The Sasori Initiative

Constitution
Preamble:

“All great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word: freedom; justice; honor; duty; mercy; hope.”

Article I - Ideals

The Sasori Initiative does not believe in Nuclear First Strike, Eternal ZI or Permanent ZI as a form of punishment. We believe in the freedom of speech for all members and the duty of assisting our fellow citizens through any and all means possible. We, the members of the Sasori Initiative, are committed to the upholding of these ideals.

Article II - Citizenship

All nations are free to apply to The Sasori Initative, but must uphold the ideals to be accepted. To become a citizen of the Sasori Initiative, the applicant must change his or her or her Alliance Affiliation (AA) to “The Sasori Initiative”. The applicant must not be a member of any other alliance, nor have any outstanding debts (financial, tech or otherwise) or ongoing offensive conflicts with other alliances. The Imperial Office reserves the right to deny entry to nations that have committed acts of nuclear terrorism (defined as being a "nuke rogue"). Applicants may be required to submit to a written examination for the purposes of assessing their understanding of the Initiative's constitution and laws as the discretion of the Imperial Office.

Rights of the Citizenry All citizens will be afforded the protection of the Initiative as long as they uphold the Initiative's Ideals. All citizens shall be afforded the right to leave the Initiative without fear of reprisal once they have settled any outstanding financial or tech debts with the Initiative. It is left to the discretion of the Imperial Office as to whether or not said nation has debts to settle. All citizens shall be afforded the right of free speach both in public and in private and the ability to question the leaders of the Initiative about information.

Obligations of the Citizenry All citizens are expected to fight in defense of the Initiative should it be attacked. It is expected that citizens of the Initiative will follow the directives of the Imperial Office and the Ministers and, in the event that they disagree, handle their dispute in a respectable and responsible manner. Citizens are highly encouraged to participate in the inner workings of the alliance including general elections and the discussion of new legislation and ammendments as well as new ideas for the Initiative.

Removal of a Citizen In the event that a citizen violates the ideals of the Sasori Initiative, commits acts of espionage against the Initiative or continually defies the directives of the Imperial Office or the Ministers that citizen will be expelled from the Initiative and denied the protections this document provides. Should the former citizen continue to attempt to shelter under the Intitiative's AA they shall be declared a Ghost and shall be treated as a hostile target.

Article III - The Emperor or Empress

The Emperor or Empress is the elected single leader and the Ruler of The Sasori Initiative. It is his or her responsibility to conduct the day to day affairs of the Alliance including overseeing defense, recruitment, aid programs and the operation of the government. The Emperor or Empress shall serve until such time as they wish to step down from the post or the Initiative Council finds him or her unfit to continue ruling.

Powers of the Imperial Office The Emperor or Empress is granted the authority to appoint members to lead the Ministries of Communications, Economics, Foreign Affairs and Defense. The Emperor or Empress has the power to delegate responsibilities to the appropriate Ministries and to dismiss a Minister if they are not performing in a satisfactory manner. It is solely within the Emperor's or Empress' purview to determine if a Minister has failed to perform up to the expected standards. The Emperor or Empress is empowered to override the decision of a Minister at any time and, should the need exist in their opinion, assume partial or full responsibility of that Ministry. The Emperor or Empress has the authority to veto proposed amendments to the Constitution.

The Imperial Office, with the assent of the Office of the Shogun and the Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, may issue a declaration of war against a foreign power and/or extend that foreign power terms of peace. The specifics of any terms or conditions in these declarations are left to the sole authority of the Imperial Office.

Resignation or Removal The Emperor or Empress may resign from his or her position at any time for any reason they see fit. After an Emperor or Empress' resignation an election among the general membership will be held immediately. The election shall be overseen by the Imperial Advisory Council with a period of three (3) days for candidates to be nominated and post their campaign platforms followed by a vote to last seventy-two (72) hours. A simple majority is required to win this election.

If it is felt that there is a pressing need, the Emperor or Empress may be removed by the Imperial Advisory Council and the general membership. In order for an impeachment movement to begin, the Council must pass a Vote of No Confidence with a simple majority. Once completed and announced, a vote by the general membership shall be held. The vote will be conducted for seventy-two (72) hours or until seventy-five (75) percent of the alliance membership has voted, whichever is later. A 3/4 vote for removal is needed to remove the Emperor or Empress. If removed, elections will be held immediately as outlined above. It should be noted that the Imperial Office is prohibited from vetoing the results of a Vote of No Confidence.

Article IV - The Council

Repealed

Article V - The Ministers

Ministers are appointed and dismissed solely by the Imperial Office unless otherwise noted. No person currently serving in the Imperial Advisory Council or in another governmental role is permitted to serve as a Minister within the Initiative. The Ministers are empowered to act within their job duties.

The Current Ministries are:

The Ministry of Defense While the Imperial Office retains the title of Commander-in-Chief of the SIDF, the military arm of the Initiative is overseen by the Shogun who serves as the Chief of Staff. The Shogun is charged with the handling of any and all matters directly pertaining to the defense of the Initiative including, but not limited to, military attacks on citizens by enemies foreign and domestic, counter-espionage actions in defense of the Initiative and its operational security, broadcasting of alliance-wide messages, oversight of any and all attacks launched by citizens of the Initiative and the organization of the SIDF including the induction, promotion and demotion of soldiers. It is understood that the Shogun serves the alliance as a whole in the defense and preservation of the Initiative's constitution and that, as such, the Shogun may never be assigned to fill a post on the Imperial Advisory Council. The Shogun is free to appoint a Deputy to perform any responsibilities he or she feels necessary.

