DG5 Tradational Government Constitution

[Strider]

Here is my proposed constitution and supporting laws of my modified DG5 government.

We, the people of $COUNTRY_NAME, in order to create an atmosphere of
friendship, cooperation, and pride, establish this Constitution of our
beloved country. We uphold the beliefs that each citizen must
have an equal voice in the government and ruling of our country,
that government itself is a construct of and servant to the people,
that rules, regulations, and laws should be established to
facilitate the active participation of the people and to make
possible the dreams and desires of the citizens.

Article A. Citizen Rights
All Civfanatics Forum users who register in the Citizen Registry are citizens of our country. Citizens have the right to assemble, the right to free movement, the right to free speech, the right to a fair and speedy trial, the right to representation, the right to seek to redress grievances and the right to vote.

Article B. Laws and Rules
Governing laws and rules shall consist of these Articles of the Constitution, the Code of Laws, and any administrative rules that a governmental official shall propose and are accepted by the people. No law or rule shall be valid which is in contravention of this Constitution, excepting an amendment specifically tasked to do so. The Constitution may be amended by vote of the citizenry.

Article C. Basic Government
The government will consist of the Executive Branch, Legislative Branch and Judicial Branch.

Article D. The Executive Branch
The Executive branch is responsible for determining and implementing the will of the People, and is headed by the President. The President is charged with organizing and monitoring the affairs of the Ministers, and is also the primary designated player. The President shall take direction from a council of leaders and from other elected and appointed officials via the turnchat instruction thread, including worker actions. The President is also charged with appointing citizens to uncontested elections, the election office, and the Naming Commission.

Section 1. Domestic Affairs
The Minister of Domestic Affairs shall be responsible for all domestic initiatives and the distribution of funds.

Section 2. Foreign Affairs
he Minister of Foreign Affairs shall be responsible for matters involving treaties with foreign nations as well as all espionage and embassy missions.

Section 3. Defensive Affairs
The Minister of Defense shall be responsible for all military strategy, troop activities, and unit upgrades.

Section 4. Trade
The Minister of Trade shall be responsible for negotiating trades both domestic and foreign, and monitored rival civs trade status.

Section 5. Research and Technology
The Minister of Science shall be responsible for all tech acquisition, foreign and domestic, and the construction of space ship parts.

Section 6. Cultural Affairs
The Minister of Culture shall be responsible for the construction of wonders, as well as the analysis and maintenance of cultural borders. This official shall also be responsible for monitoring Japanatica's cultural level against that of all rival nations.

Article E. Legislative Branch
The Legislative Branch shall be formed of the House of the People and Governors of [Insert Nation Name Here].

Section 1. The House of the People
The House of the People will be formed of the entirety of the citizenry and is responsible for the drafting of new Laws and Amendments to the Constitution. The House will present all proposed Articles, Amendments and Laws to the Judicial Branch for review.

Section 2. The Governors
Governors are responsible for the care, management, use of the cities, and use of lands of a province through the setting of build queues, allocation of laborers on tiles, population rushes and drafting of citizen soldiers.

Section 3. Mayors
Mayors are appointed by a governor and tasked with the ability to monitor and advise governors for the care, management, and used of the cities. They are limited to the power the governor gives them.

Article F. The Judicial Branch
The Judicial Branch will consist of one Chief Justice, one Public Defender and a Judge Advocate. These three justices are tasked with upholding the Constitution and its supporting laws (if any) in a fair and impartial manner as prescribed by law. The Chief Justice shall have the additional responsibility to organize and conduct the affairs of the Judicial Branch. The Public Defender will act as counsel for an accused individual. The Judge Advocate will act as the prosecution.

Section 1. Judicial Procedures
The elected Judiciary shall create their procedures once elected it, to be located in the first post of that term's Judiciary thread. Any change after the Judiciary's posting of these procedures will require the Will of the People.

Article G. Elections, the Election Office, and Deputies
The Elections determine the elected officials of [insert country name here]. Elected Officials shall have a fixed term of one month, starting from the first of the month. All elected officials must act according to the Will of the People, as mentioned below in Article J.

