The Royal Constitution for the Kingdom of Justonia

I, Justonius Rex, with merit and vision; with legitimacy vested in me by voluntary citizens do hereby declare myself King of Justonia and Protector of the Realm and in order to form a more perfect, sustainable, independent, self-sufficient community; to establish justice; ensure domestic tranquility; provide for the common defense; promote the general welfare and secure the blessings of liberty, to this community and to its posterity, I do ordain and establish this Constitution for the Kingdom of Justonia.

Declaration of Rights

I declare these following rights for myself and for all others, I declare them by the authority and virtue of our shared humanity and common community within the Realm, and I declare them first and foremost within this Constitution, for civilization and government should only exist as instruments for maintenance of these rights and the benefit of the human condition.

Article 1.

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Article 2.

Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.

Article 3.

Everyone has the right to life, liberty, security of person, and the pursuit of happiness.

Article 4.

No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.

Article 5.

No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

Article 6.

Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.

Article 7.

All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.

Article 8.

Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted them by this constitution or by law.

Article 9.

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.

Article 10.

Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal and to be informed of their rights, obligations, and of any criminal charge against them.

Article 11.

(1) Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which they have had all the guarantees necessary for their defense.
(2) No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the penal offence was committed.

Article 12.

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with their privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon their honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.

Article 13.

(1) Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state.
(2) Everyone has the right to leave any country, including their own, and to return to their country.

Article 14.

(1) Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.
(2) This right may not be invoked in the case of prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of this Declaration.

Article 15.

(1) Everyone has the right to a nationality.
(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of their nationality nor denied the right to change their nationality.

Article 16.

(1) Two people of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution.
(2) Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses.

Article 17.

(1) Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others.
(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of their property.

Article 18.

Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion; this right includes freedom to change their religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in a community with others and in public or private, to manifest their religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

Article 19.

Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

Article 20.

(1) Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.
(2) No one may be compelled to belong to an association.

Article 21.

(1) Everyone has the right to take part in the government of their country, directly or through freely chosen representatives.
(2) Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in their country.
(3) The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.

Article 22.

Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for their dignity and the free development of their personality.

Article 23.

(1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.
(2) Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.
(3) Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for themselves and their family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.
(4) Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of their interests.

Article 24.

Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.

Article 25.

(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of themselves and of their family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond their control.
(2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.

Article 26.

(1) Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.
(2) Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups.
(3) Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children, but cannot deny their children education, or information vital to understanding themselves, the world, and their relationship to it.

Article 27.

(1) Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.
(2) Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which they are the author.

Article 28.

Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized.

Article 29.

(1) Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of their personality is possible.
(2) In the exercise of their rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare of society.
(3) These rights and freedoms may in no case be exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of this Declaration.

Article 30.

Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth herein.

The King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm

Article 1.

The King of Justonia and the Lord Protector of the Realm shall protect the People from injustice and threats, both foreign and domestic;- provide the People with Royal Assets for assistance if required and able for domestic development and tranquility;- uphold the Declaration of Rights and Royal Oath;- and adhere to the laws of Justonia and its Constitution.

Article 2.

Executive powers shall be vested in the King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm who shall act as Commander and Chief of the King’s Guard, Royal Guard, and the Royal Armed Forces;- as head of the government;- and as head of state and conduct diplomacy.

Article 3.

The King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm shall have the power to declare war and call upon the varied Royal Forces for support and civil defense;- to issue arrest and various warrants if requested, or independently, if there is sufficient merit for the warrant’s issuance;- and to grant reprieves and pardons.

Article 4.

The King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm shall have the power to levy taxes of up to 15% – 30% in war time – within the Kingdom including upon churches, temples, mosques, et al. Funds and profits garnered by institutions that are used for community benefit and upkeep may result in lower taxes, or tax-exempt status by the King’s authority. Tax rates may exceed aforementioned caps in circumstances deemed appropriate and reasonable by the Representatives.

Article 5.

The King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm shall have executive authority over and shall be entrusted with revenues, the budget, coinage, postage, land within the borders of the Kingdom and to the ends of ensuring the funds and resources for domestic development and defense, social programs, and other expenditures which may be suggested, or requested by Representatives, or imposed by 4/5 majority vote by Representatives, or simple majority in the lower chamber and 4/5 majority of the upper chamber of the Royal Council of Representatives.

Article 6.

The King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm shall have the power to veto proposed legislation, but may be overridden by way 4/5 majority of Representatives, or simple majority in the lower chamber and 4/5 majority of the upper chamber of the Royal Council of Representatives.

Article 7.

The King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm Justonia shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of the Representatives, to make treaties; shall nominate and appoint ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the Kingdom of Justonia, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law.

Article 8.

