Constitution of the United Socialist States of Eldham

The Constitution of the United Socialist States of Eldham, or the Toxédélat is an aggregate document that defines the principles, structures, and outline of the USSE government.

Original drafts were created by Xeroise Ronango'O but the first ever Constitution was written by Chelovek Serebra which would be later ratified by public referendum. This Constitution was later updated again by Ronango'O with the document today reflecting both of their ideas of the nation's structure.

The Constitution is frequently amended by public referendum.

Preamble
WE THE PEOPLE OF THIS GLORIOUS LAND,

''Unite in the face of any oppressive forces to establish a socialist, democratic, working-class led state government. While fears strike across the minds of Eldham; unification against the chauvinist forces become an increasing necessity and the national conscience of the People have united to do precisely this. It is with a declaration of assured self-sustainability, determination to ensure prosperity, and a declaration of freedom for the nation’s People that the United Socialist States of Eldham is hereby declared as an official sovereign state and this Constitution be ratified by her National Assembly.''

This Constitution of the United Socialist States of Eldham shall hereby be the supreme law of the land, the ultimate arbiter of legality and purpose, and any law made shall never contradict the Constitution.

Section One, Constitutional Amendment
1.1 The Constitution may only be changed after a freely democratic public referendum that lasts no less than forty-eight hours, and only if a three-fifths supermajority votes in favour of the referendum. After the referendum passes, the Constitution shall be edited to comply with the referendum's articles. Every full citizen holds the right to propose a referendum, and the government member responsible must post it in the correct channel, along with a ping of the citizen role.

1.1.1 Any citizen that proposes frivolous referenda repeatedly with the express purpose of annoyance or disruption, as decided upon by the courts, will be forbidden from proposing referenda for a period of thirty days. Should this behavior continue during or after the initial punishment, the individual may be banned from proposing referenda indefinitely and may be charged in accordance with Discordian law.

1.1.2 Normal election laws apply to referendums. Including but not limited to the United Socialist States of Eldham criminal code on malpolitics, treason, bribery, and obstruction of elections.

Section Two, Legality and Justice
2.1 The Legal Code of the United Socialist States of Eldham determines what constitutes criminality in all of its various forms, the standards and conduct of the courts, appropriate disciplinary actions for criminal acts, and a guideline for everyday law.

2.1.1 The Legal Code of the United Socialist States of Eldham must not contradict or undermine the Constitution in the status it is currently ratified in.

2.1.2 The Legal Code of the United Socialist States of Eldham may only be changed by the will of the National Assembly, public referendum, or by the will of the Commission of Justice. In any event however should these wills contradict one another, the ultimate arbiter shall be a public decision by public referendum.

Section Three, The Citizenry and their Rights
3.1 A Citizen is any individual born in or naturalized into the United Socialist States of Eldham.

3.1.1 All Citizens are subject to the jurisdiction of the United Socialist States of Eldham in its present status.

3.1.2 In order to be fully naturalized as a Citizen of the United Socialist States of Eldham, they must reside within the nation for a week or longer and complete the processes necessary to become a Citizen as dictated by the present government. Prior to this, the government may issue a status of “New Citizen” or other similar role for those in the process of complete legal naturalization.

3.2 Every Citizen of the United Socialist States of Eldham, or foreign resident, has the right to free speech.

3.2.1 Exceptions to the right of free speech include speech deemed counter-revolutionary to the extent it seriously detriments the ability of the state to function, speech inciting panic or riot, hate speech, or spam. The courts shall determine what consists of forbidden speech.

3.3 Every Citizen of the United Socialist States of Eldham has a right to freely practice religion within the nation.

3.3.1 Religions may be blacklisted due to counter-revolutionary sentiment and content being fundamental to the integrity of the religion. These presently include so-called Dandelionism and Entropy Worship.

3.3.2 Religion shall not be forced onto any individual in the United Socialist States of Eldham without their will.

3.4 All Citizens of the United Socialist States of Eldham have the right to trial. Any individual accused of a criminal act, or party to a civil dispute in accordance with the Legal Code has the right to a fair trial, as well as the right to a singular appeal to their crimes also under fair trial.

3.4.1 The interpretation of what is and isn’t a free trial is to be decided by the will of the People through the National Assembly or public referendum first and foremost with the Commission of Justice acting on behalf of this interpretation.

3.5 All Citizens of the United Socialist States of Eldham have the right to free housing and shelter. If one is unable to properly provide themselves shelter, the government is expected to be able to duly provide their Citizens shelter and materials able to sustain their life within the realm of reason decided by the courts.

Section Four, Political Regime: General Secretary
4.1 The role of General Secretary shall be the head of state, head of government, supreme commander of the national armed forces, and executive handler of the commissions.

4.2 Every General Secretary has the right to appoint members to a cabinet at the beginning of their term and terminate those appointed members at their discretion.

4.2.1 Roles appointable by the General Secretary for their cabinet include Commissioners who lead executive efforts in specific designations and needs of the government. Additionally are Executive Advisors which aid the General Secretary and the remainder of the government in day to day activities.

