South Arctic Empire reformation

Preamble
This Charter of the South Arctic Empire is drafted in the name of stability, defense, honor and trust. Those that pass through the hallow gates to become Arcticans pledge to uphold the charter; to never dishonor or go against the wishes of the Leadership. The Leadership pledges to serve the alliance, not itself.. In these truths we form the South Arctic Empire Charter.

Article I: Membership
Becoming a member of the South Arctic Empire is considered an honor and held in high regard. Nations wishing to join will meet the following conditions:

Section 1: Application For Membership
A. Nations must be free of wars; not currently aiding enemies of SAE or her allies; can not reside on any ZI lists; or enemy to any alliance. B. Nations agree to maintain a weekly forum activity, follow all orders given, and to treat all other members and allies with respect. C. Nations agree to change to the Aqua team, vote for the appointed senator, and refrain from war. D. Once a nation has applied the nation is not an official member,and shall be considered a SAE Applicant. Applicant's Alliance Affiliation shall be set to "SAE Applicant" on their nations. A mandatory 48 hour interview period will follow, for which the applicant should check and answer all questions asked truthfully. If accepted the the applicant will become a cadet and will go through the academy, Cadets are under the protection of SAE, but are not official members yet. E: Once accepted as a Cadet, the nation is required to show "SAE Cadet" as their Alliance Affiliation

Section 2: Rights of Membership
A. Nations have the right to speak their minds in a private channel of the forum or on the member's IRC room. B. No nation shall be deprived the right of defense, either from in game attacks or accusations placed against them. C. All nations who have been granted membership, post cadet stage, have the right to a harbor and foreign ministry.

Section 3: Termination of Membership
A. Resignation of membership may be done by any nation, for any reason, given that the member informs the alliance or the Empress of their desire to leave. Failure to do so may result in military action against the offending nation. All members will have 24 hours once they have changed their nation's Alliance Affiliation to notify SAE of their formal resignation. After this period, SAE reserves the right to take military action if deemed necessary. B. Membership may also be terminated if the member is found in violation of the Charter, and following a trial, expulsion is the sentence. C. In extreme cases the Empress may expel a member from the alliance if the expulsion is required to ensure the safety, security, and prosperity of SAE as a whole.

Article 2: Academy
Following acceptance of membership, nations will inter into the Academy. Membership is not guaranteed at this point. Cadet nations are required to read over the information in the academy, submit and then pass the exam that follows.

Section 1: Structure and Protocol of the Academy
A. Cadets will be put through courses involving: Nation building and War system, Banking,CN and SAE history, basic IRC usage and CN forum protocol. During this time, it is expected of Cadets to show "SAE Cadet" as their alliance affiliation. B. Each course will run at least a week in length, giving the Cadets ample time to read all material provided. C. Following the week of study, the Cadet will be given a test over that unit. When they pass they will be masked on to the next unit. If they fail they can take another week to review the material and retake the test. D. Once the 4 units have been reviewed and tested the Cadet will be given the Final test for membership consisting of 50 questions, the test will be given on IRC, use of the guides in the academy is strictly forbidden. E. When a Cadethas taken the Final test and passed, they will be promoted to the rank of Arctican and given 3 million and 50 tech in aid, to be used to purchase their harbor and foreign ministry. F: Once given the rank of Arctican, the member may switch their nation's Alliance Affiliation to "South Arctic Empire".

Section 2: Guidance and Leadership of Academy
A. The academy will be lead by the Academy Dean and three Professors. B. The Dean will over see the Final test for membership, review guides and updates where appropriate, and appoint professors when needed. C. Professors will maintain the individual units of the academy, and are responsible for answering the questions nations may have, and maintaining their unit of the academy, as well as the unit test.

Article 3: Leadership
South Arctic Empire is ruled by it's Empress and supporting roles. The leadership serves the members of SAE, they should always hold the safety and honor of SAE above their own.

Section 1: Empress
A. The Empress is the highest authority in the alliance, concerning all aspects of the alliance both foreign and domestic. B. The Empress reserves the right to appoint or demote any members to government at any time. All members of the government answer to them. C. The Empress has the authority to approve or reject treaties, declarations of war, or other issues of Foreign Affairs. D. The Empress shall serve and follow the Charter of the alliance, shall not have the right to expel Arcticans without a court hearing, unless circumstances prevents a trial or deems one unnecessary. E. If the position becomes available, the previous emperor will appoint the new. F: The Empress agree to serve the alliance to the best of their abilities for as long as they are capable and dedicated to leading the South Arctic Empire. G: Emperor/Empress are expect to act and to lead with respect, dignity, and honor and to uphold the SAE Charter and alliance policies at all times.