Section 1. Elections
All elected positions shall have a fixed term of one month. Each position will be granted to the candidate receiving the largest number of votes in that election. In the event of a tie between two or more candidates with the most votes, a runoff poll shall be opened between those candidates only. This poll shall run for 2 days, and be repeated as often as needed to resolve the tie. Nominations shall begin roughly 8 days before the end of the month, with debates following exactly 2 days after that, and elections 2 days after debates. Nominations will be closed once the elections begin, however debates will continue.

Section 2. The Election Office
The Election Office shall be comprised of those citizens
willing to assist the election process. These citizens are
nominated by the President, and are subject to a confirmation
poll. The Election Office shall determine before each election who
will post the threads for that election. The Election Office shall maintain on the initial post of their thread the dates for the current and next election cycle. The Election Office shall solicit and maintain a common list of debate questions for each office. This list shall be posted as soon as possible in each debate thread. Any non-trivial differences in the dates/times threads are posted from the scheduled time should be noted by the Election Office official posting the thread.

Section 3. Deputies
All Executive and Legislative positions shall have a deputy. The Deputy will be permitted to conduct the affairs of the office as directed, or during a planned Absence of the elected official. If no instructions have been posted for an office within 24 hours of the upcoming Turn Chat, the deputy for that office may post the official instructions for the office. The Judiciary does not use deputies. In the event of an Absence, a pro-tem justice(s) may be appointed by the Chief Justice (or Judge Advocate if the Chief Justice if absent) and confirmed by the President and the remaining justice if not also absent. If both the Chief Justice and the Judge Advocate are absent, the Public Defender may appoint pro-tems to the other seats, with Presidential approval.

Section 3. Appointments
The President will appoint a citizen to any Vacant office. If a deputy exists for that office, the President must appoint that citizen. This appointment may be challenged by any citizen by that citizen posting a confirmation poll within 24 hours of the appointment.

Article H. Multiple Poistions
No person shall hold multiple positions of leadership (President, Vice-President, Department Leader, Judiciary, Provincial Governor, Deputy) simultaneously.

Article I. Census, and Amending the Constitution
The census shall be defined as the average number of votes cast, dropping fractions, in each of the contested elections in the most recent general election. Ratification of Amendments to the Constitution shall require each of the following.

Section 1. Time Limits
A poll which is open for at least 96 hours, which states the text of the proposed new section(s), the text of the section(s) being replaced, and posing the question in the form of yes / no / abstain.

Section 2. Citizen Approval
A 67% majority of Yes votes over No votes, Abstain notwithstanding.

Section 3. Census
A total number of votes greater than or equal to 2/3 the census current at the start of voting on the amendment, dropping any fraction therein.

Article J. The Will of the People
Elected officials must plan and act according to the will of the people. The will of the people will be determined through discussion and polls, formal or informal. If pertinent discussion is done outside the scope of the DG forums, then it must be documented in the Turnchat Instruction Thread 6 hours prior to the commencement of the turnchat by the appropriate leader.

Article K. Turnchats/Turnchat Instruction Thread
All irreversible game actions must progress during a public turnchat, while reversible game actions (i.e. build queues) that adhere to legal instructions can be prepared offline.

Section 1. Turnchat Instruction Thread
A turnchat instruction thread must be created at least 3 days before the chat. All official instructions must be posted in the current turnchat instruction thread. Instructions must be clear and defined. Officials must post their instructions at least one hour prior to the Turnchat. However, officials may make changes to their instructions up to half an hour before the chat, so long as those changes are noted. The Designated Player shall be charged with the creation of a date and time for all public turnchats.

Article L. CivFanatics Forum Rules
The constitution, laws and standards of [Insert Country Name Here] can never be contrary to the rules and regulations of the Civfanatics forums. Moderators may veto any such constitutional amendments, laws or standards.

Article M. Commission of Game Actions
Commission of any game action by any person other than the Designated Player while carrying out their duties that is not instantly reversible without reloading the save is strictly forbidden. Exception: Determining options in the renegotiation of Peace agreements requires an action of acceptance or war to exit the bargain screen. This may be done but the game must be immediately closed without saving.