4.3 The General Secretary must sign all bills proposed by the National Assembly before they become law.

4.3.1 Should the General Secretary desire, they may veto bills passed by the National Assembly at which point the National Assembly may attempt to pass it again, requiring a two-thirds majority vote in order to override the veto of the General Secretary.

4.4 The General Secretary has the right to mobilize the military and its corresponding entities for a period of forty-eight hours without pre-approval of the National Assembly in situations deemed of national emergency.

4.4.1 After a forty-eight hour period where a National Emergency has been declared, the General Secretary must inform the National Assembly as to their reasonings.

4.5 The General Secretary may be impeached and removed by either the National Assembly or by the People of the United Socialist States of Eldham directly.

4.5.1 The National Assembly may impeach the General Secretary by simple majority. In order to remove the General Secretary completely from office however it must be substantiated in a court of law that the General Secretary has committed a crime as according to the Legal Code that warrants removal from office.

4.5.2 The People of the United Socialist States of Eldham may recall the General Secretary and demand they be removed from office at any time. To initiate this process, a petition to do so must gain at least thirty signatories. The General Secretary at this point may be removed from office by a simple public referendum following normal electoral procedures. The General Secretary is the only individual barred from voting in this scenario.

4.6 The General Secretary shall have the ability to pardon any individual for past crimes within the United Socialist States of Eldham unless a court deems the crimes in nature to be of such severity that they are unpardonable.

4.6.1 The General Secretary may not pardon themselves.

4.7 Terms for the role of General Secretary last six weeks in total with a public referendum being held at the end of each term. The Deputy Secretary is traditionally elected at this time as well with the same length in term limits.

Section Five, Political Regime: Deputy Secretary
5.1 The Deputy Secretary is the second-in-command and direct subordinate to the General Secretary in terms of executive powers.

5.1.1 The Deputy Secretary is expected to act on behalf of the General Secretary in the event they are unavailable for an unexpected period of time, event of death, or otherwise given permission by the sitting General Secretary to act on their behalf directly.

5.1.2 The Deputy Secretary may not sign legislation of any kind without prior approval of the General Secretary.

5.2 The Deputy Secretary is the Head of the National Assembly.

5.2.1 The duties of the Deputy Secretary include assembling the National Assembly as needed for meetings and to count and organize votes upon their casting.

5.2.2 Despite the Deputy Secretary’s role as the Head of the National Assembly, they may only cast votes in the event a tie-breaker is needed.

5.3 The Deputy Secretary may be removed by either the sitting General Secretary, National Assembly, or by the People of the United Socialist States of Eldham directly.

5.3.1 Should the Deputy Secretary be removed by the General Secretary, a special election must begin within twenty-four hours of the removal.

5.3.2 The National Assembly may impeach the Deputy Secretary by simple majority. In order to remove the Deputy Secretary completely from office however it must be substantiated in a court of law that the General Secretary has committed a crime as according to the Legal Code that warrants removal from office.

5.3.3 The People of the United Socialist States of Eldham may recall the dEPUTY Secretary and demand they be removed from office at any time. To initiate this process, a petition to do so must gain at least TWENTY signatories. The dEPUTY Secretary at this point may be removed from office by a simple public referendum following normal electoral procedures. The Deputy Secretary is the only individual barred from voting in this scenario.

Section Six, Political Regime: Commissions
6.1 Commissions are existing partitions of executive duty with their corresponding Commissioners being appointed by the General Secretary at the beginning of their term and then approved by the National Assembly. The Commissioners perform the work assigned by the General Secretary or the National Assembly as according to the ability of the Commission and that specific Commission’s intended purpose.

6.2 The Commission of Security acts as the organization dictating the armed forces with Commissioners acting as commanders of the Armed Forces, second only to the General Secretary. The Commission is charged with maintaining a standard of readiness and assuring the nation is to maintain a state of integrity and safety. They maintain and control the People’s Army and any other existing state apparatus relating to the military.

6.3 The Commission of Industry and Development is responsible for monitoring the wellbeing of economic activity and employment, organizing major state projects, and maintenance of the State Central Bank.

6.3.1 The State Central Bank is run by the Commissioner of Industry and Development and its Chairman is generally appointed by the Commissioner of Industry and Development at the start of their term. It is possible to be both the Commissioner of Industry and Development and the Chairman of the State Central Bank.

6.4 The Commission of Information and Culture is responsible for the nation’s monitoring, maintenance, and development of cultural progression. The Commission generally acts in press negotiation, information accessibility, library and book recording, promotion of cultural events, and more.

6.5 The Commission of Justice is responsible for the maintenance of court and court procedure, acting to execute the will of the law prescribed by both the Legal Code and Constitution, assurance that the rule of law is maintained, development of courthouses and other legal facilities, and the appointment of Judges and Lawyers.

Section Seven, Political Regime: Mayors and Towns
7.1 Each Town elects a Mayor on what is called a “Challenge System”. Any full Citizen that is a resident of a Town may challenge the sitting Mayor for the position of Mayorship.

7.1.1 Any one Citizen may only challenge the Mayorship position once every four weeks.

7.1.2 If formally challenged, the Mayor must run the election, or the challenger can contact the General Secretary to do so on their behalf.

