Archive:Politics of Sialia

In Sialia, the working Government has three branches: executive, legislative and judiciary. The fourth branch serves are purely ceremonial role, except that it decides on the President of the Islands. Despite this, the Presidential role is also ceremonial.

Ceremonial Government

As before, the two/three ceremonial roles in Sialia are:

• The President;
• The Emirate Council; and
• The Board of Islands.

The President is elected by the Emirate Council (which has 5 members - the Emir of each of the 5 Emirates in Sialia), and is not politically affiliated. The President serves as Emir of the Capital Region.

Once this selection occurred, the Emirate Council becomes the Board of Islands, and the President sits on this, along with the 5 Emirs.

The Board of Islands formally elects the Premier, on the advice of the National Assembly; and formally elects the Board Leaders on the advice of the Premier. If there is a coalition Government, the Board of Islands nominates the minority leader as Seconder, or Deputy Premier.

Executive Government

The State is headed by the President, who runs as an Independent, politically speaking. The President has a largely ceremonial role, but does have political power in standing as the Emir of the Capital region. The President, does not, however sit on the Emirate Council - but they are responsible for officially electing a Premier (who is chosen by the Council).

The Premier is the head of state, and has a role identical to that of a Prime Minister. The Premier is responsible for ensuring the Board Leaders, and the Boards themselves, are fulfilling their required tasks (known as Portfolios), and also for serving as Leader of the Board of the State.

A third important role in the Government is the Leader of the National Assembly, colloquially known as the Prime Leader. It was not felt the Emirate Council needed a Chairperson, as it consists of only 5 members. The Prime Leader is also independent from any political parties, and serves as an objective moderator and enabler of the discussion that takes place in the National Assembly.

There are 16 Boards in the Sialan Government, and these (along with their Portfolios) are summarised below. There are 2 major Boards (listed first) - whose functions are considered to be vital to international stability. Then, there are 12 minor Boards - whose functions are considered to be vital to national security. Lastly, there are 2 Boards, which have been created only recently, to deal with relatively modern issues. There were propositions to create a 17th Board - the Board of Cybersecurity - but these roles were instead assumed by the Board of Defence.

Each Board Leader is ex officio a member of the Executive Office (see #Offices below).

Board of War

This Board does not have a permanent Board Leader, as it is not always necessary. In times of civil and international unrest, this board is jointly headed by the Premier and the Board Leader of Defence, and is responsible for (contrary to the name) conducting emergency diplomatic procedures and negotiations, so as to achieve peace. In times of relative international peace, this Board is considered a proxy of the Sialan Diplomatic Missions (excluding those in the Šarkunen peninsula), which all can operate under - this gives them greater authority, and the ability to grant temporary official documents (like emergency passports and National ID cards). In recent times, there have been petitions to rename this board to the Board of Diplomacy, and these are currently being reviewed by the Emirate Council; a decision is expected soon.

Green Board

This Board was previously known as the Board of Fishing and Agriculture, but it has since been granted extra power, and is now responsible for overseeing and regulating all Sialan environmental affairs.

Legislative Government

In the Sialan Government, almost all of the legislative power is vested in the National Assembly, with some also in the Federal Council. The Legislation, therefore, is technically bicameral.

The Federal Council (the Upper House) has the power to veto any bill, with a 5/7 majority, and send it back for debate in the National Assembly. It's other function is to decide on a Premier (Head of Government), who is officially nominated by the President (Head of State). This House is comprised the Governors from each of the five provinces.

The National Assembly also has 10 Senior Delegates, who are elected by the most populous prefectures. These make up the Legislative Office (see #Offices below).

The National Assembly (the Lower House) is made of a number Delegates from each province, proportional to the population of that province. The National Assembly also has 10 Senior Delegates, who are elected by the most populous prefectures. These make up the Legislative Office.(see #Offices below).

Bills submitted to this chamber under go the following processes before being debated:

• The bill is examined for possible conflicts with existing law by the Board of Administration.
• The bill is checked for factual and grammatical errors by the Board of Regulation.
• The proposer of the bill is contacted by the Board of Statistics for:
  1. The formulation of an argument;
  2. The provision of relevant statistics; and
  3. The distribution of information to all Assembly Delegates.
• The proposal is submitted to the Boards of Regulation and Administration for a further examination of the new argument.

