Two separate discussion threads on the topic of reforming the citizenship process by Em Discussion/Proposal: Major Overhaul to Citizenship System - Page 4 - The East Pacific - Tapatalk and Nociav A Compromise Resident Rights Proposal - The East Pacific - Tapatalk were conceived during the past week. Both threads were motioned to vote, but after an [Advisory Question] What exactly does "Legislative Proposal" mean? - The East Pacific - Tapatalk to the Conclave it was determined that these proposals do not meet the requirements for a vote as laid out in the SOM.
I will therefore be conducting an unofficial poll for Magisters to determine a stance. Magisters should choose between the two separate options. The first option will be titled “Major Overhaul to Citizenship System”, whilst the second option shall be titled “A Compromise Resident Rights Proposal” (utilising the titles of each discussion thread as to not cause confusion). I will not be editing these from their proposed threads at all, so what you see here is what is written there.
This poll will mimic the voting method of our Magisterium Voting Hall, but this vote is to determine a stance, not to vote between proposals.
Major Overhaul to Citizenship System
Right now we have Citizens and Residents. What my proposal is – is to have a unified Citizenry. What does this mean to me? This means we will no longer have Citizens and Residents but only Citizens. This will grant everyone in the region equal rights. Does equal rights mean everyone can vote? No. (Just like IRL in America. You register to vote or you don’t register to vote. Your overall rights are the same) That doesn’t make sense from a security standpoint. Neither would holding them on the RMB or within Polls. Logistically that’s not going to work.
So how will a citizen get the right to vote? 1) They must have a WA nation (doesn’t need to be in the TEP), 2) They must have a nation in TEP, 3) They must formally ratify the Concordat (this will also serve as a government application (Zuk’s awesome idea) and naturally voter registration, 3) They must verify their nation(s) In-Game. Once they do all of that then they can vote on Delegate Elections, Referendums, Join the Magisterium, Go beyond a Executive Staffer and etc.
What if they don’t want to join the forum? What if they don’t want to go though that process but still want to be involved? Maybe they just want to RP? That’s 100% okay. It’s not our goal to force everyone to become a forum user. It’s to encourage activity overall in the community. RMB? Great. Discord? Great. Forum? Great.
But what will it cost them? They can’t vote. They can’t become a RO, Minister, Deputy, Magister, or any position of regional power. If they don’t join the forum they could miss out on a appeal/trial – unless as mentioned recently by Paki that the Conclave could hold trial for them in a password protected Conclave region and with dispatches for evidence presentation. This is a great idea actually. I like it. It’s different but still fair.
Does this mean spammers/trolls/flamer and rule breakers get a trial? Are they doing it in the bounds of the law? Meaning are they trying to commit treason when the nation name is PoopyPooPoo123416547 and they’re posting 5 pages of song lyrics. Hmm. That’s a no. So? Ban. GHR. Record. NEXT! That’s business as usual. Yes? Appeal? Trial? Whatever. Sounds like another “that’s business as usual” line. Since I just mentioned the Conclave indirectly I wanted to mention that under this new system it will change the way we proscribe people. How? It should be where the Vizier’s vote and then they send it over to the Conclave for approval. Checks and balances.
Is security a concern? Always. We want to have a safe and fun community. In this case? Not particularly a concern. Any system is going to have vulnerable parts. The truth of the matter is that WA nations are more reliable for regional security than an IP check. You can have your home internet and you can have your cellular internet and suddenly you are two different people at once. 10 or more years ago you couldn’t even get citizenship with a wireless IP. That ended as times changed. You can’t deny anyone based on that due to some people don’t have access to home internet. As times change so did the region.
Now to the biggest thing people keep asking me: Why?
My literal reason is: I’m a citizen with an idea that I think would work better for the region. But even after saying that.
The question once again comes to me: Why? So now I must make up some.
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I’m a huge supporter of Resident Rights. Just because I don’t have all the time in the world to post on the RMB like in my heyday doesn’t mean I haven’t forgotten my roots. Sure we made some strides in giving more protections and rights. But that’s just not good enough for me. We can do better. It’s been a on and off again serious discussion for literally 3 years.
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I worry about the workload on people like Sammy and VW. Citizenship Commission is a burner. It burns people. They just happen to be forum staff and can do the current security checks. I’m simply in a unique position where I’ve seen it time and time again. So with this proposal it relies on NationStates rules of 1 WA Nation per User and their security checks. This will literally save them time by cutting out a step and an additional website. Keeps them on Forum and NS.
A Compromise Resident Rights Proposal
- Residents will be granted full rights to a trial (with a right to representation, not incriminate themselves, etc.). This will mean no more hearings. If the trial can’t happen on the forums then it should happen in-game. I know Fylkirvegr did this to ensure no-one has a reason to avoid trials and I’ll give you an outline of Fylk’s procedure below:
– A seperate region exists for gameside trials
– Motions are made via telegram to the region founder
– The region’s founder is controlled by the Chief Justice
– Motions and pre-trials are recorded in a dispatch along with the final verdict when it is made
— Here’s an example NationStates | Dispatch | Fylkirvegr Court of Justice Archive | Cases | [01-21] The Founder v. Scweinrelienen
– The actual trial with opening statements, cross examinations, closing statements, and rulings will happen on this regions RMB
– The region is passworded to protect trials from interruption
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Residents will also have their right to join the executive enshrined in the Conk.
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Residents who join the forum can propose laws to the Magisterium.
Voting begins on 19 April 2021 at 22:50 UTC and will last a period of 168 hours. It will end on 26 April 2021 at 22:50 UTC.
Voting Choices:
- Vote A for “Major Overhaul to Citizenship System”.
- Vote B for “A Compromise Resident Rights Proposal”.
- Vote ABSTAIN or PRESENT if you cannot make a decision in good conscience.
Despite this being a poll, I will insist that it be required that you supply your nation residing in the East Pacific and your World Assembly status, if applicable. If you are currently an active member of EPSA then you are exempt from this rule. WA Nations who are involved in a foreign military can remain classified but must supply which foreign military they are apart of. This is just to not deviate from our standard voting style and make the count harder or more complicated for us. Thank you.
Current list of Magisters (24):
AC5230 [Deputy Provost]
A mean old man
Bachtendekuppen
Brotherlandprez1
Catiania
Dabeez
Dremaur
Dylan [Provost]
GioSivo
Halleyscomet08
Heaveria
Kyon Thomas
Mangegneithe [Deputy Provost]
McStooley
Nociav
Philville2 [Deputy Provost]
Polandball7878
Rabindreinstein
Sammy23
SirShadow [Deputy Provost]
Sokala
Tawuse
TechTag
vw53a