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Community of Nations


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Community of Nations
CommonwealthLogo.png
Emblem
HeadquartersKesselbourg City (international territory)
Official languages
TypeIntergovernmental organization
Leaders
Vedmed Ekaterine Beruchashvili
Gapolania Alessio Rosasco
South Kabu Branko Tuasalamony
Establishment
• Charter signed
12 February 1935 (89 years ago) (1935-02-12)
• Charter entered into force
12 May 1935 (88 years ago) (1935-05-12)
Website
cn.int

The Community of Nations (abbreviated CN) is an international organisation established in the wake of the Great War to foster intergovernmental cooperation and prevent another major war. The headquarters of the Community is in Kesselbourg City, and enjoys a status as international territory. The organisation is financed by voluntary contributions by its member states, and its objectives include ensuring international peace and security, as well as promoting human rights and social development, protecting the environment, and organising international aid.

History

The Community of Nations was established in Kesselbourg City, Kesselbourg shortly after the Great War, for the purposes of organising and harmonising the international community, in particular in the hopes of mitigating the effects of the Great War and preventing such an event from occurring again. At its establishment up until the present day, it has had wide currency, with almost all widely recognised sovereign states being members of the CN.

Structure

International Assembly

The International Assembly is the main body of delegates to the Community of Nations; all countries recognised by majority vote in the International Assembly are entitled to send a single voting delegate to the International Assembly. The International Assembly is able to make motions on anything, but nothing it passes is binding except motions on whether to recognise states, to decide on appointments of members of its Committees, and to impeach Secretaries-General. The state in question, if already a member, is excluded from the voting on itself. Motions must be passed by a majority of voting delegates; a quorum is a simple majority of delegates.

General and Administrative Committee

The General and Administrative Committee (abbreviated as CGA, from Gaullican "Comité général et administratif") manages the operation of the Community of Nations; it arranges security, materials, interpreters, identification, and so forth for Committees and Commissions. It also deals with budgetary issues and oversees the bureaucracy of the CN. In its appointment, the International Assembly generally follows the recommendation of the Secretary-General and the Committees, as the roles are purely administrative.

The General and Administrative Committee is chaired by the Secretary-General, who is the chief bureaucrat of the Community of Nations. However, they are often seen as the face of the organisation and so have an important diplomatic role. The Secretary-General is elected every five years and rotates by region. The Secretary-General has two deputies: the Secretary for Logistics and the Secretary for Personnel. There is a convention that the positions of Secretary-General and their two deputies should be rotated between continents ensuring that of the senior leadership of the CN there always serves an Euclean, Asterian and Coian. Under these are several under-secretaries.

International Committees

There are five International Committees which have formal legislative powers. They make decisions by simple majority vote. All International Committees have permanent representatives from Estmere, Kirenia, Marchenia, Soravia, Senria, and Werania and a representative from each of the eight regions. These members are elected by their regional peers and serve terms of three years with no re-election allowed unless approved by the Secretary-General as a last resort (i.e., a deadlock results in failure to produce a candidate).

If abstention causes a draw, the Secretary-General acts as tiebreaker. If the Secretary-General abstains, the decision does not pass. Committee members from member states with non-permanent seats are elected by their region, but cannot serve another term until all other members of that region have served. They serve two year terms. Committee members from member states with permanent seats serve according to rules set by the members themselves.

Security Committee

The aim of the Security Committee is the preservation of peace. Its mission is to decide on such matters as intervention, peacekeeping and active monitoring of threats to global order. The SC oversees peacekeeping missions and authorizes Community of Nations mandates and economic sanctions as measures to maintain global peace.