Section 2: Ministers
A. The Ministers are appointed by the Empress, and serve as the heads of their departments. B. A Minister shall appoint one Deputy Ministers, and any other position as necessary to assist in the organization of their departments. C. Ministers are empowered to organize, facilitate, and operate their departments with complete autonomy, with the exception of significant foreign affairs (the signing of Treaties, declarations of war or peace, etc) or internal affairs (the punishment of members, and events affected the alliance as a whole). All such matters shall be referred to the Empress. D: Ministers agree to serve the alliance to the best of their abilities for as long as they are capable and dedicated to leading the South Arctic Empire. Ministerial positions have no fixed time limit. F: Ministers may be removed from office by the Empress. G: As leaders, Ministers are expect to act and to lead with respect, dignity, and honor and to uphold the SAE Charter and alliance policies at all times.

Section 3: Deputy Ministers
A. The Deputy Ministers are appointed by the Ministers to [color]assist[/color] with the actions of their respective department. B. The Deputy Minister act as fill in's in the case of a Ministers absence. C: Deputy Ministers agree to serve the alliance to the best of their abilities for as long as they are capable and dedicated to leading the South Arctic Empire. Deputy Ministerial positions have no fixed time limit. F: Deputy Ministers may be removed from office as necessary by their commanding Minister at any time. G: As leaders, Ministers are expect to act and to lead with respect, dignity, and honor and to uphold the SAE Charter and alliance policies at all times.

Section 5: Other offices
A. As necessary, new positions within the alliance and departments may be created at any time by the Empress or the Ministers. B. Long-term permanent positions may be added to the Charter as necessary.

Article 4: Foreign Affairs
When dealing with other alliances, SAE will honor all treaties to the letter, and be respectful to both allies and non allies.

Section 1: Foreign Image
A. Only the Empress, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and members promoted to the rank of "diplomat " are entitled to represent SAE. B. While representing SAE, diplomats are required to conduct themselves in an appropriate manor. Failure to do so will result in judicial action. C. No member under the rank of Deputy Minister may discuss treaties. Only the Empress may approve inter-alliance treaties.

Section 2: Embassies
A. Embassies will be granted to alliances who meet the requirement of 10 members or more, and agree to make contact in the embassy at least once a week. B. One representative from the respected alliance will be given moderator functions over their embassy. C. If an embassy becomes inactive for more than 4 weeks, the embassy will be deleted and the associated mask(s) removed.

Article 5: Internal Affairs
The internal affairs of SAE shall remain within the alliance; the leaking of internal information will be deemed treason. All sections not explicitly out-lined as Foreign or Military will fall under Internal, including but not limited to, recruitment, banking, forum management, as well as technology and trade resource management.

Section 1: Recruitment
A. Recruitment is the nerve center of the alliance, recruiters are held in high standing, and are among the highest respected members. B. Recruitment messages should be approved by the Empress, before being used for recruitment purposes. C. Nations with an AA of more than 2 members is strictly forbidden. Recruiting from such nations will result in judicial action.

Section 2: Banking
A. Banking requires a nation to give selflessly to the alliance. As such bankers are held in high standing, and are among the highest respected members. B. Banking nations are required to have 3,000 infrastructure levels in their nation. C. Aid will only be given to approved nations, banks should not send aid until it is approved by the Empress or Minister. D. All Bank Nations are to have $15 million within their as an aid reserve at all times. D. If a war brakes out, Banks are to enter peace mode and are then under the authority of the Empress.

Section 3: Home Land Security
A. Only members who have gained the trust of the Empress or Minister, are entitled to Home Land Security. B. Forum Managers will be responsible for making mask changes, watching the forum for profanity, and other forums of mediation. C. Home Land Security includes interviewing and completing background checks on applicants.

Section 4: Tech/Trade Management
A. Tech Managers will be responsible for ensuring that tech deals run smoothly. B. Any tech deals that take place in SAE, are required to be approved by the Empress, Minister, or a tech manager. C. Trade Managers will help members make the best use of their resources, for the betterment of their nations. D. Trade Circles should first be filled by members, then allies of the aqua color, and finally the general populous of the aqua team.

Article 6: Defense Affairs
SAE holds a position of Non-Aggression with all alliances. The defense of SAE and her allies is held at the highest regard. Leaking of information concerning the defense and well-being of SAE or her allies, will result in a charge of treason.

Section 1: Peace Time
A. During peace time, nations are not to engage in conflict with any foreign nations. B. During peace time nations are to have 1 aid slot open at all time for emergency purposes.