After this rigorous process, the bill is debated by the NA Delegates (National Assembly Delegates), and all those initially supporting the bill sit on the right, while all those opposing the bill sit on the left. The impartial National Assembly Leader sits at the front of the chamber to chair the debate. Non-voting parties, such as representatives of the Boards of Regulation and Administration, and the press, sit in the outer circles of the chamber.

After debate, all of the Delegates are lead outside for the voting process. Outdoor voting is a remnant from the prehistoric Sialan legislature, in which all debate was performed outside. The Leader of the NA then announces the result, and all of the Delegates descend the steps in front of the NA building.

Judiciary Government

Sialia operates a system of civil law, which is overseen by the Judiciary Government. The Judiciary Government is entirely separate from the rest of the Government, with the closest link being with the Board of Justice.

Criminal Courts

Criminal law cases are heard by one of three types of court:

1. The First Court - The Court of Barristers;
2. The Second Court - The Court of Solicitors; or
3. The Third Court - The Court of Notaries.

All three of these courts are answerable to the Supreme Court.

Court of Notaries (3rd Court)

The Court of Notaries deals with minor offences (summary offences), and is akin to a Magistrates' Court. Cases held in this court are led by a Tertiary Judge; a Third Court deals with approximately 90% of offences, and can sentence an individual to:

• Up to 6 months of penal servitude;
• A fine of up to ß7500; and/or
• A Community Sentence of less than 2 weeks.

Please note: these sentences are per offence, and so could sum to more.

Court of Solicitors (2nd Court)

If a crime is felt too serious for the Court of Notaries, or the accused wishes to appeal the Third Court's ruling, the case will be sent to the Court of Solicitors, and subsequently classified as an indictable offence. The proceedings in this court will be led by a Secondary Judge, and will be attended by a jury of 10. This court can give sentences of:

• Up to 4 years of penal servitude;
• A fine of up to ß50 000; and/or
• A Community Sentence of less than 12 months.

Again, note: these sentences are per offence, and so could sum to more.

Court of Barristers (1st Court)

The most senior court in Sialia is the Court of Barristers. These are led by a Primary Judge - of which there are only five nationwide - but also present (to advise on the ruling) are: a legal expert (provided by the Board of Justice), and an expert in the field that the case involves (nominated by the Court staff). This court can give unlimited sentences, and deals with appeals from the Court of Solicitors and any very serious offences.

Civil Courts

Civil law cases are heard, in Sialia, by one of two types of court:

1. The Court of Affairs; or
2. The Court of Letters.

Both of these courts are answerable to the Court of Justice.

Court of Affairs

The Court of Affairs deals with all minor civil (non-criminal) law cases, and is presided over by a Judge of Affairs.

Court of Letters

The Court of Letters deals with all major civil law cases and appeals from the Court of Affairs; they are presided over by a Judge of Appeals (if leading an appeal case) or a Judge of Tribunals (if leading a new, major civil law case).

Offices

The Sialan Government also has five Offices, which meet to discuss:

• Bills to amend the National Constitution; and
• Governmental impeachments and reshufflings.

Each Office's members are from the field represented by the office, and in this way, the Office system is highly meritocratic. The five Offices, along with their members (known as Officers, of which there are up to 61 in total) are detailed further below. Debates involving the five Offices are chaired by the Leader of the National Assembly.

Leading Office

The Leading Office is made up of:

• The President;
• The Premier; and
• The Governor from each of the five provinces.

Legislative Office

The 10 National Assembly Senior Delegates make up the Legislative Office. This Office is also required to submit the agenda from any National Assembly debates surrounding the issue.

Executive Office

The Executive Office is made of the 14 Board Leaders.

Judiciary Office

The Judiciary Office is formed by the 5 Primary Judges (who make up the Supreme Court) - long-standing experts in the legal profession.

Professional Office

This office is the only one not staffed by Government officials. It is made of up to 25 professionals (usually University academics and research professionals) in the field of debate (such as legal matters pertaining to constitutional law). These are nominated by the Federal Council and/or the Leading Office. They also serve as impartial representatives during the discussion.

See Also

Sialia