SUMMARY OF THE CONSTITUTION OF THE FREE REPUBLIC OF REFORMED LUCES APORIA One line for each of the 195 articles. This summary has no legal force. Where it differs from the Constitution, the Constitution governs (Article 178(3)). Published by the Ministry of External Relations, Sluland. TITLE I: FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES (articles 1 to 20) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1 The Republic A free, unitary, democratic socialist republic, with two official names of equal force. 2 Sovereignty Power belongs to the people, and taking it outside these rules is a crime without a time limit. 3 Supremacy of the Constitution The Constitution outranks every other rule, and Title II rights work in court on their own. 4 Legality and publicity of the law Public power needs a legal basis, and an unpublished rule binds nobody. 5 Political pluralism Parties are free and none may be given a leading role in the State or the economy. 6 Prohibition of political policing No file on a person for their opinions, and the old political police cannot return under a new name. 7 Human dignity Dignity cannot be violated, and no emergency or majority permits it. 8 Territory The territory cannot be ceded or leased, the capital is Sluland, and the sea corridor stays open. 9 Language, symbols and the calendar Aporean is the official language, minority languages are used with it, and the national day is 11 September. 10 Citizenship Citizenship is set by organic law, and no citizen may be stripped of it or expelled. 11 Economic order Social ownership in three forms, with private firms allowed under a ceiling on employees. 12 Currency, prices and the direction of policy The marek is issued by the Bank alone, and the range of goods allocated by money is to shrink. 13 Labour Labour is the ground of every claim on the product, and forced labour is prohibited. 14 The natural environment The State protects the land, water, air and coast, and repairs the damage done to them. 15 Secularity The Republic adopts no religion and religious communities govern themselves. 16 Local self-government Communes and districts govern themselves, and local matters belong to the commune. 17 Organs of the Republic and their separation The Assembly legislates, the Government executes, the courts judge, and four bodies stand outside all three. 18 International relations Founding member of the Bloc, with treaties binding only after ratification and publication. 19 Armed forces and public order The armed forces obey the civil power and may not be used against a lawful assembly. 20 Access to public information Anyone may ask for information held by a public body, and a refusal must be reasoned and appealable. TITLE II: RIGHTS, LIBERTIES AND DUTIES (articles 21 to 57) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 21 Equality Everyone is equal before the law, and hereditary titles are abolished. 22 Scope and limitation of rights A right may be limited only by law, only where necessary, and never in its essential content. 23 Foreigners, stateless persons and asylum Foreigners hold the same rights except those reserved to citizens, and asylum is granted for persecution. 24 National minorities Minorities keep their language, culture and religion, and forced assimilation is prohibited. 25 Remedy and reparation Every infringed right has a remedy, and the State pays for the unlawful acts of its agents. 26 Life Life is inviolable and the death penalty cannot be brought back, including in war. 27 Integrity of the person Torture is prohibited, and a statement obtained by it counts for nothing. 28 Liberty and security of the person Arrest requires law, a judge within forty-eight hours, and counsel from the first hour. 29 Fair trial and defence A public hearing before an independent court, with defence, interpretation and appeal. 30 Legality of offences and penalties No offence and no penalty without a law in force at the time, and no penalty without review. 31 Inviolability of the home The home is entered only on a judicial warrant, except in pursuit or danger to life. 32 Correspondence and personal data Correspondence is secret, and data collected without a legal basis must be erased. 33 Freedom of movement Movement is free, and the exit visa and the internal residence permit are abolished. 34 Conscience and religion Conscience and religion are free, and objection to armed service carries a civil alternative. 35 Expression and information Expression is free, censorship is prohibited, and insulting the State is no offence. 36 Media No State monopoly over the press, and journalists may protect their sources. 37 Assembly Assembly needs no prior permission, and force is used only once it stops being peaceful. 38 Association Associations form freely and only a court may dissolve one. 39 Petition and access to the organs Anyone may petition a public body and must receive a reasoned reply. 40 Suffrage Universal suffrage from eighteen, with no turnout condition on any result. 41 Access to public office Public office is open on equal terms, and office holders publish their interests and assets. 42 Referendum and popular initiative Referendum and popular initiative, with rights placed outside their reach. 43 Participation in local affairs Residents take part in local decisions, and a harmful installation needs a public hearing first. 44 Work The right to work, protection against dismissal, and a floor and ceiling on income. 45 Conditions of labour Forty hours, paid leave, safe conditions, and no employment of children in school. 46 Strike The right to strike, including in the public service, with the lock-out prohibited. 47 Trade unions Unions form freely and stay independent of the State, the parties and management. 