Her Majesty Queen Catherine, following consultation with her Royal advisors, has produced the draft first section of the Kohlandian Constitution. This draft is now available for public consultation; and will be followed by the draft second section (which will also be open to public consultation) soon.
Constitution of the Kingdom of Kohlandia
Her Royal Majesty, Queen Catherine, on behalf of the People and pursuant to the goals laid out in this Constitution, hereby establishes the Kingdom of Kohlandia.
Chapter I
Article 1 (The Crown and Succession)
(1) The Kingdom of Kohlandia is a Constitutional Monarchy recognising the reigning Monarch of Kohlandia (“The Crown”) as the Head of State of Kohlandia.
(2) The Crown has the right of pardon, to conduct foreign affairs, and to all other representative functions of the Kingdom of Kohlandia.
(3) The Crown shall pass from the reigning Monarch to his or her eldest direct descendant upon the death or abdication of the reigning Monarch.
(a) Where no direct descendant of the reigning Monarch exists, the Crown shall pass to the next eldest blood relative of the reigning Monarch.
(4) The Crown is the source of all law in Kohlandia and all new legislation must receive Royal Assent prior to becoming Law.
Article 2 (Citizenship and Language)
(1) Citizens of the Kingdom of Kohlandia are all recognised as humans who are either:
(a) Citizens of another State or Territory granted Citizenship of the Kingdom of Kohlandia under Article 1(2); or
(b) children of a citizen of the Kingdom of Kohlandia, who are born in the Territory of the Kingdom of Kohlandia.
(2) Citizenship of the Kingdom of Kohlandia may be granted by:
(a) The Crown, by discretion; or
(b) The Prime Minister, subject to any appropriate Kohlandian Laws; or
(c) A Minister appointed by the Prime Minister and granted the power to grant Citizenship(s), subject to any appropriate Kohlandian Laws.
(3) Citizenship of the Kingdom of Kohlandia may be revoked by:
(a) The Crown, by discretion; or
(b) The Prime Minister, subject to any appropriate Kohlandian Laws; or
(c) A Minister appointed by the Prime Minister and granted the power to grant Citizenship(s), subject to any appropriate Kohlandian Laws. (4) The official languages of the Kingdom of Kohlandia are English; Latin; and Esperanto.
Article 3 (State Form)
(1) The Kingdom of Kohlandia is a secular, sovereign, and democratic Constitutional Monarchy. All entities of the Kingdom of Kohlandia must yield to these principles. (2) This Constitution is the supreme law of the land; it is directly binding on all Kohlandian authority.
(3) The general rules of public international law constitute an integral, inviolable part of the national law.
Article 4 (State Symbols, Capital)
(1) The Kingdom of Kohlandia has the National Colors, the Kingdom of Kohlandia Flag, Seal, and Coat of Arms as well as the National Anthem:
(i) The National Colours are blue, green and purple.
(ii) The Kingdom of Kohlandia Flag is the blue/green/purple tricolour with embellished red nordic cross superimposed.
(iii) The Seal of Kohlandia is the [XXX]
(iv) The Coat of Arms of Kohlandia is the Robinson Coat of Arms.
(v) The National Anthem is [XXX] (2) The Kingdom of Kohlandia Motto is “Loquetur pacem ad omnes” (trans. “Speak peace unto all”). (3) The capital of the Kingdom of Kohlandia is Dunhallow.
(4) The Kingdom of Kohlandia shall have no national religion.
(5) The National Animal of Kohlandia shall be the domestic house cat.
Chapter II
Article 5 (General Constitutional Objectives)
(1) The Kingdom of Kohlandia promotes justice and universal protection of human rights as individual rights.
(2) The Kingdom of Kohlandia acknowledges the right of the People to national autonomy and self-determination under Kohlandian Law, and the right of minorities.
(3) The Kingdom of Kohlandia promotes:
(a) education and schooling;
(b) preservation and development of culture;
(c) preservation and maintenance of historical objects;
(d) environmental protection;
(e) the protection of nature;
(f) equality of rights under the law;
(g) the sciences; and
(h) the arts.
Article 6 State Security
(1) The Kingdom of Kohlandia promotes worldwide peace.
(2) The Kingdom of Kohlandia takes adequate measures to preserve its integrity even in a state of war or civil war. (3) The Kingdom of Kohlandia protects the People against terrorism, extremism, and catastrophes.
Chapter III State Organisation
Part I (General Organisation)
Article 7 (Elections and Voting)
(1) Voting is not mandatory.