7.2 The Mayor of a town is responsible for the construction, development, and proper maintenance of their towns. Since they operate the Town, they are expected to work for the Town’s benefit.

7.3 All Mayors are members of a Mayor’s Council, which should foster cooperation between various Towns as well as make votes on issues important to the Towns.

Section Eight, Political Regime: States, Territories, Protectorates, and Autonomy
8.1 Every State is an integral part of the United Socialist States of Eldham and the government shall take care of each of them according to their individual needs.

8.2 No legal State that does not otherwise have an Autonomous or Protectorate status shall be permitted to secede from the United Socialist States of Eldham.

8.3 A State can apply for Autonomous State status. In this arrangement, the Autonomous Governor runs the State’s decisions with little intervention from the national government. All federal laws still apply in Autonomous States, unless the Autonomous Governor applies successfully to specifically change the law within their state.

8.3.1 Within Autonomous States, as permitted by an Autonomous Governor’s virtual free legislative abilities, may organize the Autonomous State as they wish. This may include anything from unique regional government positions, state-sponsored planning, regionalization, and more.

8.3.2 Autonomous State status must be approved by the National Assembly and General Secretary.

8.4 Protectorates are entities that act entirely independently but recognize an association with the United Socialist States of Eldham and while situational, generally are regarded to be territory of the nation and therefore will be defended by the national government if attacked or otherwise in a state of emergency.

8.5 Territories are areas that firmly belong to the United Socialist States of Eldham. These areas may or may not have democratic representation in the state depending on the desires of the National Assembly or General Secretary. These Territories may be incorporated into Autonomous States, Protectorates, or simply States and are intended to be temporary statuses.

Section Nine, Political Regime: National Assembly
9.1 The National Assembly is the supreme legislative body of the United Socialist States of Eldham. It acts representatively and in the good will of the People.

9.2 National Assembly Representatives are elected in four week terms. There exists no limitation to the amount of terms one can run for.

9.3 Every registered Town receives one National Assembly Representative, the Mayor has a guaranteed role as one of these Representatives regardless. Any Town with over ten residents receives a secondary Representative, elected by the residents of the Town in question. A Town of twenty-five or more individuals shall have three Representatives in total.

9.3.1 If a Mayor is ineligible to become a Representative in the National Assembly, they must appoint a Citizen to take the role, at least temporarily, until the Mayor is eligible for the position.

9.4 National Assembly Representatives found to be inactive may have their positions opened for special election by the General Secretary. Said National Assembly Representative may appeal this decision to the rest of the National Assembly to veto the decision of the General Secretary by a simple majority vote.

9.5 The National Assembly is responsible for decisions to be of drastic importance to the integrity and future of the nation including declaring war, ratifying treaties, and amending the Constitution. These decisions are generally done by simple majority unless stated otherwise elsewhere in the Constitution in regards to a particular matter.

9.6 A National Assembly Representative may be recalled by the People they represent by a simple majority in a public referendum amongst the People of the Town that they represent.

9.7 If a National Assembly Representative misses a vote, they forfeit their right to vote on the matter. Their vote is considered an abstention and not included in total vote percentages.

Section Ten, Symbolism, Representation of the State, and Structural Significance
10.1 Each State has a Capital City. In this city should be the State’s most important government facilities.

10.1.1 The Capital City of the State of Atoxa is Vostroya.

10.1.2 The Capital City of the State of Croscograd is Kazkaya.

10.1.3 The Capital City of the State of Kiurtrog is Laria.

10.1.4 The Capital City of the State of Kolssonafell is Kolssonafell City.

10.1.5 The Capital City of the State of Ljordmir is Nizkaya.

10.1.6 The Capital City of the Protectorate of Merconis is Oblitus Oris.

10.1.7 The Capital City of the Autonomous State of Navarna is Navarna City.

10.1.8 The Capital City of the Autonomous State of Pergamos is Aimapolis.

10.2 The National Emblem of the United Socialist States of Eldham is a five-pointed star with several protruding appendages.

10.3 The National Flag of the United Socialist States of Eldham has a cyan field at the top, with maroon at the bottom. In the center is the golden National Emblem filled with the same maroon colour as the bottom half of the field.

10.4 The National Anthem of the United Socialist States of Eldham is the song “March of the People’s Army”.

10.5 The Capital City of the United Socialist States of Eldham is the City of Kazkaya.

Section Eleven, The People’s Vanguard
11.1 The Communist Party of the United Socialist States of Eldham is the vanguard of the country’s working class. It is simultaneously the vanguard of the everyday worker and the Nations of People by which the Union is formed upon. It is to hold the faithful interests of the working class and all nations underneath her belt, acting upon the Xeroist and other doctrines of socialism that shall be the leading force of the State and the societies under her grasp as a whole.

11.1.1 The Communist Party of the United Socialist States of Eldham, as a vanguard party, is the only permissible political party within the country and operates within the framework of the Constitution and the laws of the United Socialist States of Eldham.

11.1.2 Democratic centralism and the principles of rightful representation to all nation’s People is the fundamental role of the Communist Party of the United Socialist States of Eldham.