48 Self-management in the enterprise The working collective elects a council which appoints the director and decides the enterprise plan. 49 Housing An adequate dwelling, allocated by need, with no eviction without a judicial decision. 50 Health Health care free at the point of use, financed from the plan. 51 Education Education free at every level, compulsory for at least nine years, with self-governing universities. 52 Social security Social security in old age, sickness, disability and unemployment, adjusted to prices. 53 Family and children The family is protected, children born outside marriage have equal rights, and children are heard. 54 Culture, science and creation Cultural life is open to all, and knowledge made with public funds is published. 55 Environment An environment which does not injure health, with information and an assessment before projects. 56 Consumption and public services Users get safety, truthful information, repairable goods and a way to complain. 57 Duties Obey the law, pay according to means, defend the territory, and preserve the environment. TITLE III: THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL ORDER (articles 58 to 90) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 58 Objectives The economy serves needs, full employment, equality between districts, and the environment. 59 Nature of the plan A five-year plan, revised annually, adopted as a law and binding on public bodies. 60 Preparation of the plan The plan is negotiated between enterprises, communes, districts and the Office of the Plan. 61 Content and accounts of the plan The plan is stated in money and in physical units, with balances for energy, water and labour. 62 Effect of the plan on enterprises An enterprise which agreed a task performs it, and is released if its inputs fail to arrive. 63 Districts and communes in the plan Districts and communes plan too, and transfers follow published criteria. 64 The enterprise in social ownership The enterprise is a person in law whose assets belong to the whole people. 65 Establishment and dissolution Enterprises are founded, merged and dissolved by the organ that created them, after consultation. 66 Accounts and audit Accounts are published annually, audited, and open to questions from residents. 67 Losses and support Losses fall on the enterprise, with support possible from the founding organ. 68 Public establishments Health, education, water, post, rail and electricity stay in public hands and out of profit. 69 Private enterprise Private firms in listed trades, under an employee ceiling and the same standards as everyone else. 70 Cooperatives and agriculture Land is worked by cooperatives, public farms and family holdings under a size ceiling. 71 Sole and principal suppliers A sole or principal supplier may not dictate terms, and price-fixing agreements are void. 72 The budget An annual budget covering all revenue and expenditure, with nothing spent outside it. 73 Taxation Taxes only by law, progressive, and never below the subsistence income. 74 Public borrowing Borrowing only by law, only for investment, and foreign lenders only by a two-thirds vote. 75 The Bank of the Republic The Bank issues the marek, answers to the Assembly, and may not fund a budget deficit. 76 Credit to enterprises Enterprises borrow from the Bank on published conditions and in the order of the plan. 77 Savings and household credit Household savings are guaranteed, and credit is for dwellings, study and small enterprise. 78 Prices Some prices are fixed by the Government, and shortage is met by rationing for a limited period. 79 Incomes Incomes are set by the workers' council within statutory limits and an annual national agreement. 80 Employment A public employment service, advance notice of redundancy, and benefit without forced acceptance. 81 Concessions over natural resources Natural resources are used under a public, revocable concession with restoration conditions. 82 Spatial planning Land use follows the commune plan, and building on floodplains and unstable slopes is prohibited. 83 Expropriation Property is taken only for a public purpose, on full compensation, never for a private firm. 84 Protection of the environment and of resources Annual publication of the state of air, water, soil and forests, with polluters paying for repair. 85 Energy and water Electricity, water and heating stay socially owned, and water is never cut off for non-payment. 86 Foreign trade Bloc trade by agreement, other trade under a public licence. 87 Trade agreements Trade agreements are ratified and published, and reserved activities stay closed to them. 88 Foreign investment Foreign participation only under licence, with land, dwellings, press and banks excluded. 89 Foreign exchange All foreign exchange passes through one external account, with quarterly publication. 90 Assistance to other peoples Assistance to peoples in want, creating no debt and carrying no political condition. TITLE IV: THE ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC (articles 91 to 110) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 91 Nature of the Assembly One chamber, representing the people, sitting in permanent session. 92 Composition One hundred and twenty members for four years, half in constituencies and half from lists. 93 Candidature Anyone entitled to vote may stand, campaign funds are published, and foreign money is prohibited. 94 Incompatibility The seat is incompatible with judicial office, the armed forces and the direction of an enterprise. 95 Mandate Members take no instruction, are not liable for their votes, and are protected against pretextual prosecution. 96 Filling of vacancies List seats pass to the next candidate, constituency seats to a by-election. 97 Sittings and publicity Sittings are public, and every vote is published by member within forty-eight hours. 