Article N. Rights Reserved to the People
Rights reserved to the people As provided by Article A of this constitution, all actions not forbidden by forum rules, or by this Constitution, are presumed to be within the right of every citizen. Actions prescribed by this Constitution may be substituted by other similar actions, provided such substitution lies within the spirit of these rules.

Article O. Provinces
The area contained within the national boundaries of $COUNTRY_NAME shall be divided into areas called provinces, each of which is under the control of a Governor as stated in Article E. of the Constitution. These boundries must be defined and approved by the House well ahead of expansion, and may extend beyond the cultural boundaries. City locations shall be determined by the Will of the People.

Article P. Freedom of Information
All elected/appointed officials are charged with the duty to post enough information for the citizens to make a informed decision. This includes information from the save, discussions, and past polls. Any citizen of the demogame may demand a minister to supply more information.

Section 1.Ministry Threads
Each Minister shall post a basic department update, every turnchat, inside of the respective Ministry thread.

Article Q. The Naming Commission
The Naming Commission is charged with the task of creating a list of names for use by the Designated Player in the naming of cities and units.

Section 1. Naming Order
The order of naming cities shall be decided by the date joined in the registry. The naming of units shall be decided by the elected officials.

Article R. Slate Polling and Political Parties
Slate Polling, or the agreement among certain citizens to vote for a single candidate is illegal and against the Sprit of the game. As such, political parties are also illegal and against the Sprit of the game.

Section 1. Citizen Groups
Citizen Groups, or a group of citizens who assemble to achieve a single purpose are allowed and within the sprit of the game.

 

[Strider]

Here is the modified Code Of Laws.

COL Article A. - Deputies
For all positions using deputies, a deputy must be selected in the following manner: If the election was not contested, any citizen may be appointed, by the president. If the election was contested, the winner or the election will chose the deputy.

COL Article B. - Tied Elections
In the instance of a tie between two opponents in an election, a run-off poll will be made, not including any 3rd candidates running. The poll must follow any guidelines set up by existing laws. The President will appoint a citizen to handle the disputed poistion untill a result is made.

CoL C. - Confirmation Polls
Confirmation polls are used to challenge the appointment of a citizen to an elected office. Any citizen may create a confirmation poll, should one not already exist. This poll must be created within 24 hours of the appointment, and ask the question "Do you approve of the appointment of <citizen name> to the office of <office name>?", with Yes, No and Abstain option. This poll is to be private, as it is a form of an election. The poll will run for 2 days. At the end of the time, if a majority of the citizens vote "No", the appointment is overturned. Any other result approves the appointment.

CoL D. - Vacancies
An official or Justice may declare themselves to be Absent for a period of time. During this time, the deputy or pro-tem will act with all power and duties of that office, surrendering them to the official or Justice when they return or at the end of the planned absence, whichever comes first. Should an official fail to post instructions for 2 consecutive turn chats without prior notice, the Judiciary may declare that office Vacant. If a Justice has not posted on any active Judicial matter for three days, the remaining Justices may declare the Justice Absent. If a Justice has not posted on any active Judicial matter for seven days, the remaining Justices may declare the office Vacant. If all three Justices fail to post on any active Judicial matter for 7 days, the President may declare all Judicial offices Vacant, and immediately appoint a Chief Justice.

COL Article E. - Pre-Nominations
Any citizen may submit a Pre-Nomination to a member of the Election Office one week before the start of the election process (Nominations, Debates, and Elections).


COL Article F. - Code of Laws Amendments
Altering the Code of Laws requires the proposed change to be presented in a discussion thread. When discussion dies down the author of the proposed change may request a Judicial Review, by posting in the Judicial thread. Having passed Judicial Review, the proposed poll may be posted in the Poll sub-subforum. The poll must remain open for 72 hours. A quorum of 37% of the active census is required for the poll results to be valid. 55% (dropping fractions) of those voting must approve of the proposed change for it to be admitted to the Code of Laws.

