble.
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Individuals are not allowed to leave the country nor are people born outside allowed to live in E.D Grahnol. While people may go wherever they like within the country, a lot of an individual's migration choices are dictated by individuals who are either part of the government or are part of a body that actively controls parts of the government into their favour. These migration choices are often done for personalistic gains.
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? There aren't exactly any enforced social freedoms or the suppression of but people are often targetted for how they do their routines, their life choices or their appearance seemingly on an inconsistent, circumstantial basis, where they can be targetted seemingly outside of what the law disallows. It's the case because people behind the scenes feel like doing so, often the victim does something they don't like even if it's not banned. Marriage is also banned in the country for various reasons. Not too sure about domestic violence in the country. Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected?
Yes, but it's often a mirage. Sometimes people get their property robbed by government men or subversive individuals for seemingly no reason.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? Citizens are citizens from birth. But it's common to see people get their full citizenship revoked and demoted to a lower stratum of residence where their individuality is often neglected.
Who is able to vote in elections? Everyone, even children, animals and toasters, but the results are rigged anyway.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? Different segments of the population are often oppressed but often get their rights taken away in a chaotic, inconsistent basis that usually lines up with the interests of groups or individuals in the government trying to come up with crazy ways to mess up the people. Or those subverting the government trying to be crazy to the people.
Are the above groups well represented in government? No group in the population is well-represented in the government. It's always the corrupt people who have power outside of their race, sexuality, gender, etc, often chosen for personalistic gains or other nonsensical factors in the government.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group?

Yes. It's often done because officials doing it because they are either rigged from the inside of the government, outside or they are doing it because they saw one part of the group do something which they find somewhat disgusting.
Any suggestions for future editions of the index?

by **Deacarsia** » Sun Dec 08, 2019 3:49 am

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government (or other chief national authority) selected? Male-only agnatic primogeniture.
How is the national legislature selected? The Colamra consists of hereditary peers and clergy, while the Datai is elected.
Are elections considered free and fair? Yea.
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? While voting turnout is not mandatory, average turnout tends to be rather high, most recently at 81.8% (note: only landowning adult male citizens can vote; this figure is a percentage of eligible voters).

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to successfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? Yea.
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? Technically speaking, the Crinalvar functions as a temporary advisory committee, serving at the pleasure of the King, but it exclusively possesses the power of the purse. By custom, it functions much like a normal legislature.
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature’s powers)? Technically speaking, the King has the power to govern independently, but the power of the purse belongs exclusively to the Crinalvar. By custom, he functions much like a typical executive.
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 1, as there are strict laws against governmental corruption.
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 10, as there are strict laws enforcing governmental transparency.
Is there an independent judiciary? Yea.

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Yea.
Is there freedom of religion? Nay.
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? Yea.
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Yea.
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Yea.
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? Yea, and yea.
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Yea.
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearance? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? Yea. Individuals have control over their appearance, limited by decency and modesty. They may freely choose marriage partners in accordance with Catholic canon law, and family size is limited only by nature (no contraception). Domestic violence is uncommon.
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? Yea, absolutely. Laissez-faire.

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? By jus sanguinis and naturalization.
Who is able to vote in elections? Landowning adult male citizens.
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the L.G.B.T. community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? Nay.
Are the above groups well represented in government? Nay.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? Nay, the government tries to preserve the demographics of the country.

Any suggestions for future editions of the index? Consider exit versus voice. Deacarsia is free because free exit is prioritized.

by **Saturna1ia** » Sun Dec 08, 2019 5:10 am

ELECTIONS
How was the head of state and the head of government selected? Elected (albeit without challenge) for his work writing the Social Contract

How is the national legislature selected? Seats allocated proportionally to regional population; Members elected by their regional constituents
Are elections considered free and fair? Yes, many people feel there are too many elections for trivial positions
Which was the average turnout in recent elections? Is voting mandatory? App 60-65% (voting is NOT mandatory)

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT
In case national representatives were freely elected, are they able to successfully develop and implement new policies? Does government authority extend over the full national territory? Yes; Regions have semi-autonomy, but the Supremacy Clause applies to Parliament
Does the legislature have the legislative initiative? What restrictions are placed on its ability to pass laws, including constitutional amendments? Yes; Head Minister can veto laws or Judiciary can rule a law violates the Social Contract; Constitutional amendments are a very high bar and must pass through a vote by 3/4 of Parliament, Head Minister, and 3/4 of citizens vote
Is the executive able to subvert the legislature through legal or extralegal means (such as arbitrary dissolutions, lack of an adequate budget, or strong limits on legislature's powers)? It is unclear; Any attempt by the Head Minister to bypass Parliament would definitely go straight to the High Court
From 1-10, how pervasive is corruption? (Small explanation appreciated) 1 - There are term limits for most offices, strict limits on campaign contributions, and corporations & unions can't participate in politics; Since it's nearly impossible for one party to form a majority government without coalition partner(s), most politicians keep up a good public image
From 1-10, how transparent is government activity? (Small explanation appreciated) 3 - Parliament and Judiciary are very transparent, but the Head Minister is a rather private individual and his decisions sometimes perplex even those who work around/for him
Is there an independent judiciary? Yes, lower court judges are generally elected and higher court judges are elected or appointed

CIVIL LIBERTIES
Is there an independent media? Yes, there are various news agencies that align along party lines; There is only one publicly funded news agency
Is there freedom of religion? Yes, and discrimination on the basis of or lack of religion is illegal
Is education free of political interference or indoctrination? Yes, schools purposely foster confident, perhaps even confrontational, students to prepare them for society
Are citizens able to express dissent in practice, without fearing retribution? Yes
Is there freedom of assembly? Are peaceful protests allowed, and are they able to proceed in practice? Absolutely, no permit to protest required
Are there basic guarantees of due process, and are they upheld in practice? Yes, the judiciary is the most respected and trusted branch of government
Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement inside the country and of international travel, including in education, residence or employment? Yes
Do individuals enjoy basic social freedoms (do they have control over appearence? are they able to freely choose marriage partners and size of family? how common is domestic violence?)? Yes; There is very little domestic violence - would probably be none whatsoever if alcohol was outlawed
Are individuals able to freely set up their own business? Are property rights adequately protected? Entrepreneurship is heavily encouraged by a strongly anti-monopolistic government

PARTICIPATION AND GUARANTEES OF EQUALITY
How is citizenship determined? Birthright (or Creationright) and legal immigration
Who is able to vote in elections? All citizens 18+ (automatic voter registration) who are not incarcerated; Convicted murderers have their voting rights stripped for life
Are different segments of the population (men, women, the LGBT community, ethnic minorities...) treated equally? Yes
Are the above groups well represented in government? Men and LGBT are overrepresented; women and minorities are underrepresented

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
Are the government or nonstate groups deliberately and systematically changing the demographics of the country so as to dilute or eliminate a particular group? No, but there is persistent controversy over the inclusion of AI as citizens in society

Democracy and Freedom Index (CLOSED)

Democracy and Freedom Index

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