The Security Committee, unlike other organs, allows members (both permanent and non-permanent) to veto motions. Vetoes can be overridden by the International Assembly by the following margins:

  • Non-permanent member veto - 50% of IA votes.
  • Permanent member veto - 75% of IA votes.
  • Two-member veto - Unable to be overridden.
Region served Nation Delegate name Term began Term ends
Permanent seat  Estmere Margaret Roxton 2016 2021
Permanent seat  Marchenia Josuè Magriñà 2016 2021
Permanent seat  Soravia Jan Jarabinec 2016 2021
Permanent seat  Senria Hiroyosi Haruna 2018 2023
Permanent seat  Kirenia Kaspars Zeidmanis 2015 2020
Permanent seat  Werania Helmuth Abshagen 2017 2021
Asteria North  Vinalia Anzhela Oleksiyivna 2021 2023
Asteria South  Aucuria Eufemija Metjauskienė 2020 2023
Coius North  Yemet Endale Nega 2021 2023
Coius West tbd 2019 2021
Coius East 2021 2023
Euclea East  Gaullica Iseult Berlioz 2019 2021
Euclea West  West Miersa Mieczysław Orlowski 2021 2023

Economic Committee

The Economic Committee decides on economic and international financial matters.

Social Committee

The Social Committee rules on social, cultural, religious, humanitarian, and increasingly environmental matters.

Legal Committee

The Legal Committee interprets, negotiates and occasionally writes international law, and helps to solve disputes and develop legal systems.

Trusteeship Committee

The Trusteeship Committee helps states rebuild, aids decolonisation, and promotes self-determination and the legitimacy and stability of the nation-state. The only territory managed by the Trusteeship Committee at present is the continent of Glacia, through the International Condominium of Glacia; this arrangement is highly unusual compared to other trusteeships as it is permanent for the foreseeable future, and has long outlasted all other trusteeship territories. The result of this arrangement and its longevity is that the Trusteeship Committee is essentially inactive outside of its oversight of the International Condominium of Glacia's operation, to which it generally takes a hands-off approach.

Commissions

The Community of Nations has fifteen commissions designed to act as specialised agencies in executing the CN's aims and mandates:

Commission Created Purpose
Commission for Human Rights 1935 Promotion and protection of human rights as defined in the Declaration of Universal Natural Rights
Commission for Commerce and Trade Law Harmonising international trade law and resolving trade disputes
Commission for Refugees and Displaced Peoples Refugee resettlement and support
Commission for Labour Standards Promotes social justice and decent work through international labour standards. Includes representation from trade unions and employers' organizations.
Commission for Disarmament Arms control and the prevention of arms proliferation
Commission for Cultural and Scientific Development Promotion of cooperation in the cultural and scientific spheres and the preservation of cultural landmarks
Commission for Agriculture and Food Security Intended to eradicate world hunger. Later expanded to also include agricultural development.
Commission for Disease Prevention and Health Intended to combat epidemics and promote the development of good health
Commission for Water Sanitation and Security Promotes water sanitation and provides relief in droughts
Commission for Economic and Social Development Promotes economic development and the eradication of poverty
Commission for Habitation and Shelter Promotes housing and mitigates the negative effects of overpopulation
Commission for Maritime Boundaries Governs international sea boundary law
Commission for the Protection of Women Deals with women's issues
Commission for the Affairs of Indigenous Peoples 2001 Deals with indigenous issues
Commission for Climate Action 2014 Deals with climate change issues

Criticism

From its earliest days, the CN has been criticized on a number of grounds. One perennial point of contention is its voluntary funding system, where member states are under no formal obligation to fund the ongoing work of the organization. This often results in serious budget shortfalls that lead to incomplete or cancelled programs, which particularly affects the poorest states which rely on the CN to provide basic humanitarian and security services. For the 2019–2020 budget period the CN had a €120 million operating deficit, the worst in nearly a decade, and the Secretary-General was forced to furlough staff and defer maintenance on buildings at headquarters. Reform proposals have been floated dozens of times to move to a mandatory assessment system that would stabilize the budget, but so far the Security Committee (which has a veto on matters affecting the Charter) has not allowed any proposed budget amendment to advance.

The nature and organization of the Security Committee have also been roundly criticized by states that feel the SC is an undemocratic and moribund institution. Telchìde Gliò, Permanent Representative of Montecara to the CN, has stated that the Security Committee's permanent membership "effectively freezes the power balance of international relations at an arbitrary point in the past" and that the lack of reform "absolutely guarantees that the committee will gradually become less and less representative of reality and therefore less respected when it is needed most." Reform proposals have included the abolition of permanent seats, the expansion of permanent seats to 10, 15, or 20 members, the expansion of non-permanent seats, and even the total abolition of the committee, with its duties taken up by the International Assembly. So far, no reform has been able to pass the committee itself.

See also