Articles of Federation (Meridon)

The Articles of Federation are the constituting documents that comprises the supreme law of Meridon.

Provisions

Preamble

The preamble of the Articles of Federation read:

In the aims of establishing an agreed-upon unity among the people of the lands and territories of Meridon under common cause, bond, and law, we, her people, assembled in concord, set forth these Articles of Federation to ensure and establish a more brotherly Union, establish and provide for justice, enshrine rights to law, provide for the defense and welfare of her people, secure the blessings of liberty, and form the basis of union upon one supreme law beneath none but Heaven.

Adjustments to the Articles of Federation

Adjustment 1, ratified in 1769, laid the basis for a number of judicial procedures, establishing federal supremacy in cases of disputes between territories and codifying that territories did not enjoy sovereign immunity from suit by extra-territorial citizens, but restricted the ability of non-Meridonians to sue Meridonian federal or territorial agencies and established the bases on which territories could be sued. It also formalized the structure of federal courts into their current forms, outlining their responsibilities, structure and appointments.

Adjustment 2, ratified in 1783, authorized the Federal Government to directly regulate internal and international trade. It was authorized at the same time as Amendment 3, and later significantly strengthened by the implementation of Adjustment ##.

Adjustment 3, ratified in 1783, authorized the Federal Government to create permanent standing military forces by legislation, superseding the provision that required a biennial renewal for standing military forces by the Council. This provision allowed for the more-immediate permanent creation of the Meridonian Navy, and later the Army.

Adjustment 4, ratified in 1834, codified the abolition of indentured servitude and slavery in Meridon, and also mandated one of the first minimum compensation laws in the world for certain workers- particularly those in the agricultural sectors- to be paid in federal reserve currency or certain weights of 'staple crop or other foodstuffs' per week. It also provided for the gradual emancipation of indentured servants and slaves, offering either a monetary sum for their freedom from owners and freeing any child below the age of 15. The provisions mandating specific minimum compensation were later adjusted by Adjustment ##, and later superseded by Amendment ## relegating their provision into federal legislation. The provisions allowing for the 'phase-out' of servitude were annulled by Adjustment 5 in 1842, which provided for the release of all remaining indentured servants and slaves 3 years later.

Adjustment 5, ratified in 1842, repealed the gradual emancipation clauses of Adjustment 4 and set a date of March 03, 1845 for the absolute abolition of servitude and slavery and the emancipation of all persons currently indentured or enslaved.

Adjustment ##, ratified in 1853, clarified the provision of Meridonian citizenship and its rights and responsibilities, amending Article V to provide for jus sanguinis provision of citizenship, both national and territorial, that could not be abridged or conditionally provided under any circumstances to persons born to Meridonian citizens, ending the revocation of citizenship as a legal penalty except for naturalized citizenship. It also terminated the principle of jus soli issuance of citizenship at both federal and territorial levels, and ended some certain territorial mandates that citizenship required land ownership. It also charged the government with the 'preservation and stewardship of Tangaran affairs.

Adjustment ##, ratified in 1880, established the Southern Islands Territory and Eastern Islands Territory as independent territorial entities in the Federal Republic.

Adjustment ##, ratified in 1910, sets the dates and cycles for election to the Presidency and the Federal Council, with elections to be held on January 10 and assumption of office to be conducted on April 10th of every fifth year beginning from 1910. It codified the unwritten standard of conducting elections on these dates and adjusted the year of election cycles one year forward following the constitutional crisis during the Kanuha War. It also made updates to electoral and voting systems, abolishing the electoral college system in use in favor of direct elections of the President.

Adjustment ##, ratified in 1957 following the three-term presidency of Reginald Lancaster, sets term limits on holders of the office of President. It stipulates that presidents may be elected to the office no more than twice for two five year terms, and prohibits anyone who held the office as the result of a presidential vacancy for more than two years and six months from being elected more than once.

See also

Government of Meridon