(2) Elections are always free, equal and conducted via a “one eligible Citizen, one vote” method.
(3) Elections are always secret;
(a) No Citizen may be punished or subject to detriment if they choose:
(i) to reveal how they voted; or
(ii) to reveal that they chose not to vote.
(4) Elected representatives are only bound by their conscience. They are servants of all, not only of their constituents.
(5) All votes of the Legislature are free, equal and conducted via a “one eligible Citizen, one vote” method.
(6) Votes of the Legislature are always secret;
(a) No member of the Legislature may be punished or subject to detriment if they choose:
(i) to reveal how they voted; or
(ii) to reveal that they chose not to vote.
(7) Citizens are eligible to vote when they:
(a) attain the age of eighteen years;
(b) are not subject to arrest, imprisonment or a similar sanction by a Kohlandian court of law.
Article 8 (Organisational Principles)
(1) The Kingdom of Kohlandia separates executive, legislative, and adjudicative powers.
(a) Offices in different powers are incompatible with each other (horizontal incompatibility).
(b) Offices in national entities are incompatible with any public office on a lower level (vertical incompatibility); and with any other salaried office, private or public (economic incompatibility).
(c) Political offices are incompatible with active duty in the armed forces (military incompatibility).
(2) The Kingdom of Kohlandia shall be governed on behalf of the Crown by a Prime Minister, who shall form an Executive to assist him or her in the task of governing.
(a) The Prime Minister shall be elected from the pool of eligible Citizens.
(i) Citizens are eligible for election as Prime Minister when they attain the age of 21 years.
(b) The Prime Minister shall form an Executive, whose size and organisation shall be determined by the Prime Minister.
(c) The Prime Minister shall serve for a term of five years, or until resignation; whichever is sooner.
(i) Members of the Executive shall cease to serve upon the end of the Prime Minister’s term, or until they are dismissed by the Prime Minister; whichever is sooner.
(d) The Prime Minister may serve for a maximum of three terms, which need not be consecutive.
(3) The legislative power of Kohlandia is vested in the Legislature, which shall work on behalf of the Crown and be formed from the entire pool of eligible Citizens.
(a) Citizens are eligible to form part of the Legislature when they attain the age of 18 years.
(4) All activities of the Legislature shall be conducted via direct democracy, with the entire pool of eligible Citizens entitled to:
(a) present draft legislation to the Legislature;
(b) amend draft legislation presented to the Legislature;
(c) vote to approve or deny draft legislation, as amended, that has been presented to the Legislature; and
(d) abstain from some, or all, activities of the Legislature.
(5) Citizens are regarded as eligible Citizens for the purposes of Article 8(4) when they:
(a) attain the age of 18 years; and
(b) are not currently subject to restriction due to incarceration or other equivalent sanction.
(6) The functions of the Legislature shall be administered by a Speaker of the House.
(a) The Speaker of the House shall be elected from the pool of eligible Citizens.
(i) Citizens are eligible for election as Speaker of the House when they attain the age of 21 years.
(b) The Speaker of the House shall serve for a term of four years, or until resignation; whichever is sooner.
(d) The Speaker of the House may serve for a maximum of three terms, which need not be consecutive.
Article 9 (National Powers)
(1) State powers belong to the Crown and shall be exercised by the Executive on behalf of the Crown for the following subject matters:
a) state defence;
b) foreign relations;
c) economic regulations;
d) infrastructure and traffic;
e) taxation;
f) private, criminal, and procedural law;
g) educational and other standards; and
h) all other subject matters which, by their nature or as a corollary to the subjects listed, must be undertaken by the Executive.
(2) The Kingdom of Kohlandia may give up sovereign powers to international or supranational bodies, including systems of mutual collective security and trade organisations, as long as it retains an adequate representation in those bodies and those bodies guarantee sufficient legal protection for the Citizens.
Part II (Executive Power)
Article 10 (National Government and The Armed Forces)
(1) The Executive power of the Kingdom of Kohlandia is vested in the National Government, who serve on behalf of the Crown. These powers may include diplomatic affairs, at the behest of the Crown.
(2) The Prime Minister is the head of the National Government. The Prime Minister chooses the National Ministers who shall serve in his or her Executive.
(3) The Crown is Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces.
Article 11 (Regional Equalisation of Finances)
(1) Recognising that centralisation of an economy occurs at the detriment of other regions, the Government shall strive for an overall equalisation of financial matters across Kohlandia; giving due consideration to the regions’ respective debts, burdens, economic power, and infrastructural responsibilities.