98 Officers and organisation The Assembly elects its officers, adopts its own rules, and gives budget scrutiny to the opposition. 99 Committees Committees may summon ministers and directors, who must appear and answer. 100 Committees of inquiry One third of the members can force an inquiry with the powers of a court. 101 Quorum and majorities A majority present, a majority voting, and organic laws by a majority of all members. 102 Laws and organic laws Organic laws cover the listed matters and go to the Constitutional Court before promulgation. 103 Initiative Members, the Government, district councils and citizens may propose laws, with costs stated. 104 Procedure Committee, then general vote, then article by article, with unconnected amendments inadmissible. 105 Promulgation and publication The President promulgates within fifteen days, may return a law once, or may refer it to the Court. 106 Delegated legislation The Assembly may delegate law-making narrowly, never over rights, taxes or offences. 107 Powers of the Assembly The Assembly adopts the plan and budget, ratifies treaties, and elects the Prime Minister. 108 Term Four years, with extension only during emergency or attack and only by two thirds. 109 Dissolution The President may dissolve on the Government's proposal, and the Assembly may dissolve itself. 110 Continuity A dissolved Assembly handles current business only, through a proportional standing committee. TITLE V: THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC (articles 111 to 117) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 111 Office The President represents the Republic and exercises no function of government. 112 Election Directly elected for four years, two terms at most, by a majority of votes cast. 113 Incompatibility and oath The office is incompatible with every other, and begins with an oath before the Assembly. 114 Functions Promulgation, appointments, dissolution, treaties, command of the forces, and pardons. 115 Countersignature Most presidential acts need the Prime Minister's countersignature; six do not. 116 Vacancy and substitution In a vacancy the President of the Assembly acts, with a new election within sixty days. 117 Responsibility The President answers for a grave breach of the Constitution before the Constitutional Court. TITLE VI: THE GOVERNMENT (articles 118 to 130) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 118 Composition and function The Prime Minister and ministers conduct policy and answer to the Assembly together. 119 Formation The Assembly elects the Prime Minister, who proposes the ministers for appointment. 120 Censure Censure must name a successor, so a Government falls only when another can form. 121 Resignation and continuation A defeated or resigned Government handles current affairs and appoints to nothing. 122 Incompatibility and conduct of ministers Ministers hold no other office, publish their assets, and wait two years before related employment. 123 Acts of the Government Regulations execute laws and may not add to them, and a court may annul one. 124 Ministries and their number The number and business of ministries is fixed by law, and agencies answer to a committee. 125 The Office of the Plan The Office of the Plan prepares the plan and publishes the data behind it. 126 Duty to inform Written answers in thirty days, an oral question sitting each week, and contracts published. 127 Principles of the administration The administration acts on law, gives reasons, and silence counts as refusal. 128 Public service Recruitment by competition, no party test, and protection for refusing an unlawful order. 129 Delegation and contracting Authority over persons is never contracted out, and awards are made by public procedure. 130 Territorial administration State services in the districts execute national law and leave local decisions alone. TITLE VII: LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT (articles 131 to 141) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 131 Units of local self-government Every place belongs to one commune and one district, and a merger needs a local referendum. 132 Competence of the commune The commune decides what is local and receives the resources for what it is given. 133 Competence of the district The district runs second-level schools, hospitals, roads and transport between communes. 134 Organs of the commune An elected council and a directly elected mayor, who can be removed by referendum. 135 Organs of the district The district council elects its president, who executes its decisions. 136 Participation of residents An open commune assembly twice a year, a binding local referendum, and published accounts. 137 Resources Local units have their own revenue and equalising transfers on published criteria. 138 Property of local units Local property serves local use, and property in public use cannot be sold. 139 Supervision The Government checks lawfulness only, and a suspension must go to court in thirty days. 140 Cooperation Communes may cooperate without creating a further tier of government. 141 Defence of local self-government A commune or district may go to the Constitutional Court to defend its competence. TITLE VIII: THE COURTS (articles 142 to 156) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 142 Judicial power Courts are independent, no one instructs them, and special courts are prohibited. 143 Access to justice A court is open to everyone, with fees remitted and legal assistance for those without means. 144 Publicity Hearings are public and judgments are published. 145 The courts Communal, district, appeal, supreme and administrative courts, set out by organic law. 146 Lay participation Serious criminal cases are heard with lay judges drawn by lot from the voters' register. 