Constitution of the Republic of Shimmerspring

The Constitution of the Republic of Shimmerspring is the supreme law of Shimmerspring. It establishes a communal government with an elected executive, a randomly selected legislature, and judges to be decided by law.

The Istvanistani Patriotic Army is nationalized by the constitution and given the name Shimmerspring Republican Guard.

Text of the Constitution

We, the slaves, broken, beaten and damned of Shimmerspring, having been liberated by the august events known as the Kalirion Fracture and brought to security and order by the Istvanistani Patriotic Army, do hereby make known that we have established a sovereign state for ourselves, free from feudalism, free from slavery, where order, peace, and equality will reign in place of Kaisers, Nobles and other Masters. Our sovereign state, the Republic of Shimmerspring, is governed by the people, for the people, without any favour for any lord or master. We declare this document to be its Constitution.

Article 1: Establishment

The Republic of Shimmerspring is a free, independent and sovereign state. All its citizens are equal to one another. This Constitution is the supreme law of the Republic. It is the duty of everyone in the Republic to follow it and all laws and decisions and judgements made under it.

The official language of the Republic is Istvanistani. Other languages, including Præta (despite bringing evils of bringing slavery upon the people), shall be protected where and when relevant.

Article 2: Citizenship

Citizenship of the Republic is afforded any of the following who enter and remain in the territory of the Republic:

1. A person who by Imperial Law is or has been classed as a community servant or a loyal subject of the Kaiser; or
2. A person who by Imperial Law has, prior to the death of the Kaiser Ayreon IV, was classed as a denizen of the Imperial Republic and who declares him- or herself to be a citizen of the Republic; or
3. Any person who has, prior to the establishment of the Republic of Shimmerspring, fought for or been a member of the Istvanistani Patriotic Army.

A person who does not fit in either of the three above criteria may apply for citizenship with the Government through its Legislative Arm after three years’ residency in the Republic, provided that no person who has ever enjoyed privileges of nobility or royalty shall ever be allowed citizenship in the Republic.

People lose their citizenship only by application to do so or as punishment for a crime under the law.

Citizens may never be forced to leave the Republic, nor may they ever be denied entry into it.

Article 3: Republican Guard

The Istvanistani Patriotic Army is hereby transferred to the Republic as the Republican Guard of Shimmerspring. The duties of the Republican Guard are to always protect and obey the People of the Republic through their Executive Arm.

Article 4: Arms of the Government

The Government of the Republic has three arms: The Legislative Arm, the Executive Arm, and the Judicial Arm.

Article 5: Legislative Arm

The Legislative Arm of the Republic is the only Arm of the Government authorized to make law. This Arm consists of 500 people randomly selected by the Judges of Judicial Arm from among the citizens of the Republic. A new random selection shall occur every year. People selected to the Legislative Arm have a duty to serve as a member, and they shall receive reimbursements for loss of income for the duration of their service, and for any costs involved with their service. Failure to serve once selected shall result in loss of citizenship, unless valid reasons are brought. Valid reasons are health and death or serving in the Republican Guard. In that case, for that person’s place, a new random selection shall occur.

Article 6: Executive Arm

The Executive Arm of the State consists of eight citizens, one for each of the following:

1. Finance, Resources, Taxation and Budget of the Republic
2. Foreign Affairs, Trade with other States, and so on
3. Immigration, citizenship, and asylum (as well as loss of citizenship and emigration)
4. The Apparatus of the Republic’s authorities,
5. The Republican Guard, Law and Justice, Security, Police, Fire, and so on
6. Infrastructure (energy, roads, traffics, water, etc.)
7. Local Government
8. The President

The Executive Arm of the State shall enforce whatever laws are made by the Legislative Arm, but the Executive Arm may at all times propose new laws to the Legislative Arm, and the Legislative Arm must consider all such proposals from the Executive Arm and decide whether to pass them; if they have been passed, then they shall become law, and if law, the Executive Arm must execute them.

Every year, the citizens shall elect one member of the Executive Arm. In the first year, they shall elect the citizen for task 1 in the above list, in the second year, task 2, and so on.

The Republican Guard shall hold any non-elected seats until they have been elected. By the seventh year, the Republican Guard will only hold one seat (president), and by the eighth year, no seats. The President chairs all meetings of the Executive Arm and is the head of state and government of the Republic. He or she may set an agenda that the other members of the Executive Arm shall follow in as much as it follows the law set by the Legislative Arm.

Article 7: Judicial Arm

The Judicial Arm of the Republic consists of the judges. Laws shall be written for this purpose, what powers judges have, where courts are and how many they are, and so on.

Article 8: Property and Children

There is no private property, only personal property. Everything else is owned by the People as citizens in common, and administered by the Government of the Republic. People can never be someone’s property.

But children are the responsibility (not property) of their parents, and parents have a duty to provide for the children and bring them up in accordance with the principles of the Republic. If they do not do that, then they commit crimes, and crimes shall be punished in accordance with the law.

Article 9: Changes to the Constitution

Only the People-Citizens in a Referendum can change this Constitution, and they do so by more than half of all adult citizens in the Republic voting in favour of a proposal to change the Constitution. Adults are defined as everyone over twenty years of age.