The King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm shall have power to issue Royal Decrees so long as they adhere to the Constitution and Declaration of Rights; and to accept jurisdiction over cases involving treason against the Kingdom or the Realm, or in cases by request.

Article 9.

(1) The King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm may delegate powers and responsibilities and may choose a successor with advice and consent from the Representatives.

(2) The King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm may choose a successor which shall be approved by simple majority vote. Without an appointee, succession shall then be decided by the Representatives also by way of simple majority vote.

Article 10.

The King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm shall from time to time give to the Representatives information on the state of the Kingdom, and recommend to their consideration such measures as the King shall judge necessary and expedient; shall receive ambassadors and other public ministers; shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed, and shall commission all the officers of the Kingdom.

Article 11.

The King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm may at stated times, receive for their services, a compensation if funds allow and shall not exceed limits set in place by the Royal Council of Representatives.

Article 12.

Royal Oath:
“As King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm I, (name), pledge my allegiance to the Kingdom; to serve and protect its People and to uphold and preserve the Declaration of Rights for all within the Realm.”

The King’s Justice

Article 1.

The judicial power of the Kingdom of Justonia, shall be vested in one Supreme Court – which shall be formally established by the King of Justonia when growth merits, necessitates, and logistically enables its creation – and in such inferior courts as the Representatives may from time to time ordain and establish within the Kingdom. The judges, both of the Supreme and inferior courts, shall hold their offices during good behavior, uphold the Declaration of Rights, their Royal Oaths, and adhere to the laws of Justonia and its Constitution. All members of the judiciary shall, at stated times, receive for their services, a compensation, which shall not be diminished during their continuance in office. The King may act as judge of any case if requested and agreed upon by all involved parties, and in cases involving treason, except in cases in which the King is a party. Both the King and Supreme Court shall have judiciary discretion and may send cases back to the inferior courts.

Article 2.

(1) The Supreme Court shall have original jurisdiction of all cases, in law and equity, arising under this Constitution, the laws of the Kingdom of Justonia, and treaties made, or which shall be made, under their authority;- to all cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls;- to all cases of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction;- to controversies to which the Kingdom of Justonia and, or the King shall be a party;- to controversies between two or more provinces;- between a province and citizens of another province;- between citizens of different provinces;- between citizens of the same province claiming lands under grants of different provinces, and between a province, or the citizens thereof, and foreign states, citizens or subjects.

(2) The inferior courts shall have original jurisdiction of all criminal cases with the exception of treason.
(3) In all cases involving treason the King shall have original jurisdiction with the exception of cases affecting the King.
(4) In all cases affecting the King, ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, and those in which a province shall be party, the Supreme Court shall have original jurisdiction. In all the other cases before mentioned, the Supreme Court shall have appellate jurisdiction, both as to law and fact, with such exceptions, and under such regulations as the Representatives shall make.
(5) The trial of all crimes, except in cases accepted by the King, shall be by jury; and such trial shall be held in the province where the said crimes shall have been committed; but when not committed within any province, the trial shall be at such place or places as the King, or Representatives may by law have directed.

Article 3.

(1) In all cases accepted by the King, after hearing arguments from parties involved, the King shall deliver a decision and that decision shall be final except in cases with the discovery of new evidence.
(2) In cases, or controversies between citizens, citizens may resolve their conflicts and disputes within an informal hearing; before a judge; or by way of combat, or contest if agreed upon by both citizens. 
(3) The Supreme Court, consisting of an odd number of up to nine, shall deliver decisions by way of simple majority vote.
(4) The inferior courts, consisting of a jury of nine peers, shall deliver decisions and verdicts of guilt by way of unanimous vote.

(5) Criminalized transgressions meriting a formal trial within the jurisdictions of the inferior courts shall include homicide, rape, torture, abduction, human trafficking, unlawful confinement, acts of terrorism, assaults causing grievous bodily harm or death, corruption, and other acts of a serious and wicked nature that are incompatible with values and the Constitution of the Kingdom of Justonia.

(6) Non-criminalized transgressions shall be under the informal jurisdictions of individual communities and the Royal Guard.

Representation and the Royal Council of Representatives

Article 1.

Legislative powers herein, with the exception of royal decrees, shall be vested in the Royal Council of Representatives which shall be formally established by the citizens of the Kingdom of Justonia when growth merits, necessitates, and logistically enables its creation.

Article 2.

The Representatives shall have power to make laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the Kingdom of Justonia, or in any department or officer thereof.

Article 3.

The Council shall be bicameral in nature and shall have an even number of up to 100 members within the upper chamber. The lower chamber shall have a number of members greater than the number of members within the upper chamber and that number shall remain as less than 500. The Council shall give advice and consent by way of simple majority with each member having one vote.

Article 4.