147 Enforcement Public bodies must execute judgments, and a court may penalise the officer who refuses. 148 Status of judges Judges are appointed indefinitely and removed only by the Judicial Council on statutory grounds. 149 The Judicial Council Fifteen members: eight judges, four elected by the Assembly, three residents drawn by lot. 150 Selection and training Judges are chosen by public competition, and promotion criteria are published. 151 The public prosecution Prosecutors follow the law and the evidence, and no instruction may be given in a single case. 152 Investigation Warrants for intrusive measures, counsel from the start, and unconstitutional evidence excluded. 153 Composition Nine judges for nine years: three from the Assembly, three from the President, three from the Supreme Court. 154 Jurisdiction Review of laws and treaties, competence disputes, party dissolution, and individual applications. 155 Individual application Anyone may apply after other remedies, free of charge and without a lawyer. 156 Effects of decisions An unconstitutional provision ends on publication, and a conviction founded on it is reopened. TITLE IX: INDEPENDENT BODIES (articles 157 to 164) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 157 Independence The independent bodies take no instruction and answer to the Assembly alone. 158 Reports and access Each reports annually in public and may demand documents from any public body. 159 Function The Court of Accounts audits the budget, the plan and every user of public funds. 160 Composition and powers Nine members with the independence of judges, able to order repayment. 161 Function The Electoral Commission runs elections and may not classify a party by its programme. 162 Composition Seven members, a permanent staff, and a public count at the polling station. 163 Function The Commission on Information and Data decides access appeals and supervises data registers. 164 Composition Five members, with legal and technical qualifications required. TITLE X: DEFENCE, PUBLIC ORDER AND EMERGENCY (articles 165 to 173) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 165 The armed forces A professional force with a reserve, never used against the population. 166 Command and control The Government directs defence, and a committee supervises the forces and intelligence. 167 Limits No forces abroad without a two-thirds law, and no foreign force stationed here. 168 Intelligence Intelligence looks outward, and intrusive measures need a designated Supreme Court judge. 169 The police Police act with least force, wear visible numbers, and are investigated by an outside body. 170 Declaration The Government declares an emergency and the Assembly must confirm it within forty-eight hours. 171 Measures Emergency measures are limited, and a list of rights is never suspended. 172 Limits on the organs No dissolution, no constitutional revision, and courts keep sitting throughout an emergency. 173 Armed attack On armed attack the Assembly decides within a day, and a capitulation is void. TITLE XI: REVISION OF THE CONSTITUTION (articles 174 to 178) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 174 Initiative Revision may be proposed by a third of members, the Government, or citizens. 175 Procedure Two readings by two thirds, then a referendum on demand, then an appended Amendment. 176 Limits The republic, suffrage, pluralism and the ban on torture and the death penalty are unrevisable. 177 Review by the Constitutional Court The Constitutional Court checks a revision against those limits before the second reading. 178 Consolidation and publication A consolidated text is published within sixty days, free and without registration. TITLE XII: FINAL AND TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS (articles 179 to 186) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 179 Entry into force In force from 11 September 1994, replacing the Constitution of 1947. 180 Existing law Old law survives where it conforms, and expires in 1996 where it does not. 181 First elections First elections within one hundred and twenty days, local elections within a year. 182 Constitution of the new organs The new organs are constituted within a year, with staggered terms drawn by lot. 183 The former State Protection Service The State Protection Service is dissolved, its archives preserved, its directors barred from office. 184 Property and enterprises Social ownership continues, and privatisation needs a two-thirds law. 185 Continuity of obligations Treaties survive where they conform, and pensions and savings are honoured. 186 Numbering of the Amendments Amendments are numbered in sequence and state the articles they change. ARTICLES ADDED BY AMENDMENT (articles 187 to 195) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 187 The Defender of Rights The Defender of Rights examines complaints against any public body, free and without a lawyer. 188 Powers of the Defender The Defender may enter places of detention unannounced and take cases to the Constitutional Court. 189 Reports of the Defender The Defender reports annually and publishes every recommendation that was refused. 190 Review of performance Each enterprise is reviewed annually in public against its ceiling, its tasks and its accounts. 191 Support Support is public, capped, limited to three years, and names the people who granted it. 192 Reorganisation and dissolution Where recovery fails, the enterprise is reorganised or dissolved without breaking provision. 193 Ecological budgets Ecological budgets in physical units bind the plan, and an excess is deducted from the next period. 194 The Ecological Budget Office The Ecological Budget Office sets the sustainable levels and verifies the accounts on the premises. 195 The list of free provision A list of goods free at the point of use, extended each plan period and never reduced.