Col G - Formation of new Provinces
All land that is not within or surrounded by the Cultural Boundaries of another nation may be considered as part of the [insert country name here] Nation. In the beginning of the game, a default Province shall be established and a Governor installed by election therein. This First Province shall contain all lands that are part of the [insert country name here] Nation until other Provinces are formed, and has at its Capital the First Established City. Territories shall be formed by the House devising "Boundary Lines" within established Provinces. Ratification by the People is required before these boundaries have effect. The minimum size of these Territories should be a space large enough to fit 3 cities at full Temple Radius. Once a Territory has at least three (3) towns or has at least 50% of the land within the entire territory under [insert country name here] Cultural Borders, then it becomes a Full Province with its own Governor. Until this happens, administration of towns within the territory are retained by the Governors of their respective former Provinces. Administration of New Towns formed before the limit is achieved will be under the control of the Domestic Minister. Governors of new Provinces will be appointed by the President, under recommendations from the Domestic Minister. These appointments will last only until the end of the current term, and be subject to Section G of the Code of Laws. Provincial Boundaries may be readjusted with consent of the affected Governors and the House.

The Polling Standards still need some work. It will be difficult to make them clear and defined without making the format confusing. I plan on going into more detail later, but I'm going to have to think over it.

 

[Strider]

I made the following edits to the Constitution:

Made changes to Section G.1 stating that Nominations will start 8 days before the end of the month, instead of at the 24th of the month. Much more exact and makes sure we have the same amount of time for each election process. Also adjusted debates and elections to basicly the same thing.

Made changes to Section Q.1 seperating the Naming of Units and Cities. The discussion is still not decided, so it's not going to stay that way, but that will be the basic layout for now.

Made changes to Article P. allowing citizens to demand a elected official to supply more information for a discussion or poll.

 

[YNCS]

Strider,

In the Government Structure, Branches & Duties thread, I made some recommendations for corrections to your proposed constitution.

 

[Strider]

Strider,

In the Government Structure, Branches & Duties thread, I made some recommendations for corrections to your proposed constitution.

Saw it, and made the edits. Thank You.

 

[Civanator]

Gotta change some Japanatica's in the CoL, Article G:

CoL Article G - Formation of new Provinces
All land that is not within or surrounded by the Cultural Boundaries of another nation may be considered as part of the $COUNTRY_NAME Nation. In the beginning of the game, a default Province shall be established and a Governor installed by election therein. This First Province shall contain all lands that are part of the $COUNTRY_NAME Nation until other Provinces are formed, and has at its Capital the First Established City. Territories shall be formed by the House devising "Boundary Lines" within established Provinces. Ratification by the People is required before these boundaries have effect. The minimum size of these Territories should be a space large enough to fit 3 cities at full Temple Radius. Once a Territory has at least three (3) towns or has at least 50% of the land within the entire territory under $COUNTRY_NAME's Cultural Borders, then it becomes a Full Province with its own Governor. Until this happens, administration of towns within the territory are retained by the Governors of their respective former Provinces. Administration of New Towns formed before the limit is achieved will be under the control of the Domestic Minister. Governors of new Provinces will be appointed by the President, under recommendations from the Domestic Minister. These appointments will last only until the end of the current term, and be subject to Section G of the Code of Laws. Provincial Boundaries may be readjusted with consent of the affected Governors and the House.

in Article B, CoL:
Position at the end of the article is spelled wrong. Need to transpose the "i" and the "s".

Now I'll scan for anything unclear or other errors.

Overall it's splendid work though.

 

[Ashburnham]

It looks good to me. If we decide to use a "traditional government" for DG6, I think we've found the document we'll use. Good work, Strider.

 

[Strider]

I am currently thinking about also making another "book," bring back the Code of Standards from the past DG's. The purpose of this would be to lay down guidelines for the Election Office, Judiciary, etc.

Basicly, it will say what Judicial Revies and Citizen Complaints are, but allow almost all of the fine tuning to the Judiciary (More or less, it will say that the Judiciary must include procedures for Judicial Reviews and Citizen Complaints and that's about all).

The polling standards will also be moved into this third book.

Any Comments?

 

[YNCS]

I think we all appreciate the work you're putting into this, Strider. Thank you.

 

[Black_Hole]

I am currently thinking about also making another "book," bring back the Code of Standards from the past DG's. The purpose of this would be to lay down guidelines for the Election Office, Judiciary, etc.

