PREAMBLE
Birthed from the grave need for cooperation amongst the socialists of the globe, the men and women of the United People’s Front for Socialism have set forth upon a pilgrimage to achieve the most perfect manifestation of the will of the people.
Articles of the Constitution
ARTICLE 1- On the Limitation of Executive Power
SECTION1- The Definition of the Founder’s Authority
SECTION 2- The Definition of the General Secretary’s Authority
ARTICLE 2- On Legislative Power
SECTION 1- The People’s Referendum
SECTION 2- On the Power of the Constitution
SECTION 3- The Tools for Legislative Expediency
CLAUSE 1- The Timed Voting Procedure
CLAUSE 2- Negative Voting
CLAUSE 3- Amendments
CLAUSE 4- Tied Vote
ARTICLE 3- On Judicial Power
SECTION 1- Judicial and Investigative Powers
CLAUSE 1- Judicial Power
CLAUSE 2- Investigation
SECTION 2- The Trial
CLAUSE 1- Duties
CLAUSE 2- Structure
CLAUSE 3- Deliberation
SECTION 3- Right to Appeal
ARTICLE 4- The Secretarial System
SECTION 1- General Secretary
SECTION 2- Secretary of Internal Affairs
SECTION 3- Secretary of Defense
SECTION 4- Secretary of Recruitment
SECTION 5- Secretary of International Affairs
SECTION 6- Restrictions and Special Cases
CLAUSE 1- Restrictions
CLAUSE 2- Absent and Acting Secretaries
ARTICLE 5- The Departmental System
SECTION 1- The Role of the Departments
SECTION 2- The Structure of the Departments
CLAUSE 1- Department of Internal Affairs
CLAUSE 2- Department of Defense
CLAUSE 3- Department of Recruitment
CLAUSE 4- Department of International Affairs
ARTICLE 6- On Voluntary Associations
SECTION 1- The Unity-Army
CLAUSE 1- Voluntary Brigades
SECTION 2- The Party System
ARTICLE 7- On Nations’ Rights
SECTION 1- Banning and Ejection
SECTION 2- Freedom of Speech
SECTION 3- Equality
SECTION 4- Voting
SECTION 5- Participation
ARTICLE 1- On the Limitation of Executive Power
SECTION 1- The Definition of the Founder’s Authority
The founder of the U.P.F.S. deserves no more elevated a place in the region than any of its denizens. Should the founder seek exercisable power, he must be democratically elected for any of the various positions that constitute the region's administration. Noting, however, the small amount of power built into the game for founders, the populace of the region can democratically establish an emergency dictatorship (lead by the founder) for no more than 10 days time. This emergency dictatorship is only to be implemented in such extreme cases as WAD corruption and impending threats of invasion. Such a vote would need to be passed by a 2/3 super-majority. In all other instances the founder is simply a member nation. In the case that the position of WAD goes unfilled or is filled by a nation who was not elected democratically, the Founder must remove executive power from that position.
SECTION 2- The Definition of the General Secretary’s Authority
The WAD will be known as the General Secretary of the U.P.F.S. in keeping with our secretarial wording. As the highest, democratically elected official in the U.P.F.S. the General Secretary reserves the right to the most power. The General Secretary will be given 50 days of reign for every democratic election that they win. A nation may only be General Secretary for 3 consecutive terms or 150 days. However, if at any time during the term of a General Secretary their competence is called into question there can be issued by any nation a "Vote of No Confidence." All nations will be asked to vote on whether or not they feel that the General Secretary should retain their position. A vote of "yea" would support the General Secretary's impeachment while a vote of "nay" would refute such actions. Should our General Secretary be impeached there will immediately be new elections called for. The impeached General Secretary must wait a minimum of 50 days (or another General Secretary's term) before again staging a run for the Secretariat.
ARTICLE 2- On Legislative Power
SECTION 1- The People’s Referendum
The People's Referendum is defined as the legislative system of UPFS, in which all nations may submit a proposal to be voted on and passed through popular support. The right to submit a proposal may not be taken away on the basis of WA membership or length of stay in the UPFS. The only time this right may be taken away is when the nation has been tried and found guilty by the government of the UPFS. The topics of proposals and edits that are submitted by the member nations of UPFS may only be restricted by previous proposals and/or the Constitution. All defensive pacts or treaties must be voted on through the People’s Referendum. There is no matter of regional functionality that is above democracy. The very tenets of direct democracy are to forever pervade the agenda of the UPFS.
SECTION 2- On the Power of the Constitution
The Constitution of the UPFS is the highest law in the UPFS that all member nations must follow. In other words, the Constitution of the UPFS supersedes the proposals of the People’s Referendum. The Founder and the General Secretary are responsible for maintaining and updating the forum containing the Constitution of the UPFS. All powers not mentioned in the Constitution may not be assumed until those powers have been given through a passed proposal in the People's Referendum or an amendment in the Constitution of the UPFS.
