National Security Act (Namor)
| National Security Act Гукабоан Фато | |
|---|---|
| File:Namorseal.png Seal of the Central Council | |
| Central Council of the People's Republic of Namor | |
| Enacted by | 6th Namorese Central Council |
| Date passed | February 7, 1951 |
| Date assented to | February 7, 1951 |
| Date commenced | February 7, 1951 |
| Status: In force | |
The National Security Act (Namorese: Гукабоан Фато tr. Gukaboan Fato), often shortened to the NSA (Гуканфа, tr. Gukanfa) is a legislation passed by the 6th Namorese Central Council and promulgated by President-General Antelope Gelai in 1951. The NSA sets the definitions and penalties for treason, subversion, separatism, theft of classified information, and threatening government officials.
Enacted in the aftermath of the 1950 Namorese political crisis, the NSA was used to suppress supporters of former President-General Kiang Su and members of the Green Youth Organization who remained active after the crisis. As the influence of the Kiangites waned over the years, the government used the NSA to target opposition activists, including members of the Democratic Socialist Party and participants in the Plum Blossom movement.
Use of the NSA to suppress opposition to the Liberationist Party of Namor became less frequent as non-Liberationist parties gained influence in Namor. At present, the law remains in effect but is no longer widely seen as a tool for political persecution.
History
The NSA was passed against the backdrop of the death of Antelope Yunglang and the subsequent political crisis that saw the suppression of an attempted coup led by former President-General Kiang Su by President-General Antelope Gelai, whose administration was backed by the Namorese Central Council and Namorese Liberation Army. Kiang was sentenced to death for counter-revolution (equivalent to treason at the time) and mass murder, but his sentence was later reversed by the Supreme People's Court, which ruled that his trial was unfair.
Even after the failed coup, Namor remained in an unstable condition as many supporters of Kiang, or Kiangites, were active throughout the country and viewed the new government as illegitimate. As the government continued suppressing the Kiangites, it sought to codify the suppression into law.
In February of 1951, the NSA was presented before the Central Council, where it was passed without much debate. Immediately after its passage, Antelope Gelai signed the NSA into law.
Law text
Article 1: Treason
- §1: Any Namorese national who joins a war on the side of an enemy of the People’s Republic of Namor or colludes with a foreign government or organization to wage war against the People’s Republic of Namor shall be sentenced to death.
- §2: Any Namorese national found having prepared for the crimes listed in Section 1 of this Article shall be sentenced to life imprisonment without parole eligibility for 35 years.
Article 2: Subversion
- §1: Any person who attempts to overthrow the Government of the People’s Republic of Namor through means that threaten human life, property, public infrastructure, or the proper functioning of society as a whole shall be sentenced to death.
- §2: Any person found having prepared for the crimes listed in Section 1 of this Article shall be sentenced to life imprisonment without parole eligibility for 35 years.
Article 3: Separatism
- §1: Any person who attempts to undermine the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the People’s Republic of Namor through means that threaten human life, property, public infrastructure, or the proper functioning of society as a whole shall be sentenced to either death or life imprisonment without parole eligibility for 35 years.
- §2: Any person who expresses approval of acts that undermine the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the People’s Republic of Namor shall be sentenced to no more than seven years in prison.
- §3: Any person found having prepared for the crimes listed in Section 1 of this Article shall be sentenced to no more than five years in prison.
Article 4: Theft of Classified Information
- §1: Any person who possesses or releases classified information belonging to the Government of the People’s Republic of Namor through means not supported by existing legislation concerning the possession and release of classified information in the People’s Republic of Namor shall be sentenced to no more than ten years in prison.
- §2: A court may review a case involving the theft of classified information in camera should it determine complete transparency detrimental to national security or the public well-being.
Article 5: Threatening Government Officials and Military Personnel of the People's Republic
Any person who threatens to kill, kidnap, or inflict bodily harm upon any member of the State Council, Central Council, People’s Courts, People’s Procuratorates, and the Namorese Liberation Army shall be sentenced to no more than five years in prison.
Article 6: Sedition
Any person who encourages others to commit any of the crimes listed in Articles 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 of this Act shall be sentenced to no more than three years in prison.
Article 7: Supplementary Penalties
- §1: Any foreign national in the People’s Republic of Namor who is found to have committed any of the crimes listed in Articles 3, 4, 5, and 6 may be expelled from Namor and banned from entering Namor for a period determined by the court upon completion of the maximum sentence period.
- §2: Any political organization in the People’s Republic of Namor that is evidently and directly responsible for violations listed in this Act shall suspend all of its activities for a period determined by the court. During the period of suspension, the organization may not register for elections, nor may it receive subsidies from governmental and public bodies.
- §3: Any person who is found to have committed any of the crimes listed in Articles 4, 5, and 6 as a result of correspondence with an official or agent of the Christian Republic of Luziyca shall be sentenced to no more than double the original maximum prison sentence for the crime.
Controversy
By the late 1950s, the Kiangites, the original targets of the NSA, were no longer considered a substantial threat, and the government started using the NSA to imprison opponents to Liberationist Party rule. In 1958, Deng Mianbao, the author of A Hard Look at Liberationism who called the People's Republic of Namor a "sham," was charged with sedition under Article 6 of the NSA and sentenced to three years in prison. Deng's sentence received nationwide attention and ignited debate about the NSA. That same year, the newly-formed Democratic Socialist Party listed the repeal of the NSA as among its foremost objectives. The party would continue to call for the NSA's repeal for the next two decades.
Though the repeal of the NSA was not a major demand of the Plum Blossom protests of 1965, many of its participants shouted slogans denouncing the NSA. A few protest leaders were arrested and charged with sedition but were later released as a gesture of goodwill from the government.