Carucerean National Rally

Carucerean National Congress Bouga Nasyonal Karukais
Abbreviation	BNK
President	Dazadiu Dogo
Chairperson	Jacques Bangou
Secretary-General	Sophie Péroumal
Presidium	National Executive Committee
Spokesperson	Johnathan Bhengu
Founders	Patrick Serres Cyril Rivette Jacques Delores
Founded	13 July 1945 (1945-07-13)
Headquarters	Hibiscus House 92 Grand Avenue Kingston Carucere
Newspaper	BNK Weekly Report
Youth wing	BNK Youth League
Women's wing	BNK Women's League
Paramilitary wing	National Self-Defence Forces (1960-1983)
Membership (2020)	76,510
Ideology	Carucerean nationalism Carucerean liberalism
Political position	Centre-left
Regional affiliation	National Alliance
Colours	Green   Red   Black
Slogan	For Our Free Land
Senate	44 / 79
Party flag
Political parties

The Carucerean National Congress (Papotement: Bouga Nasyonal Karukais), commonly abbreviated as the BNK, is a center-left political party in Carucere. Serving as the local opposition against the United Provinces and then the Carucerean Republic, the BNK has dominated Carucerean politics since the ratification of the current constitution in 1974. Although it has not won a legislative majority since 1997, it remains the largest party in the Senate and the leading party in governing coalitions. As a result, it has sometimes been referred to as Carucere's "main governing party".

The origins of the BNK can be traced to the Congress of Friends, a political club of educated Creoles founded in 1923 in order to advocate for political rights in the Gaullican colony of Saint-Brendan. When the United Provinces was established in 1945, the BNK was refounded as a political movement to establish civil, political, and economic rights for all Carucereans. As the BNK's membership expanded it transformed into a mass political party. During the Carucerean Republic, it ran campaign of agitation that would lead to the start of the Carucerean Revolution. In response, the party was suppressed before it was banned entirely and was forced to operate its movement underground. The Sugar Crash significantly weakened the Republican government and led to significant increase in agitation from the party. After the party's ban was lifted in 1970, the BNK served as a key party during the negotiations sponsored by Sainte-Chloé. In the first free elections in 1974, the BNK won a majority of seats in the Senate and Jean Preval was elected President of Carucere. After Preval's death, the party suffered a major split in 1987, after Joseph Charles and his faction left to form the Bahian Amendist-dominated Reformed Social Party. After a period of political infighting, the party returned to power in the 1994 elections under the leadership of James Serville. Since then Congress has continuously remained in power through a minority government with the support of other parties.

Today the BNK remains the predominant force in Carucerean politics at the national and provincial level. The Congress is traditionally supported by a majority of Dezevauni Carucereans and the Medi population with additional support from left leaning Bahians and Creoles. The Congress has its strongest support in cities and urban areas. It is often described as a big tent left-of-center party, with several factions that revolve around ideology rather than the interests of ethnic and religious groups. The party's history has been defined by the relations and interactions between its factions. Although the BNK lacks any cohesive ideology beyond the basic principles of Carucerean liberalism, its factions have also generally supported economic interventionism and maintaining close ties with the rest of the Arucian Cooperation Organization. Dazadiu Dogo, the incumbent Premier, has served as the President of the BNK since 2018. The BNK currently supports the incumbent President of Carucere, Neil Gaubina.

Name and symbols

In Papotement, the party's name is Bouga Nasyonal Karukais, generally translated as Carucerean National Congress. Bouga (lit. large meeting), derived from Ziba for any kind of large or plenary gathering, originally referred to the party's origin as a political club. The name has since been redefined by the party to describe itself as an "assembly", instead of a traditional political party, where all Carucereans can participate.

The logo of the BNK uses a goaboabanga as its primary motif, a prominent symbol of resistance during the Revolution. It is overlaid by the Torch of Freedom, a hand raising a lit torch with a red and black flame, symbolizing the historical and ongoing struggle of all Carucereans against oppression. Green represents the land of Carucere itself, while the red and black are pan-Arucian colors, representing international solidarity and collective experience. The red and black, widely considered to be Carucere's national colors, are prominently used in the country's national symbols.

Structure

The organisational structure of the BNK are similar to the structures of Sections of the Workers' International. The Congress is organized in a hierarchical and pyramidal system of councils, known as the Pyramid (Piramid), where a council elects the members of a council the next tier up, who then elects the next tier. Under this system, the Congress' leadership ultimately derives its political power from these councils. It is designed to ensure that all tiers of the BNK, from its local councils to the national council, is ultimately accountable to its grassroots party membership. In general, Congress Councils consist around a few dozen party members and operate by consensus and governed by collective leadership.

Congress Councils

The lowest level of the BNK are a series of lower councils, known as the People’s Councils. There is generally a council assigned to every local Community to organize local members and to represent the interests of the BNK. It consists of the local members of the BNK and the members from the organisations of the People's Volunteer Organisation. These councils serve to coordinate and connect the BNK to their grassroots members and to mobilize them within the party’s mass movements. In addition it also has a role in social welfare campaigns, such as literacy campaigns and vaccination drives.