SECTION 3- The Tools for Legislative Expediency
CLAUSE 1- The Timed Voting Procedure
Timed voting procedure dictates that voting on a proposal ends at 7 pm ET, 2 days after the proposal or the most recent edit has been submitted. If new edits are submitted, voting continues onto the next day. Proposals and edits will be voted on at the same time, but votes will be cast separately. All votes will be cast on the RMB. Once the voting period ends, the votes will be counted and the majority of the votes will determine the fate of the proposal and/or edits.
CLAUSE 2- Negative Voting
Nations will be able to vote “None of the Above”. Should the most votes in an election be cast towards the "None of the Above" option, a new election with new candidates will become necessary. This is to prevent our people from being forced into an undesirable situation. It is also possible for a nation to cast their vote against an option, either on a proposal or in an election.
CLAUSE 3- Amendments
An amendment has the same procedure as a proposal, with the following exceptions. A vote on an amendment must be carried out through a five day period. This voting period can be extended through a proposal or edit. Voting on an Amendment to the Constitution requires the participation of at least 1/3 of nations within the UPFS. An amendment is considered part of the Constitution and, therefore, has greater authority than a proposal or edit.
CLAUSE 4- Tied Vote
In the event of a tie at the end of a vote on a proposal, edit, or amendment, the proposal, edit, amendment is given the status of failed and can be brought back to vote through new edits. In the event of a tie during an election the position will go unfilled, until a new election is resumed within 10 days.
ARTICLE 3- On Judicial Power
SECTION 1- Judicial and Investigative Powers
CLAUSE 1- Judicial Power in the UPFS is to be held by the General Secretary. Decisions of guilt are determined solely through a trial. In the case of a trial where the General Secretary is the defendant, then an Acting General Secretary is elected to hold Judicial Power.
CLAUSE 2- The Secretary of Internal Affairs is responsible for monitoring the constitutionality of the actions of any and all nations in the UPFS, including officials. The Secretary of Internal Affairs may carry out investigations into the actions of any and all nations in the UPFS at their discretion. Where applicable the Secretary of Internal Affairs is responsible for bringing charges against nations to the attention of the General Secretary. Charges and trials may also be brought up on the referendum, in which it requires 2/3 of the region’s membership to pass.
SECTION 2- The Trial
CLAUSE 1- All Trials are to be set up by the General Secretary, or its equivalent, upon receiving the formal charge(s). Each trial will consist of one prosecutor and the defendant. The Secretary of Internal Affairs will act as prosecutor. The Secretary of Internal Affairs may choose a nation from the UPFS to carry out this task on his/her behalf. In the case of a trial where the Secretary of Internal Affairs is the defendant then an Acting Secretary of Internal Affairs takes the position and powers of the Secretary of Internal Affairs. Only one defendant may be tried at a time. The defendant may engage one other nation to represent them in the trial.
CLAUSE 2- The General Secretary must ensure that the charges are competent and have been communicated to the defendant. The hearing will be brought to order and timescales laid out for each section of the trial, normally 48 hours for each section. The General Secretary will invite the prosecutor to make their opening statement laying out all of the evidence to support the charges against the defendant. The defendant (or defendant’s representative) may then make a statement of rebuttal. The prosecution will then be offered to opportunity to rebut the defense arguments. The prosecution may not introduce new material evidence at this stage. Failure to observe this proscription will in every event lead to a mistrial being declared and the defendant acquitted.
CLAUSE 3- The General Secretary will deliberate before returning a verdict and sentence where applicable. The period of deliberation will be no longer than one week after the trial has been closed.
SECTION 3- The Right to Appeal
The defendant has the right to appeal the decision of the General Secretary by means of a special peoples referendum proposal. In order for the appeal to be successful, 2/3 of the membership of UPFS must vote to overturn the decision.
ARTICLE 4- The Secretarial System
SECTION 1- General Secretary
It is the responsibility of the General Secretary to directly oversee the endeavors of the Secretaries as well as assign them with new initiatives at his/her discretion. All initiatives are to be strictly public. If at any time they fall out of consuetude with the people the initiatives can be rendered null and void by a passing vote of the People's Referendum. Defeated initiatives cannot be revived or re-declared without the approval of the People's Referendum. The other main task of the General Secretary is to officially preside over the legislature. The power to declare votes concluded and officially establish the results lays within his/her authority. The abuse of this power would be one such occurrence that deserves a vote of no confidence. Furthermore, if the General Secretary has not officiated the results of a vote within 48 hours of the time that the vote was scheduled to expire, any member of the Secretary may do so.