Shall utilize an electoral system in which parties gain seats in proportion to the number of votes cast for them and whose members shall be given a limited number of terms and years per term. No person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the age of twenty-five years, and who shall not, when elected, be a citizen and an inhabitant of that province for which they shall be chosen.

Article 5.

The times, places and manner of holding elections for Representatives shall be prescribed in each province by the legislature thereof; but the Council may at any time by law make or alter such regulations, except as to the places of choosing Representatives.

Article 6.

The Representatives shall assemble at least once in every year, and such meeting shall be on the first Monday in December, unless they shall by law appoint a different day

Article 7.

Each chamber shall be the judge of the elections, returns and qualifications of its own members, and a majority of each shall constitute a quorum to do business; but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the attendance of absent members, in such manner, and under such penalties as each chamber may provide.

Article 8.

Each chamber may determine the rules of its proceedings, punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence of two thirds, expel a member.

Article 9.

Each chamber shall keep a journal of its proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such parts as may in their judgment require secrecy; and the Yeas and Nays of the members of either chamber on any question shall, at the desire of one fifth of those present, be entered on the journal.

Article 10.

Neither chamber, during the Session of the Royal Council of Representatives, shall, without the consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other place than that in which the two chambers shall be sitting.

Article 11.

All Representatives must uphold the Declaration of Rights, their Royal Oaths, and adhere to the laws of Justonia and its Constitution.

Article 12.

Upon the official creation of the Council of Representatives, members may at stated times, receive for their services, a compensation.

Article 13.

New legislation can be proposed by either chamber, but must be approved by both chambers by 3/4 majority vote by Representatives, or simple majority in the lower chamber and 3/4 majority of the upper chamber then signed into law by the King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm. A veto may be overridden by 4/5 majority vote by Representatives, or simple majority in the lower chamber and 4/5 majority of the upper chamber

Article 14.

Until time permits the formal creation of the Royal Council of Representatives, individual citizens shall act as de-facto Representatives. Citizen proposals for legislation shall require 3/4 approval of the citizenry and then signed into law by King of Justonia and Lord Protector of the Realm. A veto may be overridden by 4/5 majority among the citizenry.

Citizenship

Article 1.

Citizenship within the Kingdom of Justonia shall be granted to an individual only after the individual has met all requirements herein. Citizenship within the Kingdom shall be guaranteed by birth until an individual is of full age, at which point they must meet the requirements herein. Citizenship shall thereby be voluntary thus allowing individuals to give, or withhold, their “consent to be governed.”

Article 2.

Citizens of the Kingdom must have a basic understanding of history, government (civics), and science;- be a person of good moral character;- and must demonstrate an attachment to the principles and ideals of the Constitution of the Kingdom of Justonia.

Article 3.

Citizens of the Kingdom must complete an interview and take the Oath of Allegiance to the Kingdom of Justonia.

Article 4.

Citizens of the Kingdom must understand their rights and responsibilities as a citizen of the Kingdom.

(1) Rights:

(1.1) All previously declared rights.
(1.2) Right to a prompt, fair trial under the King’s Justice.
(1.3) Right to vote in elections for public officials.
(1.4) Right to apply for Royal employment requiring citizenship.
(1.5) Right to run for elected office.
(1.6) Right to petition the King.

(2) Responsibilities:
(2.1) Support and defend the Constitution.
(2.2) Stay informed of the issues affecting one’s community.
(2.3) Participate in the political process.
(2.4) Respect and obey the laws.
(2.5) Respect the rights of others.
(2.6) Participate in the local community.
(2.7) Pay taxes honestly and on time.
(2.8) Defend the Kingdom if the need should arise.

Article 5.

There shall be room in the law for extenuating circumstances for individuals unable to meet certain requirements of citizenship.

Article 6.

Oath of Royal Citizenship:
“I, (name), do solemnly swear to support and defend the Kingdom of Justonia and its Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I accept the obligations of royal citizenship freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully fulfill the responsibilities of royal citizenship.”

Alteration of this Constitution

Article 1.

It may be necessary, from time to time, for purposes of clarification, adaptation, or for reasons of unforeseeable circumstance, to amend this Constitution.

Article 2.

(1) The King with approval from 3/4 of the Representatives, or from a simple majority in the lower chamber and a 3/4 majority in the upper chamber of the Royal Council of Representatives may amend the Constitution.
(2) A 3/4 majority of Representatives, or 3/4 majority in the lower chamber and 4/5 majority in the upper chamber of the Royal Council of Representatives may amend the Constitution.

Article 3.

No amendment shall go against the Declaration of Rights, or subvert the spirit and nature of the laws of this Constitution and to that end the Supreme Court shall have the power of judicial review over all proposed amendments to this Constitution.