World Assembly membership in NationStates is a choice, not a requirement. Those of us who chose to participate have certain responsibilities to ourselves, each other, and the entire NationStates community. At the same time, we as NationStates have certain rights and responsibilities that we do not willingly relinquish when we chose to join the World Assembly.

It is therefore vital to clearly delineate what constitutes sovereign law versus international law passed by this World Assembly. This document will attempt to enumerate those most basic of rights, as they exist within and as defined by the World Assembly of NationStates.

A Declaration on Rights and Duties of WA States:

Section I:

The Principle of National Sovereignty:

Article 1 § Every WA Member State has the right to independence and hence to exercise freely, without dictation by any other NationState, all its legal powers, including the choice of its own form of government.

Article 2 § Every WA Member State has the right to exercise jurisdiction over its territory and over all persons and things therein, subject to the immunities recognized by international law.

Article 3 § Every WA Member State has the duty to refrain from unrequested intervention in the internal or external economic, political, religious, and social affairs of any other NationState, subject to the immunities recognized by international law.

Section II:

Rights and Duties in War:

Article 4 § Every WA Member State has the right of individual or collective self-defense against armed attack.

Article 5 § War in the World of NationStates is defined as a consensual act between two or more NationStates. WA Member States may, at their discretion, intercede against declarations of war on behalf of NationStates who wish to avoid war.

Article 6 § Every WA Member State has the duty to refrain from fomenting civil strife in the territory of another NationState, and to prevent the organization within its territory of activities calculated to foment such civil strife.

Article 7 § Every WA Member State has the duty to refrain from giving assistance to any NationState which is acting in violation of Article 5 or 6. Every WA Member State has the duty to refrain from recognizing any territorial acquisition by another NationState acting in violation of Article 5 or 6.

Section III:

The Role of the World Assembly:

Article 8 § Every WA Member State has the right to equality in law with every other WA Member State.

Article 9 § Every WA Member State has the duty to carry out in good faith its obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law, including this World Assembly, and it may not invoke provisions in its constitution or its laws as an excuse for failure to perform this duty.

Article 10 § Whilst WA Member States may engage in wars, the World Assembly as a body maintains neutrality in matters of civil and international strife. As such, the WA will not engage in commanding, organising, ratifying, denouncing, or otherwise participating in armed conflicts, police actions, or military activities under the WA banner.

Article 11 § Every WA Member State has the duty to conduct its relations with other NationStates in accordance with international law and with the principle that the sovereignty of each WA Member State is subject to the supremacy of international law.

Observing that there is currently no guarantee of justice for those accused of criminal acts.

Noting that convictions are often unsafe due to the absence of any legal requirements for a trial under international law

Remarking that miscarriages of justice are common.

Believing that it should be everyone’s right to be protected from malicious and unfair prosecution by law.

Further believing that the more rigorous examination of evidence seen in a fair trial will lead to fewer innocent people being unfairly punished.

Hereby mandates that all WA member nations guarantee a fair trial to anyone facing prosecution in their territory, in accordance with the following requirements:

Article 1 § That the accused be seen as innocent until proven guilty beyond all reasonable doubt, thus placing the onus of proof on the prosecuting authority.

Article 2 § That the defendant be given the right to present his case or to be represented by a person of his choosing.

Article 3 § That the evidence shall be considered by an impartial jury of no less than 5 people and presided over by a judge with knowledge of the laws being applied and the requirements for a trial.

Article 4 § That all persons shall have the right to remain silent when questioned, and exercising this right shall not be used as evidence against them in court.

Article 5 § That information and testimony may not be extracted under duress or using any form of physical or psychological torture.

Article 6 § That the defendant shall have the right to question any witness who provides evidence.

Article 7 § That the defendant be entitled to appeal against both the sentence and verdict that has been passed.

Article 8 § That any punitive sentence passed by a court be proportional to the crime committed.

Article 9 § That the proceedings of the trial conclude within a reasonable time period.

RECOGNIZING the existence of many specialized non-governmental organizations (abbreviated as NGOs), both at domestic and international level, focusing on providing humanitarian aid to both individuals and governments;

APPLAUDING the efforts of such NGOs for promoting international peace and strengthening the ties between nations;

OBSERVING that the World Assembly has not designated a single point of responsibility for coordinating the efforts of such NGOs;

REALIZING there are duplications of some relief efforts, and that communication problems may create inefficiencies in absence of a clear single point of responsibility;

The World Assembly,

RECOGNIZING that all citizens of member nations should be protected by such a humanitarian group.

1. ESTABLISHES the International Coordinated Relief Committee (ICRC), an organization whose sole duty is to co-ordinate of relief aid of NGOs in all member nations;

2. MANDATES that the ICRC shall be funded from the resources of the World Assembly, but;

3. PERMITS the ICRC to accept donations and grants from individual persons as a goodwill gesture;

4.1. DEFINES a major disaster as an event which may threaten lives and livelihoods, such as natural disasters, terrorist attacks and war;

4.2. DEFINES the functions of the ICRC, whose role shall be to:
a) Provide international coordination of food, shelter, and humanitarian aid efforts in nations affected by a major disaster;
b) Co-ordinate the efforts of existing NGOs in member nations at an international level;
c) Provide training to volunteers of NGOs and the ICRC itself in preparedness for such disasters.

5. INSTRUCTS the ICRC to:
a) manage and prioritize the allocation of resources to specific situations or emergencies, based on the current inability of other governmental and NGOs to meet all of the needs of those situations;
b) not promote conflict or war in any way;
c) not abuse their budget, in any way that may hamper the true purpose of the organization itself.

ENCOURAGES member nations and existing NGOs to share recovery plans and aid each other through the halls of the ICRC.

Co-authored by Mikitivity.