SECTION 2- Secretary of Internal Affairs
The powers given to the Secretary of Internal Affairs are to maintain internal peace by recommending nations that should be banned and/or ejected. The recommendation must be after the accused nation's offenses have been analyzed and tried by the UPFS Judicial System. The Secretary of Internal Affairs must know the Constitution and be able to point out any actions which go against it. The position of Secretary of Internal Affairs is to be given to a nation that is a member of the United Peoples Front for Socialism and is selected by the WA Delegate in office. In the event the General Secretary’s position goes unfilled, the Secretary of Internal Affairs must assume the duties of General Secretary and have a new election within 10 days from assuming power.
SECTION 3- Secretary of Defense
The powers given to the Secretary of Defense are to set up a defense for the region against invasion. The Secretary of Defense may not use his/her position to invade or intervene without permission from the nations of the United Peoples Front for Socialism. The Secretary of Defense must set up a network of defense and may be covert, as long as all actions are telegrammed to the WA Delegate and Secretary of Internal Affairs. The Secretary of Defense must be a member nation and is to be elected by popular vote every 80 days.
SECTION 4- Secretary of Recruitment
The powers given to the Secretary of Recruitment are to recruit members from all regions, except hostile ones, and spread the name of the United Peoples Front for Socialism. The Secretary of Recruitment may only use nations within the region to help recruit. If size of the region permits, the Secretary of Recruitment may create an Office of Recruitment with the intent of centralizing recruitment efforts. The Secretary of Recruitment is required to organize and supervise recruitment efforts within the UPFS. The Secretary of Recruitment must also allow all UPFS members participate in their collective duty to recruit, however may require certain guidelines and templates. The Secretary of Recruitment must be a member nation and is to be elected by popular vote every 50 days.
SECTION 5- Secretary of International Affairs
The powers given to the Secretary of International Affairs are to represent the United Peoples Front for Socialism in all ally, hostile, and many neutral regions and to represent the United Peoples Front for Socialism in the Left Interregional. The Secretary of International Affairs is to report all information of importance to the nations of the United Peoples Front for Socialism. The Secretary of International Affairs must be a member nation and is to be elected by popular vote every 80 days. The Secretary of International Affairs reserves the right to grant other nations temporary ambassadorship. This position will be referred to as "Undersecretary of International Affairs." Undersecretaries are directly responsive to the secretary and are forbid from taking on FAI's (Foreign Affairs Initiatives) not assigned to them by the secretary. There is no cap to the amount of undersecretaries that can be selected by the secretary as the amount of affairs that directly involve the United Peoples Front for Socialism is constantly fluctuating. In addition, the secretary maintains the authority to dismiss these comrades at his/her discretion and request that they relinquish the control of their puppet nation so that it can still be used by the Department of Foreign Affairs.
SECTION 6- Restrictions and Special Cases
CLAUSE 1- Restrictions
No nation may hold two Secretarial positions at the same time. They must resign from one to use the power of another.
CLAUSE 2- Absent and Acting Secretaries
In the event a Secretary ceases to exist, he shall forfeit his position, and a new Secretary will be appointed or elected according to Constitutional provisions. Should at any time the most recent government activity of a Secretary be shown to be over ten days prior to the current date, or should any Secretary announce his or her intention to take a leave of absence in excess of five days, the duties of the Secretary shall be executed by an Acting Secretary. An Acting Secretary may be selected in two ways: through the previous election, or through a vote of the People's Referendum. Should, in the most recent election, there have been more than one candidate for the inactive Secretariat, the candidate receiving the most votes who did not win the election, and who is a member of the UPFS at the time an Acting Secretary is selected, shall be approached by the Secretary for Internal Affairs and asked to fulfill the position of Acting Secretary. Should he or she refuse the position, the Secretary of Internal Affairs shall approach the next-leading candidate, until he or she finds a willing member or exhausts the total number of eligible candidates. If he or she is unable to find an Acting Secretary according to the provisions of the previous paragraph, be it through lack of interest for the position or lack of candidates in the most recent election, the Secretary of Internal Affairs shall approach the People's Referendum and request interested members of the UPFS submit candidacy for Acting Secretary, and the General Secretary shall manage the vote of the People's Referendum in a manner similar to any other proposal before it. An Acting Secretary shall immediately relinquish his or her power upon the return of the elected Secretary to office, or at such time as a new election is held.
ARTICLE 5- The Departmental System
SECTION 1- The Role of the Departments
Each Secretary, with the exception of the General Secretary, will have a corresponding Department. The Secretary must be a participating member of the Department and must moderate discussion within the Department. The Departments are made up of volunteers from UPFS. The purpose of the Department is to assist the Secretary carry out policies. Departments may organize in a sub region. However, they may not require volunteers to send their WA nations. Nations may participate in as many Departments as they deem appropriate. Departments and their actions are bounded to the Constitution and the Referendum.
