Grand Tribunal

Grand Tribunal

Grand Tribunal
File:Emblem of the World Council.png
Formation	1956
Type	Principal Organ
Legal status	Active
Head	Chief of the Grand Tribunal Template:Country data Prestonia Akio Okamoto
Website	wc.org/en/gt/

The World Council Grand Tribunal, also called WCGT, is the highest body of the World Council. The WCGT functions as a high court of last resort and deals as an international arbiter explicitly with matters of nuclear warfare, proliferation, and threats to humanity and the environment enforced by the power of sanctions, trade embargoes, and other forms of economic police powers such as asset liquidity controls. Since 1997, this mandate has included environmental protection. There have been calls to expand the body's powers and mandates, but so far such efforts have been unsuccessful.

Role

The World Council Charter created the Tribunal as a "final, international arbiter evenly-balanced between our divergent political economies that would serve as a neutral and fair forum to resolve disputes involving nuclear weapons, technology, or threats."

Historically, the body was only authorized to hear a claim by a World Council member against another for a serious of violations of WC resolutions on nuclear issues. Typically, the Tribunal was asked to intervene in a nuclear standoff, crisis, or conflict and render judgment as to whether one party or the other violated WC prohibitions and protocols on nuclear issues.

Since 1997, the mandate has been expanded to include issuing reports on climate change and other environmental protectionism, such as greenhouse emissions, air pollutions, and other problems. However, the Tribunal's powers of enforcement were stripped on environmental reports of a non-nuclear nature and have generally proved ineffectual.

Procedure

Procedurally, the Tribunal is empowered to gather evidence, investigate, and produce a finding of fact. This is done through the commissioning of an international team of credentialed experts who are citizens of good standing from every nation on the Tribunal and who travel, investigate, and collect information for a final report.

Each WCGT "report" may or may not be binding formally or practically.

• A resolution report is a finding of fact in a claim that finds clear fault with one party or the other and issues a "resolutionary solution" (or set of them) that are enforced by the Tribunal's police powers.
  • A resolution report may have both a majority and dissenting minority opinions, but a report is binding only if a majority of the Tribunal agree to its findings and conclusions.

• A inconclusive report is a finding of fact that either clears or condemns both parties of fault and thus dismisses the claim.
  • An inconclusive report, if both parties found to be are at fault, may not exercise a "resolutionary solution" and may not use its police powers (see Clean hands legal doctrine).

• Alternatively, the Tribunal can simply dismiss the claim without investigating.

Enforcement powers

Depending on the severity of the issue (nuclear proliferation, nuclear war between two powers, or possible nuclear holocaust between the Cold War blocs), the Tribunal may elect to enforce its resolutionary solution with any of the following "police powers":

• The authority to levy economic sanctions on a World Council member who is found at fault;
• The authority to levy trade embargoes on a World Council member who is found at fault;
• The authority to issue asset liquidity controls on a World Council member who is found at fault;
• The authority to revoke membership in the World Council on a World Council member who is found at fault;
• The authority to declare a World Council member an "international menace and enemy of humanity" and authorize any nation-state in the world to affect regime change on a World Council member who is found at fault;¹

Notes:
1. The last power was a police power of the last resort and to be invoked in an extraordinary situation where a member's action or actions provoked what the Charter calls "a substantial risk" of nuclear war between the Anticommunist and Communist blocs that would lead to nuclear apocalypse. Throughout the Tribunal's history, even during nuclear crises between the blocs, the Tribunal has never considered this enforcement power due to the extreme risk it would bring.

Membership

The Tribunal was founded as an "even-balanced" forum for the two Cold War blocs to bring claims for arbitration regarding violations of World Council resolutions on nuclear issues. As such, from 1956 until the end of the Cold War in 2001, the Tribunal was organized by four seats automatically assigned to the Anticommunists, and four to the Communists, with the last (and the seat of the presiding chief of the body) always being given to a well-respected Non-aligned power.

After 2001, the Tribunal's bloc/faction system was reorganized to reflect the new CDI-WECA/RCO world divide.

In 2011, the Tribunal saw a deal emerge where the Skanderan Union, as recognition for its rising geopolitical prominence, was afforded a seat on the Tribunal. Both CDI and RCO were reduced to 3 seats apiece, and the last seat was allotted for an independent power both major blocs could agree on.

First term

The members of the Tribunal serve 5-year terms "en blanc." The first term of the WCGT (1956 - 1961) was negotiated among each prospective bloc (Anticommunist and Communist), who were each assigned four seats to divvy up amongst themselves while the vlocs directly negotiated who they both agreed to as the Non-aligned power to head the body.