These councils elect representatives to various higher councils, consisting of around fifty delegates representing Council in the Parish. These Parish councils consist of members from various subcouncils that operate in local institutions and businesses at the council's tier. These councils elect representatives to even the insular councils that each operate on Marien and Mauga. These serve to coordinate the actions of the lower tier councils, cooperate with their counterpart, and report to the party on the national level

National Council

The National Council is the BNK's most powerful institution and is its highest deliberative and decision-making body. According to the party’s constitution, the council forms the highest tier of the Congress Councils and consists of around 25 representatives elected by the BNK’s insular councils and Leagues. The National Council is the top forum for national debate and decision-making about policy direction and issues that affects the entire party. The National Council examines reports sent by its councils to inform itself about issues affecting the party and to inform policy decisions and debate. Its last major role is to elect the members of the National Executive Committee and to approve further appointments made by them.

National Executive Committee

The National Executive Committee, or just the Committee, is the Congress's executive body that serves as its highest authority. The Executive Committee has an important role in setting the general agenda of the Congress's national institutions and ensuring the day-to-day running of the Congress. The Executive Committee Consists of nine elected officials and various appointed officials, led by the President of the BNK. The body functions as a cabinet, with its members tasked with heading the Congress's key offices. The Committee’s main duties include the daily administration of the BNK, the implementation of Congress policy as decided by the Central Council, and appointment of officials in other party institutions. Although the Executive Committeein theory is solely an administrative body, in reality it wields significant influence over the BNK's institutions, and functions as the Congress' leadership. Nevertheless the Committee is ultimately responsible to the National Council and its decisions can be overridden by it.

President

The President of the BNK is the chairperson of the Executive Committee and the head of the BNK. The Congress' constitution establishes the position as the party's head administrator and the party’s chief diplomat to Carucere and the world. The First Secretary's duties include overseeing the activities and duties of the Executive Committee, attending sessions of Congress institutions, proposing policy decided by the Committee, and cooperating with the leaders of other parties. The President’s authority is broad, but in reality, power is shared with the Executive Committee and the Central Congress Council.

Domestic Affairs Commission

The Domestic Affairs Commission manages the BNK's affairs within Carucere. Its three primary duties are drafting party policy, managing the Congress's organisations, and managing its relations with the other political parties, particularly with the other members of the National Alliance. The Commission also oversees the Congress's relations with elected representatives in the national, state, and local governments. Due to its central role in the Congress's domestic activities in the country, the Commission is considered to be the heart of the Committee. As a result, the Secretary of the DAC is traditionally the third highest-ranking member of the Executive Committee.

National Labor Commission

The National Labor Commission manages the BNK's labor relations within Carucere. It cooperates with two labor organisations affiliated with the BNK; the Carucerean Worker's Association, a national federation of worker cooperatives and the Federation of Labour Organisations, a federation of trade unions. The Commission holds some sway over the country's economy by directing the AWA to undertake economic initiatives and mediating labor disputes with the FLO and other businesses. The Commission heads the Congress of Carucerean Workers, which consists of representatives from the CWA, FLO, and the Commission to determine economic and labor policy.

Ethnic Relations Commission

The Ethnic Relations Commission monitors ethnic issues and tensions within the country and investigates its causes and issues recommendations to the DAC. The ERC serves to guide the BNK on policy that could impact ethnic relations in the country and help the party respond to incidents when they arise. While the Commission has no authority and just serves to report its findings, it lends to the BNK’s ability to draw broad support from Carucere’s population.

Internal Affairs Commission

The Internal Affairs Commission is the party organ responsible for combating corruption and other wrongdoing as well as discouraging ethnic-based factionalism and racism within the party. The Commission's most important role is to ensure that the BNK remains a strict meritocracy and is not affected by favoritism, especially ethnic and religious kinds. However it has been largely unsuccessful at fully curtailing corruption and patronage, especially at the lower levels of the Congress. It is the only organ within the party which can sentence or condemn party members. The Commission, and its chairman and deputy chairmen, are elected by the Executive Committee.

Other organs

• Central Administration Commission: responsible for solving the organizational problems and implementing the decisions of the Central Congress Council. The Executive Committee oversees the work of the Departments of the Central Council. It is also responsible for coordinating the Congress's actions as well as drafting and circulating party directives and internal reports between the tiers of the BNK.
• Central Research Commission: responsible for researching issues of significant interest to the BNK leadership and developing policies and responses to it. It oversees several research arms that manages dozens of think tanks and cooperates with the Security Commission's Office for Intelligence and Research.
• Office of Ideological Development: conceives and develops the party's ideological line. It advises the higher institutions of the BNK and provides political training and ideological indoctrination for members of the Congress.
• Political and Legal Affairs Commission: responsible for handling the BNK's legal affairs within Carucere and abroad.
• ACO Affairs Commission: oversees the BNK's activities overseas within the Arucian Cooperation Organization] and supervises and coordinates the Congress's policy towards Carucere’s neighbors.
• Organisation Department: The Congress's human resources department; it is responsible for managing the Congress's membership.
• People's Media Group: A media organisation that manages the BNK's media outlets, such as the Weekly Report newspaper, radio stations, and a TV channel. It also functions as the Congress's public relations department.

Leagues

The BNK has three party member wings; the Women's League, the Youth League, and the Overseas League. Under the party’s constitution, the leagues have autonomy with the authority to write their own constitutions and policies. The leagues are part of the BNK’s mass movements and have the ability to send delegates to the National Executive Committee.