Constitutional convention

[Brad Holmes]

It's the moment we've all been waiting for!

Here is (hopefully) a final draft of our supreme Province's Constitution.

I credit heavily the work of S:reu Eoin Ursüm, who built upon the work of S:reu Danielo Forestal.

I call upon all Atatürkeys to please review this draft and offer suggestions and commentary for consideration.

Following a period of 2 weeks (09 JAN 10), I ask our Premier (soon to be Başbakan) S:da Melissa Baker to make a "Summons to Vote" in order to ratify the constitution.

Happy Birthday Talossa!
God save the King!

[Brad Holmes]

WE, the citizens of the Talossan Province of Atatürk, in order to assure the vibrant and continued life of our Province, ESTABLISH the following Constitution for the governance of Atatürk. This constitution shall serve as the guide for the citizens and highest provincial law for the province of Atatürk. It shall be superseded only by the following: the dictates of the Organic Law of the Kingdom of Talossa, the statutory law of the Kingdom of Talossa as pertaining to the specific limits of the power of the national Ziu as detailed within that Organic Law, and the rights of the citizenry as ensured by that Organic Law's Covenant of Rights and Freedoms. This constitution shall be considered to fulfill the requirements for provincial "rules of operations" as detailed in Article XVII, Section 9, paragraph D of the Organic Law, for the province of Atatürk alone, and shall be considered so in perpetuity. This constitution shall only be repealed or amended by the process detailed within this document. Upon proclamation of this Constitution, all Laws contrary to its provisions or superseded thereby, are instantly repealed. Other Laws, which are not in conflict with this Constitution, shall remain in force.


ARTICLE I. THE PROVINCE and CITIZENS

Section 1:
The name of the Province is Atatürk.

Section 2:
Citizens of the Province of Atatürk shall be known as Atatürkeys or Atatürkers. A status of “Good Standing” will be granted to citizens who have voted in the most recent General Election.

Section 3:
The Official Languages of Atatürk shall be El Glheþ Talossan, and English.

Section 4:
The Provincial Flag, Arms, and other Patriotic Depictions not established in this Constitution shall be decided by Law.

Section 5:
The subdivisions of the Province of Atatürk consist of the Cantons of Flúvia-Montevúdio and Abbavilla. The Capital of Atatürk is Abbavilla in the Canton of Abbavilla.


ARTICLE II. THE HOUSE of COMMONS and THE BAşBAKAN

Section 1:
Provincial lawmaking powers will be vested in the Atatürk House of Commons. The number of seats in the House of Common shall equal 10% of the number of seats in the Cosa. The allocation of the seats amongst political parties will correspond to the percentage of provincial votes each registered party received in the most recent General Election, rounded to the nearest whole number, to be assigned by party leaders, in accordance with Article VI of the Organic Law.

Section 2:
Members of the House of Commons shall be Atatürkeys in good standing, at least fourteen years of age, and shall not have a criminal record in Talossa.

Section 3:
The House of Commons will elect one member of the House of Commons to be the Speaker of the Chamber and Executive of Atatürk, or the Başbakan, by a majority vote. The Başbakan will serve for the duration of a Cosa, unless removed by a two-thirds vote of the House of Commons. The Başbakan will coordinate the business of the House of Commons, maintain order, and may dictate points of order and rules of conduct with the chamber.

Section 4:
The Başbakan is entitled to use the Provincial Gong to keep order in debates, and may also wield the Ceremonial Mace of Atatürk.

Section 5:
The House of Commons will meet on an "as-needed" basis when called to do so by the Başbakan. If the House of Commons has not assembled for business for a period of 6 months, the Başbakan will call for a general meeting of the House of Commons to allow for the introduction of any new business and to discuss the overall state of affairs in the Province.

Section 6:
Any member of the House of Commons may, at any time, present proposed measures to the Başbakan within the House of Commons chambers, which will be known as Bills. The Başbakan will then issue a "Summons to Vote" to the House of Commons by posting a clearly-marked thread on Wittenberg, or in a prominent place on the streets of Atatürk. It is acceptable for the Başbakan to hold a Bill for up to 14 days before issuing a "Summons to Vote" should he/she feel that more discussion is required to bring the proposal into a suitable condition for a vote, or to allow for two or more proposals to be presented for vote at one time.

Section 7:
Upon calling for a vote, the Başbakan will make a reasonable effort to assure that every member of the House of Commons is given suitable opportunity to cast their vote. All votes will be public, and voting will be closed at the end of the 14th day following the call to vote. Votes may be cast by posting in the thread of a "Summons to Vote," and by any other methods deemed suitable by the Başbakan.

Section 8:
A Bill that functions as a provincial statute requires a simple majority to pass. A Bill that would change the system of governance (such as abolishment or amendments to a constitution) will be known as a referendum and require a 2/3 majority within the House of Commons and subsequent approval by a majority of Atatürkeys.