1960 election reforms

By 1960, there was growing dissatisfaction and unease with the appointment model of filling out the Tribunal, and the World Council narrowly passed a resolution in 1960, WC Resolution 017, reforming selection rules to direct elections within each bloc. The Anticommunists, Communists, and Non-aligns all voted within their caucuses to fill their allotted seats.

"Permanent members"

While no nation was granted permanent seats, over time certain nations continually retained "their" seat each term.

During the Cold War era, the DSRA and Estovnia were the only Communist members that always retained their seats. Although the Republic of Anikatia was the legal successor to the dissolved DSRA, Anikatia has been denied in its bids to regain the seat. This has engendered resentment among Anikatian nationalist circles. President Sui Anyi's government has issued foreign policy papers, among which include the goal of "reclaiming" the so-called "Anikatian seat."

Both Arthurista and Belhavia retained their seats continually since the Tribunal's creation until the present. This has endeared a colloquialism referring to these two nations as the so-called "Permanent Two" on the Tribunal no matter the change in geopolitics. Before 2001, this was referred to as the "Permanent Four", including the then-DSRA and Communist Estovnia.

History of composition

	Composition of the Grand Tribunal (1961 - 1991)
	Term	Anticommunist Bloc	Anticommunist Bloc	Anticommunist Bloc	Anticommunist Bloc	Non-aligned Bloc (Presiding Chief of Tribunal)	Communist Bloc	Communist Bloc	Communist Bloc	Communist Bloc
	1961-1966	Belhavia	Arthurista	CRE	Belfras	Yakima	DSRA	Estovnia	Bogoria	Tule
	1966-1971	Belhavia	Arthurista	CRE	Belfras	Yakima	DSRA	Estovnia	Nazali	Tule
	1971-1976	Belhavia	Arthurista	Temuair	Belfras	Tarsas	DSRA	Estovnia	Hornatyia	Kahemba
	1976-1981	Belhavia	Arthurista	Temuair	Belfras	Tippercommon	DSRA	Estovnia	Hornatyia	Huamba
	1981-1986	Belhavia	Arthurista	CRE	Belfras	Tippercommon	DSRA	Estovnia	Ankar	Huamba
	1986-1991	Belhavia	Arthurista	CRE	Belfras	Tarsas	DSRA	Estovnia	Goredemabwa	Huamba

	Composition of the Grand Tribunal (1991 - 2001)
	Term	Anticommunist Bloc	Anticommunist Bloc	Anticommunist Bloc	Anticommunist Bloc	Non-aligned Bloc (Presiding Chief of Tribunal)	Communist Bloc	Communist Bloc	Communist Bloc	Communist Bloc
	1991-1996	Belhavia	Arthurista	CRE	Temuair	Tarsas	DSRA	Estovnia	Ankar	Huamba
	1996-2001	Belhavia	Arthurista	CRE	Temuair	Rodarion	DSRA	Estovnia	Ankar	Huamba

	Composition of the Grand Tribunal (2001 - 2011)
	Term	CDI	CDI	CDI	Independent (de facto CDI-leaner)	Non-aligned Bloc (Presiding Chief of Tribunal)	MP/ WECA	MP/ WECA	MP/ WECA	Independent (de facto MP-leaner)
	2001-2006	Belhavia	Arthurista	CRE	Tippercommon	Tule	Rodarion	Tarsas	Ulthrannia	Ankaran Union
	2006-2011	Belhavia	Arthurista	CRE	Tippercommon	Yakima	Rodarion	Tarsas	Ulthrannia	Nehaven
	2011-2016	Belhavia	Arthurista	Belfras	Tippercommon	Epria/Torchland1	Rodarion	Tarsas	Estovnia	Saarland

Current members

Country	Bloc/Faction	Term
Belhavia	CDI	2016 - 2021
Arthurista	CDI	2016 - 2021
Belfras	CDI	2016 - 2021
Temuair	CDI	2016 - 2021
Template:Country data Yakima Yakima	Independent/Neutral2	2016 - 2021
Rodarion	MP	2016 - 2021
Tarsas	MP	2016 - 2021
Template:Country data Madrastan Madrastan	MP	2016 - 2021
Template:Country data Korovia Korovia	MP	2016 - 2021

1. Due to the 2014 Dissolution of Epria, Torchland, as the most prominent of the three Eprian successor-states, assumed the former's Grand Tribunal seat for the remainder of the 2011-2016 term.
2. Current President of the Grand Tribunal for the 2016-2021 term.

See also

• World Council
• Trade Council