The Ministry of Economics The Ministry of Economics is broken down into two areas, each controlled by a Minister. The Minister of Economics is charged with assisting citizens in establishing stable trade circles for the purposes of ensuring growth and development for their nations as well as the arming of said nations with nuclear weapons through the acquisition of uranium trades. For this purpose the Minister of Economics is charged as acting as lead representative of the Initiative to the white sphere trading enclave established under the Solidarity of Nations On White treaty. The Minister of Economics is charged with the development of aid programs to assist citizens of the Initiative in the growth of their nations.

The Deputy Minister of Economics, appointed by the Minister of Economics with the approval of the Imperial Office, is charged with the establishment of tech deals for citizens of the Initiative (one-by-one and three-by-three deals), implementation of aid programs as designed by the Minister of Economics and the handling of any and all settling of debts owed on the part of the Initiative to another alliance.

The Ministry of Education The Ministry of Education exists as a source of information and reference materials for the Initiative as a whole. The Minister of Education is charged with the production and maintainence of any guides or informational resources deemed necessary by the Imperial Office for the betterment of the Initiative and to serve as a resource-in-person both on IRC and the forums for the purposes of answering questions posed by the citizenry.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs The Minister of Foreign Affairs is charged with the oversight of all ambassadorial staff and activities within the Initiative including any and all members assigned as diplomats to other alliances. In the event of work on a treaty with another alliance the Minister of Foreign Affairs is empowered to take charge of any negotiations being conducted by a diplomat for the purpose of coordinating more closely with the Imperial Office and the Imperial Advisory Council.

The Ministry of Recruitment Operated by the Minister of Recruitment, this Ministry is tasked with the writing and distribution of recruitment messages in an effort to bring new citizens to the Initiative. The Minister of Recruitment is specifically empowered to form a recruitment staff from within the ranks of the alliance for the purposes of increasing the distribution of messages and shall, upon request, verify the referal of any and all new recruits to the alliance to the Imperial Office.

Article VI - Mergers and Dissolution

It is understood that, from time to time, alliances can join together to join larger organizations or can become defunct due to reduced membership, internal inactivity or other factors. As the Sasori Initiative is an alliance founded on the principle of choice for the common member, it is understood that such drastic actions must take place only at the behest of the popular sentiment. In order for the Initiative to 1) merge into or accept the merger of another alliance or 2) officially dissolve and retire the name and flag of the alliance a vote of the general membership must take place. Should 2/3 of the general membership vote in favor, the Imperial Advisory Council vote in favor and the Imperial Office give its assent, the merger or dissolution shall take place immediately.

Article VII - Amendments

It is recognized that as the political environment changes and the Initiative grows, amendments to this Constitution may be needed. Amendments may be drafted, posted and discussed by any member or group of members in the alliance in the private sections of the forum. A vote on the amendment may be called by the author(s) at any time and will last for seventy-two (72) hours. A vote of two-thirds (2/3) in favor is needed for the amendment to be passed to the Imperial Office for final approval. Should the Imperial Office give final approval to the amendment, it shall be immediately incorporated into the Constitution.

Article VIII - The Imperial Advisory Council

The Imperial Advisory Council is appointed to serve the Imperial Office for the purpose of ensuring wise governance of the Initiative. Citizens who do not hold any ministerial position may be appointed to the Council and serve for a period of one (1) month after which time they may be appointed again at the discretion of the Imperial Office. No Councilor may serve more than two (2) consecutive terms.

Size of the Council - A minimum of three (3) and maximum of five (5) citizens shall serve on the Imperial Advisory Council at any given time. For the purpose of governance the Imperial Office shall be considered a serving post in the Imperial Advisory Council.

Powers of the Council - Each member of the Council is given one (1) vote for the purpose of approving or denying treaties with foreign powers. The Imperial Office shall hold the power of two (2) votes. In the event that discussion of a treaty with a foreign power lasts more than five (5) days and a consensus is unable to be reached, the decision is removed from the Imperial Advisory Council and a decision will be made by the Imperial Office, the Office of the Shogun and the Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Each member of the Council is given one (1) vote for the purpose of approving or denying new bills governing the conduct of the Initiative. The Imperial Office shall hold the power of two (2) votes. In the event that discussion of a bill lasts more than five (5) days and a consensus is unable to be reached, the decision is removed from the Imperial Advisory Council and a decision will be made by the Imperial Office, the Office of the Minister of Internal Relations and the Office of the Minister of Economics.

Resignation or Removal - A member of the Imperial Advisory Council may be removed at any time by the Imperial Office with a majority assent from the other members of the Council. A Councilor who remains inactive for more than seven (7) days may be removed by fiat by the Imperial Office and a replacement appointed immediately.

Active Treaties
The Sasori Initiative is signatory to the following treaties:
 * Signatory of the Overlord's Protectorate Pact
 * Signatory of The Divine Sting Accords
 * Signatory of The Code of the Warrior Pact
 * Signatory of the Nordreich - Sasori Initiative Friendship Pact

Inactive Treaties
The Sasori Initiative has, in the past, been a signatory of the following treaties:
 * The Mokushiroku-Sasori Pact
 * The Mokushiroku-Sasori Accords
 * The NO BS Pact
 * The Sashimi Pact