A: The Başbakan may call for a provincial vote on a referendum at any time during the term of a Cosa. If a vote has not been conducted prior to the General Election, the Başbakan shall make every reasonable effort to contact all Atatürkeys and inform them of the additional referendum vote.

B: The vote may take place via similar methods outlined in Article II, Section 7 above.

Section 9:
Should a Bill pass the House of Commons, it shall be submitted to the King or to his Cunstaval for Royal Assent. Upon signature by the King or his Cunstaval, a Bill immediately carries the force of Law within the boundaries of this fair Province.

Section 10:
The King or his Cunstaval may Veto a Bill, thereby returning it to the House of Commons, who may reconsider it. If the King or his Cunstaval does not sign or Veto a Bill within three weeks of its passage of the House of Commons, he shall be deemed to have signed it, and it shall enter into law.

Section 11:
The House of Commons shall not pass acts of attainder.


ARTICLE III. The CUNSTAVAL

Section 1:
The Cunstaval is appointed by the reigning monarch of Talossa as the formal representative of the Crown in Atatürk.

Section 2:
In accordance with Article III, Section 2 of the Organic Law, the Cunstaval has the equivalent royal powers as the monarch within Atatürk.


ARTICLE IV. The JUDICIARY

Section 1:
The Province of Atatürk reserves the right to establish a provincial judicial system in accordance with the Organic Law.


ARTICLE V. AMENDMENT

This Constitution may be amended only by the process outlined in Article II, Section 8 above.




EDIT: Stupid formatting.
EDIT: Typo "Başbakan"
EDIT: Fixing inOrganic problems.

[Deleted]

This looks terrific! One typo in Section 6: Baºbakan should be Başbakan. --Has been corrected.

[Óïn Ursüm]

Yay! Looks good to me. Maybe there should be consistency in the style ("requires...">"shall require...," capitalisations etc.), but other than that it seems to do the job perfectly. I'll try my hand at a Talossan translation forthwith.

E

[Iustì Carlüs Canun]

I've started one already.
Would you like me to send you what I have so far (through II.3) and you can continue?
Seems stupid to start at the beginning when the beginning is translated.

[Óïn Ursüm]

Dec 28, 2009 13:25:24 GMT -6 Iustì Carlüs Canun said:

I've started one already.
Would you like me to send you what I have so far (through II.3) and you can continue?

Sure, send it along, unless you wouldn't mind, or would prefer to finish it yourself. You're more experienced at translating these sorts of legal documents than I am. ;D

[Iustì Carlüs Canun]

That may be, but I also love to delegate.

[Brad Holmes]

Dec 28, 2009 11:29:46 GMT -6 Óïn Ursüm said:

Yay! Looks good to me. Maybe there should be consistency in the style ("requires...">"shall require...," capitalisations etc.), but other than that it seems to do the job perfectly. I'll try my hand at a Talossan translation forthwith.

E

Thanks for the offer to translate! I was going to ask somebody after we had finalized it.

Regarding formatting, what would you like changed?

I used "shall" and "will" and "may" and "should" to mean different levels of compliance for people. "Require/s/d" was meant more for inanimate objects. Am I missing something? Where are my extra/missing capital letters?

[Óïn Ursüm]

Regarding capitalisation, at certain points "law" is capitalised ("decided by Law"), and at others it is not ("enter into law"). Is there a distinction between these two concepts of "law" or should they be made consistent?

Regarding the modal auxiliary verbs, they are used consistently in most sentences, though the draft constitution sometimes specifies things directly in the present tense ( "requires a simple majority", "the Cunstaval is appointed").

E

[Brad Holmes]

Dec 28, 2009 14:26:09 GMT -6 Óïn Ursüm said:

Regarding capitalisation, at certain points "law" is capitalised ("decided by Law"), and at others it is not ("enter into law"). Is there a distinction between these two concepts of "law" or should they be made consistent?

Regarding the modal auxiliary verbs, they are used consistently in most sentences, though the draft constitution sometimes specifies things directly in the present tense ( "requires a simple majority", "the Cunstaval is appointed").

E

Good points. I'll look closer. Thanks for the input!

[King John]

Why 3/5 of the Commons to overturn a veto, as opposed to the more usual 2/3? One *could* argue that by making the veto more easily overturned, this Constitution makes the Crown's veto power less at the provincial level than at the national, which is arguably inOrganic.

— John R

[Brad Holmes]

Dec 31, 2009 10:56:28 GMT -6 King John said:

Why 3/5 of the Commons to overturn a veto, as opposed to the more usual 2/3? One *could* argue that by making the veto more easily overturned, this Constitution makes the Crown's veto power less at the provincial level than at the national, which is arguably inOrganic.

— John R

Good point. Fixed. Thanks Your Majesty!