SECTION 2- The Structure of the Departments
CLAUSE 1- Department of Internal Affairs
The Secretary of Internal Affairs is the primary organizer of the Department of Internal Affairs. The Secretary of Internal Affairs may assign tasks that involve Internal Affairs to the members of this Department.
CLAUSE 2- Department of Defense
The Secretary of Defense is the primary organizer of the Department of Defense. The Secretary of Defense may assign tasks that involve Defense to the members of this Department. However, covert operations are on a need to know basis as determined by the Secretary of Defense. The Unity-Army is to be organized within the Department.
CLAUSE 3- Department of Recruitment
The Secretary of Recruitment is the primary organizer of the Department of Recruitment. The Secretary of Recruitment may assign tasks that involve Recruitment to the members of this Department.
CLAUSE 4- Department of International Affairs
The Secretary of International Affairs is the primary organizer of the Department of International Affairs. The Secretary of International Affairs may assign tasks that involve Interregional Affairs to the members of this Department.
ARTICLE 6- On Voluntary Associations
SECTION 1- The Unity-Army
The purpose of the Unity-Army is to provide regional defense from internal conflict. The army is to consist of only WA members. Also, the leader and organizer of the army is the Secretary of Defense. The Secretary of Defense must report to the General Secretary, Secretary of Internal Affairs, and Secretary of International Affairs before any military actions are taken. The Unity-Army may be legally deployed in an ideologically aligned region that may have come under attack or is in dire need of defense.
CLAUSE 1- Voluntary Brigades
Voluntary Brigades are defined as groups of individual nations within UPFS that organize to liberate or invade other regions. Voluntary Brigades do not belong to the Unity-Army. Voluntary Brigades may be made by nations within the UPFS. The Voluntary Brigades do not represent the viewpoint of the UPFS. Members of Voluntary Brigades are considered volunteers and may be recruited within UPFS.
SECTION 2- The Party System
Political parties within the UPFS are defined as organizations that promote a set of issues to better the structure and system of the UPFS. They are organizations that seek to win elections or pass legislation to promote their goals, and may structure themselves in any way they individually deem necessary. Political parties may not undermine the rights of nations as defined by the Constitution, nor coerce their members to vote in specific ways. No nation shall be obliged to seek membership in a political party.
Political parties are required to create their own factbook. Links to the factbooks will be provided in a sub-region called the UPFS Party HQ, managed by the Secretary of Internal Affairs. The UPFS Party HQ will also post links to other party documents or forums if asked. Links to debates between political parties are encouraged to be posted on the regional message board of UPFS. Political parties may be formed without the consent of the People's Referendum; however, they are restricted by the Constitution. Every three months the political party must submit, on the regional message board, a Statement of Loyalty pledging that it seeks to build up the UPFS and will do nothing to undermine the security or the Constitution of the UPFS. Nations within political parties are still subject to the law and its consequences. Political parties within the UPFS may take any stand on any issue. Political parties may create sub-regions and must report their existence in their factbook. Any political party deemed by the People's Referendum to be disloyal to the UPFS will be forcibly disbanded and its members deemed to have contributed to its disloyalty shall be prosecuted according to the Constitution. Should at any time the party system introduced by this amendment produce a situation where the electoral or legislative voice of any nation is quantifiably altered, whether through enhancement or diminishment, in relation to the voice of any other member, the terms of this amendment will be immediately turned to the People's Referendum in search of a feasible way to alleviate the issue.
ARTICLE 7- On Nations’ Rights
SECTION 1- Banning and Ejection
A nation may only be banned or ejected, if it is found guilty by the government of UPFS, as determined by a trial, for subversive or criminal actions against the UPFS or UPFS hosted regions. Only the General Secretary has the authority to ban or eject criminal nations. The Founder assumes this authority in the absence of the General Secretary or Acting General Secretary.
SECTION 2- Freedom of Speech
All member and non-member nations in the UPFS have the right to discuss any topic on the regional message board or present and future forums hosted by the UPFS. Posts cannot be suppressed, unless they go against NationStates rules.
SECTION 3- Equality
All member nations have equal rights and are to be treated equal under the Constitution. No law or proposal may hinder the rights of individual nations or groups of nations in the UPFS. All nations have an equal right to a fair trial.
SECTION 4- Voting
All nations have no more or less than one vote in any legislative decision. All nations within UPFS have the right to vote on proposals, edits, and elections, unless convicted by trial. All nations within UPFS have the right to run for any position of office, unless convicted by trial. No nation is allowed to have a vote be counted twice, especially by puppet.
SECTION 5- Participation
All nations within UPFS have the right to vote on proposals, edits, and elections, unless convicted by trial. All nations within UPFS have the right to run for any position of office, unless convicted by trial.