Section 2: War Time
A. During times of war Bank nations come under the authority of the Empress. They are to enter peace mode and wait for instructions from the Minister of Defense or the Empress. All orders must be obeyed, they shall not leave peace mode unless instructed. B. During war time, nations are to remain respectful to the enemy alliance. C. Arcticans will be sure that during times of war, they have made contact with their battle buddy, and engage together.

Section 3: Rogue Attack
A. If an Arctican comes under attack from any nation, including nations of SAE; they are to report it to their barracks and await instructions. B. If the attacker is aligned (that is, showing an Alliance Affiliation of an alliance with more than two members) then diplomats will contact the alliance in question prior to engagement. Should diplomacy fail, SAE reserves the right to take aggressive military action against the offending nation.

Section 4: Declarations of War
A. Only the Empress may declare war. B. In the event that an alliance declares war against SAE. The Empress and Minister of Defense will work to negotiate peace with the alliance. A peaceful resolution shall always be preferred to war. At the time of the alliance's declaration an automatic state of war is issued between the attacking alliance and SAE.

Section 5: Military Hierarchy
A. The head of Military Affairs will always be just with any other department, the Empress. B. The Minister and Deputy Minister are the next in the line of Military hierarchy. They make the appointments and promotions. C. The Generals are the third level, they will be placed in charge of a barracks. They are to report to the Minister all actions taken by their barracks. D. Other Positions may be created either as need positions or as honorary positions.

Article 7: Judicial Proceedings
The right to defense is a membership right that all members of SAE shall have. The right to defense includes from both in game war attacks as well as accusations of a crime. All members will be given a chance to defend themselves against the charge against them.

Section 1: Preparation
A. SAE will ensure that every reasonable effort is made to provide the accused with the information as soon as the charges are made. The accused will also be provided all material concerning the allegation prior to the trial. B. The accused will be given 48 hours to prepare their defense. C. The same 48 hour period will be alloted to the Prosecutor, to ague against the accused. D: Should the Accused fail to respond, a Plea of No Contest shall be automatically entered on their behalf. E: A Prosecutor shall be appointed by the Empress.

Section 2: Trial
A. The Prosecutor will open a new thread in the Court, detailing the Crime and all evidence to support the accusation. B: The accused will then be allowed to present their case and their Plea of either Guilty (Admitting to the crimes fully), Not Guilty (Denying the crimes) or No-Contest (neither admitting or denying guilt, holding no position). They shall state their reasons for each please. C: With a Not-Guilty Plea, The Prosecutor and Accused will discuss all evidence and issues concerning the trial during a 36 hour period. For a Guilty or No-Contest Plea, both the Prosecutor and the Accused are required to enter a statement and the trial moves straight to the Verdict phase.

Section 3: Verdict
A. For Not-Guilty cases (where the Accused as entered a Plea of Not Guilt and a full trial was conducted), once all evidence and arguments have been made, the Prosecutor will open a Poll in the Court for the People of the Alliance to decide on the verdict o. The poll will be open for 48 hours and will be closed by the Prosecutor. Anyone in the alliance may vote once in the poll. There shall be only two possible verdicts: Guilty or Not Guilty and the people of SAE will chose. B. For all Guilty, No-Contest Cases (where the Accused as plead Guilty or No-Contest and a full trial was not conducted) and in Full Trials (where the people of SAE have voted on a verdict), the Empress will then enter a punishment. The Prosecutor may recommend a Punishment that suits the nature of the crime. C: The Empress will hand down a sentence that fits the crime and the Case shall be adjourned. The Accused may appeal their sentence or the trial directly to the Empress. D: Appeals will be handled as a new trial, as per the above Trial Procedure.

Article 8: Charter Amendments and Ratification
As the sacred word and law of the alliance, the SAE Charter must be upheld and respected at all times. As such, the integrity of this document must also be protected at all times, as per the following policies:

Section 1: Amendments
A: No member of the alliance may alter, change, add, or subtract any word, section, or article from the Charter itself. All proposed amendments must be made via a Copy of the Charter and posted in an alternative thread. Until the amendments are ratified into law, the original Charter remains word and law of the alliance at all times. B: Proposed Amendments must be made in a forum that is public to all members of SAE to view and reply in. Amendments made in private forums, on IRC, via any Private Message, or on any forum that is not the home of the alliance shall not be considered legally binding. C: All Proposed Amendments will be clearly identifiable and described in detail as to it's purpose and effect on the alliance as a whole. D: All Arcticans shall be welcome and able to comment, suggest, and discuss Amendments for a reasonable amount of time.

Section 2: Ratification
A: The Charter Amendment/s must be passed by a agreement of all Ministers, and with a non-binding verbal approval of the SAE members. B: Once passed, all Amendments are considered word and law of the SAE Charter