Basicly, it will say what Judicial Revies and Citizen Complaints are, but allow almost all of the fine tuning to the Judiciary (More or less, it will say that the Judiciary must include procedures for Judicial Reviews and Citizen Complaints and that's about all).

The polling standards will also be moved into this third book.

Any Comments?

I was kinda hoping this wouldnt be a restrictive government, but it looks like its going to be...

 

[YNCS]

I was kinda hoping this wouldnt be a restrictive government, but it looks like its going to be...

This is just one of several alternatives. Blackheart has an alternative government, and if you can convince a majority of people to accept it, that's what we'll play with.

 

[Strider]

I was kinda hoping this wouldnt be a restrictive government, but it looks like its going to be...

How will it be restrictive? All it will be is a Code of Standards, basicly the Polling Standards, Election Standards, Judiciary Standards, and Department Standards.

Here's what each one will include:

Polling Standards:
Will be fairly detailed, and include all of the basics that should be followed when posting a poll. Same as is already mentioned inside of the Code Of Laws, but with some edits.

Election Standards:
The Basic layout of an Election Poll and Nomination thread, requiring the election office to place the candidates name(s), with a link to the nomination thread, and the election office itself.

Judiciary Standards:
Requires the Judiciary to create a set of procedures. These procedures must include a form of Citizen Complaints and Judicial Review.

Department Standards:
All departments must create atleast one thread inside of the Government thread. The title of this thread will include the term and the respective departments name.

 

[Strider]

Here is the Code of Standards:

COS Article A. Polling Standards
Any poll posted by a Citizen of the Democracy game is considered official and binding, unless otherwise stated. All polls must simply and clearly state the question and all options, and contain an abstain option. A poll should state the objectives of the poll and the time limit (if any) of the poll. A poll must also contain all releveant information, including links to the respective ministry thread, discussion, and other polls.

Section 1. Election Polls
All election polls shall be private and include all accepted candidates and abstain. The first post must include a link to the nomination/debates and the options.

COS Article B. Judiciary Standards
The Chief Justice, once elected, is required to create a thread inside of the government sub-forum. This thread must include the term and state that it is the official Judiciary office.

Section 1. Judiciary Procedures
Upon election, the Judiciary is also required to create a list of procedures. These must be easily accessible and include the formation of procedures for a constitutional review process and a court of law process.

COS Article C. Ministry Standards
Upon election, a Minister is required to create a thread within the government sub-forum. This threads title must include the term and state the respective Ministrys name. These procedures must be easily accessible to all citizens.

Section 1. Freedom of Information Act
The said ministry thread must also include basic information, concerning the respective department. This information must be up to date and easily accessible.

 

[GenMarshall]

This is the only thing I dislike about the proposal

COL Article A. - Deputies
For all positions using deputies, a deputy must be selected in the following manner: If the election was not contested, any citizen may be appointed, by the president. If the election was contested, the winner or the election will chose the deputy.

I still favor the runner-up canidate to be the deputy because at least He/She has their foot in the door into the respected office that they are interested in. I dislike having the winner of the election chose the deputy because of several factors:

• 1. Very few people are eager to step forward to apply for deputy ship
• 2. As with #1, the reason for this is because there is little or no responsibility to the deputy.
• 3. The winner of the election would chose someone over who is more interested in the office (Winner would chose Person B insted of Person A, Person A is more interested in getting into office that he is interested in)

For uncontested elections, I still perfer to have the leader select a deputy insted of the presiden.

 

[Black_Hole]

This is the only thing I dislike about the proposal



I still favor the runner-up canidate to be the deputy because at least He/She has their foot in the door into the respected office that they are interested in. I dislike having the winner of the election chose the deputy because of several factors:

• 1. Very few people are eager to step forward to apply for deputy ship
• 2. As with #1, the reason for this is because there is little or no responsibility to the deputy.
• 3. The winner of the election would chose someone over who is more interested in the office (Winner would chose Person B insted of Person A, Person A is more interested in getting into office that he is interested in)

For uncontested elections, I still perfer to have the leader select a deputy insted of the presiden.

