[Discussion] Colonies and Territories Act

[Charles Cerebella]

Beyond the initial setting up of a region and WFE a founder only needs to do admin tasks in a region very rarely. As for vacations, or spamming that is the same situation as absolutely every other UCR out there. Very few share founders based on that reasoning though because of all the other potential problems raised. Ideally a colony can develop its own community and there is no reason then they could not elect a WAD who could be granted cp access.

For me I don't see it as being ironfisted but more being realistic. Having had experience in my early days in NS of colonies and the like they can be politically contentious. Secure founders give them stability. If a governor wanted to do something which the Pharaoh didn't agree with there is nothing stopping that governor changing the password and holding the colony ransom. This isn't outside the realm of possibility. Or what if the governor resigns citizenship but takes the colony with them? By definition, if a region is a colony of Osiris then there should be a reasonable guarantee that the region remains under the control of Osiris and that it isn't possible for disgruntled officials to be able to seize the region at will.

I'm not massively familiar with the rules and guidelines behind nation sharing but is it not right that if sharing a nation then everyone with access shares the mod record of the others?

[Venico]

To address the mod situation, no. It's fuzzy but what could happen is a DoS of a player, or a puppet sweep. But that could happen from the people who nabbed the refound too.

No, I'm putting my foot down on this. The colonies will have the ability to access their own founder. If they do something the Pharaoh disagrees with? Tough. That's the price of granting a member of the Deshret free will over their region. The possibility of going rogue is always there, even on Koth's end. But these are people that we are trusting to handle our government, people who are voting in our elections, people who are amending our State Code. If we lose a colony to one of these people, it's a better price to pay to never have that person back. Someone who puts other regions above Osiris. Having access to the founder is a crucial part of any region and having a delegate with executive powers has to be one of the dumbest ideas we can have. Koth would have to set up every recruitment script, have to deal with every single ad spammer or WFE change. While we may have a root, we still need admins. Creating a waiting line to clean up your region is a ripe way to stifle a lot of activity and not have a colony be happy in its relationship with Osiris. These are pools we want to draw from and have a mutual bond with. Not hold their founder hostage.

The Governor will have access to the founder. If it's that big of an issue we'll just go back to having the military maintain colonies without any hope of activity.

[War Wombat]

I, for one, would like us to have some active colonies.

[Vaculatestar]

Here here Venico.

[Cormac]

I'm against this legislation. Too much power for the governors, not enough for the region that actually owns the territory. Not even to mention the nation sharing problem which still isn't being addressed.

Colonies aren't a free giveaway to some lucky citizen, they're territory of the entire regional community.

Of course I don't have a vote in the Deshret, but I'm against this as written in principle regardless of whether I can vote on it.

[Venico]

I'm sorry to hear that. I'd like to see our colonies into more than trophies but I understand your viewpoint.

[Applebania]

What happens if a colony decides to declare independence?

[Andrew]

4) Dissolution of a colony requires approval from both the Pharaoh and a majority vote by the Deshret.

I think this clause within the draft bill describes the legal process for a colony to achieve independence. But as the Governor shares the founder account with the Pharaoh, they could easily change the password and, consequently, take the region for themselves. However, their action would be defined as treason under the Criminal Code and they could lose everything they have in Osiris.

[Common-Sense Politics]

I would suggest something along these lines, keeping the spirit of the original draft and subsequent comment in mind:

Territorial Expansion Act (2014)
An act to promote formality and due diligence in regard to the acquisition, incorporation, and maintenance of territory of the Osiris Fraternal Order abroad.

Definitions

(1)For the purposes of this Act, "territory" will be defined as a NationStates region to which the Osiris Fraternal Order has claimed ownership.

Authorization of Territorial Expansion

(2)The Osiris Fraternal Order proclaims the right to acquire, maintain, and discard territories as it deems consistent with its interests.

Incorporation of Territories

(3)In order for a region to be deemed a territory, a motion of two thirds of the Deshret must be passed and consented to by the Pharaoh.

Governance of Territories

(4)The Pharaoh shall retain the rights to access and control of the founder nation and root of any off-site property of all territories and to delegate said access and control as he sees fit.

(5)The Pharaoh will appoint, from the number of the Deshret, a Governor to execute all duties necessary to the good government of each colony. All such appointments are subject to the approval of the Deshret. The Pharoah retains the right to dismiss a Governor for any reason as does the Deshret by majority vote.

(6)Should the governship of any territory become vacant for any reason, the Pharaoh will endeavor to promptly replace him per the provisions of this Act.

(7)Until such a time as a territory establishes a constitutional government that meets the approval of the Governor and the Deshret, relevant Osiris law will apply there and the Governor will enjoy absolute authority.

Abandonment of Territories

(8)Any territory may be removed from its official status by a two thirds majority vote of the Deshret and consent of the Pharaoh.

A few words to note:

This is a fairly bare-bones draft and I expect that much will be added and amended. It's meant to serve as a foundation.

This legislation should serve to explicitly establish our right to and preference for an imperialistic foreign policy.

I am of the firm belief that territorial expansion should be a mode for us to act of our foreign policy interests, not personal vassal states for our members to enjoy. Therefore political control and oversight is vital. The idea that these territories should serve as mostly autonomous property of our members does not serve the community at large.

This measure should serve as a comprehensive and singular source of our law regarding imperialism in the interests of simplicity and ease of reference so any other like considerations should be included.

[Andrew]

Your draft looks ok. Along the lines of the original draft. But lets see what others say