Part III Legislative Power
Article 12 (Parliament)
(1) The Legislature shall be known as the Kohlandian Parliament (“Parliament”).
(2) All Citizens have recourse to the Supreme Court for scrutiny of votes in Parliament.
(3) Parliament shall draw up its own rules on procedures.
(4) Decisions of Parliament require a majority of the votes cast (“simple majority”) in order to pass legislation that does not alter this Constitution.
(5) Decisions of Parliament require a majority of two-thirds or more of the votes cast (“two-thirds majority”) in order to pass legislation that alter this Constitution.
(6) All eligible Citizens are members of the Kohlandian Parliament
(a) Citizens are eligible if they fulfil the requirements in Article 7(7) of this Constitution.
(7) Members of Parliament are only bound by their conscience.
Article 13 (Lawmaking Process)
(1) Bills may be introduced by any Member of Parliament.
(2) Bills which seek to alter the powers of the Monarch, the Prime Minister, the Executive, or the Speaker of the House may be introduced only with the express consent of the Prime Minister.
(3) Any Bills passed by Parliament are automatically void if they violate this Constitution.
(a) Where a Bill is found to violate the Constitution in only one section but voiding that one section does not render the Bill unworkable, that violating section alone is voided.
(4) Bills must include a date upon which, after being passed by Parliament, they will come into effect.
(a) It is sufficient for the Bill to have an effective date that reads “the day following the receipt by this Bill of Royal Assent”.
(5) Bills become Acts of Parliament only upon receiving Royal Assent following their passage, by a majority of votes in Parliament.
Article 14 (Budget) (1) The annual budget is drawn up by the Chancellor, if one has been appointed by the Prime Minister, or by the Prime Minister.
(2) The budget must be laid before the Parliament, in the form of a Bill, by the Chancellor, if one has been appointed, or by the Prime Minister. (3) The budget must receive a majority vote in the Parliament in order to become law.
(a) Any budget Bill that does not receive a majority vote cannot be laid before Parliament again without modification to address the reasons for being voted down.
Article 15 (Treaties)
(1) Treaty negotiations are undertaken by the Crown.
(a) This duty may be passed to the Prime Minister, at the discretion of the Crown.
(b) The Prime Minister may delegate the duty to a Foreign Minister, aides or a combination of the two. (2) Treaties with other states are signed by the Crown. (2) Parliament may call for a debate on whether to ratify any treaty.
(a) A Bill calling for such a debate may be passed on majority vote.
(b) If such a Bill passes, Parliament may then decide whether to veto the treaty only by supermajority vote.
(C) If such a Bill passes and Parliament does not vote to veto the treaty, it is deemed to be accepted by Parliament and becomes law. (3) Treaties which are not subject to Parliamentary debate or veto within six months are deemed to be accepted by Parliament and becomes law.
Article 16 (Statutory Instruments)
(1) Parliament may, through the passage of legislation, empower Ministers to draft and adopt Statutory Instruments on specified subject matters.
(a) Statutory Instruments do not require a vote in Parliament to become law.
(2) Statutory Instruments must include an enforcement date. This is the date on which the Statutory Instrument will come into effect.
(3) Members of Parliament may call in for debate any Statutory Instrument at any time before its enforcement date.
(4) If a Statutory Instrument is called in, it will not come into effect until Parliament has voted on whether to veto it or not; even if its enforcement date passes before Parliament has voted.
(5) If a Statutory Instrument is called in, Parliament may vote to veto it by majority vote.
Article 17 (Declarations of War and State of Emergency) (1) In cases of grave and immediate threat to the existence of the Kingdom of Kohlandia, the Prime Minister may take necessary measures of defence.
(2) Exercise of this power requires the consent of the Crown.
(3) Necessary measures may include the declaration of war.
Article 18 (The Parliamentary Ombudsman)
(1) Members of Parliament who are not the Prime Minister, or the Speaker of the House, and do not occupy a position in the Executive may stand for election to the Parliamentary Ombudsman.
(2) The Parliamentary Ombudsman safeguards fundamental rights and liberties in Kohlandia, and controls the compliance of all state powers with the provisions of this Constitution.
(3) The Parliamentary Ombudsman may be made up of a maximum of 15 people.
(4) Members of the Parliamentary Ombudsman may serve for a period of 10 years before seeking re-election.