But good elections are fiercely fought thus the runner up isnt going to be the exact friend of the winner. Plus offices work better when people in the office are friends. This is why the USA changed it where the Vice President wasn't runner up. We could learn some things from real life.

 

[Donovan Zoi]

Sorry, CG. It's time to put runner-up deputies out to pasture once and for all.......

Speaking of this, are there plans to have the President and VP run on the same ticket?

 

[GenMarshall]

Sorry, CG. It's time to put runner-up deputies out to pasture once and for all.......

Well, I do intend to fight to keep the runner-up deputies still as a plauseable options for leaders. I did not liked the "Winner chosing the" deputy since, speeking from experiance, has gotten me disenfranchised in the excecutive department in *shudder* DG4.

But good elections are fiercely fought thus the runner up isnt going to be the exact friend of the winner. Plus offices work better when people in the office are friends. This is why the USA changed it where the Vice President wasn't runner up. We could learn some things from real life.

Firstly, I do not wish to see this game mirror the Real Life of the US Government. As in Chieftess's poll she did earlyer on why people left the DG, most of the people voted for "Too much Beurocracy". Which I interperated as the DG becoming more like a Game of Government/Parlament. Though we only saw one case of seeing a runner-up deputy harboring dislike twards the leader (Not going to point fingers) in this DG, but that was only one case. I have seen (and I have done the same) when runner-up deputies have worked along with the leader.

 

[Black_Hole]

Sorry, CG. It's time to put runner-up deputies out to pasture once and for all.......

Speaking of this, are there plans to have the President and VP run on the same ticket?

or even all of the offices...
but i would settle with just pres and vp.
I think when the president accepts his/her nomination he/she just nominates someone for vice president and that person can accept or decline.

 

[Black_Hole]

Well, I do intend to fight to keep the runner-up deputies still as a plauseable options for leaders. I did not liked the "Winner chosing the" deputy since, speeking from experiance, has gotten me disenfranchised in the excecutive department in *shudder* DG4.



Firstly, I do not wish to see this game mirror the Real Life of the US Government. As in Chieftess's poll she did earlyer on why people left the DG, most of the people voted for "Too much Beurocracy". Which I interperated as the DG becoming more like a Game of Government/Parlament. Though we only saw one case of seeing a runner-up deputy harboring dislike twards the leader (Not going to point fingers) in this DG, but that was only one case. I have seen (and I have done the same) when runner-up deputies have worked along with the leader.

so is this what we are making our decisions on? A poll :shakehead
It seems that you and CT always support your decisions by that poll...
I havent even seen that poll posted!!! This poll leaves out people that have are still here but arent liking the game or are going to be leaving. Bureaucracy is government, we arent even close to too much government. Too much government is when we add the CoS and invent some new system of laws... So let me get this right, you would have prefered to see Bush as kerrys vp if kerry won, instead of edwards? As you see this would never work out...

 

[GenMarshall]

or even all of the offices...
but i would settle with just pres and vp.
I think when the president accepts his/her nomination he/she just nominates someone for vice president and that person can accept or decline.

The problem is, (as stated by Dave in another thread) there are not very many people that are willing to take the reigns of deputyship/VPship.

When I won an office uncontested or appointed govenor to a province, I had placed in for the deputy slot please apply if interested and yet, very rarely do I see a citizen post interest in the deputy slot (Hense why I favor the runner-up deputy).

so is this what we are making our decisions on? A poll :shakehead
It seems that you and CT always support your decisions by that poll...
I havent even seen that poll posted!!! This poll leaves out people that have are still here but arent liking the game or are going to be leaving. Bureaucracy is government, we arent even close to too much government. Too much government is when we add the CoS and invent some new system of laws... So let me get this right, you would have prefered to see Bush as kerrys vp if kerry won, instead of edwards? As you see this would never work out...

I would be happy if Kerry became VP. But we are not here to discuss about the US Government, we are here to discuss the DemoGame Government. I was making a statement that we should not mirror the government that is the same as the US or the British Parlement.

If you are interested in mirroring a Model Government/Parlament. There is a forum for that somewhere.